It seems that the Independents and Dealers are always in the firing line for over charging

A big part of this myth is due to an ill informed motoring public who know very little about modern motor vehicles and what goes on under the bonnet

All Independents and Dealers are doing is trying to put right, service and repair very complicated electronic control systems, over engineered mechanics, complicated timing belts, poor wiring and sometimes poor quality parts that now make up our mass produced modern vehicle. Customers still think that they can take their vehicle in for its annual service and MOT and come away with a bill for under £200:00

Some of the items that can fail or require replacing on your average 3-5 year old mid range vehicle (Mondeo, Golf, BMW 3 series, Honda Accord etc)

ECU (Electronic Control Unit) £200 to £1000
Injection Pumps £300 to £2000
Throttle bodies £200 to £1000
Lambda sensors £45 to £300
Timing belt kits with water pump £100 to £450
Longlife Synthetic Oil £30 to £50
Catalytic convertor £50 to £1000
Clutch units £100 to £500+
Ridiculously long service intervals - customer does not check anything in between then wonders why the oil light has comes on and engine shot

How about the Government, Consumer Watchdogs and TV Channels try looking at the source of the problem (Manufacturers), rather than kicking to poor Independent who has to try and fix them

Peter