OPC Glasgow service dept. Again.
Discussion
<rant>Just how hard can it be to find a dealer who has decent attention to detail, listens to the customer and just gets the job done? I've had very good dealings with OPC Glasgow's sales side and have absolutely no problem there. My dealings with their service department have however been a litany of poor attention to detail, failure to solve the problem at hand and failure to listen to the customer and act on it.</rant>
Now for some information, expletives omitted: my 997.2 (under OPC warranty) turned out to have quite severe corrosion on all wheels. OPC agreed to refurbish them, and without quibble. So far, so good. It was also no extra cost (to them or me) so I asked for them to be done in black. I purchased a new set of black crested wheel centres from them to go with the new colour. However, they came from refurb in a non-OEM shade of black, meaning that my OEM black centre caps are not the same shade as the rest of the wheel.
So I queried this, several times, receiving no response to multiple emails and phone calls.
I chased it up again when I was in this week having the winter wheels swapped on and finally got this back from them:
"I have also looked into your issue with the black wheels and I am afraid there is nothing more I can do as this is the black colour our contractor uses for refurbishments,"
So here we have a Porsche main dealer using a contractor for work that is knowingly not being done to OEM specification, in the full knowledge that the customer has purchased the OEM colour centre caps for the purpose. This is the same company remember that rains down apocalyptic warranty warnings on anyone who dares to replace the rather crappy OEM battery with a far higher quality Bosch unit (that was last week's issue).
Now I may have a severe case of OCD in my expectation from a dealer or I may have a perfectly reasonable expectation that they're simply not living up to (of course, both may be true - although I do tend to think that expecting them to deliver a car WITHOUT a nail in the tyre falls into the 'reasonable expectation' category) but I certainly have formed a pretty low opinion of this dealer's service operation. They are always polite and helpful (when they actually respond), just not very good at delivering and don't seem to understand the issues. Sigh.
Now for some information, expletives omitted: my 997.2 (under OPC warranty) turned out to have quite severe corrosion on all wheels. OPC agreed to refurbish them, and without quibble. So far, so good. It was also no extra cost (to them or me) so I asked for them to be done in black. I purchased a new set of black crested wheel centres from them to go with the new colour. However, they came from refurb in a non-OEM shade of black, meaning that my OEM black centre caps are not the same shade as the rest of the wheel.
So I queried this, several times, receiving no response to multiple emails and phone calls.
I chased it up again when I was in this week having the winter wheels swapped on and finally got this back from them:
"I have also looked into your issue with the black wheels and I am afraid there is nothing more I can do as this is the black colour our contractor uses for refurbishments,"
So here we have a Porsche main dealer using a contractor for work that is knowingly not being done to OEM specification, in the full knowledge that the customer has purchased the OEM colour centre caps for the purpose. This is the same company remember that rains down apocalyptic warranty warnings on anyone who dares to replace the rather crappy OEM battery with a far higher quality Bosch unit (that was last week's issue).
Now I may have a severe case of OCD in my expectation from a dealer or I may have a perfectly reasonable expectation that they're simply not living up to (of course, both may be true - although I do tend to think that expecting them to deliver a car WITHOUT a nail in the tyre falls into the 'reasonable expectation' category) but I certainly have formed a pretty low opinion of this dealer's service operation. They are always polite and helpful (when they actually respond), just not very good at delivering and don't seem to understand the issues. Sigh.
Edited by Technomad on Thursday 28th November 11:48
sandman77 said:
Ask where the wheels were refurbished then take your centre caps there to be painted the same colour as the wheels. I cant imagine it costing much money to have this done.
Ah, there's a twist there: they mistakenly painted my original silver centre caps to match, which would have been fine, although I was saving those caps for my silver winter wheels. Had the paint job been any good, I'd have just swapped the black caps for a new silver set and all would have been well. Unfortunately the paint job (especially the masking around the crest) was of sufficiently poor quality that I just handed the caps backed and asked for a new silver pair for my winters.All dealerships whether Porsche or not, sub contract wheel refurbishment. They will have a preferred sub contractor but there wouldn't be a wheel refurbishment department on site. There simply wouldn't be enough business each day to keep that department ticking over. A dealership will call someone in as and when a wheel needs refurbishing.
KPE said:
All dealerships whether Porsche or not, sub contract wheel refurbishment. They will have a preferred sub contractor but there wouldn't be a wheel refurbishment department on site. There simply wouldn't be enough business each day to keep that department ticking over. A dealership will call someone in as and when a wheel needs refurbishing.
I've no objection at all to that. I would however make absolutely bloody sure that they're capable of matching OEM colours on the items I was giving them to work on!KPE said:
All dealerships whether Porsche or not, sub contract wheel refurbishment. They will have a preferred sub contractor but there wouldn't be a wheel refurbishment department on site. There simply wouldn't be enough business each day to keep that department ticking over. A dealership will call someone in as and when a wheel needs refurbishing.
That's not correct, although I appreciate it's true for the majority. A BMW dealer I buy from has on-site in-house wheel refurbishment facilities (which isn't to say the people doing the work don't do any other type of work) and I'm pretty sure Porsche Chester have an on-site in-house SMART repair facility, possibly shared with their own Alfa/Audi dealer next door.Sounds pretty much standard,
My 997tt wheels were corroding after just a few month purchase of the car and the OPC wasn't helpful at all stating the wheels were 4 years old, etc...
This is the response I received when I queried it under warranty
"On to the wheels, it is disappointing you are noticing these cosmetic defects, and again our experience tells us Porsche do not normally allow us to carry out refurbishment under warranty conditions outside the original manufactures warranty, and even then it is a struggle"
&
"Alloy refurbishment pricing is different depending on the ally or the
damage. standard alloy refurbishment £90.00 to £185.00 if the wheel
require full acid dip, paint and re-lacquer, where I will require the
vehicle / wheels for 5 working days"
I had them refurbed professionally by a very well known & respected refurb company who pointed out, one of the wheels had been previously refurbed and they had created a lip!!! When he pointed it out it was blatantly obvious!!! Gutted I didn't see it before picking up the car.
Anyway, I had them refurbed to new condition with new rubber as I couldn't be bothered with the OPC's argumentative stance on the matter, meaning, my servicing & mynext car will be purchased elsewhere.
My 997tt wheels were corroding after just a few month purchase of the car and the OPC wasn't helpful at all stating the wheels were 4 years old, etc...
This is the response I received when I queried it under warranty
"On to the wheels, it is disappointing you are noticing these cosmetic defects, and again our experience tells us Porsche do not normally allow us to carry out refurbishment under warranty conditions outside the original manufactures warranty, and even then it is a struggle"
&
"Alloy refurbishment pricing is different depending on the ally or the
damage. standard alloy refurbishment £90.00 to £185.00 if the wheel
require full acid dip, paint and re-lacquer, where I will require the
vehicle / wheels for 5 working days"
I had them refurbed professionally by a very well known & respected refurb company who pointed out, one of the wheels had been previously refurbed and they had created a lip!!! When he pointed it out it was blatantly obvious!!! Gutted I didn't see it before picking up the car.
Anyway, I had them refurbed to new condition with new rubber as I couldn't be bothered with the OPC's argumentative stance on the matter, meaning, my servicing & mynext car will be purchased elsewhere.
Edited by r1flyguy1 on Friday 29th November 20:07
r1flyguy1 said:
Sounds pretty much standard,
My 997tt wheels were corroding after just a few month purchase of the car and the OPC wasn't helpful at all stating the wheels were 4 years old, etc...
This is the response I received when I queried it under warranty
"On to the wheels, it is disappointing you are noticing these cosmetic defects, and again our experience tells us Porsche do not normally allow us to carry out refurbishment under warranty conditions outside the original manufactures warranty, and even then it is a struggle"
&
"Alloy refurbishment pricing is different depending on the ally or the
damage. standard alloy refurbishment £90.00 to £185.00 if the wheel
require full acid dip, paint and re-lacquer, where I will require the
vehicle / wheels for 5 working days"
I had them refurbed professionally by a very well known & respected refurb company who pointed out, one of the wheels had been previously refurbed and they had created a lip!!! When he promised it out it was blatantly obvious!!! Gutted I didn't see it before picking up the car.
Anyway, I had them refurbed to new condition with new rubber as I couldn't be bothered with the OPC's argumentative stance on the matter, meaning, my servicing & mynext car will be purchased elsewhere.
So they were disappointed that you noticed the corrosion? I'll bet they were…My 997tt wheels were corroding after just a few month purchase of the car and the OPC wasn't helpful at all stating the wheels were 4 years old, etc...
This is the response I received when I queried it under warranty
"On to the wheels, it is disappointing you are noticing these cosmetic defects, and again our experience tells us Porsche do not normally allow us to carry out refurbishment under warranty conditions outside the original manufactures warranty, and even then it is a struggle"
&
"Alloy refurbishment pricing is different depending on the ally or the
damage. standard alloy refurbishment £90.00 to £185.00 if the wheel
require full acid dip, paint and re-lacquer, where I will require the
vehicle / wheels for 5 working days"
I had them refurbed professionally by a very well known & respected refurb company who pointed out, one of the wheels had been previously refurbed and they had created a lip!!! When he promised it out it was blatantly obvious!!! Gutted I didn't see it before picking up the car.
Anyway, I had them refurbed to new condition with new rubber as I couldn't be bothered with the OPC's argumentative stance on the matter, meaning, my servicing & mynext car will be purchased elsewhere.
There's a pattern here, isn't there? And it's of the sort of incompetent, disingenuous and inflexible behaviour that is guaranteed to wind up and p
s off their customers. In fact, the more 'upmarket' the brand and the more 'discerning' the customers that their marketing targets, the worse these brands seem to treat them - so the more you spend and the more committ you are to the product, the worse you are treated. Porsche certainly aren't alone in this but they do seem to go further than most.Technomad said:
So they were disappointed that you noticed the corrosion? I'll bet they were…
There's a pattern here, isn't there? And it's of the sort of incompetent, disingenuous and inflexible behaviour that is guaranteed to wind up and ps off their customers. In fact, the more 'upmarket' the brand and the more 'discerning' the customers that their marketing targets, the worse these brands seem to treat them - so the more you spend and the more committ you are to the product, the worse you are treated. Porsche certainly aren't alone in this but they do seem to go further than most.
Couldn't agree more and don't expect Porsche GB to make the difference when things go wrong at the OPC either!There's a pattern here, isn't there? And it's of the sort of incompetent, disingenuous and inflexible behaviour that is guaranteed to wind up and p
s off their customers. In fact, the more 'upmarket' the brand and the more 'discerning' the customers that their marketing targets, the worse these brands seem to treat them - so the more you spend and the more committ you are to the product, the worse you are treated. Porsche certainly aren't alone in this but they do seem to go further than most.To OP Glasgow OPC get a company in East -Kilbride to do their wheel refurb called The Wheel Specialist run by a John Grove has done work for me any many members over the years.
I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
kitchens2 said:
To OP Glasgow OPC get a company in East -Kilbride to do their wheel refurb called The Wheel Specialist run by a John Grove has done work for me any many members over the years.
I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
Yep, I'll do just that - Edinburgh and Glasgow are pretty much equidistant for me - I'd ended up buying from Glasgow because they had the car I wanted at the right time. Thanks for the pointer to the Wheel Specialist - my main problem isn't (most of) their work but the fact that OPC has not cared sufficiently about their contracting to specify the required colour. And I've tried to talk with OPC several times about the various issues I've had, by phone and in person - the appropriate staff seem to be invariably absent at such times. My approach is always to try to deal directly with a problem with the relevant parties and it's only if I really, really don't get anywhere or am on the receiving end of gratuitously dismissive behaviour that brings me to the online world. I've been trying to sort this particular one out for several months now…I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
Edited by Technomad on Friday 29th November 21:40
kitchens2 said:
To OP Glasgow OPC get a company in East -Kilbride to do their wheel refurb called The Wheel Specialist run by a John Grove has done work for me any many members over the years.
I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
Interesting post Brian - I'm sure the OP was directed to Edinburgh on his last rant.I would i think if i had a complaint go back and speak with the service manager whom i know very well and also the dealer principal also known to me .
I have been dealing with Glasgow for many years now and can relate to some of your points .I would not like to comment on an open forum as everyone has different experiences some good some bad ,Best talk to the people in question and voice your concerns . Had my car serviced at Edinburgh this time many recon they do a better job. Give then a try next time and judge for yourself the level of service you receive.
At your Porsche in the Park event it was Glasgow OPC who sponsored the event with prizes and the striped up 991 demo - I assume that was sales and not service so nobody has an issue?
6C4GTS said:
Interesting post Brian - I'm sure the OP was directed to Edinburgh on his last rant.
At your Porsche in the Park event it was Glasgow OPC who sponsored the event with prizes and the striped up 991 demo - I assume that was sales and not service so nobody has an issue?
I'm there, I'm there… And, as I've said many times, I've found the sales guys at Glasgow perfectly good to deal with.At your Porsche in the Park event it was Glasgow OPC who sponsored the event with prizes and the striped up 991 demo - I assume that was sales and not service so nobody has an issue?
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