Service — heavy mechanical

The jobs most garages send away

Head gaskets, timing chains, turbos, oil leaks, gearbox removal and rebuild. Plenty of independents will do your brakes and subcontract anything harder. Erdi does the harder work himself — which is why other garages’ customers end up here.

The short answer

Engine and gearbox work is quoted after inspection, because it has to be — a knocking engine can be a £200 job or a £2000 one and nobody can tell you which over the phone. Diagnostic time is £45 and it comes off the bill if Erdi does the repair.

What you get before anything is committed to: a written quote, the option to walk away, and an honest opinion on whether the repair is worth doing at all against what the vehicle is worth. Sometimes the right answer is that it isn't — and you will be told.

Engine work

Head gaskets. The classic symptoms — mayonnaise under the oil cap, coolant disappearing with no visible leak, white smoke that doesn't clear, bubbling in the expansion tank, an engine that overheats in traffic. Confirmed with a combustion-gas test rather than guessed at, because a head gasket quote given without one is a gamble with your money. Heads are checked for flatness and skimmed where needed.
Timing chains, guides and tensioners. A chain that rattles for the first few seconds on a cold start is stretched, and the guides are usually worn through. Ignoring it ends the same way a snapped cambelt does. From £650 depending on engine.
Turbochargers. Whistling, blue smoke, loss of boost and limp mode. The turbo itself is often the symptom rather than the cause — a blocked oil feed, a collapsed intercooler hose or a sticking variable-vane mechanism — and fitting a new turbo without finding out why the old one died just kills the new one.
Oil leaks, properly traced. Rocker cover, crank seals, sump gasket, oil cooler, filter housing. Cleaned, dyed and re-checked so the leak that is actually dripping gets fixed rather than every gasket getting replaced in hope.
Cooling systems. Water pumps, thermostats, radiators, hoses, header tanks and the electric fans that quietly stop working until the first hot day.
Diesel specifics. Injectors, glow plugs, EGR valves, DPF regeneration problems and the swirl-flap and inlet-carbon issues that come with short-journey diesels.
Engine rebuilds and replacements. Where it is worth doing, and said plainly where it is not.

Gearbox work

Removal and refit from £380 labour — the job that sits behind almost every clutch, rear main seal and flywheel repair.
Manual gearbox rebuilds. Worn synchros that crunch into second, whining bearings, jumping out of gear, and selector and linkage problems that feel like a gearbox fault but are not.
Reconditioned and used units sourced and fitted where a rebuild is not the economical answer, with the difference in cost and warranty explained before you choose.
Clutch and dual-mass flywheel work — covered in detail on the clutch replacement page.
Driveshafts, CV joints and gaiters, including the clicking on full lock that means a joint is on its way out.

How a big job is priced

Heavy mechanical work is the area where people most often feel taken advantage of, usually because the price moved after the vehicle was already in pieces. The process here is deliberately the other way round:

Inspection and diagnosis first — £45, refunded against the repair.
A written quote with parts and labour separated, and the realistic range if something can only be confirmed once it is stripped.
A stop-and-ring rule. If Erdi finds something he did not quote for, work stops and you get a phone call. Nothing extra happens without you agreeing to it.
An honest view on whether it's worth it. If the repair costs more than the vehicle is worth, you will hear that before you spend anything — not after.

Diagnostics & repairs
Job	What that covers	Guide price
Diagnostic investigation	Refunded against the repair	£45from
Timing chain replacement	Chain, guides and tensioner	£650from
Gearbox removal & refit	Labour — parts quoted separately	£380from
Engine rebuild	Quoted individually after inspection	Quoted

Straight answers

Repair questions

Do you collect and deliver the car?

Yes. If the vehicle runs and drives, collection and delivery is free within 5 miles of the workshop — Erdi picks it up from your home or workplace, does the work, and brings it back. Further out, and still running and driving, call or text your postcode and he will price the trip before you commit to anything. If it will not drive at all it needs recovering rather than collecting, and he will say so and point you at someone local.

How do I know I am not being overcharged?

Three things. You get a written quote before any work begins, and the price does not change unless something new is found and you agree to it first. Old parts are kept for you to see. And diagnostic time is charged at £45 and refunded against the repair, so you are never paying twice to find the same fault.

Are you cheaper than a main dealer?

Considerably. The labour rate here is £60 an hour against £120–£180 at a franchised dealer, and the same manufacturer-spec parts are used. On a cambelt or a clutch that difference is usually several hundred pounds.

How quickly can you look at my car?

Most vehicles can be booked in within a few days, and urgent problems — a van off the road, a car that will not start, a warning light before a long trip — are usually looked at the same week. Call or WhatsApp 07846 050457 and Erdi will tell you honestly when he can fit you in.