Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)
  • Kwik-fit roulette – place your bets now
  • lunge
    Full Member

    Wife’s car is currently at Kwik-Fit to replace 4 tyres (all do need doing, this is not them up-selling for once!), they’re doing the “free” alignment check too. It’s only there as the tyres were cheaper than anywhere by quite a margin.

    So dear STW, what do we think the likely outcome from this little trip will be?
    1. 4 tyres fitted, no other issues
    2. 2 wheels need aligning
    3. 2 wheels need aligning + a new shock absorbers
    4. 4 wheels need aligning
    5. 4 wheels need aligning + a new shock absorbers
    6. Some other unforeseen tyre/wheel/suspension issue that they find.

    For the record, the car drives fine and has no issues that I’m aware of bar the need for the tyres.

    martinhutch
    Full Member

    Who is interacting with the KwikFit Fitters (they’re the men to trust)?

    If it is your missus, the attempt will be Alignmentx4 plus new exhaust. Plus aftersales tyre insurance with easy monthly payment plan.

    bearnecessities
    Full Member

    7. Wife runs off with a mechanic after being successfully romanced with a not-too-bad selection of hot drinks and free WiFi.

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    mashr
    Full Member

    Rookie, they cant legally let you take the car away as your brakes are too worn*

    *actual age/mileage/condition of said brakes is, of course, irrelevant

    alanf
    Free Member

    5 + 6 in my experience*

    * that was about 15 years ago though

    lunge
    Full Member

    It’s Mrs Lunge who is there and I’ve told her to pay nothing (tyres already paid for) until she’s spoken to me.
    There’s no question that will be some additions INO.

    richmars
    Full Member

    Always get tyres from the local Kwik-fit, never been told anything else was needed.

    deadkenny
    Free Member

    They can’t do those tyres for that car but can do these much more expensive ones.

    New exhaust, even though they’re a pile of shit and when they fail on the MOT under warranty they refuse to do it under warranty, then eventually begrudgingly do, and the lads running the place dick around and leave an abusive message on your answer phone at home around the time they were fitting it (yes, this happened to me, though I can’t 100% prove it was them. I also found the rear boot was very wet, like they’d pissed in it, though didn’t smell. I didn’t chase it as I was getting rid of the car shortly after).

    Anyway, factory Exhaust on current Civic – same one through 11 years of life, never needed replacing. Kwik Fit exhausts needed doing every couple of years.

    Also they must have your phone number and date of insurance renewal, so they can ring you up 10 times a night near renewal date.

    Yes, I utterly hate Kwik Fit, and it’s not just that one branch (another branch, digging holes in small cracks in surface of tyre to claim they need replacing).

    perchypanther
    Free Member

    I’ll have a quid on corroded brake pipes and an aircon regas.

    Harry_the_Spider
    Full Member

    Just had two new tyres from Kwik Fit this very morning.

    I needed two new tyres and they sold me two new tyres.

    They also gave the others a once over, advised me that I was at 5mm on one and 4mm on the other, then congratulated me on getting 40,000 miles out of the ones that were worn out.

    No extra sales pressure, nobody pissed in the boot and they didn’t try and steal my wife.*

    You can’t get better than a Kwik Fit Fitter.

    *She has a bad knee, they probably wouldn’t have wanted her anyway.

    cokie
    Full Member

    7. 4 wheels need aligning + a new shock absorbers + 4 discs & new pads + new exhaust

    I had the shocks, aligning & brakes when I had my two front tyres changed despite everything being fine.

    phil5556
    Full Member

    No. 1

    And the free alignment check will show the front slightly out but still within spec.

    sweepy
    Free Member

    Wife runs off with a mechanic after being successfully romanced with a not-too-bad selection of hot drinks and free WiFi.

    There’s no mechanics at kwik-fit

    Based on personal experience- “That bit that wasn’t broken when you came in now is, it was nothing to do with us and we cant fix the rest till you take it somewhere else to get that bit fixed. And the bit that you saw us take out and throw away wasn’t necessary, despite the fact we cant now get it to go together right and it won’t go together right till you take the car away, go to the dealer and replace the part we threw away”

    torsoinalake
    Free Member

    7. They’ll do the alignment, and not only will your car no longer drive in a straight line, the steering wheel will also not be centred. Another Kwik-fit branch will be unable to fix this for you, so you will have to take it to an independent.

    lunge
    Full Member

    There’s no mechanics at kwik-fit

    This is correct, they’re “fitters” apparently.

    bearnecessities
    Full Member

    Referring to them as fitter will only arouse your loved-ones further, rendering them helpless to their well honed chocolatey-beverage moves and tyre-lifting physiques..have none of you seen an Athena poster?!

    I’d get down there sharpish before she’s knee deep in speed ratings.

    singletrackmind
    Full Member

    The free alignment check will show that the tracking is out. £49.99 to correct the fault. Then. If you are lucky they can fit the wrong thickness discs for you. So the brakes will fail as the pads dropout. However they can be replaced for free, if you are not dead. But then the shower ofshits won’t remove the packing grease so your brakes get contaminated and you need new pads

    l0key
    Free Member

    Don’t forget the £6/wheel for nitrogen, or is that already a given?

    lunge
    Full Member

    The results are in….
    And I can’t believe I’m typing this, but…
    There were no extra charges. The alignment was a touch out but not enough to worry about, everything else was all good.
    I’m astonished.

    eddiebaby
    Free Member

    Would you like the email of the CEO so you can send him a shitty message?

    phil5556
    Full Member

    The results are in….
    And I can’t believe I’m typing this, but…
    There were no extra charges. The alignment was a touch out but not enough to worry about, everything else was all good.
    I’m astonished.

    When do I get my prize? 🙂

    mashr
    Full Member

    Not yet, he’s still got to get on the motorway and discover the wheel balance is totally ****

    Superficial
    Free Member

    For balance, I rolled into KwikFit at 20mins to closing time on Sunday with a flat tyre. I was 50 miles from home. 10mins later I rolled out with a new tyre for £58. Great service. (Ps although it got me out of trouble, does anyone want an arrowspeed ditchfinder that has only done 50miles?)

    Today, my wife took her car to an off brand (not KwikFit) tyre changey place and has been told she needs a new CV boot for £140. They may be correct but I have my doubts…

    Nico
    Free Member

    The results are in….
    And I can’t believe I’m typing this, but…
    There were no extra charges. The alignment was a touch out but not enough to worry about, everything else was all good.
    I’m astonished.

    Myth turns out to be myth, shocker.

    Philby
    Full Member

    Always had good service from Kwik Fit including one time when I was checking the tyre pressures at a petrol station and the valve literally blew out. Managed to put the cap on but tyre was quite flat so had a very slow and careful drive to the nearest Kwik Fit where they replaced the valve at no charge.

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    To be fair I don’t think Ive ever had a bad experience at kwickfit or halfords for that matter.

    Only ‘bad’ experience was Mr Clutch, who upsold a new water pump to my GF (despite it being replaced a couple of years previously with the cambelt elsewhere) who then managed to miss a circlip off the CV joint and eff up the gearbox output seal so it dumped all it’s oil out. Kwickfit then found those problems in it’s MOT next week. To their credit Mr.Clutch fixed both problems without any charge despite having listed the gearbox output bearing as being ‘noisy’ and trying to upsell those too before doing the clutch so could probably have claimed it was just worn by that.

    They even passed her car after I told the tester that the NS radius arm bushes were a bit suspect, to the point the tyre has worn the outside shoulder which would have been an easy £250 for them to sell.

    Ewan
    Free Member

    I had one good experience – old merc with an exhaust made out of several different types of exhaust – they managed to track down bits that fitted.

    I also had a bad experience – on the same merc (in woking rather than newcastle) – failed an MOT on a part that the merc didn’t actually have.

    spooky_b329
    Full Member

    One of the last times I was in KwikFit, the dopey buggers kept trying to guess the 4 digit immobiliser code on my old Citroen ZX, despite me having set the service code for them, told them, and got them to note it on the tag attached to the keys.

    So I turned up and paid, before finding out they were closing in 5 minutes and they had locked the immobiliser and it had just started a 60 minute countdown before the next attempt. I stupidly let them roll the car out, lock up and go home, leaving me in a freezing car for an hour before it would start, and the free hot drinks machine inside the nice warm closed reception. I should’ve refused to leave the reception so they had to wait with me until it would start!!!

    mattyfez
    Full Member

    I’ll never use kwik fit unless it’s the only practical option and I’m desperate.

    Once bitten twice shy.

    Nobeerinthefridge
    Free Member

    Local one here is great, book a time online, pay up front, always a decent price, good range of tyres, nae hassle.

    I canny be arsed haggling wi the small indy guys these days.

    Frankenstein
    Free Member

    Kwik Fit told my misssus I needed new discs and pads all round for £600-800!

    I just had new spare budget tyre from them before a road trip in the boot and they said would I like a free brake check to my wife.

    The car already had new discs and pads 3 weeks prior.

    I told my missus that on the phone and heard her tell the manager.

    He still asked if she wanted brakes changing… she didn’t and left and I had to torque up the wheel bolts!

    rickmeister
    Full Member

    Piss in the boot must be the KF version of Wee in their shoes….

    They must have a great time at the KF works Christmas panto, cast list being:
    Parts Charming
    Piss in boots
    Ugly Fitters
    Widow Thank-ye
    Little Ted Robbin Thug

Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)

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