Car Dealership service centers

[Gary B.]

bbbom - Boy! That'll show 'em who's the adult! I'll bet tears were shed after you left. Hope you don't have to go back there for ANYTHING. Most service managers have the power to extend warranties for another 2years/24,000 miles-no questions asked,but don't sweat it, I doubt anything will be done for you now. I'm sure that eighteen year old kid with the tatoos and chain drive wallet over at the tire store/franchise will be able to repair anything on your truck just like it says on the ads. BTW, It'll take about 3 minutes to wipe up those skid marks.

I don't mean to flame you so bad, it's just that I've worked on cars for many people like you and this strikes a raw nerve when these people come back some time later and act like my long - lost friend when they need something.

 

[bbbom]

Ha, flame away, don't worry about me. :cool: The only time I ever go to a Car Dealership is when the vehicle is under warranty and it's on THEIR dime. Overpriced and unreliable work is all I have ever been given from any dealer. I have plenty of good mechanics that I CAN rely on for the things that I don't do myself - one even has a shop directly across the street from my office and he does excellent work (most of it on my old snowplow truck).

In this case, the dealer was the ONLY place that had serviced my rig so when I discovered that the screws were stripped I KNEW who had done it and they lied outright to me.

This came down after they had kept my truck for two weeks because it would not go into gear at critical times, like on the boatramp or when I was trying to leave for work or take my kids home from the grocery store. Their suggestion was to have the Service Manager drive MY truck from work to home until he could get it to do what it had been doing. I asked how far this was and they told me it was 30 miles EACH WAY! I declined their offer because even though it is a very nice truck and I can understand he may enjoy driving it, the problem only happened when it was parked and driving it 60 miles a day was going to do NOTHING to make it happen again!

As for the skidmarks, they may have cleaned them up pretty quick but, I know it took a good long time to clean the loaner car. The tarnish on their reputation from me telling other people about the place isn't easily wiped clean either!

MOST service managers will NOT extend the warranty - they may have the power but they sure as heck don't do it. Do you know ANYBODY that has had this done for them? I sure don't and I know a lot of people that drive new rigs and have problems with their new rigs shortly after the warranty period.

In fact, when this truck was in the shop for the shift problem, it was almost off warranty. Just after I made the appointment for the problem the carwash had ripped the visor off the cab, denting the top of the cab and messing up the sunroof. It was supposed to be in the bodyshop two weeks after the appointment for the shift problem. Since they hadn't figured out what was causing the problem (after 2 weeks), I told them I'd get the bodywork done THEN they could have it back for the shift problem. The Service Manager told me that if I took the truck out the warranty was UP and the repair would be at MY expense! This was all before the burnout incident and I was very nice and undertanding up until THEN. Somehow, they miraculously figured out what was wrong the DAY that it was to go to the bodyshop - it is a very busy bodyshop and one of the top shops here in town.

As for you working on many cars for people like me, I doubt it! You know NOTHING about me. I ALWAYS pay my bill even when I know I've been screwed over (I just let other people know about what happened and don't go back) and I DO NOT ask for favors, only to be treated fairly.

I do treat people that do quality work with respect. I grew up in a family that makes a living off of mechanic work (and yes I pay them when they work on my stuff) and I do enough on my own stuff to know that some problems are difficult to diagnose and that other problems sometimes crop up after fixing one thing. I know people that expect too much from a mechanic, but that's not me.

BUT when I know that they caused the problem and they lie to me - THAT is the END! I could care less how they feel about me - I do make it a point to tell EVERYONE I know how bad their service is and I know more than one customer has been steered away from that dealer.

Don't worry GaryB, if you treat your customer's like this dealer, I wouldn't even pretend to be your friend for all the favors in the world! :eek: No hard feelings! :) :cool: