Car Service : Manufactor Service Vs Normal

[Ralliart]

hey guys, its that time of the year again, car service which do thinks the best to get my car done for service, Mitsubishi Dealers Service or Normal places, i only thing i hate about mitz is their prices 300 and above from 120km upwards services, i probably would be getting it done at least til January /Feb,

what do you guys think?

Thanks

[Rob]

Best bet is to learn to do it yourself.

Its fun (I enjoy it anyway..), rewarding, and above all, a LOT cheaper!

Sure, it's a bit daunting at first, but its all fairly basic. Buy yourself a Gregory's manual, they're a good place to start from.

[Ridin-High]

Much agreed, whats required for your service?

If its your betty basic stuff like changing oils/filters, their are guides online.

[Kryton]

theres more to a service than just your fluid changes.
theres also the inspections that are listed in your manual, the re-tensioning of parts the manufacture has specified etc etc etc.
what does the service manual say will be done at your next service?
are there any computer upgrades etc that your car may need?

[krt10]

a mitu place will have all the computers to do diagnostics checks. you wont get that at the corner mechanics

[Ralliart]

its a 135,00 service they said the front spark plugs needs to be done its at 440$ @ mitz dealer

[BlackLS]

Probably your best bet is to go to a more reputable service place like Ultratune etc.

Keep in mind that genuine parts have crazy markups over non genuine parts from Bursons.

[Rob]

Originally Posted by BlackLS

Probably your best bet is to go to a more reputable service place like Ultratune etc.

Keep in mind that genuine parts have crazy markups over non genuine parts from Bursons.

I've never seen the words Ultratune and reputable put together like that before....

They are just as bad as the dealerships.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Depends really....

Is your car still under any sort of warranty? My car gets done for around $89 every 10,000 km. This price includes the usual grease + oil change, brake inspection / adjustment (inc hand brake), wheel balance and rotation and checking / topping up of other fluids.. and safety report. Any extras needed like air filter are pretty cheap and just added to that base price.

For that sort of money im happy to let them get their hands dirty to be honest.

Add another $100 and they will change plugs, and I think also include the air filter. I do this service every 50,000km.

I was very happy when my car came out of warranty, I was sick of paying $260 for my 10,000km services and $510 for the 50,000km services....

Good luck.

But what is most important is not to find the cheapest service, but a service centre that you can trust. They may charge a bit more but it's well worth it.

Oh, and 1 more thing! Get a CONFIRMED price BEFORE you leave the workshop.. know what you will be expected to pay on your return to collect your car. Ask where the money is going, and make sure you BOTH have an understanding that if ANYTHING is to be done on top of your quoted price that you get a phone call first to get the OK before they go ahead...

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by BLC

I've never seen the words Ultratune and reputable put together like that before....

They are just as bad as the dealerships.

Agreed......

My first ever dent was kindly given to me by Ultratune, naturally I couldn't prove it was new, and they wouldn't admit to it.... but that was the first and last time they had my car.

[ratter]

Originally Posted by krt10

a mitu place will have all the computers to do diagnostics checks. you wont get that at the corner mechanics

A good workshop will have a scan tool to be able to do diagnostic checks on almost any car

[LTDHO]

Go to any workshop other than the manufactor.

[CADSKY]

its really all about who you think will give you the best service for the best price. when i was living in melb i had my own mechanic that did all my services and repears ect. to both my car and he did it cheap and let me pay him off in installment if need be, however when i moved to brissy i didnt know any mechanics so i just take my car to ford for services. i did find a local mechanic to change my spark plugs, leads and coil pack when i needed it as ford were way too high but really like i said it depends on who you think will give you the best bang for your hard earned buck.

[Ralliart]

no the car not on warranty, all of of my last since services have been pricey, they were, 120,000km $435 ( only more because i had get a fuel sensor replaced) and 105,000km was $427 and my next one would be the just about the same price, the car is 8 years old, I'm just thinking of getting it done @ ultra tune instead of mitz

[Pinch]

One bad experience with Ultratune so I am back with the manufacturers for servicing the newer cars. I service the older cars myself. One thing with the manufacturers (especially Ford I have found) is to shop around. I have recently changed Ford service centres because of absolutely atrocious service and incompetence that would put Ultratune to shame. One example of price difference though is when I had to get my wifes Hyundai serviced a few years ago. I knew it was a biggie cause it was a 90Ker with a timing belt, but 1 Hyundai quote close to home was $1100, but Wollongong Hyundai did the same thing for $550 just 45min down the F6. Had I not just been about saving coin, I could have got the car serviced in the gong, grabbed a suite at the Novotel for the night, partied on and still come home with change from $1100.

[MITCHAY]

Ultratune always did a good job when I had my TX5. On two occassions they helped me out when most would have not even bothered.

Once was when they did a radiator flush. On the way home it started leaking coolant. Brought it back and the water pump was buggered. I got them to replace it for me and they didn't charge me to drain and refill the coolant.

The other time, one of the leads was buggered and I had an erratic idle. They replaced it for free AFTER HOURS.

On the topic about diagnostic checks. I believe most cars these days have an OBDII port which AFAIK is a standard and can be read by any scan tool which supports it. I got a scanner in my car which monitors probably everything from the ECU

[ratter]

Originally Posted by MITCHAY

I got a scanner in my car which monitors probably everything from the ECU

Most cheap scan tools will only check generic powertrain codes and can miss lots of other codes

[Windsor220]

Ok I work at a Mitsi dealer and I can tell you now Mitsi wont do anything special. Oil, filter, air filter and front plugs on a 135k. You'll be lucky if they even put the diagnostic tool on it.

I'd recomend just doing it yourself. Everything on the magnas are quite accessible and shouldnt be too hard.

[theunfairadvant]

Originally Posted by KJLynx

Ok I work at a Mitsi dealer and I can tell you now Mitsi wont do anything special. Oil, filter, air filter and front plugs on a 135k. You'll be lucky if they even put the diagnostic tool on it.

I'd recomend just doing it yourself. Everything on the magnas are quite accessible and shouldnt be too hard.

Thanks for telling us that info.

[MarkAW]

:

Am I seeing something strange here or have I been out of the mechanics game way too long (20yrs). People keep mentioning "front" plugs. I'm assuming this means spark plugs - surely all the plugs are being changed, not just some of them???

[ratter]

Originally Posted by MarkAW

:

Am I seeing something strange here or have I been out of the mechanics game way too long (20yrs). People keep mentioning "front" plugs. I'm assuming this means spark plugs - surely all the plugs are being changed, not just some of them???

On a V6 magna, the rear plugs are hidden under the inlet manifold plenumn, so mitsubishi fits platinum plugs in the rear 3 cylinders, platinums will last 3-4 times longer than a standard plug, so the fronts will require replacement a few times before all plugs need to be done at the same time

[MarkAW]

Originally Posted by ratter

On a V6 magna, the rear plugs are hidden under the inlet manifold plenumn, so mitsubishi fits platinum plugs in the rear 3 cylinders, platinums will last 3-4 times longer than a standard plug, so the fronts will require replacement a few times before all plugs need to be done at the same time

You're f'kn kidding - why wouldn't you fit platinium tips in all the holes. What a f**ckin joke. Heres Mitsubishi telling the world how good their vehicles are for the past 12 months and they do things like that just to save a few bucks. It's probably a silly question but are the plugs capable of being upgraded to plat tips or do they use different size threads just to f&&k you up completely??

[ratter]

Originally Posted by MarkAW

You're f'kn kidding - why wouldn't you fit platinium tips in all the holes. What a f**ckin joke. Heres Mitsubishi telling the world how good their vehicles are for the past 12 months and they do things like that just to save a few bucks. It's probably a silly question but are the plugs capable of being upgraded to plat tips or do they use different size threads just to f&&k you up completely??

I have never checked,but I believe the platinums would fit the front cylinders, most people are not into their cars like we are and would opt for the cheaper plugs when servicing to keep the service price down without looking at the big picture

[Ralliart]

just rang ultratune Knox $237 Compared to $400ish mark from Mitz includes replacement of spark plugs, that's a Hugh saving : :. btw my platinums plugs were done @ my last service

[Lightning Strike XR6]

When i get my car dads business will pay for it