Dealer dropped my C5 off lift -- need advice

[Harley1@coiinc.com]

I too just sent letter to the Tonight show, for Jay being the car nut that he is--maybe he can help. Reputation is what business is all about. Stewart is dragging down the entire GM dealer network. I know I won't be taking my Vette to any dealership if this is how they handle their screw-ups.

 

[L82Dan]

What I find truly amazing, it that no one, in power of course, from Bowling Green HQ, has read "any" of this thread, and has not made any comments, one way or another. I cannot believe that Mr. Hill and his army do not read this website at least sometimes. Sure, Mr. Hill has nothing to do with Stewart Automotive, but if anyone had any "weight" to get to a mutually agreeable settlement, it could be him. I'm not ripping on Mr. Hill or his people, but I can't believe they don't know about this by now. Another auto publication to get in touch with is "Automotive News". This publication is published for the automotive industry. Any dealer worth their salt, subscribes to this publication to get the lastest industry news! I'd bet Stewart would NOT like to see their name in headlines next week concerning this mess! Talk about national attention. I'd think an article in this weekly paper would turn them upside down. I don't have address, but I'm sure it's listed on their website, www.automotivenews.com Just my very small contribution. Best of luck Dave!

 

[Erik S. Klein]

Although it probably won't get through moderator approval, I did try a post on Jay Lenno's forum.

Maybe some of the cable car shows would be interested in this? Is AutoWeek still in production?

Erik

 

[Rob]

What I find truly amazing, it that no one, in power of course, from Bowling Green HQ, has read "any" of this thread, and has not made any comments, one way or another. I cannot believe that Mr. Hill and his army do not read this website at least sometimes. Sure, Mr. Hill has nothing to do with Stewart Automotive, but if anyone had any "weight" to get to a mutually agreeable settlement, it could be him. I'm not ripping on Mr. Hill or his people, but I can't believe they don't know about this by now.

Another auto publication to get in touch with is "Automotive News". This publication is published for the automotive industry. Any dealer worth their salt, subscribes to this publication to get the lastest industry news! I'd bet Stewart would NOT like to see their name in headlines next week concerning this mess! Talk about national attention. I'd think an article in this weekly paper would turn them upside down. I don't have address, but I'm sure it's listed on their website, www.automotivenews.com Just my very small contribution. Best of luck Dave!

Dan,

No offense, but I think some of us in this thread are expecting a little too much.

Yes, Dave Hill and other members of Corvette Development occasionally stop by here, but seriously, to expect them to get involved in this situation is expecting too much.

Dave Hill is a Chief Engineer and Vehicle Line Executive. The other engineers are just that - engineers who are deeply involved in what they do best - Engineering and Development. They are not lawyers. They have absolutely nothing to do with General Motors when it comes down to the dealership level.

They have all they can do to insure that they engineer, develop and build a quality product to be brought to market. They also have their hands full with finalizing the C6 for the 2005 model year, and I know for a fact that many of the Corvette Development engineers, are working 10+ hour days and a hell of a lot of overtime right now.

To expect them to get involved with this case, and God only knows how many other similar cases like it around the country, and use their "weight" to influence the case, is expecting a bit much.

This entire case has turned into one hell of a major fiasco and depending on who makes what decisions, has the potential to turn into a major legal battle, which many people, including myself and I'm sure General Motors, have absolutely NO DESIRE to get involved in.

Honestly, if it were me, and my Corvette, I would have taken the $17,000+ and bid a permanent farewell to Stewart Chevrolet and put an END to this case.

David has been given some excellent advice here, and he has now made his decisions whether or not any of us agree with them. It is time to move on.

Expecting Jay Leno and other Media outlets to get involved in this, is again, in my opinion, expecting too much.

Yes, it is an unfortunate situation, and yes, I'd be ****ed as hell if it were my Vette, and yes, the owner of the dealership would know EXACTLY how I felt about him, and his business, and I would be handling the situation a bit differently if it were me, but I would not be trying to contact TV personalities and media outlets. Based upon what I've read on many other different automotive web sites, Chevrolet dealerships are not the ONLY dealerships to have experienced these problems. Almost every brand of automobile dealership out there has had a similar problem at some point in time.

I'm sorry to take a negative stance on this, but I seriously feel that this is really starting to get out of hand. The support has been tremendous, the advice helpful, and I'm extremely proud of our members for showing their support, but it's also time for everyone to start to get a grip on things, pull away from the situation, and let Dave handle it. It is his Corvette, and he's a grown adult man.

 

[TDB]

Seems like you're getting pretty bent out of shape yourself Rob. Shame on them for expressing and opinion or thought;-)

 

[Rob]

Seems like you're getting pretty bent out of shape yourself Rob. Shame on them for expressing and opinion or thought;-)

Nope. I'm not getting bent out of shape at all...and they're more than welcome to express their opinions and thoughts, just as I am.

What I'm trying to do here is get everyone to get a grip on reality.

 

[TooTall]

Reality is: Dave thru no fault of his own has suffered the loss of his vehicle.



This was not an accident where two parties are involved in a street altercation, this comes from, based on the information given so far, a lack of proper care and maintenance of the equipment this dealer used to service Dave’s car.



The sentiments that this thread has generated come from the pride of ownership members of this forum and many others have for their vehicles. The continued interest is one of hope that a resolution will be found for this situation that meets with Dave’s approval.

I believe that it is also viewed with the hope that we will see a dealership or a corporation step up and “Do The Right Thing”.



Yes you are right that only Dave can handle this in whatever way he deems fit, but I also feel that a lot of good and mostly practical advice has been given based on Dave’s initial request for help.

That’s why I’m a member of this and other forums, to give and receive help and support from like minded individuals.

 

[Erik S. Klein]

What I'm trying to do here is get everyone to get a grip on reality.

In my reality if you mess with me, then I mess with you. If you mess with my friends, you're messing with me.

I don't think that contacting media outlets (aside from the 7 on your side and problem-solvers types) will have any real impact on this case, but I'd like to think that there will be at least a minimal negative impact on Stewart's business.

And hell, maybe someone WILL pick up the story. Wouldn't that be justice?

And going back a page, why would you, or any sane man, take a $10K loss on a car you brought in for an oil change? If someone steals that kind of money from me then they are going to be in for the fight of their life. . . why would you meekly (or loudly, even) accept a "settlement" on your car that was so far below market?

 

[Erik S. Klein]

By the way, theblackvette found out that Jay Leno has a message board

http://www.nbc.com/boards/Leno/

As a car lover, Leno might pick up on this. Two of the forum members have already sent emails to him, but a few more might help this rise above the backgrond level. Who know, Stewart's might turn into a joke.

- Dave

http://www.nbc.com/boards/Leno/thread-81687-1.html

<puts on his best innocent face>

E

 

[sleepyhead]

And going back a page, why would you, or any sane man, take a $10K loss on a car you brought in for an oil change? If someone steals that kind of money from me then they are going to be in for the fight of their life. . . why would you meekly (or loudly, even) accept a "settlement" on your car that was so far below market?

Hey, what happend to the 'I'm with Stupid' sign? :s

 

[trent81]

What I'm trying to do here is get everyone to get a grip on reality.

Rob maybe some people like living in the reality of their own.

I understand full well what you are trying to get at and I do think that some members have taken on more responsibility than maybe they should. But...that is what makes a great forum, giving members the opportunity to interact and discuss their thoughts and feelings about a certain topic. If they are made to feel that their opinions are somehow from another reality, goofy or stupid, people will just stop posting, because hey, they probably don't want to be percieved as being from some alternate reality.

This is something that apparently everyone is very passionate about. This is good!!

I understand what you mean by the Dave Hill thing. But think about it, what if by some streak of luck the man or someone he knows saw this post and decided to get involved? I agree with you it is highly unlikely, but any reasonible person would think that it would be highly unlikely for someone to drop a car off of a lift also.

I say let the people be who they are and if it gets to much out of hand then stop it. Right now I think people are just wanting to help the guy any way they can. Sorta like brainstorming.

Rob, not flaming you just trying to put another perspective on the deal. Plus, I know how loyal you feel to Dave and the guys at GM.

Trent81

 

[TDB]

I know one thing that definetely isn't reality, expecting a customer to believe that the oil drum broke the car's fall. That's just plain crazy. How that dealer can think that anyone would want that car back based on the visible damage alone (not to mention what may pop up down the road) is beyond me. The dealership has no ethics at all.

 

[savethevettes]

AutoWeek: www.autoweek.com; 888-288-6954(phone), 313-446-6777(fax),
1155 Gratiot, P.O. Box 07916 Detroit, MI 48207-9975
email: awsubs@crain.com

Car and Driver: (West Coast div.) 5670 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 500
Los Angeles, Ca 90036
323-954-0500(phone)

Road & Track: www.roadandtrack.com 949-720-5300(phone)
1499 Monrovia Ave. Newport Beach, Ca 92663

Automobile:www.automobilemag.com ; 734-994-3500(edit.offices)800-289-2886
120 East Liberty Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104-4193

Motor Trend: www.motortrend.com; all other info is for subscribing or advirtisements...

And that is all the magazine subscriptions i carry to get info from.

 

[bossvette]

I just looked at our sponsors adds to see if a C-5 could be had for less then $20,000 and there was only one with 130,000 miles that was sold. I agree that taking the cash would be the quick and easy way out. For me personally Stewarts offer isnt high enough I checked out a Corvette recycler near me and even the repaiable C-5s are going close to $20,000

Just a thought if Dave takes the $17,300 and walks what do you think Stewarts is going to do with the car? I'll bet the salvage value is in the neighborhood of $10,000 or better

I took a quick look for repairables (C-5s) and the only one close to $17,000 was a rollover everything else was $20,000 or better :eyerole

 

[TDB]

Don't see why the dealer can't do a deal like this. Get a 2004 Base Coupe (even if it means buying it from another dealer) gets you to about $35k. Take off $25k for the brokern vette (I know a little higher than KBB or Edmunds private part sale price but that's what happens when you drop a customer's car) and at least offer the deal up to Dave and finance the remaing $10k.

IMO the dealer should suffer some financial loss other than a claim on their general insurance. It shows that they acknowledge responsibility as they should.

Ops, I apologize, I just realized I slipped into my fantasy world again

 

[Bob Chadwick]

Carmax is listing a 98 with 58,000 miles for $22,000, a 2000 with 32,000 miles for $27,000, another 2000 with 21,000 miles for $28,000, an 02 for $30,000 with less than 40,000 miles.

 

[TheBlueVette]

AutoWeek: www.autoweek.com; 888-288-6954(phone), 313-446-6777(fax),
1155 Gratiot, P.O. Box 07916 Detroit, MI 48207-9975
email: awsubs@crain.com

Car and Driver: (West Coast div.) 5670 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 500
Los Angeles, Ca 90036
323-954-0500(phone)

Road & Track: www.roadandtrack.com 949-720-5300(phone)
1499 Monrovia Ave. Newport Beach, Ca 92663

Automobile:www.automobilemag.com ; 734-994-3500(edit.offices)800-289-2886
120 East Liberty Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104-4193

Motor Trend: www.motortrend.com; all other info is for subscribing or advirtisements...

And that is all the magazine subscriptions i carry to get info from.

Very nice! Thanks, savethevettes!

 

[cruzer99]

First: It is very apparent that if Steward Chev wanted to do right by Dave and replace the Vette it would have been very easy, shown by all of the ones pointed out so far.

Second: If I owned a dealership anywhere in the area and wanted some priceless PR and recognition by the corvette community, I would jump in and put together a deal to make everyone happy. I might lose a few dollars up front but make $$$$ in the end. Are any of you dealers listening out there?

 

[67HEAVEN]

First: It is very apparent that if Steward Chev wanted to do right by Dave and replace the Vette it would have been very easy, shown by all of the ones pointed out so far.

Second: If I owned a dealership anywhere in the area and wanted some priceless PR and recognition by the corvette community, I would jump in and put together a deal to make everyone happy. I might lose a few dollars up front but make $$$$ in the end. Are any of you dealers listening out there?

Excellent observation, cruzer82.

What we need here are some entrepreneurial business people (Stewart's take note) who can see beyond "this week's" bottom line to the bigger picture.

Hmmmmmmm......how about this for a slogan?

XYZ Chevrolet --The dealership that "caught" the falling Corvette!

 

[theblackvette]

Please Remain Positive!

Hi all:

I do not wish to challenge anyone's post or suggestion of walking away with $17,500 and letting this go and moving on. I am in enough trouble as it is on an unrelated issue.

TooTall-I have replied specifically to your post. A sign of my approval.

I have tried to distance myself away from here to let Dave be in charge of the facts as I was instructed to. I come in only when I feel necessary, eg. finding the replacement car that is only 35 miles away from San Francisco.

I don't want to see this thread closed because someone has made innappropriate suggestions. Just stick to the facts, and please continue to make intelligent opinions and recommendations.

Some feel I am sticking my nose where it shouldn't be. Well, since I have developed a friendship offline with the Barnett family things are a little different now and I do not feel I am sticking my nose anywhere innappropriately since we are friends. I think the Barnett family is a great family who is going through a tough ordeal that many of you have never experienced. It is a lot different hearing about it in person than from a message board.

I still remain confident that a positive outcome will result.

High dreams, hopes, and aspirations are important to be maintained for the Barnett family. I hope they will continue like that here in the CAC.

Best regards,

the blackvette

Reality is: Dave thru no fault of his own has suffered the loss of his vehicle.



This was not an accident where two parties are involved in a street altercation, this comes from, based on the information given so far, a lack of proper care and maintenance of the equipment this dealer used to service Dave’s car.



The sentiments that this thread has generated come from the pride of ownership members of this forum and many others have for their vehicles. The continued interest is one of hope that a resolution will be found for this situation that meets with Dave’s approval.

I believe that it is also viewed with the hope that we will see a dealership or a corporation step up and “Do The Right Thing”.



Yes you are right that only Dave can handle this in whatever way he deems fit, but I also feel that a lot of good and mostly practical advice has been given based on Dave’s initial request for help.

That’s why I’m a member of this and other forums, to give and receive help and support from like minded individuals.