As for Arnold Clark – yup, pretty typical of them, they are, on the whole, not the best nor most knowledgeable out there. I avoid them unless I have no choice (sadly they seem to be the favoured dealership for some marques in Scotland so it can be hard to find an alternative dealer).
£5k AP, that’s truly ridiculous for what it is.
In life, it's not who you know that's important, it's how your wife found out.