Title: Parts pricing
Post by: Martin Tyas on February 23, 2007, 10:38:10 am
I REALLY do like and enjoy my Grand Espace and just hope that it keeps going without costing too much more money because it will definitely be the last one I have.... for 2 reason's
Firstly the new Espace isn't a REAL one.... not a Matra built Espace.... just one of the many steel boxes on the market these days.... and not a very nice looking one at that. My wife says that the new style grows on you.... but I replied that so can warts!!
Secondly, the price of parts from Renault is just nothing more than pure robbery. I also have a 1991 BMW 5 Series and thought that they knew how to rip you off with parts pricing but BMW are cheap compared to Renault. Last week I needed a new rear wiper blade for the Espace but no stock at Euro Car Parts or German & Swedish so I went to the local Renault main dealer who also didn't have stock but could get one for the next day..... at GBP 29.22 just for the blade!!! Upon fitting the new blade I then found that because it has a plastic to plastic pivot point the main arm was also too badly worn not to be replaced and so I had to order a new one.... at £56.34. So just to replace the rear wiper cost a staggering £85.56 (about 124 euro).
If it was an Espace-specific part then maybe I could understand it in that the parts are no longer in production and so made in small quantities and Matra have to make some margin. Then Renault mark up the price they pay to Matra so there are two profit margins coming out of the captive parts..... but these are not Matra parts.... they are made by automotive components manufacturer Valeo from who Renault buy direct.
I thought that we'd hanged all of the Highwaymen years ago but it seems that Dick Turpin rides again within Renault's parts business.
Martin
Firstly the new Espace isn't a REAL one.... not a Matra built Espace.... just one of the many steel boxes on the market these days.... and not a very nice looking one at that. My wife says that the new style grows on you.... but I replied that so can warts!!
Secondly, the price of parts from Renault is just nothing more than pure robbery. I also have a 1991 BMW 5 Series and thought that they knew how to rip you off with parts pricing but BMW are cheap compared to Renault. Last week I needed a new rear wiper blade for the Espace but no stock at Euro Car Parts or German & Swedish so I went to the local Renault main dealer who also didn't have stock but could get one for the next day..... at GBP 29.22 just for the blade!!! Upon fitting the new blade I then found that because it has a plastic to plastic pivot point the main arm was also too badly worn not to be replaced and so I had to order a new one.... at £56.34. So just to replace the rear wiper cost a staggering £85.56 (about 124 euro).
If it was an Espace-specific part then maybe I could understand it in that the parts are no longer in production and so made in small quantities and Matra have to make some margin. Then Renault mark up the price they pay to Matra so there are two profit margins coming out of the captive parts..... but these are not Matra parts.... they are made by automotive components manufacturer Valeo from who Renault buy direct.
I thought that we'd hanged all of the Highwaymen years ago but it seems that Dick Turpin rides again within Renault's parts business.
Martin
Title: Re: Parts pricing
Post by: Anders Dinsen on February 23, 2007, 01:44:31 pm
I agree that this is outrageous! Last time I had to replace the rear wiper blade, I bought a standard wiper blade, removed the rubber and inserted it into the plastic.
You might be able to find a replacement part, but even though the item is made by Valeo, it isn't necessarily something from the Valeo parts bin. And this is where the car makers make their money: They copyright everything specific for the exterior and then they have the exclusive rights to manufacture it - or have it manufactured. If you're a car manufacturer in France, Valeo is probably a good choice for a manufacturer.
I know that the Matra-specific parts (though seldomly manufactured by Matra) are more expensive than the average Renault parts, and this is because Matra Automobile is today *only* a cash cow to the Matra-group: Their only business is to supply spares to the Espace's, and since there's no competition, prices have increased a LOT since they stopped manufacturing the cars.
Another example of this is the little plastic parts used to bolt around the roof racks to fit a roof box or similar - I think their price has doubled since they were introduced originally.
You'll know the Matra-specific parts in the Renault range because the first digit in the part number is 6.
- Anders
You might be able to find a replacement part, but even though the item is made by Valeo, it isn't necessarily something from the Valeo parts bin. And this is where the car makers make their money: They copyright everything specific for the exterior and then they have the exclusive rights to manufacture it - or have it manufactured. If you're a car manufacturer in France, Valeo is probably a good choice for a manufacturer.
I know that the Matra-specific parts (though seldomly manufactured by Matra) are more expensive than the average Renault parts, and this is because Matra Automobile is today *only* a cash cow to the Matra-group: Their only business is to supply spares to the Espace's, and since there's no competition, prices have increased a LOT since they stopped manufacturing the cars.
Another example of this is the little plastic parts used to bolt around the roof racks to fit a roof box or similar - I think their price has doubled since they were introduced originally.
You'll know the Matra-specific parts in the Renault range because the first digit in the part number is 6.
- Anders
Title: Re: Parts pricing
Post by: george on February 24, 2007, 05:09:35 am
Well hows this one.
98 Grande Espace front wheel speed sensor for the ABS.
Bosch system.
Renault wanted £275.00 + VAT.
Local Bosch dealer,,,,,,,,,,
£42.00 + VAT.
Profit is not a dirty word but this really is thaking the wotsit.
98 Grande Espace front wheel speed sensor for the ABS.
Bosch system.
Renault wanted £275.00 + VAT.
Local Bosch dealer,,,,,,,,,,
£42.00 + VAT.
Profit is not a dirty word but this really is thaking the wotsit.
Title: Re: Parts pricing
Post by: TheJoker on February 28, 2007, 05:17:16 pm
Oh... I'll chip in too - my girlfriend's Clio's hazard light switch suddenly stopped working (she was in the office when someone came and told her that her hazards were flashing!). Her Clio is 3 or 4 years old with 10,000 miles on the clocks.
Luckily we could fix the switch ourself, and Renault wanted a nice £16 for it (expensive, but I was able to walk away from it)...
... but at the same time I asked what a new key would cost for my Espace....
The answer was something like, "Sir, to get you a key, we ask you to drop your trousers, bend over whilst we go get the 'Pneumatic-Charging-Device'...."
£140 ~€210 ... yes... ONE FOUR ZERO 'In the region of'
For a friggin key with a small radio transmitter in! I can get a friggin iPod for that, or a SatNav system...
>:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
Luckily we could fix the switch ourself, and Renault wanted a nice £16 for it (expensive, but I was able to walk away from it)...
... but at the same time I asked what a new key would cost for my Espace....
The answer was something like, "Sir, to get you a key, we ask you to drop your trousers, bend over whilst we go get the 'Pneumatic-Charging-Device'...."
£140 ~€210 ... yes... ONE FOUR ZERO 'In the region of'
For a friggin key with a small radio transmitter in! I can get a friggin iPod for that, or a SatNav system...
>:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(
