"Dealer serviced" apparently means nothing.....

[JTK]

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..I think the secret to dealer service is to try a few, and test them.... If they do a good job, then you've found a good one and it's time to befriend one of the senior service advisors..

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I agree, that would be awesome if it worked that way. Your typical [mega] dealership service dept of today rotates SA's like a revolving door, plus there is no telling who will be the tech that does the actual wrenching. There are waaaay too many variables that will make repeated dealership service visits inconsistent.

Joel

 

[Anduril]

I didn't catch them in the act, but I had the timing belt done a few weeks after buying the car. At the time of purchase, I went over pretty much every inch of the underside of that car and didn't find a single drop of fluid. Seeing as the "leak" never returned once I wiped the oil off, I can only assume it was the dealer trying to convince me I needed an extra repair.

 

[Mokanic]

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I didn't catch them in the act, but I had the timing belt done a few weeks after buying the car. At the time of purchase, I went over pretty much every inch of the underside of that car and didn't find a single drop of fluid. Seeing as the "leak" never returned once I wiped the oil off, I can only assume it was the dealer trying to convince me I needed an extra repair.

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You made an assumption based on no evidence. You can be sure that if a dealer or tech is going to try to rip you a new one it won't be an oil pan leak they use. Not on an Accord anyway. The have to go by the labor manual and the time given for replacing an oil pan just ain't worth it to choose that repair to get you.
The oil that was on your engine could have very likely come from the t-belt repair you had done and spilled down on the oil pan.
I've replaced a number of oil pans on Hondas becouse they were leaking. Most of the time it comes from people not installing a new crush washer when they change the oil. That causes the threads to strip and the pan to leak. It was more than likely a mistake(and one that should not have happened)but it is a far cry from trying to stick you.

 

[VeeDubb]

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I agree, that would be awesome if it worked that way. Your typical [mega] dealership service dept of today rotates SA's like a revolving door, plus there is no telling who will be the tech that does the actual wrenching. There are waaaay too many variables that will make repeated dealership service visits inconsistent.

Joel

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That's a good point. But I do think dealerships with large turnover have serious problems anyways so if I see new people everytime I go, there is something wrong with management. My dealer is the largest volume VW dealer in central ohio and sells four other brands from the same location. So they are large. But they have very low turnover both in the sales department and service. You pretty much recognize all the faces after several trips.

 

[brianl703]

Well, since they know the oil pan is NOT leaking since they placed the oil there, what if their "repair" consisted of wiping the oil pan clean? If they've put oil on the oil pan, then they've already proven their tendency towards dishonesty. Once they've started down that path, it's just a short trip to charging customers for work not performed.

 

[gedcruise]

Good point.
Techs work on vehicles, service writers and dealership holders don't.
I would personally advocate finding a good indie tech for any car. Their business depends upon the quality of the work they do, and good word of mouth from their customers. In any event, you can do all the simple stuff yourself, in the comfort of your own garage.

 

[01rangerxl]

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I'm baffled as to why the dealer wouldn't have / didn't point these items out as an opportunity to make some repair $$, given the owner is a trusting, no nothing (not in a derogative way) individual. My only conclusion is that they didn't catch these items.

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Odds are, the dealer probably did catch those problems, and probably did advise repairs, but she refused because she thought they were trying to trick her, or because she simply did not understand the problem. I saw this all the time when I worked in this field. You could show someone a nearly destroyed belt, rotted out hose, whatever, and they would still think you were just trying to rip them off. You can't put all the blame on customers, because plenty of service departments and shops have been dishonest before, but you would think seeing something that is obviously worn out or broken would convince most people they need a repair done. That just isn't the case though.

Dealers are franchises though, and the way they do business can vary widely.

 

[Mokanic]

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Good point.
Techs work on vehicles, service writers and dealership holders don't.
I would personally advocate finding a good indie tech for any car. Their business depends upon the quality of the work they do, and good word of mouth from their customers. In any event, you can do all the simple stuff yourself, in the comfort of your own garage.

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You are correct.

 

[oldmaninsc]

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Well, since they know the oil pan is NOT leaking since they placed the oil there, what if their "repair" consisted of wiping the oil pan clean? If they've put oil on the oil pan, then they've already proven their tendency towards dishonesty. Once they've started down that path, it's just a short trip to charging customers for work not performed.

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Exactly what I was thinking. Talk about pure profit.

Personally I doubt that the vehicle the o/p was considering buying had ever seen a dealership in the past few years.
Just because the seller claimed it was "always dealer serviced" doesn't mean it was so - unless she has the paperwork to back it up, and the o/p didn't mention that.