Dealer Rant (long sorry)

[girth]

What is the best way to go about getting the stealer to replace/take care of problems under warranty?  Today I went in with a list of stuff that needed to be taken care of (I've got 2 other stealers to go to).  I even had print outs from the internet stating the tsb numbers and the guy tells me those are extreme cases and mine didn't fall into that category!

 

1) speed bump rocking causes a steering wheel knocking (I was told the was normal)

2) Tranny shifting shudder from 1st to 2nd, harsh/had 2nd and guessing b/t 3rd and 4th.  (told that was normal)

3)clunk in driveshaft (told it was on back order and that might not fix)

4) parking brake needs adjustment (i took care of this when I got home, but was told the truck is suppose to settle when you press the parking brake, b.s. its suppose to stop it right there)

5) brake pedal surging when the ac is on, loss of power, pedal is dropping. (told that was normal)  I asked him is lossing brake power was normal with the ac on is normal and he says YES...go figure.

6) seat track sliding about an inch on the right side during stop/starts.  (told they were trying to find a fix for this cause people were complaining)

 

After a whole day, the only thing they could tell me was, my truck was in great shape, needed and oil change and new wiper blades.  I asked to talk with the manager and they said he wasn't in today....WTF.  They didn't have any 03 Z71's on the lot, but they did have a 99.  I took that for a drive and the guy told me that it was a theft recovery and has lots of problems and THEN started making a whole lot of crap up about it. I said mine wasn't a theft recovery and I have the same problems, he started explaining in B.S. terms...I told him to stop he was only digging a deeper hole.   SO is there anyone that has been lucky in getting the stealer to replace stuff under warranty?

 

thanks for the time and help

[Blue Ghost]

Sorry to hear about your crappy trip to the dealer, I would try one of your other dealer options, I know from the inside (I have been a GM tech for 15 years) that there are a lot of shops with people who dont have a clue what they are doing or dont really care about their customers, but rest assured there are some of us who take pride in our training and customer satisfaction    

 

1. The fix for this is to have the steering intermidate shaft repacked (quite common)

 

2. I have heard of this problem but have not had any dealings with it.

 

3. The fix for this is the new model driveshaft slipyoke with copper insert ( I have had good results with this repair)

 

4. I would have to see the truck for this concern (the cable comes fully adjusted from factory, the only adustment is at the shoe itself)

 

5. This one I have never heard of (would have to test drive)

 

6. This repair requires the replacement of the seat track side that is acting up ( can replace L or R on the same seat)

 

Hope that helps for what its worth, and I hope you find a dealer that is willing to help you

[carguru]

Sorry to hear about the probs.  I would try one of the other dealer options.  Some dealers don't like doing warranty work because GM don't pay as much labor on warranty work as you would for regular repairs.

[girth]

Well, I'm glad to hear there are still some people that take PRIDE in their job.  I was so pissed when I got home that I called the dealership, again, and finally spoke with the manager (he was at lunch when I asked for him, not out for the day).  He told me to come back and he'll take care of everything I explained to him (he knew most of the things I was talking about and said he would test drive with me so I could point out the things he didn't understand) and even threw in an oil change.  He went on to tell me that the service writer I dealt with was new and had already been talked to about BSing customers.  

 

I really wish GM would make it easier for warranty work to be taken care of, ie. not skimping on the money.  I used to work at a Porche dealership and they treated their warranty work like gold. (different level, I know, but they still did all the warranty work without a problem)  Oh well, hopefully the manager isn't BSing me and everything will be taken care of.  

 

Thanks again for the time and help.

[carguru]

I hope they take care of you.  Let us know how it goes.  There are still some dealerships out there that actually takes care of their customers.  If this one won't, take it to another that will.

[girth]

Yeap, I'll keep you posted on what happens.  Hopefully, this manager is going to stick to his word.

 

thanks, again.

[timk49]

Blue Ghost . What is your specialty? How does a service manager decide what vehicles will be assigned to a certain tech? I really appreciate haering your input.

[Blue Ghost]

Hi Timk49, Well I have no specialty area so to speak, I have always worked in a smaller dealership so have to be well schooled in all areas of my line of work, plus being the shop foreman I have the responsiblity for helping the other techs I work with.

 

As far as who works on your vehicle that comes to the shop, the service writer usually decides who will work on your vehicle based on who is not busy at that moment(they try to keep the work spred out to keep the techs happy and keep the shop from getting bogged down) , I know in some larger dealerships they have specialized techs for each areas of the vehicle and it ends up the same way, usaully the only time the service manager is involved is when the customer has a complaint or the tech working on the vehicle is having trouble finding the complaint he may pass the job to one of his more "seasoned techs".

The nice thing about a smaller shop is that you can usually find a tech that does excepional work you like and you can special request to work on your vehicle, the only downside to that is sometimes you have to wait a little longer for this person to get to your vehicle (I have quite a few of "special request customers" that I know by first name)

 

Well sorry for the dealership rant,hope that answers your questions  peace, Derek