Author Topic: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)  (Read 11745 times)

Offline mariamartinez

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #20 on: 29 September 2017, 13:04 »
GolfDave I am not sure you have read this thread. i am trying 1. the preserve the spare wheels and alloys which actually come with the car so I actually don't want to drive on them. 2. The preferred alloys aren't a factory option on that car even though they fit perfectly 3. this is a vw product as I already made clear. 4. I didnt say I was incapable but I am not sure how my capability even comes into the equation. 5. I never mentioned vw "screwing" me, someone else did. If you cannot see how this devalues the handover experience, then that's fine. 6. I am not out of options including breaking out the jack (which btw is no longer supplied with the car), but I surprised at how difficult this is when I am making a once in a lifetime purchase 7. allowing for stuck bolts on a brand new car? lol. Why not allow for bent wheel axle too just in case and book it in for 9 hours. Is it too much to ask for garages to charge for the time they actually take rather than the time they might want to take to do a job? Even then this is £130/per hour in labour charges (or more likely 6 times this in actual time taken)
« Last Edit: 29 September 2017, 13:12 by mariamartinez »

Offline Gnasher

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #21 on: 29 September 2017, 13:28 »
Children, lets all stop getting hot under the collar about this lol.

The problem with main dealers is that the service dept will need to bill the sales dept which affects their margins, which they obviously want to pass on to the customer so as to keep their margin at whatever the deal was originally.

However as GolfDave has stated, you have obviously got the wheels from elsewhere (giving someone else the profit from the sale) then if I was the dealer, I'd charge you to do it as well. If you'd bought them from the dealer then I'd expect them to be fitted free anyway.

Also, you're banging on about the 'customer experience' of picking up a brand new car and not having to fit the wheels outside the dealership. Surely it's not that far off picking up your brand new car and driving it home with the original set of alloys in the boot (and back seat that you've had to fold down) as well as a trolley jack, chocks, etc too (as well as getting them to the dealer in the first place).

My guess from reading between the lines is you want to sell the original wheels on and if you've driven on them you feel you might get less for them.

Unfortunately it's the way of the world where margins have become so tight that anything extra that costs them money (bear in mind you'll be taking up ramp space that could be being used by a paying customer) isn't included unless you negotiated it in the original deal.

Unfortunately (despite you spending money on a new car with them) if you want something for free, you have to do it yourself nowadays.
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Offline scanesare

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #22 on: 29 September 2017, 14:00 »
Managed to read through 3 pages and here's my 2p:

The described situation is a problem for the OP clearly because of two things:

1) She wants to minimize the wear on the stock wheels and tyres since they are not going to be used.
2) She wants to have the ideal hand-over with the car being on the desired non-optional VW wheels.

All the comments about being incapable are irrelevant to say the least. You can have a hundred reasons to not wanting to change tyres yourself even though you're completely capable. So my advice:

For no.1: Hate to brake it to you but the car has already been driven on these wheels so driving an extra 5-10 miles (unless the dealership is at a very remote area) will make exactly 0 difference to their condition for anyone interested in buying them I can guarantee that. Dealers prices not always make sense and we are all aware. If the dealer quoted such a price to me I would just say thanks but you must be crazy and book it/drive it to the nearest tire fitter right after delivery.

For no.2: I can understand the desire for the car to look right from the start BUT: Delivery photos are never going to be as good as ones you can take at more ideal scenery and conditions later on. I can also guarantee that I have tenths of photos that look way better than the ones I took at the dealership during delivery, haven ever looked back at those. So, stop thinking about it, inspect the car, accept delivery if all good and drive to the closest tire fitter. Half and hour later and with 30 euros (or GBP) less you will so happy with your new car that you wil have forgotten all that.

« Last Edit: 29 September 2017, 14:03 by scanesare »

Offline TurboTrev

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #23 on: 29 September 2017, 14:25 »
Unfortunately, from past experience it doesn't surprise me that they say they will make a charge.  Have you tried negotiating with them?  Say you're disappointed that they are charging given that you are buying the car from them, but understand why they are, then ask whether they would not at least do it at half price?  Or ask if they'll equal the price of the mobile service if you're happy with their price?  Failing that, park the car right in the middle of the main roadway through the dealership and take an hour to do it yourself lol.

Offline sweel

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #24 on: 29 September 2017, 14:41 »
Unfortunately, from past experience it doesn't surprise me that they say they will make a charge.  Have you tried negotiating with them?  Say you're disappointed that they are charging given that you are buying the car from them, but understand why they are, then ask whether they would not at least do it at half price?  Or ask if they'll equal the price of the mobile service if you're happy with their price?  Failing that, park the car right in the middle of the main roadway through the dealership and take an hour to do it yourself lol.

Not only that, surely the car needs to go into the workshop to have its PDI so can't the wheel swap be done as part of that  (I'm not sure if a PDI includes a check on the wheel nut torque but a wheel swap would ensure it does!)

So yes, I agree they should do it for free!

Offline fredgroves

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #25 on: 29 September 2017, 14:54 »
Ok, so it boils down to these choices:

1) Pay the £130 to the stealers
2) Negotiate a better price from the stealers
3) Arrange to meet a mobile fitter as close to the dealer as possible (car park nearby?) and pay them.
4) Get your overalls on and swap them yourself, preferably on the forecourt of the stealers for maximum impact.

30 pound plus VAT for a wheel change sounds about right for a main dealer, remember they charge something like 400 quid an hour for labour...
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Offline mcmaddy

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #26 on: 29 September 2017, 15:46 »
I wouldn't trust any VW dealer to swap over any wheels on any car without damaging them. If it were me I would pick the new car up drive away and get someone else to do the change over.
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Offline fredgroves

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #27 on: 29 September 2017, 16:31 »
Christ, if you can't change a complete wheel without damaging it, you shouldn't be a mechanic!

Tyre changes are a bit more challenging and there are some who don't give a 5h1t and bugger them up...
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Offline mariamartinez

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #28 on: 29 September 2017, 17:09 »
dear all,

its helped to talk this through, and hear these opinions. thanks. MM

Offline golfdave

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Re: £130 to swap alloys (not tyres....just the wheels)
« Reply #29 on: 29 September 2017, 18:29 »
GolfDave I am not sure you have read this thread.

No I did read the thread... :wink:

Like I said you expect the dealer to remove your car wheels & fit other VW wheels which were purchased elsewhere....The dealer has every right to charge...& main dealers are known for being high prices.

As for "preserving & not driving the wheels", Your car has already been driven 10 to 30 miles as delivery...a few extra miles driving carefully from the dealer to home isn,t going to affect the resale value as it has already been affected as they have been driven on & don't have the tyre stickers on!