Bad experience with authorised Maruti service center

[BWN]

Hi All,

Just got my uncle's car(M800) serviced last week from an authorised dealer in Bangalore.It was just given for a routine service after 20000 kms & obviously normal servicing stuff was expected.We were told that the following were changed(only a few listed) and the bill given was 2.5k.

1.Engine/brake Oil and other consumables like coolant etc...
2.Oil Filter changed
3.Spark Plugs changed
4.Brake pads changed
5.Speedo Cable changed(On complaint as it was fluctuating)
6.Carb cleaned up and tuned

Now after a week & 300 kms, the speedo again started to fluctuate and i took the car to a nearby mechanic.He simply asked us to replace the cable and on probing i came to know that the cable was old and that was the culprit.Now i got suspicious and asked to check the oil filter and other things which were supposedly replaced, and to my shock, Oil filter was just cleaned,only 2 of the 3 spark plugs were replaced and only two rear brake pads changed.

Fully armed with the evidence, i went to the Dealer and explained him the case.One guy there(might be the foreman or supervisor) admitted that it might be the case of miscommunication within their workshop and the stores.i blasted them in front of other customers and finally got back 1000Rs.

So folks..... the narrated incident might really be a miscommunication, but then point is - How far can these service guys be trusted ? As most of us are salaried people, and dont have the time & knowledge to open the bonnet and check all the things while taking delivery after service, I just want to leave this topic for the Guru's to ponder.

[kiranpashtakar]

One quick way to counter this is ask for the old parts, And if they replace anything on thier own try to coorobarate that with a problem, if you think that is not causing any problem then its highly likely that it will not require replacing (This is a thumbrule maynot be applicable in all cases)


You can insist that the consumables like Oil, coolant etc be replaced at the last and if you have an opportunity you can inspect them whilst taking it back from the service.
Better still buy them yourself and get a local mechanics help to do it


Service is one area where the dealers can make money as the sales are pretty competitive and they get less margin. They try the best to make capitalize on every opportunity, so you have to be extra cautious whilst getting your vehicle serviced

[pmbabu]

If they can do such stuff on M800 (I assume M800 has the cheapest spare parts of the lot), I shudder to think about their higher priced cars....

[alexrabbi]

first of all,

Not every mechanic is technically good(,they just say some junk if you ask them anything)

And after service they had not fitted many accessories properly.

I had to go again to get those accessories fitted properly

[Dud_Dodo]

Which Service Station is this??

[BWN]

Originally Posted by kiranpashtakar

You can insist that the consumables like Oil, coolant etc be replaced at the last and if you have an opportunity you can inspect them whilst taking it back from the service.
Better still buy them yourself and get a local mechanics help to do it

Yes certainly we can ask them to do it front of us but i think its always not possible due to lack of time.We mind our business and they(service centers) do theirs .

i did not want to name the service center because the issue is not to discuss about this particular case alone. i wonder what will happen if dealers do this to City's, Fiesta's, Skoda's etc..... poor owners...

[ownerofazkaban]

From what I know, paid service is 480+tax, At every oil change they change some filter costing few bucks. But oil change costs approx 300 extra. And AFAIK, it's in Maruti's policy to return every old part thats been replaced, they usually dump them at the rear and I have observed this being consistently followed since last 18 months @ b'lore Mandovi. [JP ngr]

Regarding other parts changed, till now they have made it a point to call me and take permission before they did any replacing. What was the "quote" you got before service ? I usually find my final bill is not more than 100 rupees over the quote, mostly it's been less all along. And I get it done from only one auth. service point, even at times I am frustrated but I decided to stick with them and overall it's been very good.

Another thing I noticed is when you sound very technical w.r.t repairs, they don't try and take you for a ride, this applies to all places. So it's better to keep updated ourself with all technical jargons and have a fair idea like...for such & such kind of issue, these areas are the culprit.

I was taken for a ride almost at all places, finally I learnt body work is called "Tinkering", and got small area "tinkered" for my 800 at less than 1/10 of what I was quoted when I really didn't know the solution. Everyone told me to replace the part and quoted min. 3k rupees, untill I insisted on tinkering, So it definitely helps to know some of the details.

[chanapli]

I had a bad expereince with my wife's car in last year. The car was given for 60K service, after the service, they came up with 5K bill. explained they changed this . that.. to my wife. She paid.

Finaly when the car reached at home, I noticed that back number plate was broken, a dent near the number plate light (97 model)
I called up the service center, they said the dent was already there. I rushed to service center, showed the inventory list made by them ( the dent was not mentioned!). I also noticed that they had broken the number plate lamp (left side) inside the garage, replaced and CHARGED ME!. Can you believe?.

After I spoke with service manager, they finally agreed that it had happened inside the garage, when taken for washing. They finally agreed to remove the dent and repaint at their cost.

I had given the complaint in the feed back form, writen to RNS headquarters , Maruthi itself. No news from them for the past 6 months!