Car Servicing

Hi guys,

I've never serviced my car before, but now I've got a newer car I want to look after it. But what should I expect to be done as part of my service?

JCT quoted my £137 for the following

· Oil filter change

· Anti-corrosion check

· Vehicle health check

· Recall and warranty check

· Lifetime warranty reactivation

· Wash and Vacuum

Just doesn't seem like much, I thought a service covered more things?

As well as just changing the oil filter- they usually change the oil as well. And the air filter.
What car do you have? How old?

I see, I guess that makes it a bit better
It just seems like the only thing they're actually putting into the car is in the oil
I guess most of the other stuff is important too though

I have a Vauxhall Adam, it'll be a year old soon so this will be it's first service
I was told that it's second service was quite a big one, so maybe not much needs changing yet?

and thanks for replying

I see, I guess that makes it a bit better
It just seems like the only thing they're actually putting into the car is in the oil
I guess most of the other stuff is important too though

I have a Vauxhall Adam, it'll be a year old soon so this will be it's first service
I was told that it's second service was quite a big one, so maybe not much needs changing yet?

and thanks for replying

Id double check that wherever services it is actually changing the oil and other bits and pieces.
Seeing as its that new- id take it to a main dealer to get it serviced.
At least if you take it to a main dealer, it makes it easier with the warranty- they will be using the correct parts etc and if you ever had to take it back for anything under warranty, theres no arguments.

If it is such a new car you should bring it back to the original franchise dealer that supplied the car, usually you can get a discount on the service.

Usually all that is needed is an oil and filter change for the first service.

Thanks, that quote was from my local JCT600 Vauxhall dealer, so they said they can reactive my warranty. However I need to ring my dealer and confirm if my warranty is through vauxhall or the actual dealer, and if therefore they want the car servicing with them



That's great thanks

I think I'm going to ring my dealer Monday and ask for a quote from them too
I was avoiding going back to them because their customer service when I bought the car was awful, and it's around 40 miles away too. But i think I may have to go back to them to reactive my warranty anyway as I think it's though the dealer rather than Vauxhall, I suppose if I could get a discount that would be good. I'll give them a ring and see what they say.

All Vauxhalls come with a 3 year warranty from Vauxhall. Anything by a dealer would be in addition to the 3 years.

Hi guys,

I've never serviced my car before, but now I've got a newer car I want to look after it. But what should I expect to be done as part of my service?

JCT quoted my £137 for the following

· Oil filter change

· Anti-corrosion check

· Vehicle health check

· Recall and warranty check

· Lifetime warranty reactivation

· Wash and Vacuum

Just doesn't seem like much, I thought a service covered more things?

Definitely check up about the warranty, they usually give servicing for free for a few years, etc.

Also that is no where near a proper service.

A few people have said that to me, but it was never a part of the deal or something we discussed so I doubt they;ll want to give me it for free now. (Especially considering it was a nightmare just getting the extras I have been promised as part of the deal...)

Out of interest I did look at my dealers service page and it actually covers a lot more...
http://www.pentagon-group.co.uk/servicing (I'm not copying it because it's in a table and won't format properly here)

I'm gonna try ring them tomorrow for more information and a quote, thats if they're open / want to answer their phones

I hear bad stuff about Pentagon......The first lot on the list are simply checks. The important stuff is around the bottom, change of oil, air filter, oil filter, pollen filter, spark plugs, etc

I know a lot of people think they have serviced there car, but reality is different especially with dealers. They offer two types, a partial service and the full service which you are looking for.

VW for example charge £149 for a minor service, £299 for a major service. Whereas I can get it for £90, though obviously much cheaper if you did it yourself.

Well I wouldn't recommend them to be honest, but I obviously haven't had any experience with their servicing department...

I'm not sure where else to look, if i could just take it anywhere then my step-dad or brother would be able to sort it. Looking at other vauxhall dealers I might have to try ring Evans Halshaw and Dews Motor Group...not had any experience with either of them before, but worth a ring?

Go to a local reputable garage or a Vauxhall specialist garage.

It's going to have to be a Vauxhall dealer for me to keep my warranty?

I actually had another look at Pentagon and it says 'All used cars that require a Service within 4 months of the delivery date will be serviced before handover' I'm not sure if they just mean to get the car ready and not actually to count as a service, as mine hasn't been 'officially serviced'

Anyways, I'll have a look at some other places and I'll ring Pentagon tomorrow, sure it will be a pleasant call...

That's not true, provided you are talking about a manufacturer's warranty on a new car - the EU ruled several years ago that manufacturers must honour a warranty if the car was serviced to their specifications, regardless of where that servicing is done (but, if specified, genuine parts must be used). Link. However, the car may be worth a little more when you come to sell it if it's got full dealership service history, so it's your call.

For a first service I wouldn't expect much more than an oil change and a check to make sure everything's still functioning correctly. Nothing should be worn out in a year!

A few people have said that to me, but it was never a part of the deal or something we discussed so I doubt they;ll want to give me it for free now. (Especially considering it was a nightmare just getting the extras I have been promised as part of the deal...)

Out of interest I did look at my dealers service page and it actually covers a lot more...
http://www.pentagon-group.co.uk/servicing (I'm not copying it because it's in a table and won't format properly here)

I'm gonna try ring them tomorrow for more information and a quote, thats if they're open / want to answer their phones

One of our Vauxhall vans was supplied by them. Kind of remember them because their rep said she was calling from Pentagon and there I thought we had a call from The Pentagon

They were pretty decent for a Vauxhall dealer, had dealt with far worse ones. Pricing was excellent as they were throwing in quite a fair few kit at a very good price.

Would definitely buy another vehicle from them but probably won't buy another Vauxhall

That would of been an interesting call haha, I'd never herd of them myself until my step dad spotted a car on Autotrader, it was in Scotland though but I learnt that they were a Vauxhall dealer and had the exact car I'd been wanting at a branch closer.

To be fair I think my experiences were more just to do with the branches I dealt with (Both in Sheffield) I read reviews after I'd put the deposit down on the particular branch and they were all pretty negative. It wasn't that bad, it just ruined the whole buying experience for me. Like not returning calls, wasted trips, the salesman deciding he was going on holiday when we had arranged to pick the car up, not including the extras as promised and a few other things.

That said, I agree their prices were excellent, I got a really good finance deal and eventually the general manger sorted things out for me, and said he knows there is a training issues with the guy I dealt with, so hopefully my experience was more of a one off.

I have a soft spot for Vauxhalls, I originally wanted a new Corsa, but fell in love with the Adam and wanted it since I first saw it, don't really want to think about my next car as I hope I have many happy years with this one haha but I might try something different in the future.

When buying a new or nearly new car essentially all that are important are the price and whether it meets the specification you are after. If 2 dealers are offering the same one then only other issues start to matter such as whether the salesgirl is a pretty one or not

Generally if you want good service you also have to be prepared to pay for it. Quite unlikely a dealer in this economic climate comes up with bad or very poor service though as for nearly every new car out there it is very much a buyer's market. Therefore usually it is most likely an isolated incident and usually 90% of people don't go online to say how good something is but are quick to post how bad something is. Pentagon is a very big group and they sell cars all over the North so every now and then they may just slip.

The van they sold us came from Derby and they delivered it for no extra charge to a somewhat rural Oxfordshire area. The dealer nearest to us couldn't match the price and wanted to charge us for the delivery that is 17 miles away.

My eldest daughter also likes that Vauxhall Adam very much, it was one of the cars she looked at earlier this year to replace her written off Volvo C30. Only problem was each time one showed up as for sale it was sold by the time we called up for it. I was willing to buy her a brand new one but those had a 2 month wait or 5 months if you wanted it built to the exact specifications. In the end I told her future doctors must know how to drive a Land Rover so I gave her the keys to mine.



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