Garage time for 1st service on Corolla 1.2T

[st901 2]

Does anybody know if Toyota have allocated times for servicing  ?

My 1.2t has just had it's 1st service . The Toyota dealer that carried out the work advised it  would take approx 1.5 hours .

My dashcam  recording though shows that my car left the garage 29 minutes after it was driven in .

Could they possible have completed all the tasks necessary including changing the Oil and filter in such a short time ?

 

 

[Parts-King 761]

Yes every job has a "book time" So the dealer tells you it's a 40 min service, they run over that because it gets washed, vacuum, time to do the paperwork, get the car in/out etc and you (not you per se but the customer) kicks off that it took an hour and not the promised 40 mins. It's called under promise and over deliver, tell the customer it's 1.5 hours but you get it back just over an hour and everyone is happy  

 

[HS78 26]

This is the issue with a minor / interim service. The Oil and filter can be changed quickly, 10 - 15 minutes. The rest of the 29 minute service that your car received would have been used for checks such as tyre pressures, filling washer reservoir etc. 

This is where a garage will make the best profit - servicing nearly new cars that they know will have no faults with them unless there is a known recall for something. They are able to service new cars quickly in comparison to older cars which may require additional work to be remedied. 

Unfortunately service costs are set prices rather than priced per time taken which could benefit the customer. I am a former technician and garages do use 'book times'. Example -A customer is given a quote for a repair with a book time of 3 hours. The technician completes the work in 2 hours 15 minutes. The customer is still charged 3 hours labour.

 

[Timh21 57]

Car servicing is pretty cheap these days I reckon, well it is compared to Motor Cycle servicing anyway

[Timmon 308]

I was surprised that the dealer prices are not too bad, and because of the need to be sure the Battery is covered for 15 years, it is a no brainer that the dealer does the services. Sad. though, that my local garage loses out, as they looked after my SAAB and gave me good advice,  and mostly stopped me from spending money when there was no need.

Set prices for servicing and many routine jobs is normal these days. Customers want to know what they will pay. If it takes less time, the garage may "win" but only if there is more work for them to do from a paying customer to increase their return on the time they gained, otherwise the mechanic still needs paying for the time they are employed. The garage will book in only the number of services they can do in the day, or should do, which  equals a set turnover on servicing. You are not just paying for the mechanic, but the reception and admin costs and the free coffee and newspaper while you wait.

If it takes more time than thought, the garage loses, as the customer won't expect to pay more for a routine service because the job took longer. It's different for repairs involving analysis of a fault, as the time will be variable, so the garage needs to keep you appraised of possible costs before you give permission to proceed.