Local garage refused the job

den911

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Hi, i have been searching online to find a thermostat to fit my car and after lots of searching i decided to go down the oem route and order the part from my local Audi dealer..Part ordered and available on Wednesday i then popped down to a local indy garage just down the road from were i live and i have used him in the past in fact just a few months ago he did some work on my daughters car anyway i called in and told him what i wanted fitting and i then told him i have sourced the part from Audi bit i won't recieve it untill wednesday ...He then told me he won't touch it if i have sourced the part ,he will only do full jobs were is exact words, i was a bit surprised as i told him i struggled to get one online car parts so decided to go to Audi and asked him why he couldn't do it he said he would have to order the part ,fair so i asked him were he would source once ,guess what Audi ,what a strange situation...I just walked away but in all my years driving and dealing with garages i have never come across this...
 
Only ideas I can come up with are -

He's had issues in the past with customers getting their own parts and them being wrong and then ending up with a car stuck on the ramps

Or

He makes a few quid extra on the parts
 
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He's had issues in the past with customers getting their own parts and them being wrong and then ending up with a car stuck on the ramps
Thats fine i can totaly understand that if that was the case and if had said he would do it if he ordered part (from Audi like i did ) i would have be fine with that but Audi Oldham parts do not take payment over the phone and i had to travel 10 miles to pay for it order and i will have to do another 10 miles on Wednesday to pick it up...Surely i have made life a little easier for the mechanic ..
 
He probably wants to add a mark up and at the end of the day, he would get the part delivered so it’s no skin off his nose that you’ve travelled 20 miles for the part yourself.
 
Most garages are going down this route for a number of reasons


1. The garage will be given a retail and trade rate on the part, charge retail and make a very small amount

2. If the part is wrong for whatever reason it is there fault and they have no one to blame for blocking the ramp other than themselves

3. If it goes wrong with in the warranty period it is easier for them to claim direct than having to get invoices from you etc
 
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Again i can understand this ,would have been fine with it if he explained a few things but saying that he was getting it from the same place i was and i doubt he would have made much on the mark up on a £28 part..
 
Take you business elsewhere then , he doesn't appear to want your business so that's his loss really, i'm sure there are plenty of other decent garages that will be glad of your business.
 
Take you business elsewhere then , he doesn't appear to want your business so that's his loss really, i'm sure there are plenty of other decent garages that will be glad of your business.
I have taken my buisness elsewhere ,but being just a few hundred yards from where i live it would have made life easiser for me dropping and picking the car up....(i work split shifts and i home for four hours a day from 10.30 -2.30 )
 
I had a similar problem , so ended up taking my business to another garage 4 miles further away, not a massive distance but still a pain in the bum, they were more than glad of my business.
Sometimes it turns out for the better , even if it does make life a tad more difficult.
glad you got it sorted in the end.
 
Sounds like you made this more difficult for yourself..

Why not ask the garage first if it’s ok to get the part and they fit only?

Tbh., you sound like you happy with the work they do, because you going back after work carried out on daughters car, it’s local to you.. id be happy to give them the work and keep a local garage open.
 
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I suppose it's no different to walking into a pub with your own steak and asking them to cook that and reduce the price!
 
The point i am trying to make here is i was just surprised at the refusal ,as said local small garage plus the fact i did say i was finding it difficult getting a aftermarket one so just opted for the Audi genuine part thinking this would be easier ...
 
I suppose it's no different to walking into a pub with your own steak and asking them to cook that and reduce the price!
Thats no comparrison ,i have not said i wanted the job at a reduced price ...In fact i have taken it to another garage nearer work but a commute home on public transport and they are happy i have supplied the part .
 
I know you haven't specifically ask for a reduced price but the garage probably has a rough idea of what they would charge for parts and labour. If you then supply your own parts there is potential (not for you because you said you wouldn't) for customers to argue the price once the work is done. I'm guessing this rule is one he's put in place from experience
 
I've never known a garage refuse to take customer supplied parts aslong as they are new.

they just usually state clearly on invoice "part supplied by customer".. basically saying if it goes wrong it's your problem not ours which is fair enough.
 

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