mshipon
Member
- Joined
- Aug 9, 2002
- Messages
- 18
- Location
- Andover, MA, USA
- Corvette
- 1998 Lt. Carmine Red Metallic Coupe
Two weeks ago I took my car to a local dealership in Lawrence, MA for simple recall work. It ended up costing me $319 for minor maintenance/service along with a major hassle. They recommended that I have an emmissions maintenance, fuel injector cleaning, and my parking brake had to be fixed. Since my '98 is new to me (26,000 miles) and I didn't have a maintenance record, I figured it wouldn't hurt. Now this is where I get upset. They also told me that the intake manifold and valve cover gaskets where leaking, which was totally bogus. My local mechanic checked and everything is tight as a drum! This is basically a C4 problem and not very common on the C5s. They simply tried to get another $521 out of me.
After all that, they didn't have the code checker to perform the Steering Column Recall. Fine... I brought the car in again the next morning and was almost the 1st person in line. Their shuttle service picked me up from work at 4:00 that day and took me directly to the dealer. Of course, the car wasn't ready and I was told it would take 10 minutes to finish... no big deal. Well, after a few visits to the service counter and an hour and a half later, I was told the fix was throwing a code and they couldn't figure it out. They gave me a crappy Kia and told me it would be ready tomorrow. I was really mad! I told them that I am very picky about work performed on my car and there better not be any scratches on the column and everything better be working properly when they call me tomorrow.
The next morning I was called at work and told that the car was ready. I left work and drove to the dealership to find that the dash mat was pulled away from the center console and greasy fingerprints all over the place. When I brought this to the attention of the service guy, he suggested that I must have brought the car in that way! I told this guy very directly that it was NOT the case and it needed to be repaired right away. After some back and forth, he agreed to have it fixed in the body shop. I was told to pick up the car at the end of the day. Well, when I arrived that afternoon, the car was finally complete. I couldn't wait to get out of that place, but I intended to bring it to the attention of the dealership owner and service manager (who was on vacation that week). So bottom line... it took me 4 visits and a lot of hassles to have 2 simple recalls performed.
After I had some time to cool off, I send a certified letter to the owner of the dealership, chronologically listing and explaining each step to the terrible process I went through to get the 2 recalls done. I called the dealership after my wife had received a call at home and it went something like this...
Well, I guess they showed their true colors! Instead of trying to discuss the issues and working them out, they'd rather turn their heads and run.
So be it! I hope never to see another dealership service department again!
Addendum: I later found out that this dealership was rated one of the 10 worst dealerships in MA in the Boston Globe. They also lost a lawsuit where customers accused them of over-charging them and taking too long to send out refunds.
What do you think of this? I considering contacting the Attorney General's office or at least the Regional Chevy service rep.
After all that, they didn't have the code checker to perform the Steering Column Recall. Fine... I brought the car in again the next morning and was almost the 1st person in line. Their shuttle service picked me up from work at 4:00 that day and took me directly to the dealer. Of course, the car wasn't ready and I was told it would take 10 minutes to finish... no big deal. Well, after a few visits to the service counter and an hour and a half later, I was told the fix was throwing a code and they couldn't figure it out. They gave me a crappy Kia and told me it would be ready tomorrow. I was really mad! I told them that I am very picky about work performed on my car and there better not be any scratches on the column and everything better be working properly when they call me tomorrow.
The next morning I was called at work and told that the car was ready. I left work and drove to the dealership to find that the dash mat was pulled away from the center console and greasy fingerprints all over the place. When I brought this to the attention of the service guy, he suggested that I must have brought the car in that way! I told this guy very directly that it was NOT the case and it needed to be repaired right away. After some back and forth, he agreed to have it fixed in the body shop. I was told to pick up the car at the end of the day. Well, when I arrived that afternoon, the car was finally complete. I couldn't wait to get out of that place, but I intended to bring it to the attention of the dealership owner and service manager (who was on vacation that week). So bottom line... it took me 4 visits and a lot of hassles to have 2 simple recalls performed.
After I had some time to cool off, I send a certified letter to the owner of the dealership, chronologically listing and explaining each step to the terrible process I went through to get the 2 recalls done. I called the dealership after my wife had received a call at home and it went something like this...
Hello, may I speak with ......
Yes, hold on.
Hello...
Hello, this is Martin Shipon. I understand you called.
Yes. We received your letter. We do not want you to have any further service done here... we do not want your business.... click!
Well, I guess they showed their true colors! Instead of trying to discuss the issues and working them out, they'd rather turn their heads and run.
So be it! I hope never to see another dealership service department again!
Addendum: I later found out that this dealership was rated one of the 10 worst dealerships in MA in the Boston Globe. They also lost a lawsuit where customers accused them of over-charging them and taking too long to send out refunds.
What do you think of this? I considering contacting the Attorney General's office or at least the Regional Chevy service rep.