Audi Service Price Match - have they told the dealers?

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kalniel

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So car tells me I'm due for my first oil change service. Duly booked into the garage I bought the car from and asked for a price quote.

£215.60.

Yikes.

Ah but what's this I see on the website? A handy price match!

http://www.audi.co.uk/owners-area/servicing-maintenance-mot/audi-service-price-match.html

It’s called the Audi Service Price Match. And it’s really simple. Get a quote from any provider for a service, repairs, maintenance or new tyres. If it includes Audi Genuine Parts, we guarantee you won’t pay a penny more for the same job at Audi. And that includes parts and labour. Our expertise, at local garage prices.
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All part of The Audi Difference.

Yay. Only when I tell my dealer they start making excuses:

"It's only for quotes from other Audi garages"

"If the difference is too large we can't match as we'd be making a loss"

hmm.. that's not anywhere in the terms and conditions on the page. Nor is it 'really simple'.

Not impressed.. any idea who the best person to kick up a fuss would be?
 
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Just use a different Audi garage. Not all of them are part of the scheme. My local one wasn't so I had to go elsewhere for my last service
 
does everyone use main dealer for the stamp or do people use indy audi specialists? i have a local specialist who is VAG predominantly Audi and they are a revo supplier and have previously used my cars they have done as demos and are brilliant great service so far my audi experience is a little unhinged i dont get it.
 
This was the same for me a few weeks ago. Tried to price match against an independent garage and the Audi garage wanted an itemised quotation, as well as the numbers of the parts that they were going to replace, i.e. Oil, oil filter, pollen filter.....

They weren't prepared to do this so kept with prices from Audi. However after phoning the garages around, for the same service, the price varied from approx. £218 to £311, depending what 'group' the garage is connected with. Even then, garages in the same group charge different prices so definitely worth phoning around.

Managed to get the closest Audi garage to price match the cheapest Audi garage, however they still needed a quotation to price match. Also got two new tyres for the same price of the cheapest garage around as well as 1/2 price wheel alignment. Wish I hadn't now, but's that another story.......
 
smk82 said:
Just use a different Audi garage. Not all of them are part of the scheme. My local one wasn't so I had to go elsewhere for my last service
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Mine supposedly is.

cpc_s3 said:
does everyone use main dealer for the stamp or do people use indy audi specialists? i have a local specialist who is VAG predominantly Audi and they are a revo supplier and have previously used my cars they have done as demos and are brilliant great service so far my audi experience is a little unhinged i dont get it.
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New car, so kind of would like to keep at Audi for a bit, not to mention the stamp is digital these days so any potential buyers would have to use service receipts + a query on the audi system, so quite a faff compared to the old stamp book. But as it's just an oil service I'll probably end up just using the local.

Pintman said:
This was the same for me a few weeks ago. Tried to price match against an independent garage and the Audi garage wanted an itemised quotation, as well as the numbers of the parts that they were going to replace, i.e. Oil, oil filter, pollen filter.....
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I asked Audi for a list of parts and gave that direct to the local Bosch garage - Audi didn't supply me with part numbers or itemised quotation so it'd be a bit off for them to use that excuse with me.

Ah well we'll see if Audi central get back to me.
 
kalniel said:
I asked Audi for a list of parts and gave that direct to the local Bosch garage - Audi didn't supply me with part numbers or itemised quotation so it'd be a bit off for them to use that excuse with me.
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And predictably that looks like what they are now doing.

Paraphrased conversation:

Me: Please could you give me a quote and list of parts for the oil change service I've booked, so I can get local quotes for the Price Match Service

Them: It's this <list of part names without numbers> and this much total. By the way we can only match Audi garages.

Me: That's not what the website/T&C says.

Them: If the price is too low we can't match it.

Me: That's not what the website/T&C says. I'll get back to you with a quote.

Me sometime later. OK here's a local (<3 miles), VAT registered quote for the service in total and list of part names including mention of Audi genuine parts, it's in writing too which I've forwarded to you.

Them: We probably can't match that as we need the item numbers (which we didn't tell you).

Currently waiting for them to get back to me again.

Irony is, they just sent me an email advertising, amongst other things, the servicing Price Match Guarantee.
 
I can't imagine there's a 'Price Promise Guarantee' anywhere in the retail sector that hasn't been breached in some way. Why would Audi be any different?
 
I've had this before with an Audi price match promise on tyres and when I once enquirer about having a tracker fitted they didn't even match their own price on their promotional leaflet that they posted to me !!!
 
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Horah - eventual credit to them - they did agree to match the price in the end. That was anything but simple, and certainly far more detail required than stated in T&C, but I know from now on to keep asking exactly what's needed in advance, quote that, and then quote back that I provided exactly what was given to me.

Rob2k68 said:
I've had this before with an Audi price match promise on tyres and when I once enquirer about having a tracker fitted they didn't even match their own price on their promotional leaflet that they posted to me !!!
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LOL that takes the biscuit even more.
 
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RichardT said:
First service - oil change - at Milton Keynes Audi last week. £124.91
That's not price match or anything - just the price.
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You're kidding... right I'll be booking them for my inspection service in 6 months then. Reminds me of when I had a Vaux up in Derby - had a great certified garage that just did the right stuff at the right price, made such a difference.
 
Well that's what the invoice said. But I didn't actually pay it because I have paid for 3 year's servicing up front when I bought the car.
 
That does sound quite high in fairness - also worth trying to see if they'll let you supply your own oil.

That's what I've done in the past but more recently the dealer price has been low £100s so not been worth me buying the oil
 
kalniel said:
So car tells me I'm due for my first oil change service. Duly booked into the garage I bought the car from and asked for a price quote.

£215.60.

Yikes.

Ah but what's this I see on the website? A handy price match!

http://www.audi.co.uk/owners-area/servicing-maintenance-mot/audi-service-price-match.html



All part of The Audi Difference.

Yay. Only when I tell my dealer they start making excuses:

"It's only for quotes from other Audi garages"

"If the difference is too large we can't match as we'd be making a loss"

hmm.. that's not anywhere in the terms and conditions on the page. Nor is it 'really simple'.

Not impressed.. any idea who the best person to kick up a fuss would be?
Click to expand...

If you cannot or don't want to pay Audi service prices perhaps you should have purchased a Skoda!!

I paid £276 for my first full longlife service at 18,150 miles. That's probably the only service I will pay for on this car and I'm quite happy with the price.
 
I rang around 5 dealers in the south west and prices varied considerably for first oil change.

Worst was £278 (Bristol Audi) who said it would be another £30 on top if I wanted a courtesy car. £240 seemed the average and none were interested in price matching. In fact two said the scheme doesn't exist....

Best was £198 from the dealer I bought the S3 from. Great price, however they damaged my alloy when it was on the ramp so now have to factor in the fuel and time spent going back and forth for a repair :sadlike:

Getting really bored with Audi "service".
 
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h5djr said:
If you cannot or don't want to pay Audi service prices perhaps you should have purchased a Skoda!!
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Problem is Audi don't tell you the service prices. They happily advertise the fixed service prices, which are what I paid on my old Audi, but then if you think of buying a newer car suddenly those prices don't apply and you're paying much much more for the same job.

I foolishly thought the running costs of a new car would be less than my 10 year old one..! But they're more expensive in every way :(
 
I use a local independent garage that purchase a genuine Audi service kit from the dealers and then carry out the service way cheaper than Audi.
2 year oil change service - £140 all in. Service warning reset and electronic service record filled in.
 
Bit off topic ..Do Audi still stamp service books or is it all electronically .As I haven't either after my first service.
 
Been doing the exact same thing today, Ive got 40 days to my first service and 40 days to one year old, car has done 8k

Wildly different quotes for an oil and oil filter change

£199.94 at Stockport
£197.35 at Stafford
£245 at Manchester
£257.32 at Huddersfield (but are getting back to me tomorrow with a better price or not, I bought the car there)

Just had a check...does this £169 price on the Audi UK website mean nothing then , or should I have used it as ammo when I rang....doh

£169 for an interim service, got the price by entering my reg, its enough for an oil and oil filter IMO

Will probably get the air filter changed too, even though they say its at 60k (ridiculous) they want £45-50
Maybe as a compromise I'll hoover it, which is probably what they do half the time anyway

STEALERS !
 
S3118 said:
Bit off topic ..Do Audi still stamp service books or is it all electronically .As I haven't either after my first service.
Click to expand...

Since Autumn 2012 Audi has been using the new digital service schedule

You can get a service print out for confirmation of anything youve had done in the Audi main dealer network, but its now stored digitally

so it cant be forged, therefore no service booklets.....Keep your receipts and printouts.

You should have a little booklet titled 'Audi Service Schedule' For vehicles with Digital Service Schedule.

On the inside cover is your cars sticker with VIN and all the details, spec, colour etc

and the date of delivery and dealer stamp.

In the booklet you'll find all the info on the service regime.

In the back booklet I found my delivery inspection printout.

Hope this helps.
 
veeeight said:
No idea, but it clearly says on the website for cars over 3 years old!

http://www.audi.co.uk/owners-area/servicing-maintenance-mot/fixed-price-services.html#/fixPrice
Click to expand...

https://www.audi.co.uk/content/audi/owners-area/servicing-maintenance-mot.html

No it isnt clear

Enter reg and postcode, choose dealer, it comes up with £169 interim and £335 major service

There is a disclaimer though after youve booked it in that you need to check the price with the main dealer

WTF why do they even bother to have this online booking system if the price isnt real
 
You're right, I just tried my car on that page, and it came up with £169 for Oil Service.

I've never seen it that low for new cars, maybe it's a campaign?

Try it to see if they will honour it -or ifs just a hook to reel you in

Love the disclaimer lol
 
ACWKGYTO said:
Since Autumn 2012 Audi has been using the new digital service schedule

You can get a service print out for confirmation of anything youve had done in the Audi main dealer network, but its now stored digitally

so it cant be forged, therefore no service booklets.....Keep your receipts and printouts.

You should have a little booklet titled 'Audi Service Schedule' For vehicles with Digital Service Schedule.

On the inside cover is your cars sticker with VIN and all the details, spec, colour etc

and the date of delivery and dealer stamp.

In the booklet you'll find all the info on the service regime.

In the back booklet I found my delivery inspection printout.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...
That helps thank you.
 
h5djr said:
If you cannot or don't want to pay Audi service prices perhaps you should have purchased a Skoda!!

I paid £276 for my first full longlife service at 18,150 miles. That's probably the only service I will pay for on this car and I'm quite happy with the price.
Click to expand...

You really do come out with some questionable things at times but this post is def in your top 5. What an absolute snob!!!

I suppose, like a lot of people, you assume that because Audi do it, its done well, or at the very least to a high standard? Well no, not necessarily. They do however know how to charge, so if you like to pay full price for average service (and then boast about how you like to do this and how you are happy with this and then reference a 'lesser' VAG group car to pedal your snob canoe) then by all means take your car to Audi. But don't spill your snobbery all over someone else who is trying to get the best service for the cheapest price, and make use of something that Audi themselves are actively advertising. Don't worry though as I am sure they will let you pay full price because you can obviously afford it after all.

This latest example of Audi incompetence, where they cant even get their price match strategy correct, and you spew out drivel about happy to pay big prices and suggest a fellow member choose a lesser model if they cant afford or don't want to pay Audi prices.....wind your bleedin' neck in pal!! Oh and good luck with the long life service schedule, no doubt you feel thats best for your car as well.........
 
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My first service on the S3 cost £168 last week, from what I saw it was made up of greasing hinges, replacing the oil + filter, replacing another filter (dunno), plugging it in to a laptop and standing next to it watching it for about an hour. No special VW oil in mine, just synthetic Castrol.

The labour charge was £53/hour, not UK prices but France. Local UK Audi dealer had a labour rate of nigh on £100/hour so go figure.

Oh it was cleaned for the first time as well.
 
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s3_trev said:
You really do come out with some questionable things at times but this post is def in your top 5. What an absolute snob!!!
Click to expand...

Yes I would regard myself as an Audi snob! I started buying Audi's when they were quite a rare site on the UK roads. I just happen to still like them as cars even though they are now two a penny and purchased by anyone who can afford a small deposit for a PCP. Why do owners buy or lease an Audi in the first place. They could get almost the same for much less by having a Skoda. In many cases it's the Audi badge that means a lot to a lot of buyers. Badge snobbery??

As far as long-life services is concerned, all my Audi's (all 13 of them) have been on the long-life service and I had very few if any problems with any of them. Audi recommend the long-life service for cars that do over 10k a year and although I'm now retired I still drive around 14k every year. I get very good treatment from the service department of my Audi dealer which is why I'm quite happy to pay their prices. Quite a number of 'large group' Audi dealers charge quite a bit more that my particular dealer.
 
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Update regarding the £169 interim service by entering reg and postcode.

Ive been told now that this is wrong on the website and should only refer to cars over 3 years old.

What Ive been told is that the price quoted for servicing before 3 years is variable, and could even be down to how much work they have on at that time, so shop around !
 
audi upgrades
Well all done now. As expected, when handing over the keys I had to go through the argument again and provide more paper proof - the look on the reps face when I told him the quote was amusing. But they still agreed and did it.

The complimentary car wash was still included.. but it looked like they'd thrown the bucket over the car at the end or couldn't be bothered to rinse :p Don't think I'm too popular down at my dealers now, which is a bit of a shame since the Mrs wants to buy a new car but they keep doing things to put her off.

Though I did note the Price Match was being advertised on the coffee table ;)
 
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£228 for my first service at 19000 on my 2.0tdi saloon.
Expected the vat to be added on top so was pleasantly surprised it was already included.
Sales guys had been testing the new A4, said its nice but the new A5 was gorgeous!
 
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SamBoy said:
There's a great audi certified garage in bletchley you should try, i use them all the time!
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Thanks for the tip - can you give me some details?
I don't think I can use them yet because I paid up front for 3 years servicing and don't think that would be valid outside Audi itself.
 
h5djr said:
If you cannot or don't want to pay Audi service prices perhaps you should have purchased a Skoda!! I paid £276 for my first full longlife service at 18,150 miles. That's probably the only service I will pay for on this car and I'm quite happy with the price.
Click to expand...

Do you seriously really think the point and emphasis of the thread is actually this?! I know you post things so you can follow them with the 'cut/paste' paragraph about your own experiences, but still. That ignorance is impressive! Come on Dave, you can and regularly do far better than that! Is it beyond the realms of comprehension that some people might want to get value from their dealer?

I mean, not everyone is as generous to Audi dealers as your goodself, who was happy to seriously consider buying a new A3 and getting rid of your current A3 because that dealer couldn't after numerous attempts find a rattle!
 
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I have 2 years free servicing when I bought my S3 on PCP but just checked over all my paperwork and I can't see anything saying that the services or oil changes MUST be carried out by Audi themselves. I was also told by the salesman (how true? That's another question, they usually can't tell their **** from their elbow) that as long as it's a garage that uses approved parts etc it's fine.

So, for an oil change or maybe even the full service... Why not use a local garage that will use same products and parts as Audi? Don't hold me to this but as far as I can see and as far as I was told... That would be ok, I'd check your own paperwork and check with Audi first!

I could also be totally incorrect and missed something - please let me know if I am!! :) Cheers
 
No you're not wrong Matthew_S3, there's no inherent reason any servicing has to be done at Audi cf somewhere else, nor can any warranty be dependant on such.

The exact offer I had expires at the end of this year so I will be getting the local indy to do oil changes at least in the future, though I'd love it if Audi kept the offer :)
 
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