Gentlemen taken from the what car site
Labour rates top £150 per hour
17 June 2004
Some franchised dealerships charge labour rates of up to £153 per hour, according to the latest research by Warranty Direct.
The independent warranty provider says dramatic variations in the cost of labour still exist from region to region and garage to garage.
Since it last examined labour rates in June last year, a BMW franchise in central London has charged the highest hourly rate of £152.75 per hour. This is more than double the UK average labour bill of £68 for the marque, although this figure is obtained using both franchised and independent garages.
Eleven manufacturers had peak charges of more than £100 an hour ? a Ford dealership in London asked for £106 an hour compared with the company?s national average of £50. In all, Warranty Direct says the number of garages around the country charging over £100 has increased threefold in the last 12 months.
What Car? editor Rob Aherne said: ?The marked differences in labour rates really makes shopping around worthwhile, so don?t accept the first price you?re given.?
Mazda has the lowest average labour bills of £44 followed by Nissan, Seat, Fiat and MG Rover on £46. Lexus leads the table with the most expensive average charge of £78 an hour, £1 more than Mercedes, £3 more than Jaguar and £5 more than Porsche.
Although initiatives introduced by the European Commission last October were aimed at encouraging cheaper repair and servicing bills, Warranty Direct says labour rates at franchised dealers have increased 8% in the last year and 71% since 2000
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Southern England vehicle owners, especially in the South East, have known for years that it was cheaper to have their BeeEmms, Mercs, Lexus and similar vehicles serviced in the north of England or even Scotland.
The problem for franchised dealerships is that profits on new cars are comparatively low (six times more profit on selling used vehicles) whilst servicing intervals have been stretched far beyond older times, thanks to modern lubricants and superior vehicle quality.
They've got to get their money back somehow - costs a lot to build, equip, maintain and staff big dealerships - and that's where they try and get it back.
You'll probably do just as well going to National - I know I get an oil and filter change (semi-synthetic) for £15 and I can't even buy the oil and oil filter at trade for that price at the motor factors.
The latest MOT on my Bora brought a clean bill of health, a voucher from a national newspaper meant I only paid half price (just over £20) and I even got Tesco ClubCard points....:-)
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"I get an oil and filter change (semi-synthetic) for £15 and I can't even buy the oil and oil filter at trade for that price at the motor factors". For the last two years I have always been able to get 5l. semi-syn, Pug filter and sump-plug washer for £15 at the Northwich Pug dealer's.
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What's the brand of oil?
I use Partco, Express Factors and a number of other outlets in my town; the combined cost with VAT of the oil and oil filter is slightly more than National's charge for the service. It would cost even more at Halford's to buy them.
If I did the change myself, as I used to do, I would have the problem of doing the work on my driveway and then getting rid of the oil.....:-)
What's more, at the two National outlets I use (the Ormskirk one is unable to do MOTs as there is only one ramp), the staff are extremely thorough and take around half-an-hour to do the work. For £15 (£25 if you want fully synthetic) it's a bargain.
Saving £20 odd on an MOT is not to be sneezed at either...
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Brand of oil varies - I've had Total Quartz and Castrol.
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