Dealer Service Experience - How Can It Be Improved

[Rob]

I figured I'd post this here in the C5 forum since C5 owners are most likely to take their Corvettes into the dealer for service related issues due to the young age of the car and warranty work.

This weekend in Carlisle, I spoke to someone that told me they felt that their dealership was not allowing them to speak to the Corvette mechanic that was servicing their C5.

One other person brought this same issue to my attention and felt that the service writers in their dealership were not passing on vital information to the mechanic that was servicing the car.

This was rather enlightening for me because I tend to view a Corvette mechanic like a doctor. If you are not allowed to speak to the doctor and explain to them all of the symptoms you're experiencing and how you're feeling, they CANNOT properly diagnose the situation and prescribe an accurate cure.

Do you feel that the dealership mechanic that services your Corvette is freely accessible to speak with you, or do you feel that in some ways, you're prevented from speaking with them?

In what ways do you feel that the dealer service experience can be improved upon?

 

[Corvette-Pilot]

I have taken mine to the dealer a couple of times. I figure who else should know more about it. I feel the same way about them not letting me talk to the mechanic. You know the front desk guy doesn't know anything so his one sentence explianation isn't going to help.

One dealer I went to, I don't think they had a Corvette guy so that makes it even worse. Is there special traing they get? How can you find one of these dealers?

You guys with a warranty are kind of stuck with going back to the dealer. I guess you just need to be a bit more forceful about talking to the mechanic or you will take your car to the next Chevy dealer, that might help??

 

[AmosF16]

I just took my car to the local Chevy dealer for service and was impressed. The dealership has a Corvette shop, separated from the rest of their service department. I had previously introduced myself to their Corvette shop technician, so I knew who would be working on my car. Besides great service done when they said it would be done, the dealership provided courtesy transportation home, and then came and picked me up to return to the dealership to get my car when it was done. I can't see a reason not to take my Corvette back there when it needs work. Awesome! Amos

 

[99WhiteC5Coupe]

Rob,

Some dealers permit the C5 owner to speak with the mechanic - some don't. However, even if you speak to the mechanic, that doesn't mean the work will be done right the first time. A lack of communication can be the fault of the dealership - but the C5 owner should not permit it.

 

[DRTH VTR]

Dealer Service

I tried using the Chevrolet dealer service departments a few times and was generally unsatisfied. I was looking at buying a 2003 Z06 from one of the local dealers, and they acted as if they were doing me a favor by letting me look at it. Before I bought my first C5, I went in to the dealer and wanted a brochure and was refused one. They implied that they did not believe that I was a serious customer. I bought my first C5 a couple of weeks later, and it was not from them!

I believe that Fairly Reliable Bob's used car lot sells more Corvettes (mostly used, but a new one can be obtained) than any other dealer in Idaho. They have a low cost service center on site to service the cars that they sell. I can talk directly to the mechanic who does the work on my car, and we know each other by name. They can do warranty work, too.

I think that the main difference that I see is that the smaller operation is more concerned with customer service. I am not just one of many cars needing attention. I also think that Fairly's understands that service sells their next car for them. I have developed some loyalty. I also see the support that Fairly's gives to the local club, Valley Corvettes. He even donates a Corvette to our Cystic Fibrosis fund raiser. This year, it was a brand new 50th coupe.

I have purchased 2 'Vettes from Fairly Reliable Bob's, and I am sure they won't be the last ones. The service department is one of the major reasons.

 

[yellow_2002_germany]

I have spoken to the Corvette mechanic at the Opel dealer here. However, I don't speak enough German and he speaks about as much English. I go through the service manager who does speak good English. He sometimes translates the problem when it needs to be explained more in depth than saying the passenger headlight motor is out.

I have no complaints about the service I have received from them.

 

[69MyWay]

Time is money to the tech working on the cars. They work off the flat rate hour. A good quality high performance tech can bill for far many hours in a day than they actually work. When the tech pulls more hours, the service writer also makes more money.

Due to tight time constraints, and the fact many Vette owners like to shoot the breeze as well, most service writers won't let the two get together. At least this was the case when I worked the service isle at our local big chevy dealer back in college.

When we pulled a tech off a job, he lost money...then complained at the end of the week.

We also found some mechanics striking deals under the table with owners that in effect undercut the dealer from future service work.

So, unless there was a huge issue, the service writer did all the talking.

 

[c4c5specialist]

HI there,
Ill put my .02 cents here.
This is one of the many reasons that I am so glad I am able to have the interaction that I do with my Corvette customers.
Fact is, I am able to affect real satisfaction, by knowing my customers, and making the appointments, talking with them when the car is dropped off, and getting to the truth of the problems that they are dealing with.
Do I make money this way???? No, not alot, but I will tell you this, they know when the car is in my hands, that I will do everything I can to make it perfect per Corvette engineering standards.
My customers are extremely good to me, and there is a respect there that cannot be explained, it is just earned.
As I have said, service is not GMs job, it is MINE.
Allthebest, c4c5

 

[Rob]

Paul brings up an interesting point.

Mechanics get paid off a flat rate hour. If he's not working on a car and chatting with the customer, he's not getting paid. However, if the customer knows that they are leaving their Corvette in the best hands possible, and that the car will be fixed correctly, the dealership stands a very good chance of gaining a repeat customer.

It seems to me that a dealership will lose money if they can't fit jobs in. If the quality of workmanship is up to expected standards and the customer is satisfied with the quality of work, that customer will be more likely to return rather than run.

So in essence, the dealership can still benefit over the long run. Allowing the customers to interact with the mechanics leads to greater workmanship, a happier customer, and a larger customer base for the dealership.

 

[ddtman]

Service

I had my first service experience yesterday at a dealership in Daytona Beach FL. I was very impressed in the work and the care they took. The Corvette specialist fixed the one problem I had (trunk not releasing correctly) by realigning the lid. The rest was the oil change deal and I was in and out in an hour and fifteen minutes.

 

[97RedCorvette]

I think the quality of GM mechanic in general has dropped significantly over the past decade. Dealer technicians don’t seem to be able to diagnose problems anymore; they’re all marginally trained code readers at best. If the technician isn’t given an error code telling him which module to replace, they don’t know what to do. Look at the other CAC Forum letters that use that same phrase “the dealer didn’t know what to do” or “after 4 visits, the dealer still couldn’t find anything wrong.” I have an’82 that I took for service several years ago and the manager said that one of his technicians would have to take a service manual home with him that night to read up on things. That really inspires confidence.

 

[Tripleblack51]

I know I'm lucky now.

My C5 mechanic is a C5 specialist and from the first time he worked on my new '99 roadster, I was able to talk to him.
He knows C5's and C4's inside out. Great guy. Very personable and cares about the cars.

The service writer that worked at the dealer ship also knows how I am about my car, and would not let the porters drive it.
He would call my mechanic up and the mechanic would drive the car back.

My mechanic recently moved to another dealership that is farther away from me. I will drive there to have him work on my car.
The dealership where he works has a reputation....they cater to enthusiasts. They just recently opened up a high performance shop with a new Dyno Jet.

I believe that sometimes we can help ourselves by being proactive and letting these dealerships how we feel....before a problem occurs. I do.


Good thread Rob.

Pedro

 

[Wamp]

The local dealership here has a really bad reputation for their service work on Corvettes. We took ours in for a fix to an oil leak eight times before they got it right. It turned out to be a gasket they had put on wrong the first time. We never were able to talk to the mechanic for various reasons even when we asked to. We now take our cars to a local shop where the mechanic who works on the Corvettes actually owns one himself. Anytime we call for a question or status check we talk to the mechanic himself. It definately makes a difference in customer relations when you can speak to the person working on your baby.

 

[schmaltzr]

Chevrolet dealers aren't the only places where the mechanic is isolated from the customer. I've dealt with a Toyota dealer in Seattle area who over 14 years consistently disappointed me with their service, Like an exhaust header that didn't have the bolts torqued and fell off the head within a week after the work was done, lack of a proper diagnosis for a (later realized) vacuume leak. They told me the $3,000 turbo was going bad. The straw that broke the camels back was installing a 4 cyl oil filter on a V6 engine and having 1 qt of oil burning on the exhaust mainifold of a brand new Camry and nearly running out of oil on the freeway.

I fired the dealer after having a 'Blunt' converstation in a private office. I won't go back and take every opportunity to tell my horrors to any Toyota owner living in the area.

My current Chevy Dealer allowed me to talk to the mechanic that was evaluating a potential '99 C5 prior to me purchasing it. The mechanic politely but effectively told me in front of the seller that the car had been wrecked and been fixed in a substandard way. I suspect the owner was trying to pass one by me, since I had explicitly asked if the car had ever been wrecked the first time I met with him and he said only the front bumper was replace. In actuallity the frame was bent on the left side. The dealer saved me $35k and I tipped the mechanic.

Given these situations, I make it a rule that if I can't talk to the mechanic directly, they don't need my business. Secondly, I realize that time is money and that I should respect the mechanics time, documenting the simple reqeusts through the service tech and when necessary explaining the complex request with the mechainic factually and quickly. In return he should respect my time by understanding my problem and not making me bring it back for future fixes.

 

[Gizmoz]

I agree, We should be allowed to tell the Corvette specialist what is going on. The service writer at the local "Corvette King" dealership does a pretty good job of decriptions, that's because he's been there a long time, but I still would rather have at least 5 minutes to tell the Doctor. I think this would insure that I brought back my car to the dealer for more than just problems. It would mean they would service me better and I would engage them for other maintenance services.

 

[erenneckar]

I am glad to see folks talking about this topic, thanks Rob for bringing it up. I cringe at the thought of taking any of my vehicles to a dealer because the just don't care. I hoped that the Corvette would be different, i was wrong! I went to a local dealer in Dover, Delaware and asked to talk to the "Corvette mechanic" i was told "we don't work on too many Vettes" and we don't really have "Corvette mechanics" I couldn't believe my ears, the dealership sales person had previously told me that they had "Corvette mechanics" granted, they also work on other GM products but i was told that my Vette would be treated well. I wasn't aloud to talk to the mechanics, when i got my Vette back, the memory for the seats and streering colum were erased, finger prints all over the top and doors and the my Vette was taken out for a 25 mile ride. I don't understand why the memory was erased for a leaking rear end problem, this was very annoying as it takes time to get each drivers setting right. I am not going back to this dealer because they don't seem to care that i have one of GMs top cars. I will look a little farther north for good service. Can anyone give me a ref for a dealer in Delaware? Thanks, Ed