We’re delighted to announce that we have been short-listed as one of the nine finalists in the Colchester Business Awards for Excellent Customer Service.

Speaking about the news, Marc Linch, managing director, said: “Without our loyal customers we wouldn’t have a business and we really appreciate it that many have been using the garage for years, some for decades.  We always do our very best when servicing or repairing their vehicles, but never take their custom for granted and are constantly looking at ways of giving something back and improving the whole customer experience.  To win in this category would be brilliant, but to get this far means a lot to the whole team.”

We know our customers are spoiled for choice when it comes to garages in the area; some have lower price structures than ours too, however our company ethos is based on trust, excellence and putting our customers at the heart of every development within the company.

The vast majority of our customers use us because we provide a highly professional service, at less than dealership prices – important at any time, but more especially in these straitened times.  We are able to control our costs by keeping our overheads deliberately low; we pride ourselves on providing  “skills not frills”, something we know our customers appreciate, as many have been using us for decades.  Although “we don’t do the frills” we do, of course, have a free local pick-up and delivery service and a pool of courtesy cars.

Last year we received the “Buy with Confidence” accreditation from Essex County Council Trading Standards and are one of only four garages in the Colchester area to receive the award.  We also run schemes which give our customers added value too.  For example, all returning customers receive a 5% discount on their next service and, with our loyalty scheme “Rewarding Service” they – or someone they nominate – can have a free air conditioning service.

Our referral scheme “Pass it on” gives a new customer 10% off their first service or repair with us, and the customer who recommended them receives a further 20% off their next service or repair.  Importantly the 20% discount CAN be used in conjunction with any of our promotional offers.

For customers who want to get as much performance out of their vehicle, without increasing their fuel costs, we’ve introduced a tuning service.  And, finally, we run free Pit Stop Workshops throughout the year to help motorists gain skills in basic car maintenance.

We’re looking forward to the new year when we’ve got even more planned!

Paul Miller, manager at John Austin, has done it again!

On a blustery February morning, we abandoned our Saturday morning lie-ins to attend his Pit Stop Workshop.

The Pit Stop Workshop is designed to reduce the fear of basic  maintenance through familiarity.  It gives people the confidence to know that if they are stranded with a flat tyre and the phone’s dead or there’s no signal, they can handle the situation.  As this is not covered in driving lessons, it’s a good opportunity for those learning to drive to come along and give themselves a head start.  On this occasion most of us were seasoned drivers, but we all found we had something to learn!

With the complexity of cars these days, fiddling about under the hood, unless you really know what you’re doing, is to be discouraged.  This has, inevitably, led to many of us becoming complacent about dealing with the most simple of car care basics, relying instead on the annual service.   But often it’s those simple things that we can all do something about but don’t, that can help us avoid expensive repair bills later on.

Our reliance on breakdown services means we could sit on the side of the road for hours with a flat tyre too waiting for help which, if it was a lovely sunny day might not be so bad.  But if it was like a day like today, you’d want to be able to do something about it, and we all felt after two hours’ ‘training’ we could.

Not only did we all gain knowledge and insight, but we were able to relax and chat about our experiences afterwards over coffee and cake at The Food Company next door.

The team at John Austin have three more Pit Stop Workshops lined up this year:  Saturday 12^thMay, Saturday 11^th August and Saturday 17^th November.  If you’d like to come along or have a question, call Paul on 01206 211483 or email .

As of 1^st January 2012, the MOT test has been changed to comply with the revised European testing directive.  The new test will reflect the growing electronical complexity of modern cars.

You can see all of the new test criteria below – it’s a pretty substantial list!

Instead of getting a ‘fail’ straight away with these new criteria, you will get an ‘advisory’ notice up until the end of March 2012, so you have a bit of time to get them fixed.  But if your MOT isn’t due until this April, then your car will immediately be classed as a ‘fail’ if any it doesn’t pass all of the criteria below:

List of New Testable Components

• Headlamp levelling and cleaning devices when fitted for HID or LED headlamps
• Main beam ‘tell-tale’
• Battery (including batteries for electric or hybrid vehicles)
• Electrical wiring and connectors
• Trailer electrical socket security and damage
• Operation of 13-pin trailer electrical sockets using an approved trailer socket tester
• Operation of the steering lock (where fitted) including that malfunction warning is not displayed for an electronic steering lock
• Electronic power steering malfunction warning indicating a fault
• Electronic parking brake control and malfunction indicator lamp
• Electronic Stability Control (ESC) components, including the switch (if fitted) and malfunction warning
• Brake fluid warning lamp illuminated or inoperative
• Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS)
• Supplementary Restraint System (SRS) components including airbags, seat belt pre-tensioners, seat belt load limiters and SRS malfunction warning lamp
• Engine mountings
• Speedometer
• Indirect vision devices (where they replace obligatory mirrors)

For Class 5 vehicles, there are also the following new components:

• Electronic Braking System warning device
• Entrance/exit steps and doors
• Door remote and emergency controls
• Door open warning devices
• Stairs
• Emergency exit signs, windows and ‘break glass’ hammers

For more detail on the new test criteria, visit the VOSA website at:

http://www.dft.gov.uk/vosa/repository/Special%20Notice%2009-11.pdf

Let’s face it, if we could put a man on the moon in 1969, there was no excuse for the overuse of explosives in Rome the same year was there?  They obviously didn’t read their manual thoroughly – if they read it at all.

Taking a leaf from that particular book, some of us are just as guilty when it comes to reading our own car manual.  Recently one customer confused the ‘oil pressure too low’ warning light with the one for ‘oil level too low’.  As there was plenty of oil in the sump the problem was forgotten, so less and less oil was being pumped around the engine, which eventually seized up.  What should have been a couple of hours’ work and a replacement pump costing £220, became a major £1,500 repair.

If you want to stay safe on the road and save time, money and a lot of hassle, here are five steps you can take right now:

1. Read your manual and get to know all the benefits your vehicle already has built in; then make sure you recognise what the warning symbols really mean.  It’s not a two-minute job, but I guarantee you’ll be pleasantly surprised at what you learn
2. Check that your lights work; don’t wait until someone flashes you or you get pulled over by the police.  If you need two lights over your rear registration plate  and one’s out, you’re not ‘legal’
3. Open up the bonnet and make sure you’ve got enough screen wash, coolant and oil.  Your manual will tell you what to look for and how to top up; if you’re unsure, go to your local garage for help and advice
4. Investigate any strange noise as soon as it happens.  The majority of garages will give your vehicle a free health check so, if it’s nothing, it’s cost you nothing and you have peace of mind
5. Make sure you have the correct tyre pressure; you’ll have a more comfortable ride and you’ll save fuel.  Don’t know how?  One supermarket chain has a system which puts the correct amount of air into each tyre; you just need to know what that pressure is (it’s in your manual), input the information and the air hose does the rest

With modern cars there’s a misconception that there’s very little you can do without resorting to the expense of a garage.   Once something’s gone wrong, yes you will need to bring your car in, but there’s so much you can do to prevent a minor irritation turning into a serious problem.

Not a lot of people know that.