Maserati Specialists - ignorrance is not bliss if you are a consumer

[wicked1]

Hi all,

I felt the need to put a few points straight about people who are ill informed or just plain ignorrant as to what a Maserati Retailer can do as opposed to what Maserati independent can do.

I believe this represents all us Maserati independent repair centres that spend alot of time and money supporting this brand.

Point 1 - Maserati Dealers are NOT the only garages that can fix your Maserati properly. This is complete and utter rubbish and is contrary to the 2002 european block exemption legistration of offering consumers a choice.

Point 2 - Maserati tooling - it is a criminal and prosecutable offence to not offer for general sale, workshop tooling that is available to any Maserati retailers themselves, it again goes against the 2002 european block exemption ruling. What i must add though, it is the indepentdents choice on what tooling he chooses to purchase and use.

Point 3 - Technical Information - under the block exemption ruling any repair centre must be allowed to access technical information, which can be charged for, giving the information to repair one of their vehicles, as the manufacturer expects for that repair operation. I must add the manufacturer does the reserve the right to protect security information, however have a process to deal with such enquiries.

Point 4 - Maserati Diagnosi/Maserati Diagnostic equipment - Any specialist will tell you that the right equipment and the correct way to use is key to fixing a Maserati. Without this diagnostic equipment you are just not going to offer the right repair to the vehicle. But i MUST emphasize the the Maserati diagnosi is the same tester as the Maserati retailers use as any independent repair specialist who has one. The only difference i am aware of is simply access to the warranty system MODUS. Otherwise it does exactly the same job at fixing, programming, guiding, access to workshop manuals as a retailer Diagnosi.

Point 5 - Maserati technical training - the 2002 block exemption ruling states quiet clearlty that a vehicle Manfacturer must make all its course's (technical or otherwise) publically available to the industry, which means any training a dealer does with Maserati is also available to any Maserati independent.

Point 6 - Maserati independents historically offer a better level of service, greater value, more honest and generally are smaller, which means you get the chance to meet the person fixing your car. In addition, they can offer alternative parts that are supplied by the component manufacturer at significantly reduced prices, helping keep your cost of ownership down. .

Nothing annoys me more than when a poorly informed or ignorrant person believes that us independent repairers just have a bash at fixing cars and don't have the equipment or resources to fix these cars correctly. You would not believe how many disgruntled clients come through my door having been to a dealer and totally disappointed with what a dealer has said or done.

I believe i represent any true Maserati specialist, in that what we offer totally exceeds what most of the Maserati network offers, and maybe they should actually see what us independents do with the service we provide and the way we deal with clients, the huge sums of money we spend on buying parts and the huge efforts us independents go to to keep these cars on the road.

I have had recently comments made that a proper fix is to go to a dealer, which is the most utter nonsense, but also can be costly to us independents from that person by spreading those comments when so poorly informed. My suggestion is, if you have not experienced a Maserati independent, that you should try and you maybe presently surprised with the service, the cost and the customer care you recieve.

I believe my rant is over

Mathew

 

[ricp]

And relax. Feel better now?

I did enjoy that, and as one that has always used independents for all my cars, with the exception of the excellent people at Carrs, Exeter for the 355 , I wholeheartedly agree. A good Independent would always be my first port of call. They always seem happier to talk through advice on the phone that the MDs.

 

[conaero]

Only personally use main dealers for parts, and as Mathew points out, Specialists are as qualified as MD's

I suppose the choices is yours when it comes down to it.

 

[CatmanV2]

I believe my rant is over

Mathew

Good stuff, Matthew. I don't think I've ever used a main dealer (except once for an insurance repair on ah old Peugot 205 which was highly unpleasant. I certainly do not intend to start now!

See you in Feb when my next service is due!

C

 

[Corranga]

I'd like to add, as a non-mechanic, with no vested / financial interest that it is my experience, beyond just the world of Maserati, that main dealers simply often have all the gear and no idea. They seem to be expert as changing oil and warranty claims on the latest models, but once the car is a few years older, a specialist, or even a keen regular independent mechanic is as, or even more likely to diagnose and solve your problem.

I always put a good independent above a main dealer for anything more than parts, though perhaps being in Scotland, and being surrounded by Arnold Clark dealerships hasn't helped my view of main dealers...

 

[GeoffCapes]

The old adage that "everyone is an expert until questioned" is spot on in this instance.

 

[conaero]

In balance of fairness, Main Dealers have their place, if that is what you want to do, find a good one and your will be fine.

 

[Needamaser]

Have to say I don't recall any comments on here about Indies being less competent or not having the equipment to carry out the work. Maybe I missed something?
Have seen comments several times about Giallo in last few weeks but again from memory they were singing your praises.

 

[MAF260]

All good points from Mathew.

I'd hope that as a group we are less ignorant (Benny excepted) and aware of the benefits of an independent. I believe the choices most of us make are based on 3 things:
1. Location
2. Age of car
3. Reputation of MD/Indie

I use Autoshield for my GS, even though it's a 400-mile round trip. Marios and his team have earned my trust, he offers great advice so I don't always have to head up there and his pricing is fair.
My Ghibli is not yet 2 years old and still under warranty. Even though I have a closer MD I still use the supplying dealer, Ridgeway in Oxford, as I built a very good relationship with them when I was buying the car. I will always reward excellent service with my loyalty/money. I bought a service plan for the car from them, I doubt any Indie would beat the price and they are much less likely to be familiar with the car. It's also possible the Indie won't have the latest diagnostic equipment as it's very expensive to buy. I won't keep the Ghibli past its warranty period, but would certainly consider comparing an Indie to the MD on knowledge, cost, customer service etc.

 

[Contigo]

Very true points Matthew and your team offer excellent levels of service to us Maserati owners. I will see you when mine needs servicing!

 

[allandwf]

I enjoyed reading the "rant". I suppose it is the usual pub talk, the dealer must be best nonsense. I have been using them lately for a few parts though as I have found them cheaper, and their service excellent.

 

[urquattrogus]

Unfortunately It's just as possible to have bad experiences with independents - it takes a while to find someone you trust.

I got to that stage a lot quicker with other cars I have owned, still looking Maserati wise.

 

[highlander]

Even if a main dealer was nearer than PK I probably would still use Phil for marci for one main reason - main dealers workers do not work regularly on older models, Phil does and knows these old girls inside out.......now I just need to persuade Phil to move his business closer than the present 500 miles return and I'll be happy

 

[voicey]

You missed one important point - staff turnover in franchised dealerships means that many techs are only trained on the latest models (since training is only offered on current tipos). Not much good if you have an older car.

Also, don't forget the time bonus that is common in many dealerships - an incentive to cut corners.

On the flip side, there are loads of trusted specialists who are out and out crooks. Remember Verdi (who are now operating at GVE)? I also know of a few others but would get sued if I mentioned them here.

 

[markp4200]

So very true.
As far as I am concerned, I want to speak to the person working on the car; and this is exactly what happens when I deal with Emblem down here in Poole.
It would be impossible to find a better, more committed team: and I have, over this last 6-7 years, relied on them totally and, without exception, never been anything other than delighted.
If this is what one gets from the Independent, then this is surely the way to go. My wife's car is a modern hot hatch from a Main Dealer - one never sees the same person twice, messages are not passed on and even the MD forgets what he has promised!
Thank you for the excellent article.

 

[flexwing]

Interesting thread. I made the decision to buy my 4200 on the basis that it would be well supported by a local independent.
I bought the car in Cardiff from Steve who is a very knowledgeable dealer who provided excellent support when I needed it. Cardiff Maserati were truly shocking but in contrast I've found Edinburgh Maserati really good and genuinely interested in the old girl. Expensive on an hourly basis but they do what they say they will do, when they say they will do it. Quite rare I'm afraid.
PK are great and the place to go when it gets expensive. David Phillips in Edinburgh also knows his way around a Maserati. Pretty lucky in Edinburgh I guess.
Have to say though, when it comes to customer service and value for money - its got to be Skoda!! Love my new Yeti L&K!!!

 

[MrCoop]

Agreed re Indies. Whenever I've had a car older than 3 years, I always take it to an Indie. When I got the GS, I had plenty of options (Migliore, Autoshield, Shiltech, McGraths and the obvious MD's) but chose to use an Indie based very near me, who came highly recommended. And he certainly knows his stuff, I don't have to worry about being overcharged or having work carried out needlessly etc.

 

[Wack61]

When I had a Defender I read about a guy that took his 90 to a main dealer , he got charged over £600 to change a suspension bush because it took them 4 hours to get it out , that's why they don't work on older cars , they can't charge the hours they spend on it or if they do the forums will be full of MD charged me £600 to change a bush posts

 

[keith]

From my experience you can get both good and bad main dealers. However the one benefit of using one, is should things go seriously wrong, they will usually be part of a large franchise, which offers some recourse. Like any large company they will have the recourses to correct whatever has gone wrong. Not always the case with an independent.
Its all a question of finding a decent dealer with techs who have experience and ideas above and beyond the workshop manual. Also vitally important IMO, make sure they know your a fussy customer. Then they have an idea of what standard I am expecting, and if there not happy with that, better I take the car elsewhere.
For Maserati my two closest main dealers or so busy, a booking could take weeks. Let alone a courtesy car. As I result I travel a bit further to SW London, and use Joe Macari Cars. Whilst not a new car dealer, they are Maserati approved, and have usually fitted me in with a weeks notice, with the all important techs that know their way around. In fact they service classic Ferraris etc, some of which cost a staggering amount of Millions!!! A La Ferrari is almost inexpensive, and as for my humble Ghibli Diesel.... However they always treat me very well and my car as if it was one of there much wealthier other customers cars!!