Question about servicing

Arterion

Arterion

Arterion

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Joined
14 Jan 2004
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Location
Reading, UK
Howdy folks, I'm seeking a little advice. I have a 2014 Honda Civic which needs a service.

Question the first: how important is it that I use an official Honda garage for this, assuming I'm not that bothered about resale value later on? I've just hit 80k miles, having bought it in 2023 at about 40K. It runs well; never had any problems.

There is a Honda garage local to me which has quite inconsistent customer reviews. Recently, they seem to be a real mixed bag. I've found another about an hour away which seems to have excellent write-ups more often than not. That garage has quoted the following prices:

H12 - minor service including engine oil and oil filter change with full inspection including battery health check £250 inc vat,

H12pp (Plus service) Engine oil, oil filter, air filter, pollen filter and brake fluid change, with full inspection including battery health check £365 inc vat.

Major service- Engine oil, oil filter, pollen filter, brake fluid, fuel filter, gearbox oil and spark plugs, including full inspection and battery health check £897 inc vat.

I also need them to have a look at my stop-start functionality, as it doesn't work - usually gives a batter error. Do the above prices seem reasonable, and what level of service do you think I need at this point?

I'd be grateful for your any input. My dad was a mechanic and would usually advise on this stuff if not actually do it, but he passed away a couple of years ago.
 
I'm assuming the "Major Service" includes air filter? It seems like a big step up - £530 extra for fuel filter, spark plugs and gearbox oil?
The start-stop relies on a very healthy battery, so yours is probably getting tired or (much less likely) you have an alternator issue.

Ask if they can itemise the costs for fuel filter, spark plugs and gearbox oil and add the ones you want to do. I'd say it probably is time for a gearbox oil change if you haven't done one since you bought it, definitely if you have the history to see it's never been done before.

If you're ok with a spanner then changing the spark plugs yourself should be around £50 and easy to do yourself.
 
Arterion said:
Question the first: how important is it that I use an official Honda garage for this
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Not important in the slightest. Just choose somewhere reputable.
Arterion said:
H12 - minor service including engine oil and oil filter change with full inspection including battery health check £250 inc vat,

H12pp (Plus service) Engine oil, oil filter, air filter, pollen filter and brake fluid change, with full inspection including battery health check £365 inc vat.

Major service- Engine oil, oil filter, pollen filter, brake fluid, fuel filter, gearbox oil and spark plugs, including full inspection and battery health check £897 inc vat.

......usually gives a batter error. Do the above prices seem reasonable
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Honestly, no, those prices are straight out of Ripoffville, Arizona! I use a local chain.

Oil and filter change on my 2021 3 Series last July, ~£160.

Full service at the end of January + MOT £319.
 
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I just had a minor service on my Subaru done by a local shop, arranged via AA Smartcare. Cost £200 including MOT.
Their prices for full service:

Major service​

£295.47
We recommend that your vehicle has a major service every 24 months, or every 24,000 miles if that comes sooner.

45 point inspection, including: Pollen filter change, Brake Fluid check, Air filter change, Oil change, Oil filter change.
It's a diesel so no spark plugs.

Maybe worth looking at?
 
Arterion said:
Question the first: how important is it that I use an official Honda garage for this, assuming I'm not that bothered about resale value later on? I've just hit 80k miles, having bought it in 2023 at about 40K. It runs well; never had any problems.
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Unless they've looked after it all or most of its life and would offer incentives for trade in, etc. and/or offer more because they know the history, I wouldn't personally bother with a dealer for a service on a 12 year old car - generally all buyers care is that you have receipts/invoice trail showing it has been regularly serviced at a reputable garage. For newer cars obviously there is the jazz with warranty and digital service history, etc.

Any decent garage will basically do the same thing as a dealer at a cheaper cost though it is worth checking the prices as it isn't always that garages are cheaper than the dealer.

One advantage can be with a brand specific dealer is that if something needs urgent(ish) work they may have the part in or able to order it in overnight and have the car turned around quicker.
 
Honestly, with 80,000 miles on the clock, your 2014 Honda Civic is at the stage where a full service would be beneficial. If the spark plugs, transmission fluid and brake fluid haven't been replaced yet, I'd recommend doing something close to a full service, perhaps not all at once, but definitely soon. The prices seem a bit steep, especially £897, but they're not outrageous for dealer work.
 
Nabinium said:
Try getting a quote at a local reputable garage, as dealers will often charge a lot more.
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I had a full brake service recently on one of my vehicles - no pads or discs changed but general diagnostics, fluid change and a full cleaning and replacing a few misc parts as there were a few minor issues caused by things like caliper piston corrosion, etc. £260 at a local reputable garage, dealer was quoting over £800.
 
Rroff said:
I had a full brake service recently on one of my vehicles - no pads or discs changed but general diagnostics, fluid change and a full cleaning and replacing a few misc parts as there were a few minor issues caused by things like caliper piston corrosion, etc. £260 at a local reputable garage, dealer was quoting over £800.
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I recall raising a similar thread on here last year about a full service quote that I ended up doing with the local garage. They quoted around £435, which included an MOT too. I've since been back to the garage a couple times for other unrelated things. They're good guys and based on all of my visits, they don't mess people around and are honest. They've taken various things off final quotes that were initially quoted, but weren't needed in the end, etc.

It's worth finding a local garage that you can trust, even for the future after this service.
 
Nabinium said:
It's worth finding a local garage that you can trust, even for the future after this service.
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Sadly not always easy to do - I used several around where I live before finding a good one, and why I often use 1-2 dealers despite higher cost because I know they at least work to a standard and have more comeback.
 
No you dont need a main dealer, I have serviced cars myself for decades without a single issue. They are usually the easiest jobs to do on a car.
 
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Thanks everybody, really appreciate your help.

Any of you happen to live in or around Reading or Oxford (I'm regularly in both) and can recommend someone?
 
I don't live anywhere near, so can't recommend any unfortunately, but if nobody else mentions any, I would have a look on Google for local garages and take a look at the reviews, etc. That's how I found the garage that I've been using for the past year.
 
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