Bren Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 You may remember that I purchased a tidy focus Tdci for not much money. The car had a stamped book - not many other bills (suspicious), i noticed immediately that the oil looked filthy considering that it was only six months old. (Allegedly) I fitted mudflaps to the car last week - i had to pour boiling water onto the alloys because they had stuck to the hubs. Refitted with liberal application of copper grease. The car is going on our annual trip to Devon next week so I gave it a once over - pollen filter looked like a lump of sponge. Air filter was clean ( maybe the service was an air filter), I replaced the cabin filter and dropped the oil.The oil filter was filthy, and stuck - my chain wrench made a hole in it it was so tight.The unpainted ring around the top was rusty. Deffo not six months old. Do your own servicing chaps........ fred, Banger Kenny, saucedoctor and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richardmorris Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I'd rather see receipts than stamps. I don't think the fiat has a single stamp in its book, but I have every receipt from new. The 2cv is the same, few stamps but invoices going back to the first service in 1986. fred and Banger Kenny 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anonymous user Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 The majority of people don't seem to care, in fact many think the annual MOT is a service. When I sold my nice Volvo 240 estate a few years ago it had a full Volvo service history, including stamped service book, every invoice even for tyres, bulbs, wiper blades, valve caps, etc. and handwritten notes from the original owner on invoices where he had discussed items with the service manager. It also had a book recording every tank of fuel, the mileage and mpg calculation. I kept up the servicing and replacement parts side of things with the history but let the fuel recording go as it hurt working out how much fuel I was putting through it. When I sold it, the purchaser did not seem to bothered about the complete maintenance history. When I saw it up for sale again last year and thought seriously about buying it back, service/maintenance information for the intervening years seemed non-existent. I expect it had had a few oil changes, but no doubt the intervening owners had benefitted from the earlier care and preventative maintenance. Banger Kenny 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stillOrange Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 My neighbour had a 2 year old Hyundai. As it was under warranty he took it to the dealership for servicing.Left the dash cam on and after few hours came to pick it up. Paid the invoice for full service and went home. Checked the recording which showed the car's bonnet opened for two minutes (air filter) and that's it. Trust no one. Banger Kenny, dugong and Vince70 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordonbennet Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I reckon you should spend more time checking the seller out than the car. quacks? waddles? good chance its a duck. I have almost no receipts for servicing on any of my cars, though each one (apart from the specialist indy serviced Merc) has been overserviced by me, how the hell can i offer a receipt for 25 litres best quality engine oil, 20 litres Dexron 3, 20 litres 75/90 gear oil or 5 quality oil filters bought when they were half price.Maybe my PC purchase history would suffice? I know i'm not alone in this, when i buy a car its the conversation with the owner that reveals all, the unknowing bullshitter soon overeggs the pudding then trips themselves by talking complete bollocks. mercrocker, HMC, forddeliveryboy and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave21478 Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 ^^^ yep, people think and MOT is a service and a service is a complete stripdown and rebuild. Most servicing now doesnt even involve taking the wheels off, its just a quick oil change by sooking the old stuff out the top, maybe the filters and a load of tickboxes on their fucking ipad to say they have "inspected" the brake pads, which means peering through the inspection hole and guessing the remaining thickness, nothing about actually checking the brakes, applying copper grease or any required** maintenance. **apparently this sort of thing is NOT required any more, but the number of car with seized on wheels, seized calipers, seized handbrake cables and loads of other easily preventable faults would suggest otherwise.But since the car is not expected to last more than 8 years anyway, who cares? its only wierdos like us that run and care for older cars and we are in a minority. Lord Sterling, Essex V6, Banger Kenny and 8 others 11 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richardmorris Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I reckon you should spend more time checking the seller out than the car. quacks? waddles? good chance its a duck. I have almost no receipts for servicing on any of my cars, though each one (apart from the specialist indy serviced Merc) has been overserviced by me, how the hell can i offer a receipt for 25 litres best quality engine oil, 20 litres Dexron 3, 20 litres 75/90 gear oil or 5 quality oil filters bought when they were half price.Maybe my PC purchase history would suffice? I know i'm not alone in this, when i buy a car its the conversation with the owner that reveals all, the unknowing bullshitter soon overeggs the pudding then trips themselves by talking complete bollocks. Anything I buy for the cars, or order on-line to replace myself I keep the receipt and file it with the car's history folder. If you buy something half price even better, but there's zero effort in putting the receipt in a folder. Probably, it's my nature as a scientist. I keep every record at work- I have every single piece of paper for work going back to 1996 when I started. I also like filing and don't like throwing things away. Taff, RayMK, Jerzy Woking and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordonbennet Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Anything I buy for the cars, or order on-line to replace myself I keep the receipt and file it with the car's history folder. If you buy something half price even better, but there's zero effort in putting the receipt in the folder. You don't fully realise the utter chaos that is chez the bennet's, if i ever had a folder SWMBO would have the blitz, laughingly known as a tidy up, and the bastard would never been seen again...well that's my excuse and i'm sticking to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richardmorris Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 You don't fully realise the utter chaos that is chez the bennet's, if i ever had a folder SWMBO would have the blitz, laughingly known as a tidy up, and the bastard would never been seen again...well that's my excuse and i'm sticking to it.Everyone is different. I feel calmer knowing I have records and think it easier to file things, knowing where I can find them. It would be over the top to say it's ocd, but it makes me happy. Partly this is due to work's influence where some pharmaceutical companies want records of a micro-pipette's service five years ago. saucedoctor 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghosty Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 We've had this problem - stamps aplenty in the A4's book, but little sign of any actual maintenance. The brake fluid is black... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexg Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 When I've been suspicious I've phoned the garages that have stamped up. Found the odd dodgy ones that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I got a whole load of receipts with my Escort. Every single thing that there was a receipt for broke. cms206, Banger Kenny and Lacquer Peel 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HMC Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 I love going over old paperwork to get an overall sense of how well it's been looked after. Having said that, both my current heaps had none! I must admit I do my own servicing and probably spend far more time than a garage determining the oil specs for the age and mileage etc to an anal level! Not a suprise sadly that people get duped sometimes over these things, however rare it may be. Vince70 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollywobbler Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Remember taking a works Fiesta for its first service at 12,000 miles. It consisted of CHECKING the engine oil. Not replacing it. They still charged a bloody fortune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgyBastard Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 What normally happens when I buy a car is the manual/history gets chucked in the glove box never to be looked at again. AlabamaShrimp and Jim Bell 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danthecapriman Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 My sister has a 54 reg Fiesta 1.25 with a full Ford history. Bought a couple of years ago now.Eventually I did a full service on it. The oil filter was so old (though it was a Ford branded one) it was filthy, well stuck on and actually starting to rust through! The casing had tiny rust blebs with oil residue coming through!The pollen filter was actually completely missing! Brake fluid looked utterly rank and the rocker cover was leaking all over the spark plugs.Fsh eh?! Yeah my arse!It doesn't seem to have suffered at all and it's been a good car over the last few years but I do all the servicing etc now so nothing gets missed and I know it's done properly. HMC 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bren Posted July 18, 2015 Author Share Posted July 18, 2015 I changed the brake fluid as well. Surprisingly all the bleed nipples cracked open. One rear caliper is quite recent. All the filters I removed were Mann items, so they are fairly good quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripped fred Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 One reason I prefer to do my own servicing is that I then 'know' it has been done properly, correct oil spec etc. Even if a garage has done it all properly you always have the doubt in your mind whether they've missed something or cut corners. Doing it yourself is the only sure way. As well as putting you in control it's also very satisfying, let's you bond with the car and is cheaper. With older cars it also doesn't affect it's value, probably increases it. Another reason why I wouldn't want a newer car where you feel obliged to take it to the dealer to get that magic stamp in the book. mercrocker and DodgyBastard 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HH-R Posted July 18, 2015 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Even though my car is a 10 year old cheapo, it's been serviced at a Kia main dealer every 5k! I've done 4k since I got it so think about servicing again soon. I want to keep the FMDSH, but it seems pointless paying nigh on £200 or whatever for what's essentially looking at stuff, an oil change and some filters that my local will do for £100 ish, you read all the horror stories of main dealers not actually doing owt too. It can't really depreciate any more anyway so the service history isn't going to help in that way. I think it has actually received new oil regularly at least, it sounds lovely and quiet even when it has been started up after sitting all weekend. I checked the pollen filter the other day too and it was as clean as a whistle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercrocker Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Main dealer servicing getting skimped is nothing new. Speak to any retired mechanic who was apprenticed in the Sixties and they have some proper horror stories - Oil filters left leaking (10 mins on the jobcard, no more....) and even one place where regular customers cars used to have a filter change skipped every other service - just a wipe over the bowl with a paraffin soaked rag. No wonder stuff was clapped after 50,000 miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burraston2006 Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 FMDSH? Fully stamped service book? Load of bollocks! About 15 years ago I had a mate had a Ford Maverick with little or no service history ( Bought off of a main dealer ) . Another mate mate worked in the service department and a couple of pints later and hey presto a fully stamped service book with a couple to spare!! As it was n't quite kosher I p/xed a mate p/xed it back with the original garage. They said great service history and they remember the car going through the services regularly. Like I said it's all utter bollocks and they are all thieving bastards! tooSavvy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Torana Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Tip for younger readers: "FSH" does not stand for "Free Shipping & Handling" in this case. Rusty_Rocket 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timewaster Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Anyone who has worked in a dealer knows that the stamps are very hard to find at the weekend. IT records mean it's getting harder to get away with.I know of one mechanic who got the boot when his neighbor pxd a fsh car to the dealer where he worked. Fully stamped book but the reg didn't appear on their system. BUSTED! Rusty_Rocket 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr A Lawrence Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 When I bought my S type jag last year I got a fully stamped service book from the supplying dealer but no invoices. I rang the dealership and explained I'd just bought the car and, to his credit, the guy there went through the whole history over the phone. The original owner had put the car in for a service and mot every May from new and the invoices matched up with what the mot history on dvla said. Added bonus was a year before I bought it it had 2 new turbos fitted at not quite the price I paid for the car!!!! CGSB and richardmorris 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LC Torana Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 ...it it had 2 new turbos fitted... You have an S-Type R? More info, pics and driving impressions, please. In your own time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr A Lawrence Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 My friend........ The S type R is supercharged. I bought the very sensible 2.7 V6 diesel manual. Got to say it's the best car I've owned!! 40+ mpg, fast, quiet and oh so comfortable. LC Torana 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cavcraft Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I'd rather see receipts than stamps. I don't think the fiat has a single stamp in its book, but I have every receipt from new. The 2cv is the same, few stamps but invoices going back to the first service in 1986. Exactly, anyone can buy a dealer or garage stamp and fill in the gaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PiperCub Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 All of the above is exactly why I do my own servicing and repair. Yes, sometimes it's a bit of a PITA and there are other things I'd rather be doing but the usual 'Pride in your work' bit aside, at least I KNOW it's been done properly, nothing skimped and anything that may be an issue in the future can be noted and addressed as required (ie: you don't get too many nasty surprises). Also it saves huge sums of money and said money can be used to fund a nice selection of cars instead of a boring tinbox. BTW - I'd have to say that I've probably seen more fake s/h's than genuine ones in my life. A popular one in the days of 'proper' scrapyards was to lift a service book from a scrapped car's glovebox and dismantle it, restapling the stamped up pages into another booklet belonging to another car (plus altering any milages carefully to suit if req'd). Also, you can buy rubber stamp kits and make your own stamps, it isn't hard to do! (I got a set from Lidl/Aldi some years back - not for s/h faking I hasten to add!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danthecapriman Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 It's also about the little details for me. Time is money for garages, so they don't do things like cleaning old leaves and gunk out of all the little places under the bonnet or out of the air/pollen filter boxes.Even pulling the dipstick out and the little drips of oil that splatter onto things don't get wiped off. I like to see all these little details. It looks like someone's taken a bit of time and pride in the job. hennabm 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Damage Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 I don't really see the point of letting a garage service my cars. All the stuff I've owned has been old and simple enough to do myself - Heralds, Minis etc. Anything I found difficult meant a quick phone call to Dad, who'd be round to help out. Plus, like has already been said here, I had the satisfaction of both saving a fortune and knowing that the jobs had been done properly. Why waste money? hennabm 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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