A little lost and confused about services.

[gebbieh]

Hey All!

I'm feeling a little lost and confused and thought someone on here might be able to help me.

I recently had my 105,000 service on my 2008 TDi Polo got all the usual done, timing belt etc. While it was there they gave me a call and said that the battery needed replacing (that it would be lucky to start again in the shop, I've never had battery problems btw) and the rear brakes needed done.

So I said no to the battery since I get team discount at super cheap and said yes to the rear brakes since they has never been done since I've had it.

When I went and picked it up they said that it needed the front brakes and rotors done (I had them done about 1 1/2 years ago) and my egr needed to be cleaned out. They recommended that I booked in the following week since the brakes would be lucky to have another 500km left on them. I reminded them that I just spent my whole savings on this service and they will have to wait!.

Now fearing for my safety I got straight on to the brakes, my Dad changed the front brakes and rotors for me in Nov 2014. So both myself and my dad assumed that because I drive alot that they are probably due again.

So off I went and bought new brakes without getting Dad to check the pads for me (hey I didn't want an accident!). Took the car to Dad's, he takes the wheel off and finds that my brake pads have 12mm of meat left... He then decided o check the back incase that they told me the wrong thing, back pads are brand new but back rotors should of been replaces as well....

I also went to supercheap and got them to test my battery on several occasion's, after driving the car around for a while, after the car being parked for 8 hours and every time the test came back perfect.

So now I'm pissed, my battery is fine, my brakes are fine, they only changed the rear pads and not the rotors....

Now I dont know if they took advantage of me because I'm an early 20's female or what, but I found them through either this forum or another forum, all good reviews, specialising in German cars etc, so I thought they would be a little more trustworthy.



So my question is, how do I tell that I need an Egr clean/ how often does it need to be done?

[gebbieh]

oh and to top it all off, the glass on my passenger side mirror fell off while doing 100 down the freeway.... This car hasnt been much luck to me lately!

[a239947]

Thats a shame to hear they treated you like this. It pays to know your car so when these things happen you know if they're trying to take you for a ride! It has happened to my wife from brand name "trusted" workshops! Its also good to have someone who knows about cars you can refer to and ask questions when your not sure, just like you've done with your Dad. Also if you find a good mechanic who you trust stick with them. When I lived in sydney I always used a local guy who I knew and trusted. He wasn't always able to do everything on my golf but he always told me the truth about the car and let me decide from there. You need to have your wits about you dealing with mechanics, they have even tried to take advantage of me and im an aircraft mechanic, they were a bit sheepish when I told them my pads were fine as I changed them a week earlier!

[h100vw]

I'd be getting your Dad to do it, he seems handy. A belt might be a bit of a mission but that's done now. I don't have a problem with new pads on old discs particularly. As long as they didn't charge you for them??

Only way to tell if the EGR needs a clean is to look at it. You just take the pipe off and you can see with a mirror and torch.

I'd just drive it and if it ain't broke don;t fix it. Except for the passenger mirror

Gavin