MOT rip off (or maybe not)

D

Drshemming

Active member
 Warwickshitre
I took my wife's Mini Cooper to a local independent for it's MOT this morning, it failed on the two front lower bushes being worn, everything else was fine, so I asked them for a quote as it would be easy for them to do and that would put the MOT to bed, they quoted, wait for it...

£75.00 each for the bushes and £150.00 for the labour all plus VAT, £360.00 in total,I thought this sounded a little high so took the car to a friend of mine who looks after my old Range Rover, he rang up for a price on the bushes, £19.00 each and £80.00 labour, £141.60 including VAT, almost £220.00 less

I don't mind paying a fair price for work, everyone needs to make a profit, but there is a fair price and a ripoff, won't go to that MOT garage again as I feel I wouldn't be able to trust them.
 
Im not sure if this is the case, but the garages that quote low MOT test prices, tend to be the ones that make it more than up on repairs of failures, working on the assumption people will say, just do it
 
RustyZ4 said:
Im not sure if this is the case, but the garages that quote low MOT test prices, tend to be the ones that make it more than up on repairs of failures, working on the assumption people will say, just do it
Click to expand...

Started using these people http://www.justmots.eu/ but not nationwide, the idea must be catching on though.

Andi.
 
I have been reading up on replacing these bushes a bit since getting home and I may have been a little hasty complaining as far as the labour charge is concerned, £150.00 is probably between 3 and 4 hours labour, which actually seems about right for replacing both bushes, but the parts cost is still very high.

Me and my moaning. :headbang:
 
Possibly depends whether the bushes were genuine or pattern. Genuine ones from BMW Mini may well be £75, depending on the exact model of Cooper.

A quick look shows they range from £30-£70 depending on model, and it's not the sportiest ones that have the most expensive.

BTW, this is the reason I go to MOT stations that only do MOTs. You may pay more for the MOT, but you know that's all that they do day-in and day-out. The council/commercial vehicle ones are the best though.
 
I took my 5er in for an MOT in 2011. There was about £100 worth of small bits and bobs, so I paid up and was quite happy. There was an advisory for play in a ball joint. Anyway, I completely forgot about it until I dug out the MOT for this year. Started to panic thinking that the car would certainly fail. Took it to the same place... different MOT tester. Car passed with no advisories. I said nothing, but took it to a local indie for a service. I asked them to take a look at the ball joints. Absolutely fine.

So, I'm left thinking that the £100 of work was probably / possibly fabricated, in the same way that the ball joint issue definitely was... unless it magically cured itself over 12 months (and 8k miles)... :thumbsdown:
 
mrlozzer, I am pretty sure I read about those self healing ball joints on the 5 series. :D

I have used these guys before for almost all my MOTs in the past, I guess it's because I have never had anything fail before that this sort of thing never cropped up, in retrospect I think I might have been a bit harsh on them, as there does seem to be quite a disparity on prices for the bushes, so I happy that I didn't mention them by name or even where they are based.
 
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