What do they do to justify a ~$480 service bill???

[hiho]

We are about to get our TDI Polo serviced for the first time since we purchased it. Its the 45000km service. I asked the service center how much and what gets done and they said $480, oil and air filters, oil and coolant flush and change. This seems a bit steep...... Also, what is an oil flush and coolant flush? Sounds like bs to me. The car is still in warranty so we will use the dealership service. Is it possible for an individual to perform the service on these cars? How about resetting the service reminder?
Cheers

[team_v]

We are about to get our TDI Polo serviced for the first time since we purchased it. Its the 45000km service. I asked the service center how much and what gets done and they said $480, oil and air filters, oil and coolant flush and change. This seems a bit steep...... Also, what is an oil flush and coolant flush? Sounds like bs to me. The car is still in warranty so we will use the dealership service. Is it possible for an individual to perform the service on these cars? How about resetting the service reminder?
Cheers

Go to an independant and pay less and get someone who isn't a yr 1 tech.
Most will still allow you to keep your warranty and know more about the cars than the dealerships.


Go to a dealership if you like throwing away money.

[flat6]

If your going to a dealer check out Camberwell vw service center in Doncaster, at least for the price you got top notch service.

When under warranty, might want to clear up how servicing it elsewhere will affect it, I'm in the same boat.

[brad]

We are about to get our TDI Polo serviced for the first time since we purchased it. Its the 45000km service. I asked the service center how much and what gets done and they said $480, oil and air filters, oil and coolant flush and change. This seems a bit steep...... Also, what is an oil flush and coolant flush? Sounds like bs to me. The car is still in warranty so we will use the dealership service. Is it possible for an individual to perform the service on these cars? How about resetting the service reminder?
Cheers

45000km should be a minor service but it depends on the age of the vehicle as well. Also, some dealers bring some of the service items forward (eg: The pollen filter is every 24months/2nd service but in Australia you are better off doing it every 12months). A lot of the dealers also prefer to do the air filter at 45,000km instead of 60,000km.

oil flush is simply putting some chemicals in the oil before changing the oil. They help clean out the oil galleries. You can buy oil flush for $10 at an auto parts store.

Coolant flush - VWs have longlife coolant. I can't imagine why the coolant would need changing at 45,000km. I thought the change period was more like 150,000km.

Your dealer sounds like he is trying to gouge you a bit. We used to do it when i was at Toyota - engine flush, injector cleaner & oil conditioner for some ridiculous mark-up (my boss bought a new boat engine with the commission on sales). I'd suggest that you get a few more itemised quotes.

should be:
oil change
oil filter
top-up other fluids
tyre pressures & tread depth
check brake pads & rotor thickness
check lights
check wiper blades
drain water seperator (if fitted)
reset service interval indicator
optionals:
air filter
pollen filter
flush brake fluid

[Tim]

At that price it should include brake fluid flush as well which is due every second year.
Price seems normal for a service replacing all fluids

[brad]

45,000km is 3 years in theory. OP doesn't state what year model he is & whether he is dsg or manual.

I've notice that most dealers disregard the age & simply do the brake fluid at 30,000km, 60k, 90k, etc. having worked in dealerships, i can understand their reasoning (makes more sense than a lot of other things thay do).

[tooch]

I just paid $496 for a 25,000km service (2 years old), and that was AFTER a 10% discount. It was the usual oil change, plus pollen filter and brake fluid flush/change.

I'm only getting it dealer serviced while it's still in warranty, purely because if anything major fails after the warranty is up, VW are known to be pretty forgiving if it has always been serviced by them. I figure it's worth the extra few hundred $$$ over 3 years.

[jets]

VW dealers policy of outragous service charges is why some other manufacturers are offering fixed price capped servicing.I remember reading a report of the Passat & one of the down sides was the "eyewatering service costs". When I purchased my Golf TDI the cost was $397 for the oil & filter change. My car has been out of warranty for almost 3 years & I do the same job for less than $100. I wouldn't pay extra for service in the belief that you will be looked after in the future, you are still at their mercy.

[Blitzen]

You can choose to get raped by dealer servicing, or you can take it to an independent who probably knows more about the workings of the car than the dealer... I am under no misconceptions that if you get the car serviced under warranty by a dealer, that you would be looked after if something happened after the warranty period was up... This will only happen to the extremely lucky few... See what happenst to all these DSG owners who work on this premise once there warranty is up!! Spit in one hand, and wish in the other, and see which one fills up first.

In other words, what I am trying to say here is: Shop around. If you don't like that price, go somewhere else.

[flat6]

Something that has always baffled me is how the hell does the dealer make the car feel so tight when you get it back, what do they do?

Is there this magical bolt they tighten up that does this lol?