Onstar Just Lost A Customer..

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

I have been a long standing advocate for OnStar.

I have had it in all my GM vehicles since 2000

2000 Silverado Z71

2002 Impala SS

2003 Cadillac Deville (moms car)

2010 Avalanche LTZ

I even upgraded moms Caddy from the analog to the digital, and paid for moms subscription so that I had the peace of mind that she was safe (she's 77 and on an oxygen tank) when she was out, and they did respond quickly when some lady ran a red light making a left turn and hit mom head on and the air bags blew last August.

But I have had nothing but issues with OnStar in my Avalanche.

so far I have made 2 dealer trips @ the request of the OnStar technical support team to correct these issues, and the Dealerships response is that the system is working within parameters and the issue is on the OnStar side, they even proved this by replacing the OnStar module and the problem persists.

And before anyone says anything about the dealer, I trust them, they have serviced 6 cars in 20 years for me, and I know the owner, GM and SM on a social level..

--

the issue is this, the turn-by-turn navigation feature, the data download feature (where you call OnStar and they download a route to your GPS, or you use Google Maps to send one), and now the mobile app feature do not work. ALL of these things worked when I bought the truck last October, and the Mobile app worked 1 time 2 weeks ago when it first came out for the 2010s, then it started to fail, which is what prompted all this.

according to OnStar, the vehicle is not receiving a data network connection, the voice works but the data doesn't, along this lines my GPS unit will not lock a signal on the GPS Satellites and routinely shows me from 1 - 50 miles off course, and at one time even showed me being in Washington DC (I'm in Los Angeles)..

thus far the OnStar module and the Radio have been replaced and the problem continues.

OnStar says it's a problem with the Avalanche, The Dealership says it's a problem with OnStar..

-- here is where it starts to piss me off.

when I call OnStar Technical support, depending on the tech I get, I get one of 3 responses:

this isn't my department

it's a problem with your Avalanche take it to a dealer

it's a problem with the Cellular Service in your area

--

No one at OnStar wants to trouble shoot the issue, I had the call "escalated" to a level 3 tech who did call me back and spent over an hour on the phone trying to trouble shoot the issue, ,had me disconnecting things, resetting things in the hidden GPS menus, says he send downloads to the Truck, etc.

at the end of the call he told me to take it to the dealer and have them replace the OnStar module again..

None of these morons at OnStar have a clue, all they are doing is grabbing at straws and reading how-to's out of some training manual.

They have no ability to understand a simple sentence, I have had to repeat myself to these clowns several times to get it thru their heads what the problem is, and then they still transfer me to the wrong department..

--

10 years ago OnStar was great, the service was outstanding, anytime I hit my OnStar button I was greeted with a friendly voice and someone that seemed to know what they were doing, I didn't have to be transferred to 10 different people to have something resolved, the rep that answered the phone was capable of doing traffic reports, Navigation, diagnostic reports, placing phone calls, calling emergency services, etc. all for $14 a month..

now for $30+ per month, you have to be transferred to different place for each request and 1 out of 2 times you get transferred to the wrong department because they can't understand and lack basic common sense.

OnStar just lost a customer, and all the vehicles I have on account with them, I will no longer support this assbackward company.

ernster500 · March 24, 2011

That is too bad. It is worse when you have two major companies who rely on each other for business blaming each other for why a product/part doesn't work. I've had a few On Star equipped vehicles that I did not renew after the initial period. I just don't see the value in it. If it were to be reasonable, I might consider it but the cost like with Xm just doesn't make sense to me.

I wonder how may people who have On Star equipped vehicles actually pay to continue the service...

E

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

That is too bad. It is worse when you have two major companies who rely on each other for business blaming each other for why a product/part doesn't work. I've had a few On Star equipped vehicles that I did not renew after the initial period. I just don't see the value in it. If it were to be reasonable, I might consider it but the cost like with Xm just doesn't make sense to me.

I wonder how may people who have On Star equipped vehicles actually pay to continue the service...

E

I kept it for my previous 3 vehicles, back then it was $14 a month or pay a year in advance and get 2 free months..

at the time it was the same price as the roadside assistance plan thru my insurance company ($14 a month) but had so many more benefits.. But today @ $300 a year and then another $200 for XM, that's $500 a year I can use for mods, and since I now have AAA which is $65 a year for me and the wife, OnStar just doesn't make financial sense anymore, except for the emergency response feature.

But seeing as that feature (data related) isn't working and no one can figure it out, what's the point.. since the truck isn't sending or receiving data (kinda like having a smart phone with no data plan, so the internet doesn't work) I'm going to bet that the emergency response system would never alert OnStar of an accident.

Pumper · March 24, 2011

Ok this all sounds really familiar.

I had the same problem with my 2009 GMC Sierra this fall.

I was not able to get directions, online reports, or anything else data wise.

I ended up taking it to the dealer and the dealer told me that there was nothing that they could do cause it was on OnStar's end.

Finally a Tech got on the phone with OnStar and he told them to update the entire system. An hour later everything was functional.

I would say that your best bet would be to contact tech support directly from the car and tell them that you want them to completely update everything. That was the only thing that worked. Have them make sure that there is a phone number assigned to the truck too cause that was one of my problems as well. I had gone from having a Verizon phone number for my truck and then I cancelled that line so my truck didn't have an OnStar number reassigned to it.

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

Ok this all sounds really familiar.

I had the same problem with my 2009 GMC Sierra this fall.

I was not able to get directions, online reports, or anything else data wise.

I ended up taking it to the dealer and the dealer told me that there was nothing that they could do cause it was on OnStar's end.

Finally a Tech got on the phone with OnStar and he told them to update the entire system. An hour later everything was functional.

I would say that your best bet would be to contact tech support directly from the car and tell them that you want them to completely update everything. That was the only thing that worked. Have them make sure that there is a phone number assigned to the truck too cause that was one of my problems as well. I had gone from having a Verizon phone number for my truck and then I cancelled that line so my truck didn't have an OnStar number reassigned to it.

already been down that route.. they attempted the update from OnStar and it failed, so they told me to go to dealer, with a trouble ticket number and OnStar instructed dealer to replace the module, which was done, but problem is still there.

the truck has a phone number assigned, and the new module got a new number, OnStar even claims to have contacted their cellular carrier and tested all the connections, the carrier says everything is fine.

the Dealer showed me there error message list, the error that they (and the mobile app) are receiving indicates a failure from the OnStar server to the Truck.

so it can be one of a few things:

the truck isn't receiving

their server isn't sending

the carrier isn't transmitting.

The OnStar Customer Support (not even the higher level TECH SUPPORT, just the regular operators) tell me they get the error "Unable to Authenticate Packet Data" when they send turn-by-turn instructions.

This tells me that there is a setting wrong somewhere, like a bad password or secret key between the truck and OnStar, but what do I know I'm only VB and Canbus programmer, with a degree in Database Engineering and Design, and have been an ASE Master Tech for 20 years. So I don't know $hit.

Superperv23 · March 24, 2011

Basically just another example how things work now a days, things are great when you just want what is within their normal scope but as soon as something goes passed that you midas well try and explain your issues to a dog.

No matter how long you have dealt with a company doesn't count for anything now, people in call centers could careless, they get paid if they solve your problem or not, sure you might get the odd one that is willing to go the extra mile but that is rare. I find the "higher" you go in the order of people the more annoying they become, with techs they just use acronyms for everything to try and seem so much more intelligent that you and with a manager or who they say is a manager are usually just the biggest dicks you will ever talk to. I am convinced they just find the employees that like to fight with people and then say they are the manager and let you talk to them when you are pissed.

As far as the truck that is ridiculous, have they changed the antenna as well as the module? that might help, also I am not to sure how onstar works but maybe you should ask them to delete your account and start from scratch with a new account and see if that helps out.

Pumper · March 24, 2011

They tried to update the system like 3-4 times with me too and it failed every time.

I don't think that anybody that you talk to when you call OnStar has any freakin clue what they are talking about. I think it is one of those things that 1 in 1000 people there actually knows what is going on.

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

Basically just another example how things work now a days, things are great when you just want what is within their normal scope but as soon as something goes passed that you midas well try and explain your issues to a dog.

No matter how long you have dealt with a company doesn't count for anything now, people in call centers could careless, they get paid if they solve your problem or not, sure you might get the odd one that is willing to go the extra mile but that is rare. I find the "higher" you go in the order of people the more annoying they become, with techs they just use acronyms for everything to try and seem so much more intelligent that you and with a manager or who they say is a manager are usually just the biggest dicks you will ever talk to. I am convinced they just find the employees that like to fight with people and then say they are the manager and let you talk to them when you are pissed.

As far as the truck that is ridiculous, have they changed the antenna as well as the module? that might help, also I am not to sure how onstar works but maybe you should ask them to delete your account and start from scratch with a new account and see if that helps out.

lol that would be like trying to pull teeth out of a Lion while he is chewing on your head.. "it's not within their scope to do that"

the antenna: well they say since the voice is working, the antenna isn't the issue. The module was replaced, so it isn't the issue. they claim to have done all this testing, so that isn't the issue.

like I said, to me it appears to be a setting in the software (not sure if it is the truck or them) because the specific error is that it can't authenticate.

which means the username, password, encryption key, or whatever it is they use to send secure data to the vehicle is wrong.

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

They tried to update the system like 3-4 times with me too and it failed every time.

I don't think that anybody that you talk to when you call OnStar has any freakin clue what they are talking about. I think it is one of those things that 1 in 1000 people there actually knows what is going on.

no doubt, it's like calling AT&T or Verizon.. minimum wage employees doing minimum wage work using the bare minimum of intelligence they have.

Doug_Scott · March 24, 2011

Contact GM area manager whatever that position is called and explain it to him/her. Tell them you will leave the truck at the dealer, and will take the loaner car they will give you, and to give you a shout when it is fixed. It is either GMs problem, or OnStars problem, your name is not either one of them. They can deal with each other and get it fixed. We all know the system works, your truck has some simple little spelling error in the setup somewhere. You being a tech should know that the cars with the unfixable problem is usually something so simple you just don't see it.

Point is, it is not your problem, you should not have to work on it, your job is to be the customer, and you performed your job flawlessly when you signed the cheque on the day you picked the truck up. Time for them to their job.

old-chevy-dude · March 24, 2011

.........Point is, it is not your problem, you should not have to work on it, your job is to be the customer, and you performed your job flawlessly when you signed the cheque on the day you picked the truck up. Time for them to their job.

I gotta say that is the best answer to any dealer related issue I've read in a long time. .

It's going back to the dealer, but all in all I am soured to OnStar, after talking to 9 people now and all of them having the basic sense and intelligence of a tree stump I can't justify keeping their product..

I would feel different if it was 1 or 2 people their, but it appears to be everyone I talk to.

fiftycars · March 26, 2011

Part of the problem for me is always that the "customer service rep" has a standard set of responses that you have to go through even though you may have already performed all of them several times. They don't listen to your problem but rather jump into the routine path that all too often leads to no resolution. I get real ticked when I try and explain whats happening only to be blown off by somebody reading a script of possible fixes and when nothing works they refer you to the manufacturer or suggest the issue is something else; an accessory you added or someone else installed, an update you didn't get or some other excuse. It all gets old after wasting so much time with no result.

I've come to the conclusion that some things have gotten so complex and intense that there is no fix and this just frustrates me even more!

old-chevy-dude · March 29, 2011

UPDATE:

I got a phone call yesterday morning from my dealer asking if I could bring the AV in today.. OnStar flew some Corp Tech guy in from Texas to diagnose and fix my issue..

My AV is at the dealer right now with this guy and the dealerships OnStar specialist.

I guess my complaints got high enough up to grab someones attention, (yeah I was kind of an ass and was pressing my OnStar button almost every time I was in the truck and filing a complaint)