Cougar Servicing

[catnamedog]

Hi!
My Cats due for a 10K service. Its last one was at 43K, at a Ford main dealer. I went to the main place here in Warrington, and they quoted me £180 for an intermediate service. (Its done 53500). The next major one is at 60K.
The price is effectively to change the oil and filters. I asked if they check the drive belts, and the guy said no, but they do at 60K. He said the 60K service was £245.00. I thought that was a bit steep, so I phoned Halfords at Winwick (local to Warrington). They quoted me 2 prices. The "premiere" was £190.00, but they change all the oil and filters, including the transmission (if possible). I opted for the "premiere plus" option at £215.00. This includes all oil, filters, plugs and a check and top-up of the aircon. (the Ford guy said the £180.00 service definitely did not include plugs). It goes in tomorrow, so I'll let you know. Theres also a 2 page report showing what they did and the result of their tests. I'll publish them on this site. The AA run the workshop, so if they screw up, I'll be on the blower to Watchdog!! Anyone with a story to tell about servicing?

Ken

[P999LTS]

You're being ripped off. A cougar does not have a cam belt! My 60,000 service was £160 at a Ford main dealer 4 weeks ago (including spark plugs for the first time - yes they last that long) - Pete

[DREAMCATCHER]

Originally posted by: P999LTS
You're being ripped off. A cougar does not have a cam belt! My 60,000 service was £160 at a Ford main dealer 4 weeks ago (including spark plugs for the first time - yes they last that long) - Pete
FORD HAS A FIXED SERVICE CHARGE FOR EACH VEHICLE AND SERVICE INTERVAL IT IS DISPLAYED ( 0R SHOULD BE) IN THE SERVICE RECEPTION AREA THE COST IS STANDARD THROUGH OUT THE UK.....IF YOU THINK YOU ARE BEING OVER CHARGED ASK TO SEE THE PRICE LIST. MY NEXT SERVICE IS AT 50K TOLD IN ADVANCE THE COST £160

[wessa]

If you have a 2.0l it does have a Cambelt, but V6's have a Chain. Dreamcatcher is right the prices are fixed and are usually displayed,Please Beware tho!! Ask them to call you before they carry out any additional work,ie: they usually try to Bull**** ya with the old 'Your pads were excessively worn so we replaced them' trick...and there's plenty more in their bag! As i worked for one i do know their tricks..... Apart from that they do stamp ya service book!. But then again so does everyone else!!!!!!!! A big plus for you is the AA are overseeing the workshop, you've got no worries really...Just let us know if you were satisfied....:thumbsup:

[Raggy]

Sorry this is late but I have been away - good move staying away from that Ford Dealer in Warrington it has got a seriously bad reputation for being a rip off, doing work that doesn't need doing and for generally being cr@p!

I take my cat round the corner to a Place called ATC in Evans House across the road from the Jag Dealer) - he is dead straight, does a good job and is very reasonable + when I have taken my previous cars for trade in valuations (not at Ford Dealers) they have told me the difference in value for a 3-4 year old car with a dealer service history compared to a non-dealer service history is next to nothing.

[UKRPG]

I guess its that "Full Ford Service History" that keeps us going back, its certainly not for the coffee and service!!

[Cougarbloke]

Sod them all, I do it all myself....you then know everything has been done perfectly.....it's not rocket science after all. :biggrin:

[Raggy]

Originally posted by: UKRPG
I guess its that "Full Ford Service History" that keeps us going back, its certainly not for the coffee and service!!

After my own and my family's bad experiences with Ford Dealers(even an uncle who actually worked for Ford!) I don't buy cars from the dealers, as I buy second hand and don't use the dealers for servicing- when I have previously written to Ford to complain, they usually don't even bother to reply!

Ford and its Dealers have got a lot to learn about customer service - does anyone know of any good Ford dealers? - I haven't found any in the North West and gave up and started using independants people recommend instead.

Just another story about the dealer in Warrington - Whilst I was queing (for goddam ages whilst most of the service staff were stood about chatting over coffee!) the person in front of me had lost the key to his alloy wheel locking nuts and they quoted £150 plus replacement parts to drill out and remove his locking wheel nuts!! Last time I did this myself a few years ago if took about 3/4 hour with my crappy tools.

[Beardedmonster]

Had mine serviced at 56k = 10k after I bought it. It had a major service when I bought it so just went for the bog standard filters and oil and it was £130. Service costs are stupid though and would do it myself but fear of loosing value without service history stops me.

Here's a q:

Should I keep the cougar and play around with it or should I sell the cougar and get something new? Reason being is I am clocking a lot of miles on it now and don't want it to be worth nothing in 1 - 2 years time...but I do like the cougar and its looks etc etc and I do want to play around with it...just cant make up my mind!

Your thoughts please...

[active]

I'm BIASED and say KEEP THE CAT !

[Raggy]

I am getting mine serviced at a garage as I want it to be worth as much as possible when I come to part ex it but only if I can find another coupe any where near as good for the money. Other-wise I would do the servicing my self.

I do all the work on our second car, currently a 1991 Mazda MX5 and these days unless something serious goes wrong its just a matter of changing things and cleaning things (sorry to get a bit technical;)) because there is nothing you can adjust anyway. I also do an extra oil change a 5k on the Cougar just to keep the engine sweet.

If your car is going to be worthless in a few years anyway and you can be ar$ed doing the work I would get a copy of the Ford service manual on CD off e-bay and do the work yourself - I keep my own record of the work I've done so I know where I am up to and for when I eventually sell on. Even the service book with the car tells you what needs changing and when. It is suprising how quickly you can build up a reasonable set of tools and it makes it easy for relatives at X'mas and Birthdays.(although I am a bit sad as I like getting tools and car stuff as presents - Pity no one will stretch to a Superchip though)

Plus you can always get help off the forum if you are not sure of anything.

[catnamedog]

:bowdown:

Hi!
Once again I am totally amazed at the responses I've had. I took the advice, particularly about the local Ford dealer. On checking, no-one has a good word to say about them.
I dropped my Cat into Halfords (At Winwick) at 0800 this morning. They phoned me at 4 to say it was ready. They advised me that my wipers were not really up to it (I knew that), and that the thickness of my disks (not pads) were only a fraction above the required limit. The guy went on to say that if I took it back at the 60K service they would again check and advise, having a profile of my driving style. I like that!
He also told me that they had to order a fuel filter, as it was not a "standard" Ford fitting. When I enquired he told me that Ford said some fuel lines have a filter holder with a kind of lip on, and some dont. Mine was the one that the Ford place didnt have. When it comes in they will fit it at no extra charge.
I am pleased with the extent of service they provided, and intend going back.
The 2 page report gives a clean bill-of-health for all the major bits (disks - see above) including the air-con. I know some of our peeps have had some trouble with this, so it might be worth your while taking it to them.
I'd really like to do the servicing myself - I always did with cars I owned myself. However, 20-odd years of company cars and beer have somewhat blunted the edge in this regard. I used to service my Anglia 105E, for goodness sake!! Its only by coming back to a car I actually own, that I see the massive complexity of modern cars, as well as the need to keep 'em going in a very hostile environment - high speed/high mileage and big queues etc. Once again chums - thanks for all your comments.
Ken

[Jason J]

Originally posted by: Beardedmonster
Had mine serviced at 56k = 10k after I bought it. It had a major service when I bought it so just went for the bog standard filters and oil and it was £130. Service costs are stupid though and would do it myself but fear of loosing value without service history stops me.

Here's a q:

Should I keep the cougar and play around with it or should I sell the cougar and get something new? Reason being is I am clocking a lot of miles on it now and don't want it to be worth nothing in 1 - 2 years time...but I do like the cougar and its looks etc etc and I do want to play around with it...just cant make up my mind!

Your thoughts please...

keep it you crazy fool:crazy:seriously the cat will be worthless whatever in a couple of years so keep it spend on it turn it into what you want it to be at three years old mine was bought for £6500 so you will not get a lot anyway:shrug: and it all depends what you want to do to it,if you just want new wheels and lowered suspension then it is not going to make a huge difference to the value.

[P999LTS]

Originally posted by: Beardedmonster
Had mine serviced at 56k = 10k after I bought it. It had a major service when I bought it so just went for the bog standard filters and oil and it was £130. Service costs are stupid though and would do it myself but fear of loosing value without service history stops me.

Here's a q:

Should I keep the cougar and play around with it or should I sell the cougar and get something new? Reason being is I am clocking a lot of miles on it now and don't want it to be worth nothing in 1 - 2 years time...but I do like the cougar and its looks etc etc and I do want to play around with it...just cant make up my mind!

Your thoughts please...

What a stupid question! Keep it, my wife's Cat is high mileage (30,000 a year minimum) and it keeps going. The 2.5 engine will go and go.

:biggrin:

[blackmotley]

[blackmotley]

damn hit the wrong place, that`s why there is no text on my previous reply

just had 20k service at main dealers

£130 collected from home and delivered back in the evening

[Blackadder]

I used to service my Anglia 105E, for goodness sake!!
Ah, that brings back memories...now where did I put that grease gun :biggrin:
A standard service for the Cat is £64 at my local garage.....no fancy reception or coffee, they just do the job :)