Second Service

As a comparison I have just paid £512 (inc VAT) for the annual service and MOT of my 18 year old Defender TDi300 at a Land Rover trained but non franchised specialist. No fancy electronics to plug into a diagnostic computer, no software updates, environmentally friendly aircon system (big vent flaps under the wind screen - you want colder air, I drive faster!) needs no cleaning/ topping up or filter changes and I replaced the original airfilter with a K&N so no airfilter changes to pay for.
Service costs:
8ltr Semi-syntheitic 10w/50 oil £26.64, Oil Filter (LR Genuine) £3.75. Most expensive item on the bill was £200 for labour. Non-standard service items were:
Complete brake servo Assembly (original 18 years old and fractured) £78.70,
Reversibg Lamp assembly complete £10,
Set of HD rear brake pads £35,
Wiper parking switch £9.90 (18 year old original has given up so the intermittent/ self parking wiper functions were not working),
a replacement horn (had been running with a silent horn for a month after drowning the last one when deep water wading!)
The above are all ex VAT prices.
And again a comment from the MOT Tester that he wants to know how I manage to keep the emissions so low for an old vehicle. So that's another MOT pass then, good to go for another year/ 3000 miles

Well done on the pass! I dread each MOT on my Stag, it's 38 years old but it's emissions are really low, CO and Hydro carbons (unburnt fuel) well down, as good as a modern!

Mine was one of the very very few that had the optional catalytic converter option box ticked by the first owner. When the cat started playing up 10 years ago the specialist recommended removal and inhibiting the associated electronics. Since then the emissions have been lower than on a current production car with DPF and Cat much to everyone's amazement. It makes me shudder when I see the clouds of black soot that some much younger Defenders emit when the driver puts his foot down - especially as many of those cars have a larger intercooler and a remap to try and increase economy.
Apart from the de-cat mine is as it left the factory in 1996. The 300TDi averages 28mpg on its' chunky Mud Terrain tyres too so I'm not going to change much. I don't have a big heavy Expedition roofrack or carry a tonne of offroad kit around daily which also helps, also keeping the speed to 60mph makes travelling more bearable and economical, it will push 80 if asked BUT it isn't nice to do that too often!

Think they have to be used to keep them running right. Taking the Stag to France twice in July, Le Mans Classic then for a family holiday, last year got 30 MPG going to the south if France, which I don't think was too bad of a 3 litre V8 full of luggage!!! Seems lots of people frown about old cars because they're dirty smelly and not good for the environment, but youre disco has proved the opposite!

The price for second service in Sweden is £632.15 at todays exchange rate

(23-04-2014 07:14pm)Sarcastrix Wrote:  The price for second service in Sweden is £632.15 at todays exchange rate

Nice

What is the VAT rate charged in Sweden, in the UK it is 20%

25% moms (VAT) in Sweden. Also, when you take your car for a service be it RR, BMW, Audi etc there's no loan car (they'll rent you one) and the car isn't cleaned.

Wow ouch!
Well this morning some guy in a works van ran into the back of my beautiful car while I was stationary at the entry onto a roundabout. Scratches to tailgate, silver rear trim bit, diffuser, and bumper. Trim and diffuser are scratched into the plastic so will need replaced. Luckily Pentland LR were pretty good about bringing forward my service to next week while I'm on holiday in Spain and the guy's insurers will need to pay them for all the repairs / replacements. Their parts guy was saying that damage dependent it might work out better to get and paint a whole new bumper. So unimpressed (at the guy, Pentland were Ok about things).

Last week I also had my second service in the NL ( Romein Den Haag ) at 26000KM and I paid 535 EUR ( 441 GBP )
I also asked what the next service is going to cost me . The answer was that the next service interval is set to 100 EUR more ( ex materials )