Found a great VW mechanic in Toowoomba QLD

[multidubba]

Hi all.

I have found a great independant mechanic in toowoomba. These guys worked for the local VW dealer for quite awhile and have gone out on their own.

I had a service through them a few weeks ago and they were great. Highly recommended. they fixed a problem with the ESP on my multivan that the last guy on the gold coast could not work out.

'Advanced service centre' is their name

[peterdevoil]

There's another VW guy - a dutch mechanic at 70 Charlton Rd. He trades under "Favourite Autos". Highly recommended.

[Mountainman]

I have also tried the Advanced Service Centre for my Subaru service and won't be going back. All it involved was a standard oil/filter change with a diff & gearbox oils change. Their charge was the same a Wippells VW/Subaru, I watched as they didn't even remove the wheels yet the invoice said they rotated & balanced the wheels, they sprayed an awful sweet sickly scent through the interior of the car & their location is inconvenient with no courtesy transport. And they couldn't fix the problem with the secondary air pump that was easily fixed by Boxer Service at Brendale, Pine Rivers.

[Brendan_A]

I have also tried the Advanced Service Centre for my Subaru service and won't be going back. All it involved was a standard oil/filter change with a diff & gearbox oils change. Their charge was the same a Wippells VW/Subaru, I watched as they didn't even remove the wheels yet the invoice said they rotated & balanced the wheels, they sprayed an awful sweet sickly scent through the interior of the car & their location is inconvenient with no courtesy transport. And they couldn't fix the problem with the secondary air pump that was easily fixed by Boxer Service at Brendale, Pine Rivers.

Doesn't sound like the advanced service centre I know!

Been taking my 2 cars to them since they opened and have had nothing but good service. Pricing has always been better then Wippells. They'll be servicing the new GTI too.

They do run drop off and pick up during the day. Location, well you can't help that. All they could get at the time.

Maybe your tyre's didn't need rotating and they forgot to take it off the invoice?

I find it hard to believe they couldn't fix a simple problem.

I've got lots of family members and friends going to them and never have has an issue with them.

[Mountainman]

Maybe your tyre's didn't need rotating and they forgot to take it off the invoice?

I find it hard to believe they couldn't fix a simple problem.

It wasn't a simple problem, it was the corroded secondary airpump valves in the exhaust that then stick open causing the airpump to become noisy and throwing a code. It happens to all 06/07 Subaru turbos - WRX, Foresters, Libertys - worldwide after a few years and requires a $4500 fix of new valves and pump (Subarus way) or a $30 blanking kit from some US supplier, a pulling of the airpump fuse and a reflashing of the ECU to not only remove the code but make it accept that there is no longer a secondary airpump. It's this last part that Advanced Service Centre couldn't do. They only offered Subaru's expensive solution.

The tyre rotation? It's done every 12,500km service and I requested it. And how do they check the brake pads without removal of the wheels? I sat there for 2 hours and could clearly see the car through the window the whole time.

And the interior deodorizer? Surely you must have complained if they used it on yours? It's a horrible cheap stink that took ages to remove. And my car still had its new smell beforehand.

Yes, I went there because I'd heard nothing but good reports and the guys running it were very approachable but the service wasn't any cheaper than I'd been getting at Wippells. $337 for oil/filter and gearbox & diff oil. 50,000km earlier Wippells did exactly the same service for $294.

The other thing that I specifically asked for was to use the same oil as had always been done - Subaru's own labelled Castrol 5W-30 full synthetic. They happily agreed yet the invoice says 5w-40 Castrol Magnatec - a cheaper semi synthetic. I only noticed that after I got home.

I know some of these things are only minor and probably could have been addressed then and there but I'm not the sort to make a scene. However they are the sort of things that fussy customers complain about and the experience was enough for me to look elsewhere if needing services other than Wippells (who I have had no real complaints about - I'm taking the Golf there too). I have to do a lot of travelling in my work and I'm always passing through Toowoomba but for my Forester the independent I really trust is Boxer Service at Brendale, on the northern edge of Brisbane. They did the airpump delete and arranged the ECU reflashing.

One thing I must say is I've never said a word to anyone else about my experience with Advanced Service Centre and have never heard any other negative reports. I guess I should give them another try but if I do I will be really upfront about that interior deodorizer lol

[Brendan_A]

They never spray deodorizer in any of my cars or family or friends cars. That's a strange one.

Some cars you can check brake pads without taking a wheel off. If they didn't rotate the wheels and you say you watched them the whole time you should have questioned.

I'm a very fussy owner and that's why I don't go to the dealer. I get personalized servicing at Advanced.

Sorry you had a bad experience with them.