I have had my car serviced per the maintenance schedule at the Dealer throughout its life. It is becoming somewhat long in the tooth - about 95,000 miles - and the body and interior are in great shape. I have spent about $4500 on servicing and repairs over the car’s seven years lifespan. My car warrantee picked up about an additional $2000 for repairs. Should I continue with Dealer servicing or drive off in some other direction to save some money?
Usually it makes better sense to find a good independent shop for most maintenance and repairs. The trick is finding one. Do any of your acquaintances have a Volvo mechanic they’d recommend? Have you checked the Cartalk Mechanics Files?
It worked for me.
You try another one and see how it goes.
I find my Subaru specialist tends to save me between 25-50% on repairs/maintenance vs dealer.
Time to switch to an independent mechanic WHO KNOWS VOLVOS. This is important, since an independent who does not know Volvos, although cheaper, can botch repairs, mis-diagnose, or just fail to recoginze the fix for any problem.
You have actually done quite well to have only spent $4500 on repairs and maintenance; that’s 4.74 cents per mile. I spent $5263 on a loaded Chevy Caprice for the first 95,000 miles with no warranty work necessary.
Many posters on this sight will tell you to sell the car NOW, since Volvos with this mileage typically start having many expensive repairs and they will not be covered by warranty, even an extended warranty. I concur with those posters. The fact you had $2000 in warranty work done so early should be a tipoff!
Find an independant mechanic, who knows Volvos.
2nd, consider (seriously, very seriously) getting rid of the Volvo. You’ve been lucky so far. Keeping it as it ages could be very expensive. $2,000 and $3,000 repair bills with Volvo cars is just too common. Sell it soon.
Save money and find a respected independent mechanic. If you have a chamber of commerce in your town or city, check with them. Best case scenario, ask around - word of mouth is probably the best form of referral. I have a mechanic that has serviced all my autos, including a '90 Volks Cabriolet, '92 Lexus SC300 & a 2001 Lexus RX300 for stuff like Control Arm bushings, brake pads, calipers & brake lines, radiator, gas tank, motor for the passenger-side window. I trust them very much and everything has been to my expectations.
There is nothing wrong with using a dealer as long as you can trust them and get good service.
independents and dealers both can be very good and honest.
independents and dealers both can be very dishonest.
independents and dealers both can have hugh amounts of integrity.
independents and dealers both can have hugh amounts of wisdom.
independents and dealers both can have very clean and waiting rooms.
independents and dealers both can have very filthy waiting rooms.
independents and dealers both charge money for parts and service.
independents and dealers both can be very mean or extremely pleasant.
independents and dealers both can be butt ugly and stinky or a be a real looker.
Point being there is nothing wrong with going to the dealer for service. They are not the spawn of satin.
Dealers can be very dishonest in the diagnosis. Quite brutal when deciding all of the nonsensical issues that do not need to be addressed. On the other hand at 97000 miles I did stick a dealer with over 600 in parts and 3 days labor on my old mercury topaz. They also had to rebuild the engine at 57000 and I never had to prove maintenance just pay $100 for a fee. So a good mechanic is a good thing. Sometimes the extra dealer cost is honest. If you do not compare then you do not know. If you doubt a proposed charge do so clearly and nicely and document this for anyone. Most people want your money, many will be truthful. I cannot diagnose much by email, but scams usually smell a long way away, even over the internet
Some dealerships have excellent service departments, e.g. the Honda one by my house. That being said, I go to my local mechanic for routine maintenance and I go to the dealer for parts, and to have the transmission fluid changed and that’s pretty much it.
You can save some $ by going to an independent mechanic (just be careful of local chains, they can be cash cows). Go there for an oil change and see how that goes. Like others mentioned, some specialize in European imports so look around.
I think that meaneyedcatz summed up everything very well.
Generalizations are not necessarily relevant to a particular situation.
Specific details regarding the competency, the honesty, and the pricing of a dealership should enter into the decision-making, rather than just generalizing. For instance, when I had my money-pit Volvo, I did use a couple of independent foreign car mechanics, simply because they charged far less and were far more competent in comparison to the Volvo dealer.
Similarly, I learned to use an indy shop for my Chevy. However, I found my Honda dealership to be very good, and I have found my Subaru dealership to be similarly reliable and trustworthy.
And, there can be other factors influencing the decision as well.
As one example, I have the Subaru Mastercard, which gives me a 3% rebate on everything that I charge on that card. As a result, in addition to my groceries and other regular purchases, I even pay my utility bills with that card.
Periodically, I receive a voucher for $100, which can be redeemed at the parts counter or the service dept at the Subaru dealership. I save these vouchers and use them to pay for my 30k, 60k, 90k, and 120k major services at the dealership. As a result, I usually wind up paying something on the order of $40-$50 for these very pricey services (all fluids, all filters, spark plugs, serpentine belt, etc).
Additionally, I get a brand-new loaner car from the dealership and the assurance of OEM parts and Valvoline lubricants. Somehow, I don’t think that there is any downside to getting excellent service, in a convenient location, at very low prices.
However, if the local dealership was not trustworthy, I would not use that credit card and I would not use the dealership. You have to figure out what works to your best advantage, and only you know local conditions and prices at the dealership and at local indy shops.
The one point on which I will differ with meaneyedcatz is in regard to, “They are not the spawn of satin”.
What does a shiny fabric have to do with car dealerships?
;-))