Kwik Fit and their tricks ....

[Teflonso]

Tip 1 - Buy on line, two tyres at a time. They come to your home / work / summer retreat to do the fitting, no extra charge. Service is excellent, pricing is usually as good as Black Circles and they don't try to up-sell.

Tip 2 - If you really must go to the Kwik Fit depot, phone up first with the best price you have got from Black Circles, or some similar outfit. The telephone prices vary widely for exactly the same thing between depots (try it, it's fun) but they will price match without any problems. I've had the price fall by over 50% on this basis.

Tip 3 - If you are going for a puncture repair, make sure you know where the offending nail is located. They can only repair in the middle 2/3 of the tyre and it's amazing how often they "find" a wacking great hole outside this zone. New tyre needed. This isn't a Kwik Fit issue, it's one to watch out for with all tyre fitting outfits.

 

[Berkshire Rich]

I might use their air con service ; besides that I have on occasion bought tyres from them if , after shopping around , they work out cheapest for the specific tyres I want .

But you get what you pay for. I worked in the tyre industry for a while, running a company with 10 branches across North London. They tended to focus on products for performance and high-end cars but it was real eye opener as they all know each other well in that industry. I have never shopped at Kwik Fit since

 

[peter49]

Tip 1 - Buy on line, two tyres at a time. They come to your home / work / summer retreat to do the fitting, no extra charge. Service is excellent, pricing is usually as good as Black Circles and they don't try to up-sell.

This Tip is spot on. I have used this approach with Kwik Fit for several years and always obtained the best available price. I've never had an issue with them after using them for tyres, almost exclusively, for 25 years. I've never used them for any other work and I can't even remember when I last had an exhaust changed by anyone.

 

[pingping]

It isnt just kwik fit who are under the spotlight for alleged dodgy practice ,whilst many maintenance garages are good there are many that are terrible bordering on the dangerous,not just that but some can wreck your car claiming they have changed your oils and filters,when in fact they have not .
my advice would be if you can do it yourself then do it or watch them like hawks and check everything before you part with cash.
Rip off Britain it is, and its spreading.

 

[Tiff]

That programme had a whistleblower..I'll be this place's whistleblower as I have also worked for Kwik-Fit.. TWICE.

The training Kwik-Fit supply, with dedicated training centres is superb, far above what you would expect. You must attend these courses to be allowed to work on various parts of the car, so a tyre fitter is trained to fit tyres, if he show's promise he may be sent to the basic brake course, which would allow him to fit pads etc, all the way up to MOT tester, servicing technician and Master brake fitter. I came to Kwik Fit as a mechanic and MOT tester, but still had to attend the courses before being allowed to work on the parts, which was a bit odd, but nothing in the courses was anything but proper practice and the training was excellent.

If Kwik Fit's proceedures are carried out correctly, using their guidelines and training, then the company would be brilliant, but obviously there are bonuses in place, which motivate some people to do things they shouldn't- I did see this, and it always came from above. Branches are all run by the manager, who is responsible for the branch, and ultimately is the one who decides how far the branch strays from the correct way.

As usual, a company is only as good as it's employee's, and this is the issue that needs to be dealt with to weed out the ones who are sailing a bit close to the wind..

I have no connection with Kwik Fit now, worked for them a good few years ago and still keep in touch with a few of the good guys I worked with.

 

[didi w203]

I worked in the tyre trade years ago. Went to a 2 day course. .the stories I heard from other tyre fitters from other depot employees was appalling. .one was, customer came in for 2 front tyres and a tracking. Replace front tyres. Wire brush track rods, put copper grease on track rods and pump up one front tyre to compensate steering. . This is Kwik Fit!!!

Anyway, I worked my way up to manager and everything was done correctly!!

A friend took his focus for an mot. .it allegedly failed on front discs. He went back 2 hours later only to find new discs and pads being fitted.
After a moan and no authorisation to replace discs, they replaced old discs and pads. He brought the car to me and in no way the discs or pads were worn.
Upon further inspection the caliper bolts were loose with a crossed thread!!

Repaired the damage caused by kwik fit, took it elsewhere and it passed.

He won't be going there again..and plastered it all over Facebook.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using MBClub UK

 

[bluevenetian]

Went to local kwik fit to have tracking done and new tyre fitted. I, and two other customers, waited nearly 10 minutes before someone came to office. Very casual and pretty unprofessional, however they did fit new tyre, but they couldn't do tracking on my 124, suggested I go to the next nearest Kwik Fit for tracking....reluctantly I went. Completely different story - very courteous and professional. When car was on ramp they had tv monitor in reception area so you could see what they were doing with car. Tech came in to discuss their free check up and put data on screen and asked if I wanted to go ahead with tracking realignment - 45 quid or so.

 

[keastygtir]

I have trust issues with most garages. I do a lot of my own work anyway what I don't do I get a trusted mate to do with me helping if required.

I dont know what it would be like with the merc but there is no way I would leave my pulsar gtir unwatched, You can guarantee that they would have to make some essential "lunch run" a proceed to beat the car through the gears without any kind of warm up etc

 

[Tiff]

Kwik Fit always get singled out for bad customer service, but being the biggest always makes you prime target, just look at the amount of bad press Scotland's biggest dealership chain gets.. I'm in and out of garages every day now and some of the conversations I hear, recommendations I hear, and to be honest- the sheer crap that is fed to customers is unbelievable.

Bluevenetian,

Can't do an alignment on a W124? All Kwik Fit branches have the same equipment, staff attend the same training courses, have fixed prices in the MAT and have access to the same databases for information. A W124 can be a pain to align properly and can take a bit of time. Maybe the first branch had met their targets for the day..Maybe the manager had a £500 brake job on the ramp, maybe the manager was off.. Far too many variables between branches- this is the problem they need to address, then their reputation will improve.

I remember doing a full brake job in Kwik Fit, on a Porsche 911 (996) Carrera 4. 1200 quid's worth. Discs and pads all round, genuine Porsche parts. I remember thinking "What the hell is a car like this doing in Kwik Fit?" I completed the job, road tested, did my paperwork and parked the car up. The owner came in and came over and thanked me, and obviously picked upon my confusion.. He then told me that Porsche had quoted over 2 grand, and I'd had a recommendation from a mate of his, as I'd MOT'd his 928S4 a few weeks before and he was impressed by my care, enthusiasm and knowledge of Porsche. From then on we seemed to have quite a few Porkers in the place. If you get good service from a branch, go back, tell your mates, build up a relationship. If you get bad service, phone the number on the back of your receipt and tell them. Don't just be a keyboard warrior and proclaim " All Kwik Fit's are **** innit." That helps no-one.

 

[Lenny63]

what was the program called ? cant seem to find on iplayer

 

[Tiff]

Your money, their tricks

BBC - Media Centre - BBC One?s Your Money, Their Tricks investigates Kwik-Fit

 

[Lenny63]

cheers bud