Passed the 100k mile mark yesterday on MOT day
 

A bit of a milestone for old 'Frank' as it passed through the 100k mile mark yesterday. It also had its MOT done and it passed without any advisories - Bonus! :cool:

I went to www.pitstartgarage.com based in North London and only have good things to say about them. It was great also seeing other like-minded enthusiasts and getting a really thorough overview of the MOT process from the tester....Top guys and I'll definitely go back there! +++

Oli

Edit: Piccy added :D

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7001/6...2068dfb0_m.jpg

Great result and nice to hear a positive for a garage+++

sounds like an interesting place Oli - would you say they are a cost effective place for doing your own basic work? I wonder how they cope with tools etc and people's abuse of them in some cases :Confused:

Excellent, glad to see the old boy is doing well...... Another car I maybe shouldnt have sold.... :rolleyes: +++

As an aside, I have done 12,000 miles in my A7 since mid September!! :eek::D

It'll be time for a fuel stop soon then.... :rolleyes:

To add to your list - mine is now on 104k, and counting...:-)

Hi Neil,

This is probably worth a quick watch just so you can see the comparison that Fifth Gear did ... OEM vs Indie vs Self-Service.

I would say they are cost effective. I had the MOT done for £35 quid which is very competitive and they charge £45+VAT if you need them which in London is very fair. They have most tools you could wish for and are very accomodating and keen to help. They have many of the basic parts you would expect (bulbs, wipers, oil, etc) and a number of parts companies like europarts around the corner for those not bothered about OEM parts. They do not have VCDS or ETKA though but i have VCDS myself now :)

I have bought all VAG service parts from TPS today so am looking to perform my own service over the next few weekends as soon as i can at their premises with some supervision...i have always wanted to do this and it's one of the main reasons i went to check them out.

OEM Parts include:
- 8 Platinum spark plugs
- 1 Air filter
- 2 Poller filters
- 1 Oil filter
- Fuel filter
- Mid-exhaust section heat shield clips (a couple have come off)

For oil i will use Shell Helix Ultra...there is a reason that Ferrari use it for their F1 and GT road cars :)

So far, the parts bill excl oil is £125...the bays are £10/hr without a ramp (max £50/day) or £20/hr with a ramp (max £80/day)....i reckon i'll be done in 3 hrs and will need a ramp for 1 of those 3 hrs so expect to be spending about £150 in total.

Will let you know how it goes +++

Oli