Thanks for watching guys! This was a very stressful week but we're very lucky to have found these lovely guys who were the most helpful ever! We're very grateful for the low cost as well, anyone else had a clutch replacement and care to share the cost?
Oh wow really?? We couldn't remember how much labour was in the UK but Im sure that bill alone would have been over a thousand. We feel very cheeky actually that we got it so cheap!
Great video showing a breakdown of costs and how the situation rolled out. Before you revealed the cost I estimated about £2000 for all that so you got a good deal. Brake’s, timing belt was a good call. I think you found a great garage there. I’ve seen the next video where your clutch cylinder went which in hindsight would have been the icing on the cake to change at the same time as the gearbox was out being as the cylinder is relatively cheap and straightforward to change. But you cannot change everything and have to draw the line somewhere. Anyway good luck for the future.
Thanks Bodgit 45. Isnt hindsight a wonderful thing... Had we known or thought about slave cylinder possibly wearing out we likely would have got it done in Greece and saved the aggro but all in all we had a good experience and met some lovely people which made up for it!
Us too! It was such a good feeling to get back on the road with no horrible noises. Naturally we are always listening out for abnormal sounds but she is purring like a champ atm!
Fixed next day, you got a hotel for the night, and about half the price of what it would be to get it fixed in the UK - bar the situation actually sucking that you have to do it, it was about as good as one could hope. At least you're back on the road 😀
Totally!! It was such an experience. And bound to happen along the way. Obviously breaking down isn't fun and we were exhausted at the hotel but they were so kind and helpful that overall it was a great day. Plus the cost made it more palatable!
We would love to know how to service our van and be more mechanically knowledgeable but we've just never invested the time! Definitely worthwhile though!
No matter where you live things can break, house life, boat life or Vanlife! All things considered the bill wasn't bad! And the fact they saw you in the day would be worth a premium in itself! Glad you're back on your travels :)
So true J P! It's to be expected when you drive your home around the world and we were so impressed with their speed and how well they took care of us! Forever grateful to them!
Thanks Susan. We felt quite relaxed during the whole situation and just have to roll with the punches when these things happen! Spoiler alert for a couple of videos time...we're now in Turkey and things haven't quite gone to plan!
Haha yes unfortunately a bit of a mission just for servicing 🤣 even with 24% taxes it was such a good price. And probably would have been even cheaper at a non dealer garage!
It really was a steal Sylvia! And that included coffee, juice and pastries at breakfast too. All you need is a clean and comfy place to rest your head at the end of the day and the fact it was centra in the cityl and had unlimited hot water felt like luxuries to us!
We were so thankful when we were driving through a random town thinking to ourselves "does she sound a bit worse today?" And then saw a fiat garage, then BMW, then Peugeot... Thinking to ourselves there must be a Mercedes nearby then and thankfully only 10 mins away!
Wow guys!! I think you got a pretty good deal there especially being a main dealer 😊 I paid £440 alone for my timing belt and brakes on my T5 here in the uk , the dmf (clutch) you had replaced is about £500 on its own. I think whatever was in the mechanics lucky bag must have helped!lol Glad you got it sorted 👍🏼👍🏼
Wow, so we really did get a bargain. Someone else in the comments said a dual mass flywheel would have been £700-800 plus labour on it all would have been stonking. Not to mention how much longer it would have taken to fix and the extra nights in hotels if they had it in for ages. Safe to say we've given them gifts and amazing google reviews!
Hey guys. Great video again. Looks like you are having a great time. Gutted you had issues with your van. it’s never always plan sailing. Keep enjoying ~x~
Its always a worry when major mechanical faults happen especially in another country. However that fly wheel alone(Dual mass flywheel)in the uk you're talking about £7/800 just for that one part, so in the grand scheme of things that was good deal for the work carried out! Happy motoring
Oh wow, good to know the price in the UK for comparison! I definitely think we would have been forking out double the cost back home so actually the stress of it happening in another country and worrying about language barriers etc was all worth it! Thankful they spoke English as google translate doesn't always work very well in mechanical terminology!
Vehicle breakdowns are the worst, plus there’s the language barrier! OMG… looked stressful! Cars & vans inevitably need maintenance or breakdown as they age, are you picking up new mechanics skills in case of emergency breakdowns on your travels (punctures, battery, broken wires, loose bolts, oil etc.)
Yes! The language barrier is definitely one of the hardest parts. Luckily these kind people spoke good English which we were so grateful for but normally google translate is our saviour. It doesn't always do so well with technical terminology though... We are learning bits and bats as we go. Understand more about the engine every time it breaks 😅
Hari Om As others have mentioned, and you said yourselves, this was actually a really good deal overall - although obviously wouldn't it be great to have vans (and bodies) that never required maintenance?! So glad DD had such fine attention and that you can view the experience as a positive out of the negative. Better done than not, for the consequences of ignoring it could have been a good bit more traumatic. Glad you are all safe. YAM xx
Thanks Yam! You're so right. It likely would have been double the cost in tbe UK and we were expecting them to quote like €2-3k for all the work which made it a happy surprise the next day. We are safe and back on the road and actually have really good memories of the whole thing because the people were so so so helpful and caring. They really put themselves out to help us and we couldn't ask for more than that!
Yes you're right. We thought we had our timing chain changed but it got lost in translation between the Greek mechanics and our minimal engine knowledge. We asked them to check the timing belt/chain and they actually changed the serpentine belt. So that was all just a misunderstanding!
If you are country hopping do your garage repair options before you get there, as you might not have time to do it in middle of nowhere and no phone signal. Record all possible dealers Merc repair options before you get to new country makes sense
Yeah that makes sense but we're fortunate to have data packages for every country we're going to and so far every country we've been to has had amazing signal. Certainly much better than the UK countryside! Hope you're well
Hi, tortoises out of their shells? How many miles has your van covered on the clock? Looks like a dual-mass flywheel and a timing belt, chin up and let's hope the cost is not too outladish .
The van has now just passed 175k miles and we're hopeful she will continue to keep rolling on! We've had a few issues and a few things replaced since then but she is over 10 years old now so it is to be expected!
Cheaper than the UK all day long ! Fancy not having the cam belt changed ! Shame on you both (sorry) Brakes and clutch are unavoidable, just wear and tear. I honestly believe you have had a result. Glad its all done and you're happy again. 👍🏻😉
Absolutely, we were so happy with the cost and have peace of mind now for the rest of this trip. Didn't even think about doing the cam belt at the same time but you're right we definitely could have asked for that too. Although we already felt a bit cheeky just rocking up and asking for help and then adding on the brakes and timing belt too when they were prioritizing us so think it was a decent outcome. Fingers crossed for no more near breakdowns!
We both work online 3 days a week so as this was a Monday we had a full day of work ahead. Meeks is a freelance SEO consultant and I'm an Operations and Marketing Manager for a financial adviser firm 👌
We have thought about it Andrew and tbh we would just have to find somewhere to isolate that had water and access to the facilities we need. Maybe a campsite where we could stay out of the way of everyone and keep ourselves to ourselves. Only use the facilities at night when they are empty of other people and vigilantly clean afterwards. It's relatively easy to isolate yourself when you live in a van.
So pleased ya’s got that sorted so quick! Can i ask, Im assuming youse didnt get breakdown insurance? Only ask as we’re headin away to Spain soon and are tryibv to find some insurance that covers us for EU for whole year and not jst limited days. Did youse just opt against insurance and just go with a savings pot?
Thanks! We were very fortunate to get it sorted so quickly! We do have breakdown but as we hadn't broken down just yet we decided to just take it to the garage and avoid the excess cost of a call out. We're covered by the AA which is one continuous trip in the eu for 364 days. They also have some legal cover on there too. Our van insurance is with sterling insurance if that helps too 🧡
@@courtsandmeeks ah awesome, that makes sense! If theres any insurance ya recommend for the length of travelling you are doing, let us know! My heads turned looking into all the ‘fine print’ of all our quotes! Headmelting!
Thanks for letting us know - at the time we didn't understand the translation properly but in hindsight looking at the invoice in more detail we realise she's now had a new alternator belt and runners. The timing chain should last the life of the van.
I think you got ripped off with the cambelt as the engine in your van does not have one all mercedes have timing chains and they are good for 300,000 miles and they are a double cog chain and never snap.
Timing belt is very very important !!! In an authorized Merzedes Service is a little bit expensiver, but 100% guaranteed ! In Konstantinoupolis ( I was 2 times 2005+2010) only 10-20% max of the young people (just) comunicate in basic english . And they NEGOTIATE ENDLESS FOREVER !!!! Example: 1st offer for handmade (?) disc 150,- euro, 2nd 100,-euro ==> finally paid : 27,- euro And if something goes wrong, TURK is not Europe ==> european law is in TURK acceptable ? Who wants that trouble ? (Athens,GRE)
Sally Sausage isn't travelling with us anymore... We haven't made a video about it as it's quite hard to talk about but she wasn't enjoying vanlife and the constant moving around. She was very nervous and it wasn't helping her anxieties so we found her a fantastic family to live with back in the UK where she is having the BEST time. We get pics and updates all the time from them which is lovely.
Thanks for watching guys! This was a very stressful week but we're very lucky to have found these lovely guys who were the most helpful ever!
We're very grateful for the low cost as well, anyone else had a clutch replacement and care to share the cost?
Not my camper, but a VW Tiguan, dual mass flywheel and clutch, non VW garage £1,100!
Steve says; that your total labour cost would have been an hourly rate here! So pleased you were able to get it sorted.
L xx
That's exactly what I was thinking.
Oh wow really?? We couldn't remember how much labour was in the UK but Im sure that bill alone would have been over a thousand. We feel very cheeky actually that we got it so cheap!
You did really well to film so capably during what was obviously a stressful situation. Great video 👍💙❤️
Ah thanks guys! We tried to include everything so glad it came across that way!
Great video showing a breakdown of costs and how the situation rolled out.
Before you revealed the cost I estimated about £2000 for all that so you got a good deal. Brake’s, timing belt was a good call. I think you found a great garage there. I’ve seen the next video where your clutch cylinder went which in hindsight would have been the icing on the cake to change at the same time as the gearbox was out being as the cylinder is relatively cheap and straightforward to change. But you cannot change everything and have to draw the line somewhere.
Anyway good luck for the future.
Thanks Bodgit 45. Isnt hindsight a wonderful thing... Had we known or thought about slave cylinder possibly wearing out we likely would have got it done in Greece and saved the aggro but all in all we had a good experience and met some lovely people which made up for it!
Awe so glad you got your baby fixed and a lot cheaper than here ,love you two 😁
Us too! It was such a good feeling to get back on the road with no horrible noises. Naturally we are always listening out for abnormal sounds but she is purring like a champ atm!
Fixed next day, you got a hotel for the night, and about half the price of what it would be to get it fixed in the UK - bar the situation actually sucking that you have to do it, it was about as good as one could hope. At least you're back on the road 😀
Totally!! It was such an experience. And bound to happen along the way. Obviously breaking down isn't fun and we were exhausted at the hotel but they were so kind and helpful that overall it was a great day. Plus the cost made it more palatable!
Sorry about this guys. These things do happen unfortunately. But onwards and upwards 🙌👍❤
Indeed they do! It's all part of the adventure!
So happy I can do most of my mechanics now. Learning by doing. Saved me 1000s of euro's probably
We would love to know how to service our van and be more mechanically knowledgeable but we've just never invested the time! Definitely worthwhile though!
@@courtsandmeeks and fun to get to know your house in that way :)
No matter where you live things can break, house life, boat life or Vanlife! All things considered the bill wasn't bad! And the fact they saw you in the day would be worth a premium in itself! Glad you're back on your travels :)
So true J P! It's to be expected when you drive your home around the world and we were so impressed with their speed and how well they took care of us! Forever grateful to them!
Well filmed and documented - this was fascinating viewing - so glad you sorted it out and hopefully on your way to Turkey by now.
Thanks Susan. We felt quite relaxed during the whole situation and just have to roll with the punches when these things happen! Spoiler alert for a couple of videos time...we're now in Turkey and things haven't quite gone to plan!
Can’t believe that price, great for what you have done and genuine parts as well. Shame Greece is bit to far for me to get work done!
Haha yes unfortunately a bit of a mission just for servicing 🤣 even with 24% taxes it was such a good price. And probably would have been even cheaper at a non dealer garage!
Those repairs were a steal. I'm planning to break down in Greece 🇬🇷😂
Or maybe Turkey might even be cheaper, but let's not plan on spending out more money just so we can check out the labour costs 😂
Great work. I know it cost a lot but that’s van life! I thought your hotel was excellent for 38 euros! Thanks for sharing your adventure.
It really was a steal Sylvia! And that included coffee, juice and pastries at breakfast too. All you need is a clean and comfy place to rest your head at the end of the day and the fact it was centra in the cityl and had unlimited hot water felt like luxuries to us!
Good for you. You both handled the situation well.
Thanks David! We tried to just smile and roll with it. Just have to trust the professionals in these situations and hope for the best.
All's well that end's well.👍
Well yes...until you breakdown again 2 weeks later 🤣
@@courtsandmeeks Oh no, I haven't seen that yet.
@@trevorpat-lifeontherun check out Instagram!
@@courtsandmeeks Sorry, not on instagram anymore. I will see on your next vid.
What a stressful situation. So pleased you found that garage and they sorted it out so quickly. Safe travels guys 🤗
We were so thankful when we were driving through a random town thinking to ourselves "does she sound a bit worse today?" And then saw a fiat garage, then BMW, then Peugeot... Thinking to ourselves there must be a Mercedes nearby then and thankfully only 10 mins away!
We loved your vlog guys. Really informative. We are now planning to breakdown in Greece.. lol
Great job guys we are so happy for you both xxxxx
Thank you!! Glad you enjoyed watching our misfortunes 🤣 hopefully sharing the process will help someone else feel more relaxed in that situation.
Ah, that's great ye got the van sorted. Onwards and upwards 🙌
Thanks so much Denise! We're very happy to be back in her and on our travels! Hope you're doing well 🧡
Wow guys!! I think you got a pretty good deal there especially being a main dealer 😊 I paid £440 alone for my timing belt and brakes on my T5 here in the uk , the dmf (clutch) you had replaced is about £500 on its own.
I think whatever was in the mechanics lucky bag must have helped!lol
Glad you got it sorted 👍🏼👍🏼
Wow, so we really did get a bargain. Someone else in the comments said a dual mass flywheel would have been £700-800 plus labour on it all would have been stonking. Not to mention how much longer it would have taken to fix and the extra nights in hotels if they had it in for ages. Safe to say we've given them gifts and amazing google reviews!
Hey guys.
Great video again.
Looks like you are having a great time. Gutted you had issues with your van. it’s never always plan sailing.
Keep enjoying ~x~
Thanks Liz. We tried to keep smiling and stay positive throughout so glad that came across 👍 its all part of the adventure!
Its always a worry when major mechanical faults happen especially in another country.
However that fly wheel alone(Dual mass flywheel)in the uk you're talking about £7/800 just for that one part, so in the grand scheme of things that was good deal for the work carried out! Happy motoring
Oh wow, good to know the price in the UK for comparison! I definitely think we would have been forking out double the cost back home so actually the stress of it happening in another country and worrying about language barriers etc was all worth it! Thankful they spoke English as google translate doesn't always work very well in mechanical terminology!
Dual mass flywheel for Merc is around £420
Vehicle breakdowns are the worst, plus there’s the language barrier! OMG… looked stressful!
Cars & vans inevitably need maintenance or breakdown as they age, are you picking up new mechanics skills in case of emergency breakdowns on your travels (punctures, battery, broken wires, loose bolts, oil etc.)
Yes! The language barrier is definitely one of the hardest parts. Luckily these kind people spoke good English which we were so grateful for but normally google translate is our saviour. It doesn't always do so well with technical terminology though... We are learning bits and bats as we go. Understand more about the engine every time it breaks 😅
Hari Om
As others have mentioned, and you said yourselves, this was actually a really good deal overall - although obviously wouldn't it be great to have vans (and bodies) that never required maintenance?! So glad DD had such fine attention and that you can view the experience as a positive out of the negative. Better done than not, for the consequences of ignoring it could have been a good bit more traumatic. Glad you are all safe. YAM xx
Thanks Yam! You're so right. It likely would have been double the cost in tbe UK and we were expecting them to quote like €2-3k for all the work which made it a happy surprise the next day. We are safe and back on the road and actually have really good memories of the whole thing because the people were so so so helpful and caring. They really put themselves out to help us and we couldn't ask for more than that!
The Mercedes engine does not have timing belt it has a chain drive and is not normally changed or troublesome even over very high mileage.
Yes you're right. We thought we had our timing chain changed but it got lost in translation between the Greek mechanics and our minimal engine knowledge. We asked them to check the timing belt/chain and they actually changed the serpentine belt. So that was all just a misunderstanding!
If you are country hopping do your garage repair options before you get there, as you might not have time to do it in middle of nowhere and no phone signal. Record all possible dealers Merc repair options before you get to new country makes sense
Yeah that makes sense but we're fortunate to have data packages for every country we're going to and so far every country we've been to has had amazing signal. Certainly much better than the UK countryside! Hope you're well
Hi, tortoises out of their shells? How many miles has your van covered on the clock? Looks like a dual-mass flywheel and a timing belt, chin up and let's hope the cost is not too outladish .
The van has now just passed 175k miles and we're hopeful she will continue to keep rolling on! We've had a few issues and a few things replaced since then but she is over 10 years old now so it is to be expected!
Cheaper than the UK all day long ! Fancy not having the cam belt changed ! Shame on you both (sorry)
Brakes and clutch are unavoidable, just wear and tear.
I honestly believe you have had a result.
Glad its all done and you're happy again. 👍🏻😉
Absolutely, we were so happy with the cost and have peace of mind now for the rest of this trip. Didn't even think about doing the cam belt at the same time but you're right we definitely could have asked for that too. Although we already felt a bit cheeky just rocking up and asking for help and then adding on the brakes and timing belt too when they were prioritizing us so think it was a decent outcome. Fingers crossed for no more near breakdowns!
No timing belt on these engines the camshaft is driven by a chain and not normally a problem.
In the UK you could have easily paid double. Happy days 😎
Very happy days! All in all, a positive experience and we met some lovely locals in the process 👍🥰
If I may ask, what are your jobs that you needed to do while you waited?
We both work online 3 days a week so as this was a Monday we had a full day of work ahead. Meeks is a freelance SEO consultant and I'm an Operations and Marketing Manager for a financial adviser firm 👌
Do incidents like this make you think, for example how would you cope if you both caught Covid and had to isolate?
We have thought about it Andrew and tbh we would just have to find somewhere to isolate that had water and access to the facilities we need. Maybe a campsite where we could stay out of the way of everyone and keep ourselves to ourselves. Only use the facilities at night when they are empty of other people and vigilantly clean afterwards. It's relatively easy to isolate yourself when you live in a van.
So pleased ya’s got that sorted so quick! Can i ask, Im assuming youse didnt get breakdown insurance? Only ask as we’re headin away to Spain soon and are tryibv to find some insurance that covers us for EU for whole year and not jst limited days. Did youse just opt against insurance and just go with a savings pot?
Thanks! We were very fortunate to get it sorted so quickly! We do have breakdown but as we hadn't broken down just yet we decided to just take it to the garage and avoid the excess cost of a call out.
We're covered by the AA which is one continuous trip in the eu for 364 days. They also have some legal cover on there too. Our van insurance is with sterling insurance if that helps too 🧡
@@courtsandmeeks ah awesome, that makes sense! If theres any insurance ya recommend for the length of travelling you are doing, let us know! My heads turned looking into all the ‘fine print’ of all our quotes! Headmelting!
Wow just goes to show you the price difference in other countries we get mug off in the UK
Yeah we do! It's a joke really isn't it!
Hi Guys Just watched your video have to say you do not have a timing belt its a chain.
Thanks for letting us know - at the time we didn't understand the translation properly but in hindsight looking at the invoice in more detail we realise she's now had a new alternator belt and runners. The timing chain should last the life of the van.
Sprinters don’t run timing belt they run timing chain
Yep you're right, just used that terminology because its what they called it and what it translated as on the invoice.
@@courtsandmeeks I did think that! Love the videos though! Keep them coming, love them
Believe me , that is very , very cheap . That would have been at least £90 an hour labour to start with . You lucky people . Take care .
Thanks Ken! We sure are feeling very fortunate for it! We'll take care, she's feeling much smoother now, like driving on silk
I think you got ripped off with the cambelt as the engine in your van does not have one all mercedes have timing chains and they are good for 300,000 miles and they are a double cog chain and never snap.
No rip off just turns out the Google translate didn't work properly and they changed the alternator belt as it was worn, not the timing belt/chain 👍
Timing belt is very very important !!! In an authorized Merzedes Service is a little bit expensiver, but 100% guaranteed !
In Konstantinoupolis ( I was 2 times 2005+2010) only 10-20% max of the young people (just) comunicate in basic english .
And they NEGOTIATE ENDLESS FOREVER !!!! Example: 1st offer for handmade (?) disc 150,- euro, 2nd 100,-euro ==> finally paid : 27,- euro
And if something goes wrong, TURK is not Europe ==> european law is in TURK acceptable ? Who wants that trouble ? (Athens,GRE)
Yes you're right! I think we've now found out that we had the serpentine belt replaced, not the timing belt. It all got lost in translation!
For the amount & type of work that seems pretty cheap. Labour intensive jobs!
Yeah we were very happy with the cost here! We expected 2k plus! Thanks for the comment, how you're well!
Where is your little sausage dog gone ??? 🤔
Sally Sausage isn't travelling with us anymore... We haven't made a video about it as it's quite hard to talk about but she wasn't enjoying vanlife and the constant moving around. She was very nervous and it wasn't helping her anxieties so we found her a fantastic family to live with back in the UK where she is having the BEST time. We get pics and updates all the time from them which is lovely.
Not a good advert for Mercedes Sprinter vans and there one of most expensive 😔
Thanks for the comment. We thought the cost wasn't that bad compared to some quotes we've seen in the UK for similar work. Hope you're well
Depends greatly on the mileage of the vehicle and how often they are serviced. Far better than most vans, particularly the VW.