Halfords Autocentre Brakes for life

ThinkPad

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2012
Messages
1,077
Reaction score
185
Location
London
Your Mercedes
E W212; C W204
Seems too good to be true. They offered me a quote of £107 to supply and fit front pads. Was told brand would be pagid or brembo. And they tell me anytime they EVER wear out again, supply and fit will be FREE. They also tell me if I change car, the lifetime guarantee can be transferred to the new car, i.e. if I bought a car with worn pads, they would supply and fit the pads for free again!

Doesn't make sense! Literally free pads for life! Only thing I can think is them trying to sell you discs every time! But still!! Thought I would put it on here in case anyone interested.

I have now already committed to get mine done from who I normally use, so will stick to that.
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
Just imagine all the AMG's going there :D:D
 
N

npuk

Guest
They get their parts from ECP so you can see how much extra they are charging if you add about half an hours labour on top of the pads price at ECP. No doubt it will be cheaper if you get the pads using the forum discount and get a good indie to fit them but you wont get free replacements.

I guess Halfords rely on many people forgetting they have the brake pads for life by the time the pads need changing again and forgetting to transfer it across if they change car.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

roop_the_loop

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2013
Messages
386
Reaction score
0
Your Mercedes
E220 CDI BlueEff SE, 7G auto, estate (S212), 2012
My only experience of Halfords offers is, they used to have (maybe still do?) an offer that if you buy headlight bulbs from Halfords they'll fit them for you FOC. I bought a pair for my wife's A-class, and asked the guy to come and fit them. He came out to the car park and when he saw what car it was he just turned on his heels muttering "I'm not fitting anything in that..." I did try to point out that their offer didn't say 'MB A-class excluded', but he couldn't care less.
 

Cole@MBS

Forum Supporter
Authorised Forum Supporter
Joined
Dec 1, 2008
Messages
13,702
Reaction score
950
Age
54
Location
Southampton
Website
www.mbssouthampton.co.uk
Your Mercedes
124 300 CE 24 Coupe, C220CDI, Porsche 911 4s, Dolomite sprint,
Wait for the batch of cars to come in with a brake noise due to cheap pads now then......
 

Frontstep

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2007
Messages
9,201
Reaction score
3,436
Your Mercedes
T210 320cdi
When I returned a faulty Sat Nav to Halfords the assistant wanted to get an OK from Garmin to give a replacement.
He was only a yoof so I was reluctant to push him too much with the correct procedure.
Will they want to carry out the same procedure for Brake Pads ?
 

c15htn

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 19, 2013
Messages
668
Reaction score
46
Location
Milton Keynes
Your Mercedes
'00 A208 CLK320 Convertible.
Ah, but read the blurb...... there's nothing in it for them - it's sothat we the motoring public look after our brakes. :lol:

They will apparently skillfully check all aspects of my cars brakes.... So, the abs and BAS too eh?

Are people really this gullible?:shock:
 

Corned

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2012
Messages
1,470
Reaction score
5
Age
121
Location
East Midlands
Your Mercedes
2005 S211 E320CDI Avantgarde
^ What? You mean "something for nothing" has a catch? :shock:
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
Ah, but read the blurb...... there's nothing in it for them - it's sothat we the motoring public look after our brakes. :lol:

They will apparently skillfully check all aspects of my cars brakes.... So, the abs and BAS too eh?

Are people really this gullible?:shock:

All those with SBC go to Halfords Auto center :D:D
 

c15htn

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 19, 2013
Messages
668
Reaction score
46
Location
Milton Keynes
Your Mercedes
'00 A208 CLK320 Convertible.
I'm seriously thinking of popping in with the 208 - just for a check....... mainly because I can't be bothered taking the wheels of myself...... I guess that makes me a bad person:Oops:
 
OP
T

ThinkPad

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2012
Messages
1,077
Reaction score
185
Location
London
Your Mercedes
E W212; C W204
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #14
To be honest don't think it's a bad deal at all. If they use ecp even better. I've ordered mine from there. 40 quid. Labour let's say half hour at 30 quid thats 70. So I could have paid 37 more to get free parts and labour next time. Only thing I am guessing is that they are tying you in to change discs with them when they go. And who would do it elsewhere anyway as then you would have to forgo your free pads as of course you would change them at the same time. And I'm guessing their disc prices are likely to be through the roof to even things out!

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
 
Last edited:

Gary Hanson

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 16, 2010
Messages
207
Reaction score
1
Your Mercedes
A Jag. Jags are my favourite.
I just noticed at the end of the terms and conditions, it says,

If there is a dispute, the decision of the directors of Halfords Autocentres is final.
But it isn't. The decision of a county court District Judge (or a High Court Judge) is final. According to the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, it could be argued that the term is not legally binding on the customer because....

5.—(1) A contractual term which has not been individually negotiated shall be regarded as unfair if, contrary to the requirement of good faith, it causes a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations arising under the contract, to the detriment of the consumer.

(2) A term shall always be regarded as not having been individually negotiated where it has been drafted in advance and the consumer has therefore not been able to influence the substance of the term.

I don't think I'd bother paying someone else to fit brakes for me, unless it was freezing outside. It's not that difficult to do them yourself.
The only time I ever paid a garage to work on the brakes on a car I owned, they failed a week later, and the garage refused to come and collect the car and remedy the problem.
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
I just noticed at the end of the terms and conditions, it says,


But it isn't. The decision of a county court District Judge (or a High Court Judge) is final. According to the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999, it could be argued that the term is not legally binding on the customer because....



I don't think I'd bother paying someone else to fit brakes for me, unless it was freezing outside. It's not that difficult to do them yourself.
The only time I ever paid a garage to work on the brakes on a car I owned, they failed a week later, and the garage refused to come and collect the car and remedy the problem.

OK a mucky job but nice to fit them your self and it gives you a chance to look around while doing it.
 

Frontstep

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2007
Messages
9,201
Reaction score
3,436
Your Mercedes
T210 320cdi
Yes I think a bit of simple maintenance keeps you in touch with your cars condition.
I laughed about the line about the directors decision being final, do you get too attend the board meeting when the fate of your pads is decided ?
A poorly drafted contract that would be so easy to pick apart, its just nonsense.
 

SteveX

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2009
Messages
1,512
Reaction score
18
It's a gimmick, a bit like the potential lifetime waranty for cars, the average car will have pads for several years, the car will be sold by then to another owner and the likely won't know about the deal.

It's just a way of getting you in the door to buy pads.
 

Pathfinder

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2011
Messages
814
Reaction score
18
Age
63
Location
Gourock
Your Mercedes
CLC 220 CDi Sport Diesel Year 2008
Their strategy is that the pads are cheap and cost them next to nothing. They then tell the customer that they need new discs as they cannot fit new pads to them worn discs.

Plus they claim to find worn shockers and ball joints etc. and 99% of customers with no clue will tell them to proceed with any work.

Been doing it since they started up, that's how they grew so quickly and made similar Quickfit owner Mr Farmer a very rich man.
 
Last edited:

Rory

Senior Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2005
Messages
5,016
Reaction score
233
Location
Cheshire, UK
Your Mercedes
2005 C270CDi Avantgarde Estate. Bought 2005, sold 2022.
Their strategy is that the pads are cheap and cost them next to nothing. They then tell the customer that they need new discs as they cannot fit new pads to them worn discs.

^ Exactly this. Pads and their fitting is cheap, easily absorbed into the cost of supplying and fitting new discs.
 

Stop looking for the Best Garage!! We are here and have the best advanced solutions for you, at Competitive prices. Put us to test with any issue you may have.
Top Bottom