WOOOT! Loaner car! - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

ChrisBlair · 04-27-2013, 04:49 PM

/sarcasm off

I won't name the dealer that sold me my car. But, suffice to say, after 4 times in their shop when the car was 1 week old to 5 weeks old to fix the same alignment issue, not to mention small things like trash from techs left inside my car after service, I got myself a new service center. To be honest, each and every time the car went to them, it had to immediately go back to fix something they screwed up.

Today I had to go to my original dealer to have my snow tires removed and my P-Zeros installed. The Cadillac service center which does my normal maintenance didn't have the adapters to do 20" rims. The tire specialists couldn't do the balancing I wanted (kinda making them not a tire specialist actually). The original dealer's shop could. Oh boy. It's either them or the Buick Dealer that tried to frighten me into un-necessary work on my '97 Rivi and then backed down when I called their bluff. Super. I chose the dopes over the con artists.

So I bring the car and tires down to my original dealers' shop, explain what I want and they tell me '1 pm'. Well by 2 they hadn't called. "3 pm" was the new time. Fine.

I go to pick up the car and I check the tire sizes to make sure that the right tires were on all four corners. You see where this is going already. The tires are right. I pay and leave. Car drives like a dream, honestly. I'm happy. Until I go to check tire pressure when I get home.

When checking the pressure, I note that the front driver's side rim has a chip out of it. My chip. I did that the second day I had the car. Except it shouldn't be on the front. It was a rear wheel that I chipped.

They put one of my rear wheels on the front, and one of my fronts on the rear, and also put the rear tire on the front rim and the front tire on the rear. Only on the driver's side. The tire to rim gap is goofy as all hell. I'm surprised I didn't notice at the shop, but I was concentrating on tire size.

I take it back, and they have to verify that the rims are different sizes front to back....of course they do. This is a Chevy dealer. What, you think they'd know that? I told them this is exactly why they were no longer my service center: They have screwed up five times, and the car's been in for some kind of service with tham...only five times. They screwed up an oil change for pete's sake. You are batting .0000 here, boys. And this time I'd call it a safety issue.

So...the techs had left for the day (of course). The rental place they use was closed...I said "That's OK with me, but you have an entire lot full of cars. Gimme one. I have things to do here"

And so...an Impala. OK car I guess. But honestly, they cannot do one single thing right at that service center.

Bad@ssCamaro · 04-27-2013, 04:55 PM

What the heck?

major

on the dealerships part. Is it mandatory that they only hire people with IQ's under 80?

babytiger · 04-27-2013, 04:56 PM

STOP.GOING.TO.THE.DEALER just saying…….

ChrisBlair · 04-27-2013, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by babytiger

STOP.GOING.TO.THE.DEALER just saying…….

Allow myself to...quote myself

[second sentence]: "But, suffice to say, after 4 times in their shop when the car was 1 week old to 5 weeks old to fix the same alignment issue, not to mention small things like trash from techs left inside my car after service, I got myself a new service center."

Today I had little choice. Those snow tires had to come off, I'm wiping them out and they cost lots of $$$$$

stikSS · 04-27-2013, 05:04 PM

I can't help but laugh

.... it's not funny at all because I know excatly what level of dumbass you're dealing with... there seems to be a nationwide common bond and it usually lies with just 1 or 2 special ASE Jackwagons per dealership.

ChrisBlair · 04-27-2013, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stikSS

I can't help but laugh

.... it's not funny at all because I know excatly what level of dumbass you're dealing with... there seems to nationwide common bond and it usually lies with just 1 or 2 special ASE Jackwagons per dealership.

Oh, absolutely, what can you do but laugh? Its either that or put your hand through the wall in anger. Fixing walls takes too much time.

But what's disturbing is that I don't think they are dumb. I think they don;t care. I think they rush through as many cars as they can, so they can get paid for say 5 cars in the time it usually takes to do 3 cars. So they cut corners to up their turnover, and do sloppy work pretty much on purpose.

GbrilliantQ · 04-27-2013, 05:14 PM

That is insane....

stikSS · 04-27-2013, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisBlair

Oh, absolutely, what can you do but laugh? Its either that or put your hand through the wall in anger. Fixing walls takes too much time.

But what's disturbing is that I don't think they are dumb. I think they don;t care. I think they rush through as many cars as they can, so they can get paid for say 5 cars in the time it usually takes to do 3 cars. So they cut corners to up their turnover, and do sloppy work pretty much on purpose.

I certainly agree.... I worked in service many years ago at my local chevy dealership, and it was a fight to get those easy jobs that pay 4 hrs and only takes 1.5.... but this tire debacle you have is just beyond me....

RubyCamaro · 04-27-2013, 05:23 PM

Truly sad. My guys at the local dealership are pretty good. I usually go armed to the teeth with info from C5 (for the few things I use them for) but they do okay. I mostly don't like to go there because it is waaaaaaaaaa too expensive and because if they do the work in the large main bay, fine, I can keep an eye on them, but in the new bays that are on the side, nope & that is baaaaaaaaaaad. Where I go for tire/wheel stuff & some other types of service I can watch them through the glass. Where I get the oil changes & got my exhaust put on, I stand right by them & watch.

mcbeth15 · 04-27-2013, 05:39 PM

Makes ya wonder how places like this stay in business.

ChrisBlair · 04-27-2013, 05:56 PM

most car owners aren't as picky as people like us, and frankly I think most car owners would never have noticed

BDBiker · 04-27-2013, 06:08 PM

I never take my cars or bikes to ANYONE unless I do not have the tool to do the job with. That said, you obviously don't have a tire changer at your house, so one of two options would be prudent in the future. Option 1: Buy a extra set of wheels that the snow tires stay mounted on. Option 2: Remove either the front only or the rear only and take them to have them swapped without the car being present.
I have taken the wheels off my wife's '98 Twin Turbo Toyota Supra many times and taken only the wheels to the shop to have new tires mounted. Why would I do that you ask? Because if I take the car in, the service guys take the car for a "road test" and drive it like they stole it. I caught the low-lifes doing burnouts with my brand new set of tires and laughing like monkeys once, THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!
If you want it done correctly, make it impossible for them to screw up.

ChrisBlair · 04-27-2013, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Comrando

Why didn't you buy different wheels for summer/winter tires?

that is an excellent question!

I wanted to. I had two operations and a pair of medical procedures early in 2013, and I had to pay approximately 2500 dollars in medical costs after insurance. I spent the tire and mod money I had saved, on my traitorous carcass.

tomlink · 04-27-2013, 06:20 PM

Seems like tires are a problem for service guys if you have anything but ordinary tires and wheels.

My last car was Probe GT and it had unidirectional wheels. That is right, there were RIGHT wheels and LEFT wheels. Combine that with unidirectional tires and I don't think the tire guys ever got it right on the first try. And of course that meant unmounting the tires to correct the problem.

I just got a new set of BFG tires on my RS which are unidirectional, and I was all concerned that the guys needed to be aware of the different wheel sizes, and if they left the wheels in the same locations they didn't need to recalibrate the TPMS. When they are done I walk around the car and sure enough the right front arrow is pointing the wrong way. I mean how hard is it to get that right.

Still no where near the worst. One time after getting tires I start to drive away and I hear a loud clunking in front. I stop right away. Turns out there was just one very loose lug nut on one front wheel. They forgot to add the other 4 and tighten them down.

04-27-2013, 04:49 PM	#1
ChrisBlair Buick 455 Fan Drives: 1970 Buick, 2012 1SS LS3 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Boston MA Posts: 5,957	WOOOT! Loaner car! /sarcasm off I won't name the dealer that sold me my car. But, suffice to say, after 4 times in their shop when the car was 1 week old to 5 weeks old to fix the same alignment issue, not to mention small things like trash from techs left inside my car after service, I got myself a new service center. To be honest, each and every time the car went to them, it had to immediately go back to fix something they screwed up. Today I had to go to my original dealer to have my snow tires removed and my P-Zeros installed. The Cadillac service center which does my normal maintenance didn't have the adapters to do 20" rims. The tire specialists couldn't do the balancing I wanted (kinda making them not a tire specialist actually). The original dealer's shop could. Oh boy. It's either them or the Buick Dealer that tried to frighten me into un-necessary work on my '97 Rivi and then backed down when I called their bluff. Super. I chose the dopes over the con artists. So I bring the car and tires down to my original dealers' shop, explain what I want and they tell me '1 pm'. Well by 2 they hadn't called. "3 pm" was the new time. Fine. I go to pick up the car and I check the tire sizes to make sure that the right tires were on all four corners. You see where this is going already. The tires are right. I pay and leave. Car drives like a dream, honestly. I'm happy. Until I go to check tire pressure when I get home. When checking the pressure, I note that the front driver's side rim has a chip out of it. My chip. I did that the second day I had the car. Except it shouldn't be on the front. It was a rear wheel that I chipped. They put one of my rear wheels on the front, and one of my fronts on the rear, and also put the rear tire on the front rim and the front tire on the rear. Only on the driver's side. The tire to rim gap is goofy as all hell. I'm surprised I didn't notice at the shop, but I was concentrating on tire size. I take it back, and they have to verify that the rims are different sizes front to back....of course they do. This is a Chevy dealer. What, you think they'd know that? I told them this is exactly why they were no longer my service center: They have screwed up five times, and the car's been in for some kind of service with tham...only five times. They screwed up an oil change for pete's sake. You are batting .0000 here, boys. And this time I'd call it a safety issue. So...the techs had left for the day (of course). The rental place they use was closed...I said "That's OK with me, but you have an entire lot full of cars. Gimme one. I have things to do here" And so...an Impala. OK car I guess. But honestly, they cannot do one single thing right at that service center. __________________

04-27-2013, 04:55 PM	#2
Bad@ssCamaro BeckyD Rocks :-) Drives: 2015 1SS/1LE Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: CT Posts: 5,778 View My Garage	What the heck? major on the dealerships part. Is it mandatory that they only hire people with IQ's under 80? __________________ 2015 CRT 1SS/1LE RS/Recaro's/NPP/Nav/Rear vision pkg./BA speaker upgrade. Stage 3 BMR cam, ARH 1 7/8 headers, CAI, BMR 1.25 drop springs, JPSS Billet Bushings, Peddars Cradle Bushings...460 whp...so far....SOLD, but not forgotten!

04-27-2013, 05:04 PM	#5
stikSS 9691 & 97586 Drives: 2010 SS, 1999 SS, 1993 Z28 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Sanford, NC Posts: 2,814 View My Garage	I can't help but laugh .... it's not funny at all because I know excatly what level of dumbass you're dealing with... there seems to be a nationwide common bond and it usually lies with just 1 or 2 special ASE Jackwagons per dealership. __________________ http://www.camarosouth.com camarosouth@hotmail.com Last edited by stikSS; 04-27-2013 at 05:19 PM.

04-27-2013, 05:23 PM	#9
RubyCamaro Jan Drives: 2010 Camaro 1LT Red Jewel tintcoat Join Date: May 2010 Location: Springfield, TN Posts: 16,225 View My Garage	Truly sad. My guys at the local dealership are pretty good. I usually go armed to the teeth with info from C5 (for the few things I use them for) but they do okay. I mostly don't like to go there because it is waaaaaaaaaa too expensive and because if they do the work in the large main bay, fine, I can keep an eye on them, but in the new bays that are on the side, nope & that is baaaaaaaaaaad. Where I go for tire/wheel stuff & some other types of service I can watch them through the glass. Where I get the oil changes & got my exhaust put on, I stand right by them & watch. __________________

04-27-2013, 05:56 PM	#11
ChrisBlair Buick 455 Fan Drives: 1970 Buick, 2012 1SS LS3 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Boston MA Posts: 5,957	most car owners aren't as picky as people like us, and frankly I think most car owners would never have noticed __________________

04-27-2013, 04:56 PM	#3
babytiger it's hers... Drives: 2011 Camaro 2SS/RS Convertible Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: katy, tx Posts: 1,202	STOP.GOING.TO.THE.DEALER just saying…….

04-27-2013, 05:14 PM	#7
GbrilliantQ ¡ʇuɐıןןıɹq Drives: 2011 Camaro IOM 2SS/RS Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Decatur, Illinois Posts: 2,600	That is insane....

04-27-2013, 05:39 PM	#10
mcbeth15 Drives: '11 RS 2LT IBM Join Date: May 2012 Location: Havre de Grace, MD Posts: 673	Makes ya wonder how places like this stay in business.

04-27-2013, 06:08 PM	#12
BDBiker Drives: Black 2013 2SS/RS 1LE Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Oliver Springs, TN Posts: 552	I never take my cars or bikes to ANYONE unless I do not have the tool to do the job with. That said, you obviously don't have a tire changer at your house, so one of two options would be prudent in the future. Option 1: Buy a extra set of wheels that the snow tires stay mounted on. Option 2: Remove either the front only or the rear only and take them to have them swapped without the car being present. I have taken the wheels off my wife's '98 Twin Turbo Toyota Supra many times and taken only the wheels to the shop to have new tires mounted. Why would I do that you ask? Because if I take the car in, the service guys take the car for a "road test" and drive it like they stole it. I caught the low-lifes doing burnouts with my brand new set of tires and laughing like monkeys once, THAT WILL NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN! If you want it done correctly, make it impossible for them to screw up.

04-27-2013, 06:20 PM	#14
tomlink Drives: 2011 Camaro 2LT RS Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: New Bern, NC Posts: 953 View My Garage	Seems like tires are a problem for service guys if you have anything but ordinary tires and wheels. My last car was Probe GT and it had unidirectional wheels. That is right, there were RIGHT wheels and LEFT wheels. Combine that with unidirectional tires and I don't think the tire guys ever got it right on the first try. And of course that meant unmounting the tires to correct the problem. I just got a new set of BFG tires on my RS which are unidirectional, and I was all concerned that the guys needed to be aware of the different wheel sizes, and if they left the wheels in the same locations they didn't need to recalibrate the TPMS. When they are done I walk around the car and sure enough the right front arrow is pointing the wrong way. I mean how hard is it to get that right. Still no where near the worst. One time after getting tires I start to drive away and I hear a loud clunking in front. I stop right away. Turns out there was just one very loose lug nut on one front wheel. They forgot to add the other 4 and tighten them down.