Vehicle Maintenance Plan - Price

[Drifter]

Drive abuse is the standars cop out for dealerships. Even if it a genuine clutch failure after 20K kms, they will acuse you of abusing your car. I have lost absolute trust in any dealership.

 

[Fazda]

Drive abuse is the standars cop out for dealerships. Even if it a genuine clutch failure after 20K kms, they will acuse you of abusing your car. I have lost absolute trust in any dealership.

It is very simple to see if a clutch has been hammered, or if it is a mechanical failure.

Have you ever changed a clutch on your own? - The thing is an open book.

 

[deweyzeph]

It is very simple to see if a clutch has been hammered, or if it is a mechanical failure.

Have you ever changed a clutch on your own? - The thing is an open book.

You're missing the point. It may be simple for you or your workshop but it is not simple for the man in the street who has to take your word for it. And in the car industry someone's word means nothing.

 

[Fazda]

You're missing the point. It may be simple for you or your workshop but it is not simple for the man in the street who has to take your word for it. And in the car industry someone's word means nothing.

And it's time that the Man in the Street grew a pair and actually started questioning what they are being charged for instead of becoming the victim.
If I can learn a bit of mechanical know-how then anyone can.

Stop the Victim Mentality!

 

[HapticSimian]

In my experience it's not so much that dealerships - or underwriters of maintenance plans - try to blame every failure on abuse, but rather that nobody feigns indignation better than someone who is confronted with evidence of them having abused their car. Clutch plates don't burn, on low mileage, through normal use. Suspension components don't go all bendy on a whim... But tell someone that and magically their abuse becomes your fault. It's funny to witness grown-ass men throwing tantrums like toddlers.

 

[Fazda]

In my experience it's not so much that dealerships - or underwriters of maintenance plans - try to blame every failure on abuse, but rather that nobody feigns indignation better than someone who is confronted with evidence of them having abused their car. Clutch plates don't burn, on low mileage, through normal use. Suspension components don't go all bendy on a whim... But tell someone that and magically their abuse becomes your fault. It's funny to witness grown-ass men throwing tantrums like toddlers.

Thank you for your voice of reason!

That is why I mentioned Victim Mentality, because it is never your fault if you screw things up! That just happens to be The South African Way!

We had an STi in this week for its first service, and despite me having warned the guy when he bought the car, that any modifications to his car's engine would result in him losing Warranty and Maintenance, he went ahead anyway and had the motor worked on - VERY easy to pick up extra dump valve and other little tweaks - of course, there was total hysteria and threats of lawyers when he was contacted and told him that he would be charged for the service, plus anything that was needed.

This guy is typical of one rule for everyone else and another for me...

 

[Drifter]

It is very simple to see if a clutch has been hammered, or if it is a mechanical failure.

Have you ever changed a clutch on your own? - The thing is an open book.

Yes, I have, many times. My question is , How do the dealreships know it abuse WITHOUT opening it?

 

[Sepeng]

Not saying any dealership is good or bad, and I get the tinkering with an engine part, but if I buy a high performance car and then, I don't know, drive it like a high performance car, and I'm then told that it's abuse, well I'd be none too pleased. Fine lines and all that.

 

[jman]

Thank you for your voice of reason!

That is why I mentioned Victim Mentality, because it is never your fault if you screw things up! That just happens to be The South African Way!

We had an STi in this week for its first service, and despite me having warned the guy when he bought the car, that any modifications to his car's engine would result in him losing Warranty and Maintenance, he went ahead anyway and had the motor worked on - VERY easy to pick up extra dump valve and other little tweaks - of course, there was total hysteria and threats of lawyers when he was contacted and told him that he would be charged for the service, plus anything that was needed.

This guy is typical of one rule for everyone else and another for me...

Ah yes, I suspect he calls his car a "scooby". Or is that just genuinely a subaru's nickname? In my experience, all the 'boets' in joburg call them that and get these stupid modifications installed.

Sorry for veering off topic

 

[HapticSimian]

Not saying any dealership is good or bad, and I get the tinkering with an engine part, but if I buy a high performance car and then, I don't know, drive it like a high performance car, and I'm then told that it's abuse, well I'd be none too pleased. Fine lines and all that.

There's a difference between using a car's performance potential and tossing all mechanical sympathy out the window. No car is designed to be thrashed by a knob.

There is a line, sure, and manufacturers do sometimes get the balance wrong. The best example in recent memory was probably the debacle around the Nissan GTR's propensity for chewing gearboxes with repeated use of the launch control function. It's a bit of a tricky one; had Nissan limited the use of the system, or omitted it completely, buyers and the press would've been up in arms. On the flip-side, would repeatedly violently shunting near 400kW through a new car's drive train not be the very epitome of abuse?

 

[Sepeng]

There's a difference between using a car's performance potential and tossing all mechanical sympathy out the window. No car is designed to be thrashed by a knob.

There is a line, sure, and manufacturers do sometimes get the balance wrong. The best example in recent memory was probably the debacle around the Nissan GTR's propensity for chewing gearboxes with repeated use of the launch control function. It's a bit of a tricky one; had Nissan limited the use of the system, or omitted it completely, buyers and the press would've been up in arms. On the flip-side, would repeatedly violently shunting near 400kW through a new car's drive train not be the very epitome of abuse?

Yup, I hear you. Not sure which I as a buyer would prefer actually - my car telling me I'm driving like an idiot and then stopping me from doing so, or my car breaking cos I'm driving like an idiot.

 

[Fazda]

Yup, I hear you. Not sure which I as a buyer would prefer actually - my car telling me I'm driving like an idiot and then stopping me from doing so, or my car breaking cos I'm driving like an idiot.

Best not to drive like an idiot in the first place.

 

[stroller]

I make it very clear to my customers that they will be getting this package if they pay full price for the car, in lieu of discount. the plan would have cost them 32000, had they paid for it separately. the costs are covered by dealer and SSA ( one third dealer, two thirds SSA)
By the way we are under NO obligation to offer anyone a discount in the first place, and this is a damned nice way of getting something for your money.
And no, we didn't increase the price of the cars before we did this either.

Your final section implies that we have some sort of control over the tax situation in SA which we don't. Taxes form approximately 35% of the final price - 21% various duties, plus 14% VAT

So the price of the vehicle was not increased when the maintenance plan was added?
What that means is that between the dealer and SSA the margin was reduced by R32,000.00.
That's quite a bit of money considering your previous posts on profits made on unit sales.

Let's leave the word discount and refer to "value-for-money" (vfm).
I don't want " a damned nice way of getting something for my money" because I'm not: I'm committed to additional finance charges, increased insurance premiums and no freedom of choice who I can use to have my vehicle serviced.
What would the vehicle sell for if the buyer did not want any maintenance plan or any warranty other than that provided for by the CPA? Many of the manufacturers have the extreme services , like cambelt change and spark plug replacement just beyond the maintenance plan expiry.

From my own experience if a vehicle has some some serious fault it will show up in the first few months. So, offer me a standard CPA warranty and reduce the price to add to my vfm when I buy a car. For that very reason I regard the purchase of an Audi with a great deal of hesitancy.

There is absolutely no implication in my last paragraph that you "have some control over the tax situation" whatsoever.
What I'm stating is that very few other countries offer a maintenance plan when a vehicle is sold. It is added to appear to sweeten the deal and because it has become a marketing ploy (as is on-the-road-costs) which the prospective customer in SA has to fork out for. For instance in the USA a customer need not take the vehicle to a dealer for servicing to ensure warranty continuity.

I guess the super uber showrooms have to be financed by the customers.

 

[Fazda]

So the price of the vehicle was not increased when the maintenance plan was added?
What that means is that between the dealer and SSA the margin was reduced by R32,000.00.
That's quite a bit of money considering your previous posts on profits made on unit sales.

Let's leave the word discount and refer to "value-for-money" (vfm).
I don't want " a damned nice way of getting something for my money" because I'm not: I'm committed to additional finance charges, increased insurance premiums and no freedom of choice who I can use to have my vehicle serviced.
What would the vehicle sell for if the buyer did not want any maintenance plan or any warranty other than that provided for by the CPA? Many of the manufacturers have the extreme services , like cambelt change and spark plug replacement just beyond the maintenance plan expiry.

From my own experience if a vehicle has some some serious fault it will show up in the first few months. So, offer me a standard CPA warranty and reduce the price to add to my vfm when I buy a car. For that very reason I regard the purchase of an Audi with a great deal of hesitancy.

There is absolutely no implication in my last paragraph that you "have some control over the tax situation" whatsoever.
What I'm stating is that very few other countries offer a maintenance plan when a vehicle is sold. It is added to appear to sweeten the deal and because it has become a marketing ploy (as is on-the-road-costs) which the prospective customer in SA has to fork out for. For instance in the USA a customer need not take the vehicle to a dealer for servicing to ensure warranty continuity.

I guess the super uber showrooms have to be financed by the customers.

Yes - the supplier pays 2/3 and the dealer pays 1/3 of the cost - the money that would normally go towards a discount. I have no idea what margin the supplier works off, only what our margin is.
We do not have cam belts that need changing - our cam chain is there for the life of the engine.

This is South Africa with South African rules and regulations, one of them being that if a car is offered with a maintenance plan, it may not be sold without one - if you have a problem with that, then I am sorry - but we have no control over that side of things whatsoever.

CPA/ Warranty - all for your protection - I would love to sell the car for less to gamblers - but I'm not allowed to.

The tone of your replies sounds as if you see me as the enemy - if only you knew.

EDIT: Sorry, I forgot to mention that your insurance is for the retail price of the car - I presume that if you get a discount you quickly tell your agent not to insure your care for full price, as you got a massive discount??

 

[qdada]

<rant>
I had a disappointing experience where a shock absorber was declined.
I did hit a pothole.
I do understand the need for the industry to be sustainable.
It is just that after paying upfront for the maintenance plan, I FEEL hard done by.
I feel like something has to change.
Ask me to pay in top-up or something but to decline outright, ouch.
Leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
</rant>

 

[Fazda]

<rant>
I had a disappointing experience where a shock absorber was declined.
I did hit a pothole.
I do understand the need for the industry to be sustainable.
It is just that after paying upfront for the maintenance plan, I FEEL hard done by.
I feel like something has to change.
Ask me to pay in top-up or something but to decline outright, ouch.
Leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
</rant>

:wtf:

So now Maintenance Plans have to pay for accident damage as well??????????????? FFS!

 

[ToxicBunny]

<rant>
I had a disappointing experience where a shock absorber was declined.
I did hit a pothole.
I do understand the need for the industry to be sustainable.
It is just that after paying upfront for the maintenance plan, I FEEL hard done by.
I feel like something has to change.
Ask me to pay in top-up or something but to decline outright, ouch.
Leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
</rant>

That should have been claimed from your insurance company.

 

[HapticSimian]

<rant>
I had a disappointing experience where a shock absorber was declined.
I did hit a pothole.
I do understand the need for the industry to be sustainable.
It is just that after paying upfront for the maintenance plan, I FEEL hard done by.
I feel like something has to change.
Ask me to pay in top-up or something but to decline outright, ouch.
Leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
</rant>

That's not at all within the scope of a maintenance plan. It's like expecting your insurer to replace your house after you confessed to them that you set fire to it. I FEEL hard done by 'cause I can't afford (a single rim for) a Bentley Mulsanne. It sucks, because I really, really want one.

 

[mic_y]

Dont know about any other motorplans, but BMW really is awesome. My Mini's engine seized at 84k km and luckily I had extended the motorplan to 85k km. BMW replaced the entire engine, clutch, flywheel and a bunch of other bits and bobs, without charging me a cent. The total of the invoice was somewhere in the region of R127k which ironically is about as much as I could sell the car for right now.

Given, I went to the dealership with all the info in hand, just in case they tried to pull some line about abuse, but just having mentioned the Cold start rattle (timing chain) issue that I had made them aware of at the previous 2 services (which they had completely ignored), as well as providing evidence of this being a common problem, everything was performed very efficiently. The entire process took Northcliff Auto 3 days from start to finish, and the car is running better than when I first got her.

 

[qdada]

That should have been claimed from your insurance company.

Thanks ToxicBunny I did not think of this, if you were my dealer I would give u return business.
I feel better already.

@Fadza, @HapticSimian. Ever heard of the line "I'm drowning and you're describing the water" ?