Keep it in dealer serviced or not ? (1 Viewer)

[Jaws]

Wonder if anyone has actually taken the time to work this one out.
Another thread got me thinking..
You buy a new or nearly new van
You do not intend selling it for 5 years
What would give the best fiscal return over the 5 year period presuming no breakdowns as we cannot factor in too many variables.
You must take in to account all running costs and service parts with an expected annual mileage of 10,000 miles ( I appreciate most the average motorhome mileage in the UK is 4,000 )

Here are the options

1) Apart from initial service, all service done at home by your self ( or someone who can use a spanner )

2) Apart from initial service, all servicing done by a local ( non affiliated to the manufacturer of the van in question ) but garage will stamp the book

3) As well as initial service, all servicing done by main dealer

Adding up all the costs which more than likely will come to thousands of pounds with a main dealer, is that figure likely to be more or less than the money you MIGHT lose off the sale price after that 5 years.

Now there is a discussion and a half !

 

[Peter JohnsCross MH]

No 2 non franchised garage, but for habitation side you do need really for best cover the dealer who supplied the van although warranties get some exclusions after the first year on habitation, but to give Swift their due, unlike many other converters, they so stand by their product.

Peter

 

[robinmclaren]

we have 6 vehicles so a bit of a mix to deal with

this is a individuals descision based on vehicle , skills , tools and finances

ours as follows but i do have a good toolkit and space to work on cars

my works toyota van is fully main dealer serviced ,very good price and excellent service , as under full warranty includes any parts that require replacment , needs to be totally reliable and on books
astra sxi is my wifes company ( our company ) car so serviced by dealer up until now as under warranty and on books
rav 4 will service myself , if it ever goes wrong
my porsche i enjoy working on myself as my toy and not to many miles a year as to busy working or away in mh, did go to dealer for fuel leak to be sorted
audi tt cab will probably do myself as again does not do many miles
mh i will service myself as diesel so easy to do

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[froghopper]

service costs

well i am not a trained mechanic, but oil and filter, air filter, fuel filter, no problem to do at all, brakes, jack up one wheel at a time, remove check brakes and hoses, antifreeze, drain and refill every autum, nice day, lay on floor slide underneath, and wipe all brake pipes, check for loose bolts, a good visual check, wipe over with oily rag,, do a bit at a time over the spring/ autumn, enjoy it, if you find anything amiss then go to a recomended garage and get a fixed price for that job,, its not hard,,
have a can of spray greese with you and squirt every nut and bolt, you may be the one that has to undo it,, always check the spare wheel carrier, better to play undoing it on your drive in the sun,, because when you get a puncture it will be rusty and raining,, by now after a total of only a few hours , spread out, you will have done most of a service, a very good pre m o t, and got close up and personal whith the second most expensive and precious thing in your life,,,, thats right,,,, the wife,,,,,
habbitat, i agree, that needs an expert,, but you can afford that,, look what you have just saved,,, we love to chat, clean, drive, and pamper our m/ homes,, so pamper your wallet as well,, it realy is that easy,,, and for the bit you dont know,,,,,WELL THATS WHAT THIS SITE IS FOR :thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb:

 

[scotjimland]

Wonder if anyone has actually taken the time to work this one out.




Adding up all the costs which more than likely will come to thousands of pounds with a main dealer, is that figure likely to be more or less than the money you MIGHT lose off the sale price after that 5 years.

Now there is a discussion and a half !

I have always serviced and maintained my own vehicles so I'm only guessing at garage prices..

Five years of dealer servicing .. say five annual services cost .. £ 1500 ?

DIY cost say £250 ?

so a saving of £1250

but I think the question you have to ask is this..

Two identical vans for sale, same price ... one with main dealer servicing, the other DIY .. all things being equal which van do you choose ?

When it comes to selling, private or trade, a main dealers stamp is always a big selling point ..

Would you lose more than £1250 for not having a main dealer stamp ? .. I think quite probably ..

 

[Jaws]

I am with you Jim,
always do my own servicing but as I earn a living with my spanners................

Now I reckon that a full dealership service history would be somewhat more than 1500 beer tokens over the five years ..

Would be interested to hear for sure if anyone has firm records ?


Peter, if you had said anything else I would have been shocked , and in all honesty if you were closer to me I might well be tempted to break my lifetime habit and actually get your place to run the ruler over the old girl.. Your companies reputation is top notch

Froggy ! Total respect mate... Link Removed Link Removed

But what do you reckon works out best financially out of the options ?

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[Peter JohnsCross MH]

One thing I would say that motorhome dealers servicing charges in the main, excluding the multi-branch ones are no where near as expensive as car main dealers.

My labour rates are mechanical £48 per hour which are under half a car main dealers charges (plus VAT)

As to habitation services, I give five years free included in the deal.

Peter

 

[robnchris]

self service

Opps about to throw a spanner in the works then, we bought a Mazda MX5, the service book showed the first service done at main agents, that was 5 years ago, since then not a stamp in the book.
You really need to see the car to get the full story but I will say the car was cleaner than any of the brand new ones in the showroom.
First thoughts were it had been in a major road accident and totally rebuilt, turns out after chatting with the previous owner he was a fanatic, car had never been driven over the winter on salted roads, was only used to occasionally and had won many awards at the MX5 car Rallies.

I think most people will look at the condition of the vehicle and make a decision from there.

From my experience with our motorhome and the jobs the people we bought it off did under warranty I will never take it back there, having said that you do need to be practically minded, to some topping a battery up or changing the oil is a major task.

Having said all that we have a problem with our in-cab eberspacher heater, now that will go to a specialist.

Regards Rob.