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Finally decided today that the Altea is going

Penfold

Active Member
May 18, 2007
50
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Was undecided as whether to change or not, so I have phoned around for the cost of my next service (due in about june/july). Well, the conversations I have had have made up my mind. The quote I was given for the 4yr/40,000 mile service is as follows:-

Service - £267
Brake Fluid Change - £46
Cam Belt Change - £400.

Total of £713. This is just bloody rediculous, and this doesn't include any other work (expecting needing pads and discs), so possibly £1000+.

So, the car is going. Great car, but I just cant live with the costs involved in keeping the thing going. Frighteningly, the trade in values have crashed. My car is a 2.0TDI Sport, metallic paint, 29,000 miles, mint condition. Was offered £7200!!!!!! This car was the best part of £18,500 when new. This fact has now also put me off buying another Seat.
 
I wouldn't get rid of it, just go somewhere else, or do it yourself. Your cam belt won't need changing if you've only done that mileage.
You can change your brake fluid for less than a tenner.
I must admit I was a bit miffed when quoted under £8000 for my Altea.
 
There is no mention in my service book of the cam belt needing replacement after 4 years. It does say QUOTE: Every 12000km ( 80000mls ) toothed belt for camshaft drive: replace ( only for TDi engines with injector pump, except for the Alhambra model)
Every 150000Km ( 100000mls ) toothed belt for camshaft drive: replace ( only for TDi andSDi engines )
 
I agree the dealer costs of servicing are really extortionate, i've done a few more miles than yourself, but as suggested shop around I had my 40k service done at an independant for 170quid + vat ,a hundred notes less than I was quoted by Spur in Hampton Court.
Only 1k of my 50k service which will need to be booked soon !!
Good luck with selling it !
 
Penfold said:
Was undecided as whether to change or not, so I have phoned around for the cost of my next service (due in about june/july). Well, the conversations I have had have made up my mind. The quote I was given for the 4yr/40,000 mile service is as follows:-

Service - £267
Brake Fluid Change - £46
Cam Belt Change - £400.

Total of £713. This is just bloody rediculous, and this doesn't include any other work (expecting needing pads and discs), so possibly £1000+.

So, the car is going. Great car, but I just cant live with the costs involved in keeping the thing going. Frighteningly, the trade in values have crashed. My car is a 2.0TDI Sport, metallic paint, 29,000 miles, mint condition. Was offered £7200!!!!!! This car was the best part of £18,500 when new. This fact has now also put me off buying another Seat.
Click to expand...

don't be too disaheartened at the trade-in price, my mates BMW 320d sport with M parts, v v nice, 04 plate, they book at about 11k trade in now, this was a £25k+ car 4 year ago.....
 
Don't expect ANY cambelt to go more than 4 years/40K miles.
We don't call em stealers for nothing. Go to a good independent. Pay less get better service.
I paid 11k for my 55 plate 2.0TDI DSG Stylance/sport kit 20k miles 3 months ago, so 8k trade in isn't so bad.
Lesson is? Never buy a new car. Let someone else pay the depreciation for several years!
 
Talking about depreciation, I bought a Peugeot 307 D Turbo for £16.500 when they first came out, kept the (pile of poo) thing for a year, and had to give it away for £8200 as no one wanted it. Not buying a new Peugeot again thankyou.
 
Penfold said:
Was undecided as whether to change or not, so I have phoned around for the cost of my next service (due in about june/july). Well, the conversations I have had have made up my mind. The quote I was given for the 4yr/40,000 mile service is as follows:-

Service - £267
Brake Fluid Change - £46
Cam Belt Change - £400.

Total of £713. This is just bloody rediculous, and this doesn't include any other work (expecting needing pads and discs), so possibly £1000+.

So, the car is going. Great car, but I just cant live with the costs involved in keeping the thing going. Frighteningly, the trade in values have crashed. My car is a 2.0TDI Sport, metallic paint, 29,000 miles, mint condition. Was offered £7200!!!!!! This car was the best part of £18,500 when new. This fact has now also put me off buying another Seat.
Click to expand...

You'll get £9k all day long privately for that though!
 
pdh 14a said:
You'll get £9k all day long privately for that though!
Click to expand...
No. Not when the same motor is sitting on Autotrader at £8500 from a dealer with warranty, and another a year younger for £8800. On a private sale I'd be expecting to pay round about £7600 - £8000 for that model.

Cars depreciate. All you can do really is buy a car you like and watch it depreciate rather than one you hate and do the same thing.:shrug:
 
If you buy a new car then you do have money to burn !! As crispdust said the first year's depreciation is horrific, especially on any french/spanish/italian motor, similairly i paid 11.5k for an 05 2.0TDi sport with 17k on it in nov06, i can handle loosing 2.5k over a year especially as it has to work hard for a living !!

Admittedly, you get the full 3 yr. warranty when you buy from new, which again from personal experience so far can outway the depreciation given how many times its been in the garage for warranty work!! (keeping fingers crossed that it stays problem free now its out of warranty!)

Still IS a nice car though when everything works ok.

Cheers
Mark.
 
I'll answer a few of your posts in one go.

Ive not yet decided on a new car yet, but i will definitely be looking more closely at the servicing costs and schedules.

I live near Stoke, and have 4 main stealers within 20 miles. However, have not found a decent independant in this area to service any of the cars I have had in recent years.

Unfortunately, i'm not great with working on cars, so dont have the confidence to try and perform the service myself.

Spoke to stealers regarding the Cambelt change interval, told me that the 4yr limit had been missed when the books were printed ????

As I have said, the car is great, but I am getting disheartend with Seat as a brand. Spoke to Seat UK not to long ago about my windscreen de-laminating (another common problem). Just not interested.

This is my 4th Seat, Leon x 2, wifes Ibiza and my Altea. I think this may be my last.
 
Penfold,
I'm not far from you and the dealers do quote massive price variations.

I have posted separately on the servicing thread, but just in case you haven't seen it:

I have just had my 1.9 TDi serviced at LC Charles Crewe and they price matched the DC Cook price of £99. This was the cars first service (10K) and I did pre book. As part of the service I asked if I could wait as the dealership is a bit of a distance from my home They asked if I could be there at a certain time and said it would take 1.5 hrs. Everything was done fine and they did only charge £99 instead of the 'board price' of £177.50!

So there is a lot of scope for price negotiation. When I did phone DC Cook to find out there service costs they said that yr 1 was £100 and yr 2 service would cost £150 all in - so maybe a day tip worth taking?

Incidentally in Congleton there is an excellent independent - Votex. I know they are a sponsor on this board, and I would have gone there, but wanted Seat service due to warranty. They would be worth trying for a price - and they definitely know their stuff - they race Cupras. See what they quote - it's only a short trip and they use genuine VAG stuff. They have a website so Google it and see what you think.

Hope this helps.

Regards
Alex
 
Viking said:
No. Not when the same motor is sitting on Autotrader at £8500 from a dealer with warranty, and another a year younger for £8800. On a private sale I'd be expecting to pay round about £7600 - £8000 for that model.

Cars depreciate. All you can do really is buy a car you like and watch it depreciate rather than one you hate and do the same thing.:shrug:
Click to expand...

Bugger :cry: i couldn't find one that cheap 3 months ago! Paid £9.5 k for a 25k late 2005 black 2.0 tdi sport! Did have 17's, mettalic paint and an extra flip key though!
 
Cars on average are depreciation at 8% per annum faster than normal.

The credit crunch isn't just affecting the housing market. People default on car loans too and have to sell, the market is currently flooded with used cars.

It's a buyers market out there, even more so if you've got hard cash.

Not a good time to sell IMHO unless you need to. I was considering getting rid of mine for a company car but the resale value is just too low, I might as well keep it running for a few years.
 
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