Another 30k service question thread

Matt,

Daniel should be a good source on this. Just call him up. Obviously, timing belts, water pump, seals, you should check all hoses that you can too...

I'm not an expert, and sadly don't service my own car, so can't give you much more than that.

Good luck.

 

General wisdom seems to be since you're in there, you might as well include the water pump.

 

It's taken me as little as 22 and as much as 40.

Depends on whether the car needs a water pump (any perceptible play past the tiniest amount or any stain or dampness at the bleed hole means instant replacement), tensioner bearings (same thing), brake work, wheel bearings, clutch work, electrical repair, air conditioning service (add several hours to R&R the receiver/drier, vacuum the system and check for leaks, then fill) and the cosmetic level the customer desires in all of this.

A 30K is not just replacement of parts included in Daniel's kit (although it's a very good kit <grin>), it's addressing all issues that are present and those you anticipate needing to be attended to before the next service!

The Italians call it "messa a punto" which translates loosely to "to bring to a point." Those experienced in how Ferraris should drive know when and what to do to get the car to this point. All it takes is time...

Good luck.

-Peter

 

...And money!

 

I have had prospective clients do that and I will not do the job. I have explained that IF I was to agree to it "A" I would include in my laborcharge all the profit I lost on not providing the parts. and "B" I would charge by the hour and that would include any time spent sorting out parts issues caused by wrong parts, defective parts, work stoppage due to parts required but not supplied. I also will not provide any warranty coverage on a job whose parts I did not supply.
My business needs to take in "X" amount of dollars to perform a given job if we are to stay in business. Part of that money comes from labor, part of it comes from parts. I can put that money in any column of the repair order you like but providing your own parts will not save any. Every job in which I have been involved that the customer took responsibility for some aspect of the job has become messy and needlessly expensive due to their inability to integrate their portion into our operation.

 

Interesting bit of insight... I'd always imagined that I would source my own parts for my major to save a few bucks here and there, but as the son of a small business owner, I can CLEARLY understand your position on the profit side of things.

 

I admire your understanding. People that have never run a business and have collected a paycheck all their life often never have an understanding of the business princples that come into play every time they do business. The ones that do understand look at many things very differently.

 

Brian

you've missed out part c) of the customer buying the parts issue

how can an indi warranty the job if they havent sourced the parts!.......you may save a couple of $ here and there getting the bits, but if the indi sources them the indi has some recourse in the event of a part failure

 

Correct. I did say no warranty coverage but no explanation why.

Thanks

I also didn't point out that when the something goes wrong (and it will) fingers get pointed in every direction and its a mess.

Keep it nice and clean, bring the car in and have it fixed.


Jeeze I expected the flame throwers to come out. Not Yet.........

 

Yep, you're right, Brian. For example, the only time I've had valve cover corners leak prematurely is when I was supplied with the cheesy black gasket "set" instead of the OE green individual ones...

-Peter

 

indiaville,
There's a checklist for a 30K service in the owner's manual. You can download one from the owners.ferrari.com web site, or from:
Steve Jenkens Private Ferrari Document Collection
http://ferrari.jenkins.org/books/

Brian,
I understand your position, It's pretty universal whether it's an auto shop, tv repair shop, etc.

I have been in the embarassing position of having bought parts, got in a time bind, & had to ask a shop to install them. Made it clear that I didn't mind paying extra to cover their lost profit. Luckily I had a long term relationship with that Chevvy dealer & the service manager was cool about it.