To wonder how the hell people are paying for this?!

[Ifrreoo]

I have an average car and cost to service it is 525. My home insurance has gone up to 450 and my car insurance is 540 (yes I’ve called round endlessly). I have 18 years no claims.

I am a higher earner. I am going to massively struggle to pay for this. I don’t understand how someone on the average income could afford this? Am I going wrong somewhere? Why am i struggling to make ends meet? How do others do it?

That really is excessive, I have a four year old Merc and pay £40 per month by installments which covers large and small services at a dealer.

I pay £165 for a full service on a VW polo at a small independent garage

Like I say, I’d be interested in seeing what’s actually done for that.

It was done quite recently, brake fluid didn’t need changing or antifreeze
i just checked the paperwork and it was actually an interim service for £120
MOT was £45
new AC condenser plus gas £295

So just oil/filter and a pollen filter. That’s quite a basic service and not an unreasonable price.

Yes he is very reasonable and will always advise on what needs doing. I worked for a main dealer for 8 years (JLR) so am very.. skeptical with garages but I trust him totally

my car does very little mileage so I tend to do 2 x interim then a full service

We go to independent garages.

We shop around for everything; loyalty does not pay anymore. The best deals are for new customers - even though I think this was supposed to be stopped?

We save up for annual bills over the course of the year.

We don't have brand new, super fancy cars.

How often and what's included on a service really depends on both the make and model of the car and whether it's diesel, petrol or electric. And the annual mileage.

But typically you have a minor service and a major service.

Minor includes an oil and filter change. That's it. Besides topping up screen wash, checking the tyres, etc.

Major includes oil and filter change. Then a brake fluid change, air filter and pollen (cabin) filter. If its diesel it'll have a fuel filter as well. If its petrol it'll have spark plugs instead.

Major is recommended by some manufacturers every two years. Having the minor done in between.

Personally, I just have the minor (oil and filter) every year. Then do the major every 3 - 4 years.

I do recommend at least having the oil and filter done yearly.

You can ask the skoda garage to print you off a service schedule. They'll tell you what skoda recommends for you specific vehicle. It will tell you when stuff like wet belt, timing belt, etc. Are due as well as normal servicing If your car has a timing belt it's usually 10 years or a certain amount of miles. That is something that really does need to be done.

You can just get somewhere like Halfords to do your yearly oil and filter though. Will be much cheaper.

These timing belts seem to bump up the prices a lot. Glad I don't have one

If you have a chain they can also be costly to repair.

You must have a fancy car and a big house.

Full service. It's a small 2 seater sports car.

Just saying “full service” is meaningless. A full service could well include oil/filter, air filter, cabin filter, fuel filter, spark plugs, brake fluid, aux belt and even a coolant change depending on the requirements. There’s no way you’re getting that for £150, you’ll be getting oil/filter and maybe air or cabin filters. The parts alone for a big service could be significantly more than £150 at trade price.

Usually last a lifetime of the car though. Never known anyone need to replace them

Chain issues are fairly common, some engines are notorious. They sometimes snap but more often stretch which causes all kinds of symptoms.

You are being over charged if that's all you have had done.

Ok if you say so Last car I had with a chain managed 250k miles and still had no issues. Current one on 120k no issues.

Do need to make sure oil changes done regularly though which is usual cause of issues

And a stretched chain doesn't instantly wreck engine like a snapped belt

Its not about you personally though, the actuaries will have looked at people like you drive a car like yours in your area and maybe there aren't many of them and the data is skewed by the small sample size

2 seconds on Google will tell you about some of the notorious engines. There are specialists out there making a good living from replacing chains!

A stretched chain will give you all kinds of issues and because they’re intended to be a lifetime item they’re much harder to change. I had a Jag with the dog shit Ingenium engine in last week with horrendous chain noise, I think book time was something like 20hrs, we politely declined that one.

I looked. My car isn't on the list of the notorious engines.

You will hear when a chain is stretched. Only then does it need doing ( also looked to do on my car is about £450/500).

Doesn't have to be kept replacing if it doesn't go wrong like velts

Yeah, I understand how stats work.

But middle aged women driving WAVs are fairly unlikely to be doing anything risky, aren't they? Especially by comparison with middle aged women driving VW Ups with Beats by Dr Dre detailing.

I think it's a reluctance to quote on specialist adapted cars means that there is reduced competition so they can bung a bit extra on the quote, meaning that I have to pay far more to drive my disabled husband to the garden centre than I do to drive myself around London for work.

Are u using a dealership for the service? Surely u can get it a lot cheaper at a local place. I get my service done at a bmw approved garage (has to be to update the digital logbook) and it’s still less than £200.

I have similar no claims and my car insurance is less than £400 a year on a brand new car.

Home insurance is also about £250 for a 5 bed detached house. Haven’t claimed in many years though.

If it’s unlikely you will claim (as in haven’t done so in years) have u though about downgrading the cover and increasing the excess.