Expensive garage charges for hardwiring dashcam

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Hansie

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Hi everyone, some opinions please.

My local garage took 4 hours to hardwire my Nextbase 222x to my Vauxhall Zafira. I was expecting it to be a 20 minute job based on Halfords charge of £35 for 20 mins of fitting time and Nextbase claims of a competent DIYer being able to do it themselves. So I've had words with my garage but their final invoice remains at £150 inc VAT. They say they do this process on all cars and it is only what is required in order to do it properly. Any thoughts?
 
Weird. The Nextbase hardwire cable is just a basic 2-wire cable with power and ground. Nothing fancy or special about it. It shouldn't be that complicated. If anything, it's simpler than wiring up a dashcam that uses a 3-wire ignition triggered parking mode cable.
 
Hansie said:
Hi everyone, some opinions please.

My local garage took 4 hours to hardwire my Nextbase 222x to my Vauxhall Zafira. I was expecting it to be a 20 minute job based on Halfords charge of £35 for 20 mins of fitting time and Nextbase claims of a competent DIYer being able to do it themselves. So I've had words with my garage but their final invoice remains at £150 inc VAT. They say they do this process on all cars and it is only what is required in order to do it properly. Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
sorry to say, they saw you coming. They indeed rip you off and I hate that for you.
 
Yep.
Also why i dont get those "rate us" portals, why should i rate if i have gotten a normal service which any sane person would expect to get.
And i am pretty sure if you go to one of those sites, you also find more negative than positive, even for actual good shops that like anyone screw up once in a while.
And. All of those rating sites require you to make a account there to rate anything, so thats double work for a already PO person.

I ordered a belt 2 weeks ago as the leather one i had, well putting on my pants the buckle itself snapped, so i ordered a new leather one in X brand, but the belt i did get was Y brand, and i am not sure it is genuine leather.
And the subsequent rate us e mails, did not do anything positive to my feelings.
 
Only lighters around here,,,,,, story of my life :) but at least my pants are not drooping like some snot faced gangster kid
 
Hi everyone, just an update. I spent a lot of time checking out the reputation of my garage last night and its 100% positive. A family run business that's been around for decades. They have more reviews than anyone else in town. The garage guy told me he had been bothered by our conversation and my accusations and had spent last night doing his own research. He found that nobody claims to have done it themselves on a Vauxhall Zafira. And he told me that the fuse box is situated in a different place to most other cars and it was v time consuming to thread the wires through the under bonnet into the car. He also found other mechanics on the Vauxhall site saying that it was a much more complicated job on the Zafira than anyone realised, and I discovered that Halfords had lots of bad reviews for not doing the proper and long lasting hard wire they were claiming to do and they were only offering such a cheap job because they were choosing the type of cars they were prepared to fit it to. Anyway he assured me that the cam had been fitted properly and to a high standard and I decided to accept his explanations as he took a lot of time to thrash this out with me, instead of telling me to sod off. I don't want to have to find another garage. If I have any problems with it I can go straight back. This would never have become the problem it did if I had asked for the cost at the outset. Anyway thanks for all input.
 
I just installed a Viofo pro duo (hardwired for park mode with front and rear cameras) in my 2014 Camry Hybrid. and I am embarrassed it took me a long time,, a whole day. I have been working on stuff my whole life, but my health is terrible now with very bad issues. Plus it was 30 degrees f out, and in my garage, I put an electric heater in there to help. I really stopped doing hard mechanical work years ago. But, I know electronics and have some basic tools. I tried to avoid as much of the air bag stuff as I could with cable, but some you have to work around in the pillars. If a shop can do the work as a professional job, with a warranty that if they screw up they fix it. And if they can do it for (insert your currency) and it is a days wages for them doing two cameras, then I would say it is probably worth it. If only one camera and hard wired that half a days wages. I would insist they solder and not crimp wires together (unless they have a damned good excuse not to). If you have the time and can do it , then do it. But, it is a real PIA. PLus, if a shop does these all the time, and and has a good record and forums friends or yelp says they are good, then consider them. If you don't know them, do some research as electronics screwed up can ruin a car. It comes down to, can you do it and be confident? It is either a yes or no. IMHO
 
In the UK, for dual-camera setups (hardwired) where there is a combined data cable from the front to the rear camera, and the system is set up for full parking mode as well as normal driving, where everything is tested to the user's satisfaction, the price is approximately £150 inc vat. That is from many installers for Blackvue and Thinkware products when the installer comes to your premises. I always get mates rates and it costs me considerably less.
Yes we all know it can be done for nothing, it just takes your time and knowledge, but many people would rather pay someone else to do it.
 
Welcome to DCT @retiredat44 :)
Some cars are easy and some are not. The main thing is that the wiring connections are solid and the airbags not impaired by wiring in front of them. Glad you took the time to do yours correctly (y)

Automotive techs of all flavors from mechanic to audio installer are usually well-networked in their trade and both know and share processes where time is saved or the work is done more easily. Plus they have experience to go by from similar cars, and usually a wider array of tools to use to speed up the process. Their cost is always going to be based on a rate comparable to what it would take you to do it were you paid their wages; in other words their profit comes mostly from time saved in the process due to their superior knowledge however it's acquired :cool: You will always be able to do the job more cheaply as long as you don't count your time involved.

Some folks have good DIY skills and some folks have none. Doing a dashcam install properly is simple, but simple doesn't always equal easy, and that 'ease' is where pro installer cost is at. If someone has good basic DIY skills we can walk them through the process from here , but those not sure of their abilities should always seek out a pro, and if the costs seem excessive they should shop around. Beware shops whose prices are extremely low compared to others- this job can be done incorrectly and quickly and you won't know the difference till the consequences are intolerably high :cautious:

Expect to pay professional prices for professional work because you don't get what you don't pay for, but if the price seems far too high or they won't quote a solid price, you need to check with other shops. If you don't feel comfortable working with a shop or a Tech by all means go elsewhere.

Phil
 
Peter_R said:
In the UK, for dual-camera setups (hardwired) where there is a combined data cable from the front to the rear camera, and the system is set up for full parking mode as well as normal driving, where everything is tested to the user's satisfaction, the price is approximately £150 inc vat. That is from many installers for Blackvue and Thinkware products when the installer comes to your premises. I always get mates rates and it costs me considerably less.
Yes we all know it can be done for nothing, it just takes your time and knowledge, but many people would rather pay someone else to do it.
Click to expand...
That's very good to hear, thanks. I am an incompetent with electrics and cars and was never going to have the confidence to do it myself.
 
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