VANOS in South East

B

Barryprman

Member
Hi All
Summer on the horizon and the covers are off, especially after this weekend. Sailed through the MOT last week but need to get her Europe ready for this years road trip. 96k on the clock of my 05 plate 2.2 and looking to get the VANOS sorted. Anyone that can be recommended in the London / Kent / Surrey / Essex borders or shall I go and visit an old mate in Merseyside and drop it off with Ducklakeview?
 
Stick with who you know. Mike is quite renowned for his work and costs.

There is a BMW specialist in reading that do good work but they wanted £400 last time I checked. Ended up doing it myself when I had the front end apart. It's not a fun job on the m54.
 
Barryprman said:
Hi All
Summer on the horizon and the covers are off, especially after this weekend. Sailed through the MOT last week but need to get her Europe ready for this years road trip. 96k on the clock of my 05 plate 2.2 and looking to get the VANOS sorted. Anyone that can be recommended in the London / Kent / Surrey / Essex borders or shall I go and visit an old mate in Merseyside and drop it off with Ducklakeview?
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Really any bmw specialist or local garage can do this simply enough. It's just a case of if they're already familiar with the job etc or if not if they'll take it on. This isn't like zed roof motors that are unique to the e85. The vanos issues (and repair) applies to a multitude of bmw models over a good number of years. Up north there's some specialists that charge similar money to do it that Dlv charges. The truth is he isn't really that cheap at all despite his claims to the contrary. About the going rate, if not slightly more than most specialists up here from what I seen/heard and that was before he had the additional overheads/costs of premises he has now. I know that's up north but it's only about a three hour job and the parts aren't that expensive, even with new gaskets etc. Definelty far less than a £100 trade.
For me you'd spend more in the end with fuel etc (not to mention your time) coming up north to have it done at any specialist up here, its simply not worth the time/cost/hassle even if you do end up paying a bit more locally down south.
 
Sound advice, thank you MACK. Going North is the option i was giving myself should there be no suggestions for London / Kent / Surrey / Essex borders, but thank you for taking the time to respond.
 
Mike did mine because my Indy said they had never heard of it being done and you cant buy the seals :o
Trust what and who you know. :thumbsup:
 
MACK is correct, any BMW Indy worth his salt should be able to do the job no problem.

A few years back guys like Mr VANOS and Dr VANOS had the market cornered and charged a very hefty fee but it’s not a hard job and things have changed a bit now. For example my BMW Indy charged about a third of what Mr VANOS wanted, ask about a bit you’ll probably find a local guy who’s happy to do the job.
 
Might be worth giving Walkers Autotech in Loxwood a call. They have BMW trained technicians and the few times I've used them they've done a pretty good job. They're BMW Porsche and Mini specialists about 5 miles west of Horsham West Sussex.
 
I've used TWG Automotive in Camberley for my BMWs for the last 4 years or so, and others on here have too. Will, the principal, is ex-Sytner.

http://www.twgautomotive.co.uk/

But I've also read good reviews for BMW in Leatherhead - they did a good job on my sister's Mini.

https://www.bmssurrey.co.uk/bmw-servicing-specialist-surrey.php

While I've been very pleased with the jobs Mike has done on my car, it has to be cheaper to go local than a 400 mile round trip! Especially when you add time into the mix.
 
louie12 said:
Might be worth giving Walkers Autotech in Loxwood a call. They have BMW trained technicians and the few times I've used them they've done a pretty good job. They're BMW Porsche and Mini specialists about 5 miles west of Horsham West Sussex.
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Walkers, or ETA motorsport at brands hatch would be my suggestion for south east.
 
+1 if you have it done have it done by someone who you trust and has been recommended by a number of people it’s your paj at the end of the day and you want it done properly.I used mike DLV as he fair and ultra reliable and am happy to have my paj cared for by him and after a blast to Porthmadog on Monday it felt so much more responsive with plenty more grunt your decision at the end of the day but research first as others have done reputations are reputations for a reason good luck op :thumbsup:
 
I've used Walkers and found them to be good, although it was a simple job they did.
I've not had good experiences with Munich Legends though, they're not what they used to be. I won't use them again!
 
Try Mark at MJF Engineering in Dorking has been looking after my MC since I've had it....

Mark McLennon
MJF Engineering
Unit 1 - Rear of Oak Down
Horsham Road
Dorking
RH5 4PF

Tel: 01306713232
 
Check out Scotts Performance (Biddenden motorsports) in Dartford, all the guys at m3cutters rate them highly. I've used them a couple of times and cant fault them.
 
Out of curiosity, has anyone used Technosport?

If so what was the verdict. :?

Their website: http://www.technosport.co.uk
 
R60BBA said:
Out of curiosity, has anyone used Technosport?

If so what was the verdict. :?

Their website: http://www.technosport.co.uk
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Yep used them to do a full inspection before I purchased my MC, George was pretty thorough and knows what he is doing. Would happily take my car there although its a bit too far for me to use from South London though.
 
Another vote for Walkers Autotech. they are good and their prices are reasonable, although 3 weeks on I am still awaiting their quotation to replace rusted brake pipes and something to do with a broken exhaust clamp. They did advise me that they have a backlog on quotations!

(Also, if you were to wait whilst the work is being done, the Bat & Ball pub just down the road does good food & drink!)
 
FYI,

Just got charged £105 by Technosport for a quick 20 min inspection on my car. (I brought it in as my car is making an odd squeaking noise at low speeds).

After 2 hours of waiting, turns out I need new dampers, springs and bushes :?

I’m not sure how I feel about the invoice as BMW Park Lane charge £39.99 for a full visual inspection...
 
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