Dealerships

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:01 am

Four weeks ago i bought a car that was 16 month old, i found that the

left hand indicators only worked now & again, so i put it in to my local

Vauxhall dealer for a service and asked them to have a look at the

indicators as there was still 18 months left on the 3 year warranty.

The car went in on the Tuesday and they fixed the problem, they said

it was a relay problem.

On Thursday i travelled to Blackpool to a funeral in it and the heavens

opened and water started pouring into the lefthand footwell, coming in from

under the dashboard.

I phoned the dealers and they booked me in for Thursday, ( a six day wait! )

the car went in and they fixed the problem,

the lad next door to me who works there told me thay'd left the lid off the relay box, so when rain went in it flooded into the car.

Me and Ian went in on Friday to ask what they had found,

and they said that a seal had eroded under the battery, so they'd replaced the seal.

I told them i was'nt happy with that explanation, the car had been perfectly dry before they'd had it and so i felt it was something that had happened while it was with them.

I had gone without my car for a day, had to throw away a new mat and the water had stained the carpet.

The service consultant told me the sevice manager would call me Monday morning, its 2pm monday and as yet has'nt called.

So come on guys, what would you all do if you was me? :driving:

PS..Sorry admin, i've put it in the wrong forum:o

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:08 am

First, chuck the Vauxhall and get a Ford, or one of those Polish cars I remember there.

Barring that, go stomp on the manager's desk. Car dealers are used to pissed off people, so you'll have to be unrelenting. Demand to see the damaged parts as well. That could tell you alot. Oh, since most dealers are also chauvenists (sp) bring a large friend to stand menacingly with his arms crossed.

If both of the normal human car dealers are subscribed here, know that I wasn't talking about you, you exceptions that prove the rule.

pink princess · Post by **pink princess** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:36 am

get on at them and dont give up

my other half and i have had a conservatory put up recently and are having a NIGHTMARE with the company (full details will posted to make sure everyone avoids them!) the guy who owns it is rude and is basically blaming us when he has in fact broken two trades descriptions laws and we could more than easily sue them!

phone for the manager and literally say you arent hanging up until you talk to him

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:39 am

I'd assumed you bought it from the dealership, Abbey. Is that right?

And the Yugo was sold in the US. In the UK they had this little go-kart made of aluminum - sorry - aluminium foil. The running joke was What do you call its rear window defroster? Handwarmer. :wah:

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:41 am

flopstock wrote: She will be told the part has been trashed already. Prove differently. and she doesn't want the neighbor to suffer here, so what can she say?

and was that the yugoWas what the yugo Flop?

And yes you're right, my biggest problem is not being able to quote

my neighbour.

The biggest bonus is, Ian served his apprenticeship with Vauxhall so he

knows they're talking through their bums.

pink princess · Post by **pink princess** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:44 am

regardless of the conversation that took place with your neighbour i think its fairly obvious they made a balls up!

let them try and wriggle their way out of it....

and if you have someone who knows the industry then all the better, perhaps let ian do most the talking?? hell be able to tie them in knots......

definitely hound them tho, dont let em get away with anything

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:45 am

Accountable wrote: I'd assumed you bought it from the dealership, Abbey. Is that right?

And the Yugo was sold in the US. In the UK they had this little go-kart made of aluminum - sorry - aluminium foil. The running joke was What do you call its rear window defroster? Handwarmer. :wah:No AC, i bought it off a relative, but as most cars have a 3 year warranty the car can go into any vauxhall garage for work under the warranty

I did'nt know what a yugo was, thanks.

This car's a Corsa, and i've been quite pleased with it really :driving:

BTW, i called them and was tod the manager's off till tomorrow, so i asked that the consultant call me and as yet he has'nt called.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:48 am

Just as likely you were talking to the manager. Nothing will happen over the phone.

pink princess · Post by **pink princess** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:49 am

hmmm...

speak to this other guy yeah but then id probably hold out for manager simply coz hell be the one with any clout to do anything....

mind you we go to a vauxhall garage and they are useless as well, we had to complain before now..... if you have no luck with the manager of the store go above him.... at the end of the day most of them are puppets....

ask to speak to the regional manager perhaps?

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 6:57 am

Trivia for my fellow Yanks. Vauxhall is Chevrolet. Same model names & everything.

Jives · Post by **Jives** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 9:56 am

AAArrrrgghhh! I HATE DEALERSHIPS!!!

My wife's 6-Cd changer ate a CD, it's just jammed is all, and the bums tell me that they have to yank the stereo and send it away to get a rebuilt one! A whole new stereo!!! Worse yet, have to drive to a city 300 miles away to get it done!!

PFFFFFFFT!:mad:

Screw those guys, if I'm gonna have to buy a new one anyway, I'm yanking the old one out of the dash and disassembling it myself first! maybe I can fix it, and if not, what's the difference?

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 10:05 am

Update; The guy did'nt call me!

so i called him back (worm) he agreed that it was rude of him not to have

called me and that the service manager would call me "sometime tomorrow"

I've told him that if he has'nt called by 10am then i'll take it that he would

rather conduct the conversation in the showroom, fine by me!

and if i get no joy, then i'll speak to the dealer principle and sort it out with him.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Aug 08, 2005 11:42 am

flopstock wrote: Don't leave us hangin here...why the different names?
Color me clueless.

Good going, Abbey. Latch on and don't let go!

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Tue Aug 09, 2005 9:25 am

Did you buy the car on car finance through the dealership? As opposed to a bank loan that is.

If bought on credit the finance company under the consumer credit act is responsible for the quality of the goods supplied. Contact them tell them you can't resolve the situation with the dealer and it is your intention to withhold payment until the situation is rectified or your money refunded and your old car returned to you (if applicable) , and you now have serious concerns that the goods were of merchantable quality in the first place as it seems likely the fault was present on the car when you bought it and you would like them to exert pressure on the dealership. You are perfectly entitled to do this and you can just bet the dealership will act if a finance house cpmplains as that is how most of them make a profit. It is your responsiblilty to have a car in working order-if the police were to stop you it is you who would be fined and receive penalty points-worse still if you had an accident.

If you phone the finance company make sure you note down who you spoke to and make sure it is a manager. Phone back the next day to make sure they have taken actiuon and find out what the outcome was.

Write to the managing director of the dealership recorded delivery explaining your problem and your dissatisfaction with their service that you were sold a car that was not road legal and that you are now giving him seven days to rectify the problem else you will take the car elsewhere and sue him or the cost as well the expenses resulting from his garage's incompetence (small claims court doesn't cost too much, even better is a lawyer's letter if you have any legal friends you can impose on just to let them know you are serious) If you are in the Rac or AA get them involved-they have a legal department that will give you free advice in what to do.

If all else fails stand in the dorrway and tell everyone coming in not to buy a car as they sell faulty ones and refuse to correct faults. takes a lot of nerve but it's quite effective (did it once in a computer shop-took the manager 10 seconds to give me my money back). If they call the police leave when they ask you to but make it clear you will be back the next day and every day along until it is sorted. Don't know about English law but in Scotland all the police can do is ask you to leave, if you do so that is it.

Basiucally make it clear that you are the kind of customer it would be better to keep happy or the resulting aggro will be out of all proportion.

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Tue Aug 09, 2005 9:35 am

No GMC, i bought it privately and paid cash, they called me this morning

asking me to take it in so they could assess what parts were needed.

All i want really is the carpet cleaned and a new mat as i had to throw one away.

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Tue Aug 09, 2005 10:32 am

posted by Abbey

No GMC, i bought it privately and paid cash, they called me this morning

asking me to take it in so they could assess what parts were needed.

All i want really is the carpet cleaned and a new mat as i had to throw one away.

__________________

My apologies just realised you had actually said that earlier.

posted by accountable

Trivia for my fellow Yanks. Vauxhall is Chevrolet. Same model names & everything.

Vauxhall was a British car company bought over by General Motors, they also bought Opel in germany and part own Mitsubishi in Japan. They kept the original trading names and rebadge the same models according to the country it is sold in, Opels and Vauxhalls are made side by side just different versions with different badges.

We now have Chevrolet on sale here but they are made in korea and used to be Daewoo-staill made in the same factories but GM do not have the rights to the trade name and decided to rebrand them.

Hate to tell you this but american cars do not exactly have a good reputation in the UK. Chrysler sell some models but that's about it. Even the Fords are made in Germany and belgium

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Tue Aug 09, 2005 2:55 pm

Hey girl- I just asked my hunny as he works for a GM dealership here - He told me that he would not stop with the Manager - if you get no where then proceed to the owner...They should give you a complete detail - pay for the new problems and ensure everything is working in order. IF they have to have your car again they must give you a rental for free while they have your vehicle...a lot of things can happen and sometimes the manager doesn't relay your messages to the owner and when you are ready to purchase a new car they want you to choose them ...with the decline of sales do to the war and economy they don't want to mess with that......Good Luck....He also said - you could fly on over and buy one from them anytime!! LOL

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 2:23 am

Abbey, be persistent. I recently had a problem with the VW dealer and the e-mails & phone calls were getting me nowhere so I made a point to make an appearance every Sat morning. After 4 visits I got my money back.

Good luck their a shifty bunch.

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Wed Aug 10, 2005 9:35 pm

Also if you call the car MAKER and tell them you are getting no where with a dealership that sells their types of cars - they will try and help you---they may even call the dealership for you becuase my husband says they do not want to look bad -

abbey · Post by **abbey** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 7:31 am

Just got home from the dealership, they have offered to take out the carpet,

clean and dry it, and check all is well underneath it.

Also do a full valet (detail) on the interior, and give me a full set of mats.

RESULT!

Thankyou everybody for the encouragement, normally i would have just let it go. xx:-6

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 7:36 am

Way to go!!

Nomad · Post by **Nomad** » Thu Aug 11, 2005 3:42 pm

flopstock wrote: Don't leave us hangin here...why the different names?

Ive read about this...Some names in other languages can be inappropriate, I dont have specific examples but a Jetta here could mean your momma in Swahili.

Although technically the Brits speak "English" lets be honest NOT !

dick123 · Post by **dick123** » Sun Dec 27, 2009 10:19 pm

Hello

Haggling is virtually essential, or you'll pay more than you really need to. And then you'll pay interest on that higher price.

Dealing with a dealer scares a lot of would-be customers when it need not. The key is doing your research on the vehicle of your choice before you go to a lot.

When you are dealing with dealers, it's hard to recall every fact you've researched, but keep these 10 key points in the back of your mind:

* Dealers have a profit margin commonly between 10 percent and 20 percent. Usually, this is the difference between the sticker price (the price they want you to pay) and the invoice price (the price they paid for the car).

* If you don't see exactly what you want on a new car lot, consider ordering it. This may take time, but at least you'll be paying for what you want and not paying for extras the salesperson talked you into.

* Now reverse that last idea. If you are sure of what you want and don't budge, a dealer may offer to let a car go cheaper if it is "almost" what you want. Have an idea in your mind of what your second choice would be, and if the offer comes you'll know whether to say yes or no and won't be confused. Here's a chance to pay a lot less and get something very close to what you wanted.

AussiePam · Post by **AussiePam** » Sun Dec 27, 2009 11:10 pm

Pam was here

farmer giles · Post by **farmer giles** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 2:13 am

abbey ...a tricky one

you say the indicators only worked now and again

that is indeed how they work they come on then turn off so people notice them flashing

if they stayed on they would look like an orange light

glad i could help

:D

K.Snyder · Post by **K.Snyder** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 2:57 am

K.Snyder was here!

:yh_bigsmi!!!!!!!

Jazzy · Post by **Jazzy** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 6:23 am

Jazzy was here :wah:

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Dec 28, 2009 6:43 am

farmer giles;1276608 wrote: abbey ...a tricky one

you say the indicators only worked now and again

that is indeed how they work they come on then turn off so people notice them flashing

if they stayed on they would look like an orange light

glad i could help

:D

:yh_rotfl

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Sat Jan 02, 2010 7:36 am

Nomad;102488 wrote: Ive read about this...Some names in other languages can be inappropriate, I dont have specific examples but a Jetta here could mean your momma in Swahili.

Although technically the Brits speak "English" lets be honest NOT !

The Volkswagen rabbit is sold as the golf here. Highlights one of the cultural differences between the US and UK- no car called a rabbit would have any chance of being taken seriously.

posted by nomad

Although technically the Brits speak "English" lets be honest NOT !

You speak a derivative of the language called American English. It contains many idiosyncrasies including strange spelling.