Do dealerships actually enjoy making enemies?

I bought a new key fob for my Landrover LR3. I paid $330.00 for a new Dodge Ram fob so I was prepared to pay that plus a grey poupon tax. The dealership charged me $450.00 Canadian, and needed to be ordered. 7 to 10 days they said. So I am a little irked when it finally shows 3 weeks later, but at least the pain of being gouged for the fob had receded during the three week wait. For the record, I have been there done that with ebay specials and decided to buy the real thing to avoid programming issues. Ha, Funny. I collected the new fob at the parts counter and went to try it out. It inserted with difficulty, and would not turn the ignition. Parts guy said, " someone has re keyed your Land Rover. "I pointed out (politely) that was highly unlikely given that I knew some of the vehicle history and that the new key appeared to be identical to my working key.  I asked him to check his records to see if the car had ever been towed to a dealership and rekeyed. (local car from new)  He declined. He blew me off. I was left standing there with a $450.00 key that would not work. I wanted to stab him repeatedly in the side of the head with my useless key, but instead I kept my temper and went to a locksmith who quickly determined that the key was correct but had not been cut deep enough, so was too thick. I called the service guy (department head) who told me that it was highly unlikely as Land Rover does not make mistakes. I have emailed the dealership my locksmith invoice for $60.00 and a good photo of the key showing the new cut which exactly follows the incorrect cut. It is a very good photo and there is no doubt what the issue is. I do not expect any satisfaction or reimbursement. 

Land Rover does not make mistakes!?!? I can understand that you might've been stunned at this statement, but the proper response was 5 solid minutes of laughter.

GameboyRMH said:

Land Rover does not make mistakes!?!? I can understand that you might've been stunned at this statement, but the proper response was 5 solid minutes of laughter.

Cannot honestly say laughter was a readily available emotion.

I have never owned a Land Rover, but talking to people who do, it was my understanding that they spend almost as much time at the dealership as they do with the owner. Did they at least give you complimentary coffee and fresh muffins?

People at dealerships get promoted for their ability to quickly come up with clever lies.   

Same skill set as makes a successful politician.

Ok , someone make a go fund me page to send Land Rovt lapel badges to everyone in Congress.....

Our local Land Rover dealer went belly up  and that was in a high $$$$$ Beach city on PCH 

I didn't think Canadians could be that rude. 

My area is teeming with wealthy people driving very expensive vehicles. They are far too busy selling new full fat Range Rovers to worry about some shmuck looking for a key for his used car. I get that, but as the plumbers say, every shiny happy person is a potential customer.

Given the giant number of them that I have visited over the years and the absolute bullE36 M3 they try to pull now.

My opinion is they just hire randomly the good people move on and you are left with Morons who cannot walk and chew gum at the same time. 

yupididit said:

I didn't think Canadians could be that rude. 

Parts counter guy was from the US, gotta be.

Contact Land Rover directly about it

You have more self control than I do.  Sell me a non-working $450 key and we’re gonna have that E36 M3 fixed then and there or i’m Getting so ugly the police will be called.

In reply to KyAllroad (Jeremy) :

No E36 M3 !

Sounds like it's chargeback time. Return the key, it doesn't work. If they won't let you return it, charge it back.

Except he recut the key and it does work.  Returning it would make even less sense.

To answer the question posed in the title from a former long-term dealer person: Yes. You can only be called a theif and liar 100 times a day for so long before you snap. Then it becomes a game. 

maj75 said:

Except he recut the key and it does work.  Returning it would make even less sense.

Sorry, didn't quite pick up on that. I guess that's what the $60 locksmith bill was for.

I remember buying a new Western star truck once. The salesman was my best friend during the process. I had just paid $105000 for a house so the $116000 was a significant chunk of change back then. I signed the deal and he presumably received his comission, and later that same day he walked by me several times without apparently recognizing me. He never spoke to me again. When there are consistent themes of exorbitant pricing, piss poor after sales service, arrogance and refusal to accept responsibility, the industry as a whole should do some self examination, especially as we enter the era of peak car.

Sorry, but you set expectations when you bought their product!

Pete

NOHOME said:

Sorry, but you set expectations when you bought their product!

 

Pete

It did not have to be Landrover. Those guys could have been working anywhere. Although I am interested to see whether they reimburse me.

If you think Landrover dealers are pricks, try dealing with Ferrari.

The problem is that working in Retail or similar situations where you deal with the public can and will make you hate pretty much everything and everyone.

Especially if you have terrible management and corporations.

After the second time you get chewed out because someone took advantage of you for actually helping them and causing the company to swallow some costs....

Well, you learn to work by the book and only that because you don't get paid enough and you don't have enough responsibility to do anything about it.

This is why there are managers, etc.  escalate it up the line until you get satisfaction or swallow your pride and accept the present reality.

That reminds me of an old, likely apocryphal, story about Rolls Royces, to which the punch line was, "Rolls Royces never break down."

DWNSHFT said:

That reminds me of an old, likely apocryphal, story about Rolls Royces, to which the punch line was, "Rolls Royces never break down."

I don't think that it is apocryphal. I read an article written by Al Goldstein about his experience with a brand new Rolls. While on his way to the theater, dressed in white tie,  including top hat and tails, the transmission went out on the George Washington bridge. During rush hour. The car, if I recall correctly, had less than 100 miles on it.

While the commuters were as sympathetic as one would expect, the dealership's response when he called for help was, "these are the finest automobiles in the world. They don't break down."

The British are such nationalists when it comes to their cars that they overlook how awful they can be.

Sorta like we Yanks were in the '80s regarding low-end GMs like Citations and J-bodies. "At least it's not one of those foreign jobs!"

When I went to the MB dealer to get a spare key for my new-to-me, 24-yr old w124, they asked for the VIN and then my license and registration to verify the person at the counter (ie, me) actually owned it.  A week or so later when it arrived, I went to pick it up and the parts guy actually walked out to the car with me to make sure it worked.  

I'm no MB fanboy, but I was impressed with that.  Not that expensive either, maybe $30.  Sounds like LR should take a lesson from MB (or at least this particular MB dealer).