Accountability & Responsibility [?]

theseeker
Fledgling
Posts: 189
Joined: Apr 14th, 2012, 1:19 pm

Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by theseeker »

Wellllllllll, took my 2004 Pontiac Grand Am car into the local M------ G.M. Dealership here in Penticton for it's 2nd power window job, 1st one was 4 years ago [ hold on you nay sayer's ] I only put 20,000 KM on it since 1st repair was done in 2012, it sits all winter and a lot in the summer, as we use our R.V. Van a lot. 3 day's later and a $526.00 dollar bill for a new Regulator and sash clips which were broken, the 1st bill was $363.00 in 2012. When we dropped it off I showed the service tech L---- the old bill and what was done, he pushed it back and said we'll have that on file, Okay I said. He said he'll get back to me, which he did, could not find part locally which is understandable, part will come in from the coast next morning, not so maybe next day, fine I said he said everything's apart so we'll leave it inside rather then put it all back and charge me more labor, fine I said. {Still with me people] I said call me for a preliminary cost, he say's sure. Next day he calls L----- say's it's ready, I said what happened to the call...... Okay what's it going to cost... total cost $526.00 and we gave you a deal 2% off.......fine [NOT] we get there and he say's it needed a new Regulator and the window clips the tech say's were 12 years old, welllllll, that's when I showed him the old bill showing clips were replaced with regulator 1st time repair was done. I asked if this was normal for a power window to go faulty in 4 year's and 20,000 KM, he say's oh sure, I said do you know of any other car's of same make do this, he say's don't know, I said can you find out, he say's no I could call Detroit on my dime, I said I want to see the Service Manager R----- , he say's same thing, want to see owner S------, he say's what do you want us to do, without offering anything, we proceeded again to tell him the story, to me it was like talking to my 3 year old grandson, Stupid is that stupid does, that's me I'm talking about people for taking it to that dealership. There's more, when I got home I realized I had gotten by mail a letter for 20% off any service work, I called to see if I could use it and asked why they did not suggest that---------Hmmm. Got the 20% off thankfully. I will not deal with them ever again, and I will tell my friends, the few I have. Thanks for listening to me. [If the board okay's it] I did not mention name's but tempted.
User avatar
GordonH
Сварливий старий мерзотник
Posts: 38862
Joined: Oct 4th, 2008, 7:21 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by GordonH »

Just another reason I stay away from north America big 3 auto manufacturer.
I don't give a damn whether people/posters like me or dislike me, I'm not on earth to win any popularity contests.
pentona
Übergod
Posts: 1796
Joined: Feb 21st, 2011, 4:38 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by pentona »

My advice is to find a good independent repairman/garage and have them do the work (except warranty work). I cannot remember the last time that I took my vehicle to any dealership for work. Rip offs, a lot of them.
Nomaster
Board Meister
Posts: 457
Joined: Aug 4th, 2016, 3:51 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by Nomaster »

Totally true.

They only make a few thousand per car sale so they have to hose you creatively.
I take my truck to an independent guy.
twobits
Guru
Posts: 8115
Joined: Nov 25th, 2010, 8:44 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by twobits »

GordonH wrote:Just another reason I stay away from north America big 3 auto manufacturer.


It's not just the big 3 NA manufacturers. All dealerships are the same. The profit center is not new car sales, it is the service department. And they all count on the gullibility of people to believe that the best and only place to get your car serviced or repaired is from the brand dealership it came from. IMO, the one and only reason to take your vehicle to your brand dealership is if the repair is warrantee covered. If not, take it to an independent shop. The reason the manufacturers went from one yr warrantees to 5 yr was just to suck people into their shops. Once there you are captive only to find out the warrantee doesn't cover anything outside of....engine and drivetrain.....being the most common. And then they soak you with OEM part prices but won't tell you about after market parts that are up to 75% cheaper. An independent shop will.
Just had a perfect example of this. Wife's car had a recall notice for ignition cylinder replacement. Took it to dealership for exchange and asked while it was there, could they determine what the clunk was in the front end when going over bumps and give me a diagnosis and estimate. Picked up the vehicle and the clunk was worn front torsion bar end links. Parts $300, labour $200, plus taxes for close to $600. Sorry, but maybe at a later date. Next stop was Napa and Lordco. Bought two after market end links for $55 dollars and my favorite independent shop installed them in 1 hr for $90 labour.
That's why so many people call them stealerships.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.

The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
User avatar
GordonH
Сварливий старий мерзотник
Posts: 38862
Joined: Oct 4th, 2008, 7:21 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by GordonH »

GordonH wrote:Just another reason I stay away from north America big 3 auto manufacturer.

twobits wrote:It's not just the big 3 NA manufacturers. All dealerships are the same. The profit center is not new car sales, it is the service department. And they all count on the gullibility of people to believe that the best and only place to get your car serviced or repaired is from the brand dealership it came from. IMO, the one and only reason to take your vehicle to your brand dealership is if the repair is warrantee covered. If not, take it to an independent shop. The reason the manufacturers went from one yr warrantees to 5 yr was just to suck people into their shops. Once there you are captive only to find out the warrantee doesn't cover anything outside of....engine and drivetrain.....being the most common. And then they soak you with OEM part prices but won't tell you about after market parts that are up to 75% cheaper. An independent shop will.
Just had a perfect example of this. Wife's car had a recall notice for ignition cylinder replacement. Took it to dealership for exchange and asked while it was there, could they determine what the clunk was in the front end when going over bumps and give me a diagnosis and estimate. Picked up the vehicle and the clunk was worn front torsion bar end links. Parts $300, labour $200, plus taxes for close to $600. Sorry, but maybe at a later date. Next stop was Napa and Lordco. Bought two after market end links for $55 dollars and my favorite independent shop installed them in 1 hr for $90 labour.
That's why so many people call them stealerships.


As with others who mentioned, I only get warranty work done at Dealers (so far never had to do any warranty work though, so my vehicle last seen a dealer when I drove it off the lot). The rest of my vehicle maintenance is done at independent garage.
I don't give a damn whether people/posters like me or dislike me, I'm not on earth to win any popularity contests.
User avatar
vegas1500
Grand Pooh-bah
Posts: 2519
Joined: Aug 4th, 2013, 6:53 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by vegas1500 »

So is your beef they didn't warranty it? It was 4 years old..... Off warranty, period. Also, the 20% off coupon probably came from their marketing department and they won't automatically offer 20% off to every customer that walks in the door...that's why you got a coupon...to use when you brought your car in.
theseeker
Fledgling
Posts: 189
Joined: Apr 14th, 2012, 1:19 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by theseeker »

vegas1500 wrote:So is your beef they didn't warranty it? It was 4 years old..... Off warranty, period. Also, the 20% off coupon probably came from their marketing department and they won't automatically offer 20% off to every customer that walks in the door...that's why you got a coupon...to use when you brought your car in.

My Beef is that they never called me to tell me what it would cost, and did the work anyway, also they said that the window clips were 12 years old but I had the previous bill stating that they had replaced them.
User avatar
vegas1500
Grand Pooh-bah
Posts: 2519
Joined: Aug 4th, 2013, 6:53 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by vegas1500 »

My Beef is thatthey never called me to tell me what it would cost, and did the work anyway, also they said that the window clips were 12 years old but I had the previous bill stating that they had replaced them.



Definitely should call with a quote.....any good shop would.
twobits
Guru
Posts: 8115
Joined: Nov 25th, 2010, 8:44 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by twobits »

theseeker wrote:My Beef is that they never called me to tell me what it would cost, and did the work anyway, also they said that the window clips were 12 years old but I had the previous bill stating that they had replaced them.


Did you sign a service work order stating what work was authorized to be done? It's a matter of practice now and many people just sign whats put in front of them without realizing they have pretty much given carte blanche in repair bills.
If you signed nothing, you have no obligation to pay for the repair.
It's worth noting as well that the service rep that greets you and kisses your butt with coffee and a doughnut is either earning a commission on work sold or a performance bonus.
Do not argue with an idiot. He will drag you down to his level and beat you with experience.

The problem with the gene pool is that there is no lifeguard.
User avatar
fluffy
Admiral HMS Castanet
Posts: 28005
Joined: Jun 1st, 2006, 5:42 pm

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by fluffy »

A good relationship with an independant mechanic is like your family doctor. Find one you trust and who has a good level of experience and competence. Most of the time going to a dealership pulls the choice of who actually does the work out of your hands. Maybe the work is being done by "the new kid".

I drive a thirty year old import and the experience and knowledge my mechanic has in that area has save me a bucket of money over the years. Even if one of his employees is doing the "hands-on" I feel better knowing he is in charge. Some people have criticized his shop rate ($80/hr) as being too expensive but I'm a firm believer in "you get what you pay for".
“We’ll go down in history as the first society that wouldn't save itself because it wasn't cost effective.” – Kurt Vonnegut
User avatar
Symbonite
Lord of the Board
Posts: 4098
Joined: Feb 16th, 2005, 9:30 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by Symbonite »

Iv been starting to take my cars down to the Penticton BCAA as I find that the Kelowna one is always busy. Iv been happy with the service and if you have BCAA membership you get some % off and 2 year warranty on labour...i forget if the parts are 2 years as well...

The last one was the POS Sebring...we had a leak in the coolant system. It was coming from the thermostat. They got it in and system pressurized then it was coming from waterpump. we already did that 3 years ago so i said thats it...car is going around the barn and going to shoot it. so i told them just to finish what they got done and ill pay for that but i cant afford the waterpump so they originally said 399 and they added more discounts as possible knowing that im not fixing it...ended up at 280 tax in...so that was nice.

b
**Disclaimer: The above statement is in my OPINION only.
User avatar
Poindexter
Guru
Posts: 6277
Joined: May 26th, 2008, 11:44 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by Poindexter »

Theseeker, if you plan on keeping the car look at replacing the window trim seals as they get hard after time and are most likely the cause of the regulator burning out in such a short time. Easy to do yourself.
Remember: Humans are 99% chimp.
dontrump
Grand Pooh-bah
Posts: 2623
Joined: Feb 20th, 2016, 10:39 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by dontrump »

GordonH wrote:Just another reason I stay away from north America big 3 auto manufacturer.


Nothing to do with ""big 3"" Toyotas as big or bigger these days The only thing that anyone should ever go to a dealership
is for warrenty work or sometimes they have real cheap lost leader oil change or brake check etc
Dealerships are awefull when it comes to the retail public. they charge way more than they should or need to
User avatar
Daspoot
Übergod
Posts: 1739
Joined: Jul 6th, 2013, 9:16 am

Re: Accountability & Responsibility [?]

Post by Daspoot »

Dealership service counter people are more often than not on commission, the more the sell/charge, the more they make. As soon as I found that out I never went back. They have no incentive to save you any money or work, quite the opposite in fact.

Find a good Independent shop with good references and build a relationship with them. it's worth it's weight in gold!
On a different forum
Post Reply

Return to “South Okanagan”