Yet another dealership **** story

[Mybeauner]

I'm going to keep it short because i'm not in a good mood with this. As some of you know, I had posted about a leaky radiator hose about 3 weeks back. I had used some hose tape on it to seal it off which failed. So I took it to the dealer to get it replaced and to my surprise (not really) I had just gone 600 miles over my warentee. Yay. Anyway. Turns out that it will cost $235 to replace this hose. FML. Kinda funny how things start breaking down as soon as warentee is done. Oh well. picking up the car this afternoon and it will be nice to be driving it again. That is all.

 

[nate0123]

The hose can't cost more than $60. Just buy the hose, and some coolant and install it yourself in the lot?

 

[shane02pro5]

First I read someone replacing their cat for $500 and now a rad hose for $235. Does nobody DIY anymore...just go straight to the dealer to get reamed

 

[Tungsten6]

I can see it if its under warranty. but if it isnt id would keep away from the dealership.

 

[8.5MS3]

coolant is overrated

drive fast and leave it air cooled

 

[meicalnissyen]

The hose can't cost more than $60. Just buy the hose, and some coolant and install it yourself in the lot?

Might be to much dissassembly for a dealer lot to get to both ends,

 

[Peter B]

coolant is overrated

drive fast and leave it air cooled

Did you know the hood on the car pops up for that very reason? I just keep the hood popped on mine. It acts like a giant scoop and directs the air down to the engine. Plus the faster you go the more it rises up and the more air it catches. Really cool system.

I mean I was gonna by a FMIC but then I realized I could just cruise down the highway with the hood up. I saved myself like 1000 bucks!

-Pete

 

[BillTheCat]

It's funny, but not having come across any maintenance issues with my MS3 yet, I haven't paid much attention to looking & seeing exactly how involved certain common repairs might be. My knee jerk reaction would be to replace a coolant hose myself. But these days, engine bays are so cramped & convoluted that there are some cars on which I would pass.

So yeah, consider doing the less complicated tasks in the driveway. And when that's not an option, try to find a good independent shop now that you are out of warranty. Ask around to friends, family, and co-workers. Or search online for ratings of local mechanics.

I might not go to an independent shop for uncommon repairs, like a turbo replace/rebuild, but a coolant hose? Heck yeah.