When It Rains, It Pours

[smasha]

I'm just gonna have a bit of a whinge... don't mind me

Anyway, story goes like this,

1.I've got the 100K service coming up real soon (UAS quoted $1200-$1300, $1600 if I get the new camgears on and get them dyno tuned)

2. Discovered i've got an exhaust leak (one of the exhaust manifold bolts went snappy), possibly requiring machining if the manifold isn't straight, as well as possibly getting some dude with a diamond drill if the easy-out option does not work ($400 - $800 depending)

3. my car just developed a missfire above 4500 rev on 8 psi. it's probably the coilpacks

I was expecting something like this to happen, but all at once?

all in all, looking at well over 2k worth of S**t to get my car running the way it's meant to.

[GTRsean]

Ahh, the joys of imports. You could always get a holden, they never break down!!!hee hee.

[siddr20]

Whats included in that 100k service costin you 1k plus??

so steep tho!!

[GTRsean]

At least half would be labour. Check out their website for the list of what they do. Pretty interesting.

[smasha]

Whats included in that 100k service costin you 1k plus??

so steep tho!!

Taken from the UAS website... seems pretty thorough... peace of mind and all that

Systems Check, reset memory, check all sensors and check for any fault codes.

Systems cleaner, (pressurized can with long bendy hose inserted in various locations to clean carbon

build up in plenum chamber and tops of valves and ports as well as PCV and throttle body (s)

On line injection clean.

New Iridium Spark Plugs.

Compression test.

Water Pump. Optional N1 pump for Skylines and GTR

(FTO Water Pump is an addition $510 with extra labour required.)

New Tensioner & Idler for Skyline & GTR - Extra $290

Thermostat

Cam belt

Drive belts.

Oil Filter

Fuel Filter

300ZX new silicon hoses either side of water pump.

Check cam and crank seals for leaks usually OK and extra if seals required $12 each. Extra labour one to two hours.

Check cam belt pullies

(Extra $140 each for 300ZX other cars can be more) if required .

Check electrics, exhaust, suspension. Coolant hoses.

Gear oil 75w- 90 or if auto trans service extra $100.

Engine, Gearbox & Differential oils Changed

Clutch and brake fluid flushed and bleed.

Engine flush.

Clean and treat battery terminals.

Spray lubricant on throttle linkages and other.

Check and adjust water sprayers and additive used

Lubricate door hinges and strikers, bonnet latch,

boot hinges, aerial mast.

Check and tighten sub frame and suspension and cross member bolts etc.

Tyre pressures checked and corrected.

Air filter replaced or if performance filters cleaned and re oiled.

Check list for our technicians and report given.

[silver gts-t]

theres alot of bs on that list..

any mechanic can change a timing belt, you dont need a performance shop to do it

[lastlineofdefence]

Now you know what they do, give it a go yourself! Half of that would be 'can-dos' at home.

[smasha]

theres alot of bs on that list..

any mechanic can change a timing belt, you dont need a performance shop to do it

yeh, i figure that, but I also figure they know RB engines, and can have a look @ it while it's being done for any more potential issues.

[wilch]

hmmm... well if you're at uas get one of those nismo copy strut braces

ps I agree with silv

[smasha]

Now you know what they do, give it a go yourself! Half of that would be 'can-dos' at home.

I do most of my own regular fluid changes, and they don't take that long.

Most of the reason why I want to do it at UAS is to fit and tune the camgears, but now that the other stuff's happened, the gears have taken a backseat in the cashflow department

finally time to get a credit card I think

The car came with a genuine nismo strut brace, Wil

Edited June 4, 2006 by smasha

[NicsR33]

most of the stuff can be done urself like oils and sparkies.

Tyre pressures checked and corrected.

Air filter replaced or if performance filters cleaned and re oiled.

i wouldn't pay someone to bend over and check my tyre pressure. you should do that once a month when u fill up. if u check these lil things from time to time then you dont need such a long list.

mines got 90,000km on it i had no idea the service was going to cost so much. its a bit of a worry :

[smasha]

Oil Filter

Check cam belt pullies

Check electrics, exhaust, suspension. Coolant hoses.

Gear oil 75w- 90 or if auto trans service extra $100.

Engine oil Changed

Engine flush.

Clean and treat battery terminals.

Spray lubricant on throttle linkages and other.

Check and adjust water sprayers and additive used

Lubricate door hinges and strikers, bonnet latch,

boot hinges, aerial mast.

Tyre pressures checked and corrected.

Air filter replaced or if performance filters cleaned and re oiled.

all of the previous I can/know how to do myself and it looks like it's there for "ohmagosh look @ the work we're doing for $1300", all the rest of it however, I'm clueless/don't have the tools.

I pretty much want someone who knows what they're doing to go over the car, fix up what needs fixing. I'd like to do most of it myself with help from a mechanic friend, but I'm afraid I'll screw something up permanently.

I guess i'll be paying for peace of mind with the $1300.

it's the exhaust leak that's givin me the s**tz

[Tosh]

most of the stuff can be done urself like oils and sparkies.

i wouldn't pay someone to bend over and check my tyre pressure. you should do that once a month when u fill up. if u check these lil things from time to time then you dont need such a long list.

mines got 90,000km on it i had no idea the service was going to cost so much. its a bit of a worry :

You bought a high maintenance car and if you think you didn't then wake up, you're kidding yourself... if you can't afford to service it properly then sell it.

You don't realise that when shops service vehicles, we have to check EVERYTHING no matter how mundane or obvious it may seem to enthusiasts. Not EVERYONE who drives these cars is an enthusiast and takes alot of interest in their vehicle. If we don't check something which we assume any good enthusiats would keep an eye on, and it causes damage to the car or issues then we will be the FIRST ones you all point the finger at. Yeah... that's really fair!

I am 100% sure that if we (as mechanical workshops) did not check half the stuff on that list which you consider to be DIY items, you'd be the first one to complain that we weren't thorough enough in our servicing. And anyway.. how many of you can HONESTLY say you check your tyre pressures regularly. I know I don't... I know I should more often but I don't, I forget, I don't have time etc... that's why it's good to know that if I take my car somewhere to get serviced that the mechanics will check it.

p.s. I DO NOT work for Unique Autosports and have no affiliation or financial interest in Unique Autosports in case some of you get the wrong idea

I think you all need to really think about issues before you make a comment. Not every workshop is interested in ripping people off... and should all your attitudes lead to workshops closing down due to lack of business then you'd all be screwed. Think about it.

For the record I think that list is quite thorough and good on them for being so thorough in making sure that your pride and joy is safe and maintained well

[smasha]

That's kinda the point I was trying to make with regards to the major service.

You pay for peace of mind.

(long day? this is prob the first time I've seen u fire up)

but back on topic, how terrible is that everything goes wrong @ once

[Tosh]

In addition,

Any decent workshop will go through your invioce with you and explain where the hours of labour added up. They will explain what was done and any issues that may have been faced during the time that your car was in the shop. They will then show you how the sums added up and let you know what kind of a labour rate they worked on (hopefully not more than what they quote you before the work begins).

If you have a problem with the sums then you take it up with the people on the spot. I have heard stories from mates who have been shocked at some invoices given to them but when it was broken down and explained, they were more than happy to pay and realised that in the grand scheme of things they were genuinely looked after.

Everyone gets that initial shock, but if you take the time to sit down and have the situation explained to you properly you will realise that you're not being ripped off

[Tosh]

That's kinda the point I was trying to make with regards to the major service.

You pay for peace of mind.

(long day? this is prob the first time I've seen u fire up)

but back on topic, how terrible is that everything goes wrong @ once

Not really a long day, Everyday I see posts which I am SO tempted to fire up at but I bite my tongue (or keyboard, whichever way you want to look at it) most of the time and realise that sometimes it's just not worth it. This time however I felt that, being a part of the industry, I was going to stand up for it and try and help people realise what goes on. If everyone deserted the workshops because they though we were all trying to rip them off, then we'd all shut down. When that happened, there would be no one to fix your cars... what are you going to do then? See my point?

It is unfortunate that everything goes wrong at once but sometime shit just happens

[silver gts-t]

You bought a high maintenance car and if you think you didn't then wake up, you're kidding yourself... if you can't afford to service it properly then sell it.

You don't realise that when shops service vehicles, we have to check EVERYTHING no matter how mundane or obvious it may seem to enthusiasts. Not EVERYONE who drives these cars is an enthusiast and takes alot of interest in their vehicle. If we don't check something which we assume any good enthusiats would keep an eye on, and it causes damage to the car or issues then we will be the FIRST ones you all point the finger at. Yeah... that's really fair!

I am 100% sure that if we (as mechanical workshops) did not check half the stuff on that list which you consider to be DIY items, you'd be the first one to complain that we weren't thorough enough in our servicing. And anyway.. how many of you can HONESTLY say you check your tyre pressures regularly. I know I don't... I know I should more often but I don't, I forget, I don't have time etc... that's why it's good to know that if I take my car somewhere to get serviced that the mechanics will check it.

p.s. I DO NOT work for Unique Autosports and have no affiliation or financial interest in Unique Autosports in case some of you get the wrong idea

I think you all need to really think about issues before you make a comment. Not every workshop is interested in ripping people off... and should all your attitudes lead to workshops closing down due to lack of business then you'd all be screwed. Think about it.

For the record I think that list is quite thorough and good on them for being so thorough in making usre that your pride and joy is safe and maintained well

from my point of view theres nothing to think about..

i dont need a workshop to grease my hinges and add an extra 1/2 hours labour a charge for a couple squirts of grease.

most places will give you a nice looking long list thats full of things that you could do yourself to make the reciept look pretty. fact is, it doesnt justify the high cost.

i barely think it would cause a workshop to close down, if anything its charging extra for something stupid that would lead to it closing.

i have a different point of view due to being around workshop most of my life and not needing their services much

[smasha]

It is unfortunate that everything goes wrong at once but sometime shit just happens

Yeh, I had a pretty good trot, 9 months problem free

and relating to your previous point, I see a workshop as a place to go to if I have NFI what's going on/the issue is way beyond me (such as pulling out snapped bolts from engines and machining manifolds).

It's good to know that there's someone who can fix it even if it means a nice bill @ the end.

Thank god it's tax time soon

I'm gonna see if i can negotiate with UAS to see if i can get them to skip the regular stuff that I'm certain I take care of, for a reduction in the cost of the service, considering the other issues I'm getting them to fix.

Anyone know any reasons why they wouldn't cater to this request?

[silver gts-t]

Anyone know any reasons why they wouldn't cater to this request?

because the price they quote is just for the essential items, all those possible DIY items just make the receipt look good

i guess you just have to ask, never know... also pay and become an SAU NSW member which costs $55 and could recieve discounts that exceed that and your also a member, 2 birds 1 stone

[Tosh]

most places will give you a nice looking long list thats full of things that you could do yourself to make the reciept look pretty. fact is, it doesnt justify the high cost.

You're missing my point, I said that not EVERYONE is an enthusiast who likes working on their own cars... This includes people who drive skylines. Hence to make sure that no negative reprocussions are had from an experience with a customer, we have to apply the same thoroughness (you know what I mean) to every customer's car, regardless of whether we think you know how to fix alot of stuff yourself or not. Point is, you brought the car to us to service because you either can't do it yourself or don't want to do it yourself so we are going to do everything we can to make sure that your car is safe and in good working order when you pick it up.

If you brought your car to me to get a service and I purposely didn't check the coolant level because I thought you are enough of an enthusiast to check it yourself, and your engine overheated and got damaged, you'de be busting down my door screaming at me about it. Yet you whinge about having to pay someone to check stuff which you could do yourself

It's simple.... if you don't agree with what's being done to your car at a service inrterval then don't go there...

i barely think it would cause a workshop to close down, if anything its charging extra for something stupid that would lead to it closing.

I bet you wouldn't think it were stupid if you didn't know anything about you car except how to fill it with Petrol and drive it. Believe it or not, there are people out there who drive Skylines who are like that and hence every workshop needs to make sure that we take the responsibility for someone's car and cater to the lowest common denominator. (That's probably not the best choice of phrase but it's the only wak I can try and get my point across. I mean no disrespect by it)