Dealer servicing !!!!
Discussion
Ok, it could just be me, and down to bad luck, but having recently picked my car up from my local south east Kent dealer, after it’s service, I collect the car to find it’s in a worse condition than when it was left with them. I can confirm, that the service has been completed to the letter, and I am relieved of £ loads. Then it get’s very frustrating !!!.
- The wheels are damaged in some of the boltholes where the socket has scuffed the lacquer.
- I now have a chip on the paintwork, at the top middle of the driver’s front wing, on the corner as the wing folds down to the gully, where the main bonnet sits.
- The felt strip has been replaced along the top rear roof section, where it cushions the removable section, and in doing this, I now have a whole series of hairline scratches along this top section, which I only noticed under fluorescent lights, in the garage.
Don’t get me wrong, I have, on more than a few occasions, praised this dealer to the highest degree, and recommended them to everyone. I have written to them direct, thanking them for their service, and also had a publication in “Sprint”, in which I have repeated my praise, on everything they do and have done for me.
However, this is now not the first time my car has been damaged by this dealer. The first service I took it in for the wheels were damaged, and a mark on the paintwork. On identifying this, they were more than happy to put the problem right, no question.
Now, the 2nd service, the above damage occurs, They even suggested the chip was already there, pre-service, then the chip appeared when they removed the tape sticking the bubble wrap to the wing for protection, and it wasn’t until I advised them that they were talking ****, that they said they will sort it, and now, yes, they are more than happy to put the problems right again. I have even written to the dealership manager voicing my concerns, and surprise suprise, no reply !
Am I being too fussy, I don’t think so, but I believe that people who own TVR’s, are generally quite fanatical about their cars. It takes me a day to clean the car properly, and I’m sure there are people out there who take even longer. Is this the norm to have to “accept” some minor damage when your car goes to a main dealer for service ?. Have any of you had similar experiences ?. Are there any alternative reputable service locations relatively close to the SE of Kent?, the problem I have is, ideally, I need to be able to get to the garage relatively quickly (30-45mins), and be able to commute to/from London (south) in an hour, and preferably get a courtesy car.
Lastly, I would like to reiterate that this dealer’s workshop personnel have always given me superb service, and on this occasion, as usual, was more than happy, and very prompt, in getting a date in the diary to rectify the problems, but I do not feel I should be worrying while the car is in their control, as to what damage may happen to it, between delivery to, and my collection of it, from them. I want to continue using them, and to a degree, I am forced too, because of the very few dealers who can comprehensively service TVR’s, within a reasonable locality, but I am finding myself considering other option’s.
Apologies for the War & Peace on this, but I am very very frustrated.
- The wheels are damaged in some of the boltholes where the socket has scuffed the lacquer.
- I now have a chip on the paintwork, at the top middle of the driver’s front wing, on the corner as the wing folds down to the gully, where the main bonnet sits.
- The felt strip has been replaced along the top rear roof section, where it cushions the removable section, and in doing this, I now have a whole series of hairline scratches along this top section, which I only noticed under fluorescent lights, in the garage.
Don’t get me wrong, I have, on more than a few occasions, praised this dealer to the highest degree, and recommended them to everyone. I have written to them direct, thanking them for their service, and also had a publication in “Sprint”, in which I have repeated my praise, on everything they do and have done for me.
However, this is now not the first time my car has been damaged by this dealer. The first service I took it in for the wheels were damaged, and a mark on the paintwork. On identifying this, they were more than happy to put the problem right, no question.
Now, the 2nd service, the above damage occurs, They even suggested the chip was already there, pre-service, then the chip appeared when they removed the tape sticking the bubble wrap to the wing for protection, and it wasn’t until I advised them that they were talking ****, that they said they will sort it, and now, yes, they are more than happy to put the problems right again. I have even written to the dealership manager voicing my concerns, and surprise suprise, no reply !
Am I being too fussy, I don’t think so, but I believe that people who own TVR’s, are generally quite fanatical about their cars. It takes me a day to clean the car properly, and I’m sure there are people out there who take even longer. Is this the norm to have to “accept” some minor damage when your car goes to a main dealer for service ?. Have any of you had similar experiences ?. Are there any alternative reputable service locations relatively close to the SE of Kent?, the problem I have is, ideally, I need to be able to get to the garage relatively quickly (30-45mins), and be able to commute to/from London (south) in an hour, and preferably get a courtesy car.
Lastly, I would like to reiterate that this dealer’s workshop personnel have always given me superb service, and on this occasion, as usual, was more than happy, and very prompt, in getting a date in the diary to rectify the problems, but I do not feel I should be worrying while the car is in their control, as to what damage may happen to it, between delivery to, and my collection of it, from them. I want to continue using them, and to a degree, I am forced too, because of the very few dealers who can comprehensively service TVR’s, within a reasonable locality, but I am finding myself considering other option’s.
Apologies for the War & Peace on this, but I am very very frustrated.
I'd be upset, as I think everyone would... but they've agreed to put everything right, so I'd just be happy that you have a dealership that's willing to take responsibility for their actions. It's not ideal - if it were your car would be perfect now, but it could be much worse...
When I had my Elise, I never had a day of trouble with it except when it went in for a service. It went to a main dealer in West Yorkshire, where they proceeded to ass-rape me for money, and systematically destroy my car! The little YTS s
ts that picked the car up raced it up the road from cold with the F360 they came to pick it up in - in the end it came back with 150 miles on the clock from a 30 mile round trip. If that wasn't bad enough, they broke the alarm & immobiliser on the car and charged me £500 for a replacement. Not to mention the scratches to the dash-top. Oh, and for their piece-de-resistance... they switched my front tyres which had a few mils of tread remaining for a set that were literally through to the wires - 6" patches with no rubber at all. They didn't even mention that the front tyres were low on tread on the service report! As a "good will gesture" they said they'd do me a good deal on replacing the rear tyres(?) - no labour cost, trade price tyres, etc. I stupidly took the car in, they changed the tyres, and they promptly charged me £100 more than the local tyre shop, refusing to return my car till I'd paid. I've never been so angry in my life. I know of another guy who took his nearly-new Exige in, and it ended up with more than £10k of damage.
In return, I now visit their dealership on a regular basis, test driving as many Astons and Ferraris as possible, hitting the rev-limiter from cold, riding the clutch, and throwing them into reverse at the highest speeds possible at every opportunity. So far I've only managed to shatter one gearbox. Once I've got the equivalent damage for the amount of money they stole from me, I might give it a rest. But maybe not.
Sorry for my rant - it just brought back memories.
Again, be thankful your dealer is playing ball, and that this is the only time they've ever caused you a problem... noone's perfect and it's how these imperfections are handled that makes the difference between a good and bad dealer. 
>> Edited by j_s_g on Tuesday 13th April 12:38
When I had my Elise, I never had a day of trouble with it except when it went in for a service. It went to a main dealer in West Yorkshire, where they proceeded to ass-rape me for money, and systematically destroy my car! The little YTS s
ts that picked the car up raced it up the road from cold with the F360 they came to pick it up in - in the end it came back with 150 miles on the clock from a 30 mile round trip. If that wasn't bad enough, they broke the alarm & immobiliser on the car and charged me £500 for a replacement. Not to mention the scratches to the dash-top. Oh, and for their piece-de-resistance... they switched my front tyres which had a few mils of tread remaining for a set that were literally through to the wires - 6" patches with no rubber at all. They didn't even mention that the front tyres were low on tread on the service report! As a "good will gesture" they said they'd do me a good deal on replacing the rear tyres(?) - no labour cost, trade price tyres, etc. I stupidly took the car in, they changed the tyres, and they promptly charged me £100 more than the local tyre shop, refusing to return my car till I'd paid. I've never been so angry in my life. I know of another guy who took his nearly-new Exige in, and it ended up with more than £10k of damage. In return, I now visit their dealership on a regular basis, test driving as many Astons and Ferraris as possible, hitting the rev-limiter from cold, riding the clutch, and throwing them into reverse at the highest speeds possible at every opportunity. So far I've only managed to shatter one gearbox. Once I've got the equivalent damage for the amount of money they stole from me, I might give it a rest. But maybe not.
Sorry for my rant - it just brought back memories.
Again, be thankful your dealer is playing ball, and that this is the only time they've ever caused you a problem... noone's perfect and it's how these imperfections are handled that makes the difference between a good and bad dealer. >> Edited by j_s_g on Tuesday 13th April 12:38
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