COCKPIT or TOYOTA

[KannikaP]

I have a 2012 Vigo, 3l diesel, from new. Taken it every time to Toyota main dealer for every service on time. Had no problems whatsoever with the vehicle.

Coming up for 200,000 km service which I know is a big one, change hydraulic oil, transmission oil, a/c filters etc etc, so expecting maybe Bht 10k at Toyota.

Would Cockpit, or one of the other chains, do the same quality service as the main dealer for a much lower price? Anyone?

[Henryford]

I stopped using Ford for my services after 5 years and go to BQuik but i do very small mileages 3000 kms a year. For 200k i would still use Toyota.

[Kwasaki]

52 minutes ago, KannikaP said:

Would Cockpit, or one of the other chains, do the same quality service as the main dealer for a much lower price? Anyone?

 

The problem for me was I couldn't find a decent Toyota in Sukhothai or further afield..

 

I started going to our local Cockpit after the first free service of our Vigo and a problem with wheel alignment we are lucky to have good one here the service is excellent I've plugged em ever since for 14 years.

 

I go to them for service for our new Isuzu now it's nearly half the cost of the Isuzu service.

[KannikaP]

41 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

 

The problem for me was I couldn't find a decent Toyota in Sukhothai or further afield..

 

I started going to our local Cockpit after the first free service of our Vigo and a problem with wheel alignment we are lucky to have good one here the service is excellent I've plugged em ever since for 14 years.

 

I go to them for service for our new Isuzu now it's nearly half the cost of the Isuzu service.

Thanks for this, however I do not know whether or not my local Toyota dealer/service is better than Cockpit or not cos I've only ever been to Toyota, and never had problems. Hmmmmmmmm.

[DavisH]

6 hours ago, KannikaP said:

Thanks for this, however I do not know whether or not my local Toyota dealer/service is better than Cockpit or not cos I've only ever been to Toyota, and never had problems. Hmmmmmmmm.

Use the dealer for normal servicing (for the service book). If anything breaks, try independent toyota garages. Their prices will be more reasonable (e.g 20K for ai air compressor at toyota, 12K at an independent garage. However, for some parts, genuine equipment may be required (eg. an oxygen senor on my honda needed replacing). My local mechanic said it was better to use the geniune part for this item). 

Be wary of 'free checks' by chain garages like b-quik/cockpit. They tend to find many things that they think need replacing. I had that experience once. 

[Kwasaki]

6 hours ago, KannikaP said:

Thanks for this, however I do not know whether or not my local Toyota dealer/service is better than Cockpit or not cos I've only ever been to Toyota, and never had problems. Hmmmmmmmm.

Never had problems with your Toyota truck I would say, Vigos there bulletproof.

For me as I said my local Toyota dealership is not as competent as our local Cockpit. 

Being someone who can fix vehicles whatever type in my time I don't wanna get my hands dirty only my precious bike has my expertise.

[pgrahmm]

I have 2 experiences with CP....1 - they did a big service on our SUV the day prior to a big trip....400 K into the trip it overheated causing major engine problems & an expensive tow (versus the local guy that wanted to arbitrarily replace the engine in the middle of nowhere, literally nothing for miles).

Tried a different CP looking to buy 5 Lenzo wheels = with much run around & a story on how hard they were to get and days to even get a price they quoted a price 1250B higher per wheel than the other shops.....Went 300 meters down the street & bought 5 wheels and tires on the spot.....I did have to come back for the 5th....

 

0 for 2 in my book....

 

With Toyota = no problems encountered....

[KannikaP]

Looks like it will be Toyota, again. They do however charge an extra Bht 400 to rotate the wheels, even though they take them all off to clean/check the brakes.

Luckily the Maxxiss tyre depot next door to Toyota do it for free, plus alignment & balancing, for the life of the tyres I bought from them. That's good service!

[Yellowtail]

3 hours ago, KannikaP said:

Looks like it will be Toyota, again. They do however charge an extra Bht 400 to rotate the wheels, even though they take them all off to clean/check the brakes.

Luckily the Maxxiss tyre depot next door to Toyota do it for free, plus alignment & balancing, for the life of the tyres I bought from them. That's good service!

 

They don't need to take them off to check the brakes, but charging extra is a rip-off.

 

What I don't like about Toyota service compared to Isuzu, is that the Toyota dealer I trade with is always pushing silly up-sells like injector-cleaning, air-conditioner cleaning and most recently covid cleaning. 

 

I do miss Isuzu service...

[Jen65]

I have a 2006 Toyota Vigo and best investment I ever made (special "Elegance" model ).   I decided to get an inspection and service by Toyota when I bought it as was in a hurry to get it reliably serviced for use and was not that familiar with anyone private then.They advised I needed a new steering rack and would have to come from Japan at 27,000 baht !   I was daft enough to agree but afterwards I started to check out Toyota parts / suppliers / mechanics and what I found  made my mind up not to use a Toyota dealer / service point ever again !!

I later had an issue with what I thought was a drive shaft / differential problem and asked Toyota to investigate . They told be I would need a complete new differential and axle at some astranomical  price so I took the vehicle away and told them I would think about it .   Turns out Toyota mechanics are not sufficiently experienced to dismantle a diff and order/fit the internal part as it's easier for them to order the whole unit !  My mechanic diagnosed it as a bearing in the diff and replaced it same day for 2000 baht .  No problem since then .

Most people don't realise that Toyota or any motor vehicle is assembled with parts from OEM suppliers (original equipment suppliers ) and there are many manufacturers of parts ,since if part not available at one then can be obtained at another - all OEM parts to the vehicle manufacturers standard and quality . The steering rack I had fitted was later found available in Bangkok ( OEM ) at 9000 baht !!  

Another thing I found amazing was that when I went in to arrange a service with the Toyota Workshop Manual in hand , with a list of what was to be done , all the "girls" at the desks had no idea what I was talking about ( it was like talking to a wall ) and the mechanic they called didn't like the fact I had a workshop manual  .Seems like if you are a complete village idiot with no knowledge of cars / mechanics they are quite happy to fall over backwards and offer you a chair and some paper to "just sign here "  and you never get to know what they are supposed to do or have done ( it's a secret !!) and you are happy to sip coffee in a waiting room and be overjoyed that your car comes back cleaned !!     

So it is important to check / order parts that are OEM in order to get the quality of the original and also to shop around .  I now buy my parts online and have a reputable mechanic fit them .   It can save you a fortune !!