servicing a new car - dealer vs independent

[candywhite12]

like the title suggests.  Who do you trust more to do proper work and not overcharge?  My main concern with going independent, apart from the physical parts of the car which in my 25 year experience preferring an independent shop over dealership (due to costs and also convenience as to the time it takes to service the car), they are well equipped to maintain, do such garages now have access to all state of the art VAG software and can they perform all and every software update there is?  my 8.5 is due it's 15k service which is a pretty basic service, i'm torn between sticking with the tried and tested or switching back to the dealer.  I get the feeling that compared to previous models, all this digitalization might not allow independent shops to keep up with the dealers in terms of equipment and expertise.  Thoughts?

[karlos]

With a tech-laden car like the 8.5 I'd be having it dealer serviced for at least the first couple of years of its life as no doubt it will need software updates.

[joe6]

  My independent has  access to odis for software diagnostic, updates and repair but there is a charge they have to pay which  they pass on. Dealer software updates are supposed to be included with a service while under warranty.

[candywhite12]

Update: my independent also has access to ODIS so i swiftly cancelled my visit to the dealers and scheduled my minor service with my guy, this will definitely keep costs substantially lower for the time being. 

[nadab_sardar]

Good news that your guy's got ODIS, that's the main worry sorted really. Only thing I'd flag is just double check with them whether they're doing full genuine VW software updates/recalls or just diagnostics - some independents have ODIS for fault finding but don't have the login rights to push through every official update the same way a dealer does. Worth asking outright rather than assuming.

Also keep an eye on warranty side of things - as long as they're using correct spec oil/parts and stamping the book (or logging it digitally) properly, shouldn't be an issue, but some dealers still try it on with "must be dealer serviced" chat which isn't true under block exemption rules as long as the garage is competent and uses correct parts.

For a 15k minor service though, honestly can't see why that'd need to be dealer only anyway.

[candywhite12]

Good news that your guy's got ODIS, that's the main worry sorted really. Only thing I'd flag is just double check with them whether they're doing full genuine VW software updates/recalls or just diagnostics - some independents have ODIS for fault finding but don't have the login rights to push through every official update the same way a dealer does. Worth asking outright rather than assuming.

Also keep an eye on warranty side of things - as long as they're using correct spec oil/parts and stamping the book (or logging it digitally) properly, shouldn't be an issue, but some dealers still try it on with "must be dealer serviced" chat which isn't true under block exemption rules as long as the garage is competent and uses correct parts.

For a 15k minor service though, honestly can't see why that'd need to be dealer only anyway.

unfortunately now need to switch back to dealer as it's how you describe it pretty much, it's just diagnostics , not the full licence.  Meaning that for the 15k service it's fine as it's minor stuff really, but from now on i need to be sure that all updates etc are being executed.  Shame though because the independent always saved me over 100 quid per service, particularly due to labor charges