Level 2 Service Cost - £250

[thornebt]

My local Peugeot dealer has quoted £250 total cost for my 'Level 2' (full) service. The 2011 1.6THP is just coming up to 50,000 miles. I think this is reasonable cost but I've seen posts on this forum about varying servicing costs. Does this seem like a fair price? If anyone has found cheaper quotes in the South West (I'm in Cheddar, not too far from Bristol) I'd be grateful to hear about them. Cheers. Bruce.

 

[the big blue]

Hi thomebt, :greetings-wavingblue:

Level 1 or Level 2 ,,regardless of which check to see what they are actually gonna do ! There are varying differences even for the same Level 1, some 'so called' services amount to nothing more than a mere oil change and an alleged host of TECHNICIAN carried out checks (i.e, tyre tread depth and pressure, coolant level, washer fluid, visual brake pad wear, plus an array of visual exterior checks which I would hope if you are an enthusiast you generally carry out regularly anyway. :thumbup:

So, £250 for an oil change COULD be viewed as expensive in some respects BUT as reasonable if viewed to acquire a 'Main Dealer' service stamp in your service book which is what the dealer knows we crave so they have us :clap:

Ask as to a brake fluid change which you may be advised as "recommended" yet not incorporated into a service cost, chances are they will then happily add £40 to £50 to your service cost quote.

I had a great service by a caring independent garage, the Mechanic who done it actually took the time to speak to me and inform me as to what he had done and found whilst (truly) servicing my car. When I later looked around it to my joy the door, bonnet and boot hinges had all been nicely lubricated too !! Good servicing is about attention to detail :dance: I knew the fee charged was a realistic cost and was not bumped up to pay the corporate CEO paymasters, sterile yet modern showroom and 'show room host' etc and lets not forget the free coffee vending machine


So as not to end on a downer the Main Dealer will probably give your car a FREE wash which I know will have RCZ/1 exclaim, "GET THAT DIRTY BUCKET, SAD LOOKING SPONGE AND CARDBOARD CHAMOIS AWAY FROM MY CAR" in not so many words ,,ask her !!


.the big blue (..still alive and well on the Forum back benches and wanting a change in Main Dealer ethos as even the VAG Group have shown that they cannot always be trusted to act with integrity) :beer:

 

[Anonymous]

Seems fairer than the £350 my dealership wanted for the 3rd year / @22000 miles service...needless to say I'm going elsewhere!

 

[thornebt]

On consulting my maintenance record and taking into account the two years since last service and mileage it seems that the Level 2 service should include the oil and filter, air filter, passenger compartment filter, spark plugs, brake fluid and engine coolant. I've emailed the dealer to check that my £250 service includes these parts.

Normally I prefer to carry out all work on my cars myself (with the exception of welding and spraying) and I don't like taking it to the main dealer at all. However, as mentioned above, it's important to have the service book stamped. If I'm not impressed with Peugeot's response I will find an independent who can do the job and also stamp the service record.

 

[tianorth]

On consulting my maintenance record and taking into account the two years since last service and mileage .....

I thought that you have to have an oil & oil filter change every year if your servicing is every 2 years/20k?

 

[DKZ5745]

I thought the RCZ had to be serviced every year :eusa-think:

 

[tianorth]

Pre mid 2012 the service schedule changed from every 2 years / 20k with an interim oil change to every year or 20k which ever came first.

 

[DKZ5745]

Ahhh, I remember reading that somewhere now. :eusa-think:

I keep meaning to go to the memory clinic, but I always forget to make an appointment :wtf:

 

[renegade79]

So as not to end on a downer the Main Dealer will probably give your car a FREE wash which I know will have RCZ/1 exclaim, "GET THAT DIRTY BUCKET, SAD LOOKING SPONGE AND CARDBOARD CHAMOIS AWAY FROM MY CAR" in not so many words ,,ask her !!

:lol:

On consulting my maintenance record and taking into account the two years since last service and mileage it seems that the Level 2 service should include the oil and filter, air filter, passenger compartment filter, spark plugs, brake fluid and engine coolant. I've emailed the dealer to check that my £250 service includes these parts.

Normally I prefer to carry out all work on my cars myself (with the exception of welding and spraying) and I don't like taking it to the main dealer at all. However, as mentioned above, it's important to have the service book stamped. If I'm not impressed with Peugeot's response I will find an independent who can do the job and also stamp the service record.

Servicing really should be done once a year with a minimum of an oil and filter change! That THP engine loves an oil change.....

 

[thornebt]

The Peugeot Delaership got back to me to say that the oil, oil filter, air filter and spark plugs are included in the £250 Level 2 service. They check the brake fluid, coolant and pollen filter to see if they are OK. If they need replacing the costs are £30, £60 and £30 respectively. My service schedule says the coolant should be checked every 20k / 2 years and the pollen filter and brake fluid changed at the same intervals. I only do about 6,000 miles a year, perhaps this is why they did not recommend an interim oil and filter change.

I didn't realise that it was possible to test the quality of brake fluid but when I googled it I found that there is a digital tester with two probes that tests the moisture content.

As my service schedule says that the brake fluid and pollen filter should be changed every two years and my local dealer say they check them and replace if necessary I'm going to check with another Peugeot Dealer to see what they include in the Level 2 service.

 

[the big blue]

Hi thomebt :greetings-wavingblue:

Interesting to see your update as to what was to be included in the service. I note the brake fluid, coolant change and pollen filter would have added an extra £120 plus VAT which would have brought the full cost to £370 plus VAT which seems closer to what I would have anticipated for Pug main dealer level 2 . Just to play Devils Advocate I wonder whether you would have received a call to advise you that the latter three items required change and sought your authority to do so ? ! :eusa-think:

Keep us informed as to alternative quotes that you receive as we are all in the same boat ,,OR should I say RCZ !

.the big blue (...remember to indulge in the free coffee as I do as its factored into their £80 plus per hour labour charge) :lol:

 

[thornebt]

The £250 service cost includes VAT. I'm not sure if the 'extra' item prices include VAT, I'll check. I've asked my next local Peugeot Dealer in Taunton by email if the extra items are included in the service for which they also charge £250. They seem consistent on price so maybe they will also be on what is included.

I can ask the dealers the question as to why the service schedule says brake fluid and pollen filter should be changed but they will instead check it and only change if necessary. But they will probably just do the work then anyway and bill me for it.

I found a company called Service Stop who collect your car and do the full RCZ service for £140. But when I read a couple of bad reviews I decided I would give them a miss.

 

[DKZ5745]

I have taken out a service plan with my main dealer (I was talked into it at a vulnerable moment :eusa-shhh: ).

So when my car went in for its second service, everything was covered, right? Errr, no...... I got "the call" advising that "Peugeot recommend a brake fluid change every two years, so that's an extra £40"

So if my car is on a Service Plan, and they know it will be having service 2 and 4 while on that plan, and they know that the car needs brake fluid changes on those services, WHY AREN'T THEY INCLUDED IN THE EXTORTIONATE AMOUNT I'M ALREADY PAYING ! :brickwall:

I admit, in a bit of a temper I said no, which I did regret afterwards, but I'm sure it will be OK until the next service, and I'll just have to stump up the extra and have it done then.

Trying to think of the other thing they said I out to have done with the service, that surprise surprise was also not included in my plan, but I was so annoyed about the brake fluid, I can't remember what it was. Something insignificant though.

It seems to be a growing trend that these places quote a price, knowing full well that it doesn't include everything you are supposed to have done. Then once they have your car, they give you "the call" and advise about the extras that you need to have done.

I thought my service plan was supposed to make it so I didn't have anything to pay for servicing during my time with the RCZ, other than the monthly amount agreed at the start.

It seems that no matter how old you get, there can still be the odd naive moment :eusa-think:

 

[thornebt]

Peugeot service manager told me the following:-

Brake Fluid £30.00 (normal cost without servicing would be £40)

I agree that their service plan should include all items that they know will need to be changed during the duration of the service plan. But they even charged you the higher amount when your car was already being serviced!

I've just bought a brake fluid tester from Ebay for about £6.00. I appreciate that it's a DIY tool and won't be as high spec as Peugeot's equipment but it should give me an idea if there is moisture in the system. I can check the wife's car brake fluid as well which I cannot recall ever changing. It's easy to overlook these things.

 

[thornebt]

Rather than have Peugeot charge me £60 for a coolant change I thought I would top up the coolant beforehand. I've tested it with my own tester and two balls out of three floating in the tester indicate it should be protected down to -18C. But I think it would be wise to increase the concentration slightly.

I've looked through the handbook for a spec on the antifreeze but cannot find one. Does anyone know the correct antifreeze please? Cheers. Bruce.

 

[DKZ5745]

I believe the actual Peugeot part is
P00009735K4
541051
Antifreeze

But I asked at my dealers if the stuff I had was OK and they said it was perfect........

 

[the big blue]

Hi' :greetings-wavingblue:

You can buy the official Peugeot packaged coolant for the Z' from the Pug dealer at the parts counter for less than a tenner for two litres (ready diluted) which I did, OR you can buy the one litre concentrated (non diluted/ watered down) Peugeot packaged coolant for a similar price.

With regards to the service book recommending a change BUT then not including it in the actual service this is the Manufacturers latest method of assisting their dealerships to con the motoring public who will only be advised via a phone call of the additional service items not actually included in the "menu service" once your car is in their workshop and midway through it service. The customer is then pressured into making an instant decision which is more likely to be a YES whilst the technician waits with baited breath ! :twisted:

.the big blue (..and no the FREE coffee doesn't alleviate the feeling of am I being ripped off in a Corporate way)

 

[thornebt]

Here is the response from my Peugeot main dealer about why they don't necessarily replace pollen filter and brake fluid:-

The Brake Fluid and Pollen Filters are classed as additional operations in the service book and recommended to be replaced every 2 years for the brake fluid and 20k or 2 years for the Pollen filter.

We don’t include them in the basic cost of any of our services, including cars that are still under manufactures warranty, as although they are recommended by Peugeot we find that in most cases they don’t always need to be replaced, it really comes down to the type of use the vehicle gets and the mileage covered, we feel that it is unnecessary to replace parts that don’t need to be replaced, but they will be checked as part of the service. This is why our services are considerably cheaper than other Peugeot Main Dealers.

I agree with him that there is no point in replacing parts for the sake of it.

 

[DKZ5745]

Yes, I agree too, if that is the actual case.

I wasn't told my brake fluid was tested and needed replacing, simply that it was recommended by Peugeot so hand over the £40 and we will do it.

I may be turning into a sceptical old man, but I am always very suspicious about main dealers "checking if something actually needs doing" before going ahead and asking for the cash to get it done.

1. The dealer is there to make money, not to offer services.
2. If the car manufacturer recommends something is done, it probably should be done.
3. If they do it and it was necessary, no problem, if they do it and it wasn't necessary, no problem.
4. Might as well do it anyway then, and get a bit more profit from the already extortionate service costs.

I have had cars (not to the performance standards of the RCZ) for many years that have never had brake fluid changes. I have never had a problem with brakes not working as well as they should because of this.

I will be having the fluid changed at the next service, which will be in 11 months time, when the car is 3 years old. This is only because it is playing on my mind now that I didn't have it done at its second service, as recommended by Peugeot, and if anything ever happened while my wife was driving the car that could be linked to the brake fluid, how bad would I feel for the sake of £40

I will probably be changing the car at the end of the service plan, but if I don't, it will NOT be going back to a main dealer for any work/servicing etc, as it will be out of warranty, and I think there are garages that do a better job for less money.

 

[thornebt]

I know what you mean. I've never considered changing brake fluid as part of servicing cars over the years. I appreciate that some people might tell me that I should have done as brakes are critically important! I've done partial changes on many cars when it's been necessary to change a brake caliper, rusty brake pipe or seals etc.

Perhaps the answer is to buy a brake fluid tester which measures the moisture content. You just dip the two prongs into the fluid resevoir and the digital device does the rest. On Ebay they are in the region of £6.50 to £22.00. My personal view is that it's best to avoid the unbranded ones from China and to go for the branded makes on Ebay which tend to be Silverline, Laser or Sealey. They might, of course, be made in China but at least you have the benefit of them being a branded product. Armed with one of these you can test the brake fluid in your RCZ and also in all the other cars in the family. You might just be doing someone a favour if you identify poor brake fluid in their car! I believe it can also be used to check moisture content on power steering fluid etc.

Although the testers are quite cheap I've read quite a few reviews and there was nothing to suggest that they are unreliable.