Our current standard workshop hourly rate is £60.00 +VAT
Citroens, since 1934 are not like other old cars.
They are complex pieces of precision machinery which we are privileged to have the temporary care of before we pass them on to their next custodian.
They require care that cannot be provided by general garages, or indeed even by general classic car garages.
That’s where Citroen Classics comes in.
We have the right knowledge, experience, tools, parts and most importantly, attitude to care for your car in the manner it deserves.
From basic 6 monthly / 3000mile (whichever comes first) servicing to more complex maintenance tasks such as a Major Service, adjusting the valve clearances or suspension ball joint adjustment, you can be assured that Citroen Classics will do the job right first time.
A well maintained car is a reliable car and reliable cars get used with confidence. After all, what use is a car that doesn’t get used for fear it might break down?
Click on the model headings above for information specific to the more common models we care for.
We use and recommend Penrite lubricants and hydraulic fluid and use OE quality parts where we can. We are constantly searching out the best quality parts we can find as we are often disappointed by some of the cheap, readily available reproduction parts. I'm sure you would agree that it is better to pay, for example, 50% more and get a higher quality part that lasts 400% longer. However, sometimes the poorer quality part is the only one available and we have no choice but to use it.
Since March 2012 we have been using exclusively non toxic Propylene Glycol coolant for all applications in our workshop. This is a high quality and efficient pre-mixed coolant which, with the right care, can last in excess of 10 years in your engine. The bonus is that unlike conventional Ethylene Glycol coolants, it won't kill your pets or harm your children if accidentally ingested.
Booking your car in for work in our workshop:
Due to the nature and volume of the work we do in our workshop, we have had to adopt a slightly unorthodox booking in arrangement.
Old cars, not just old Citroens, can be unpredictable with regards the actual work required and even the length of time a specific job will take. For example a DS23 exhaust manifold may come off for changing the starter motor and go back on without problems, the whole job taking about 3 hours. However, on the same job, some of the nuts may be too badly rusted for a socket or spanner to grip them, rusty studs may break and have to be drilled out and replaced. If one or more of the rear manifold studs on the cylinder head breaks, the cylinder head has to come off to gain access to repair it, which is a worst case scenario, but you can see how the same job can take anywhere from 3 hours to 2 days or more!
This is just one example, but how can you book cars in efficiently under these circumstances? It's not so bad when you do not have a full diary, but demand for our services has now increased to the point that we are usually booked up many months in advance and there are no gaps between jobs to overun into. Things had to change, so now we only book a maximum of 3 months in advance and assess where we are at the end of each month before opening up the next months bookings. For example, if we are fully booked for January, February and March we do not take bookings for April until the beginning of February, after we have assessed whether we are OK for timings or a bit behind which may result in March jobs over-running into April etc. The only exceptions to this are customers who wish to book their service or MOT etc for the following year 12 months in advance. We have an increasing number of customers choosing to do this now.
Although this may seem a little inconvenient, it actually benefits you, the customer. It means that we can offer you a better level of service by being able to give your car the attention it needs and you require, rather than the attention we have time for before the next job arrives. It also means that we'll be ready for your car when you drop it off, rather than it sitting here for a week or more whilst we finish the preceding jobs before we are able to start on it. We'll also be able to be more flexible should you need emergency repairs, for example. You can help make the system run smoothly by telling us all the jobs you want done when you book your car in, rather than booking for a few small jobs and then turning up with a big list of things to be done. We allocate workshop time based on what you have booked for and of course over-runs are inevitable, but when someone arrives with half a day allocated to their job and they have a list of jobs that will take 2 days to complete, they are likely to be told in no uncertain terms where to go. If we do have time for extra jobs, we will of course fit them in, but if we don't, we simply won't be able to do them. Your comments on this system, good or bad, are welcome on info@citroenclassics.co.uk
