I had broke down the other night and rang the AA to be towed, I could not be towed due to front splitters which I didnt realise at the time. So this chap said he was taking me to a place where they supposedly deal with Subaru Impreza's all the time, he then said they deal with imports. So I faught ah cant be bad so i followed this chap to the garage, left it there and was told id get a phone call in the morning to tell me what the crack is.
Sure enough I got the phone call in the afternoon and they said they would have to do a diagnostic on it becuase they didnt have a clue what was wrong with it. Few days later I got a phone call again in the morning, they told me my gearbox was totally ****ed and i needed it reconned. So obviously I asked how much it would be, he said "oooo import, japanese, gna be expensive. You will be looking at around the 3-4 thousand pound mark".
I said id think about it and give him a call back, rang up scoobyclinic they pissed theirselfs at what he was trying to charge me and did me a very good deal (£650+vat inc fitting). I rang the guy from the Autocentre back up, explained I would be getting it sorted by myself, they said well its got to be off the premices by tomorrow afternoon. I rang AA back up said i need the car recovering from this garage "no sir we cant transfer a car which has already been recovered" took me about an hour of kicking off at them explaining the chap took me to a garage which was going to charge me **** loads for something which wasnt that bad. So I got it tranfered to scoobyclinic sure enough and now they are dealing with it for me. Dont know why I didnt just get it tranfered to scoobyclinic in the first place anyway. But the moral is, watch out for this garage. If i didnt have a slightest clue about prices etc they could have took £3-4grand off of me no question.

Anyone else had this sort thing happen to them or know of someone?

 

Nationwide Autocentres ...... hmmmmmmm, I wouldn't leave a 1985 Nova with them to be honest.

They see a car and see ££££££ signs and thats all they see ......

I have seen them working on customers cars and I won't repeat what I witnessed - but they are not the elite of the motor world mechanics (maybe the Subaru Main Dealers treat your car just the same? I don't know - but my experiences with them tell me to stay well clear)

That said - I do get all my MOTs done there .... they are VERY, VERY thorough and find anything that is wrong. I actually cannot question their MOT skills at all, I wouln't leave my car there and walk away, but I watch them and they do a great job .... ok, the cars sometimes fail - but it has always been a genuine fail and I'm just glad the failure points were pointed out and I could rectify them!

 

In my opinion, based on personal experience and all that........

The people that work for "Quik Fit" type enterprises, are not exactly the cream of the engineering world. Asking them to change wheels without bending things, or torquing your wheel nuts to FT is often beyond them.

If you imagine that the "awkward" pupils from the local comp have to get a job somewhere (or go on the dole like their parents), that somewhere is quite often as tea boy at National Quick Euro Exhausts.

Go somewhere reputable every time...

Anyone that does work for this type of company, and is offended, read the first line..... and look around you next time you are in work.

 

Very well put

 

These places work on commision so the staff get extra from any extra work they can get, ie your discs are worn so we recommend renewing them as well as the pads sir oh and also brake fluid as well! etc

 

Nationwide auto centes's are AA aproved repairers, The one local to me has a big sign saying so.

 

Mine used to be a AA Centre and is now a Nationwide - Same staff.
I phoned them for quotes last year when Vauxhall wanted silly money to get my partner's car through the MOT.

They gave me me a quote but also advice and several questions to ask Vauxhall.
20 Minutes after getting off the phone with Vauxhall the car had passed it's MOT saving us £500....

I wouldn't take my Impreza there but for general cars they are more trustworthy than local dealers.

 

Never used them, never will, not even for an MoT. I heard the old stories about what Charlie Browns Auto Centres used to do and from I've seen with the local Nationwide Centre they're just the same. Before anyone says I've just contradicted myself the local Halfrauds is part of the same building which I go for paint mixing.

I work for a dealership and sometimes have to deliver to these places, a indication of what the place is like when they don't even know what a chassis number is.

Places like these are rip-off merchants and thats it. My car won't be going anywhere near them.