How to give a bad dealership an even worse reputation...

Having been a service writer for a few different dealerships, I can safely say there are some really crappy ones out there. Some are awesome, but the competition is so cutthroat that some resort to bad stuff.

On the other hand, it could have been an honest mistake. When you have an ocean of A4s sitting in the pit waiting to have work done and a tag falls off the key, or someone mistakes a number on the R.O., or (as we had happen before) you can get two cars with the same key... or the service writer describes the car as black when its actually dark forest green... or juxtaposes a character in the VIN... or enters a character incorrectly from the license plate...

Heck, all of that stuff has happened to me at independent shops where we have mixed makes. Of course the burden of organization and proper data entry is still theirs, but I wouldn't be surprised if the tech mixed up her car with one that was there for a timing belt and the service writer had to scurry and try to sell the timing belt job because the doofus tech tore apart the wrong car.

In MY shop, though, I tell the doofus tech he doesn't get paid for that work (so I'm not paying labor), and the belt itself costs $20. Then I'm the hero; "congratulations, ma'am, we made a mistake and you got a timing belt for free."

I don't believe most of you guys really grasp how bad Grayson really is. I can't figure out for the life of me how I see so many cars around town with there stickers on the back. I have not talked to anyone that has bought a car from them that's happy with there experience. They sell a lot of cars and I talk to a lot of people.

My story is only about five minutes on the Hyundia lot before I realized these fools will never get any of my money by how they where treating the other customers. Acting like they where put out or inconvenienced by having to show someone a new car. God forbid you ask a question. I just jumped in my car and left. When it was time to buy my wife's new Elantra we did not go to Grayson.

I know they have a BMW, Hyundia, Subaru and I think a Mini lot. They are a very big name in town.They do a lot of advertising and I doubt the local news would even go up against them. Everything is so crooked in this town. Judges, Sheriffs, News, all of them. You can't get anything done if you're not part of the good ol'boy network.

OP is correct the Grayson family of dealerships has a horrible name in town. Somehow it doesn't matter.

Maybe it's the Tru Coat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5gwc4UizUc

In reply to Curmudgeon:

This video is unavailable This video does not exist. Sorry about that.

Woops, brain fart. It's fixed now.

LOL

Spoolpigeon wrote: I used to work at a dealership and quit because of shady stuff like that. For instance, customer brought in his Mazda millennia with complaints of over heating. Before I even pulled the car in the shop the service writer had already sold them a water pump, thermostat and a radiator. I looked at he car and the coolant was the original stuff that had turned from green to brown over the years. A simple coolant flush fixed the overheating. I went back to the service writer and told him te good news, only to be bitched at told to install te parts because it was already written up that way. So I had to do all that work for nothing. berkeley that place.

I've been in that boat before as well. Makes you feel like a E36 M3head because if they found out the parts weren't necessary, you would obviously be blamed for it.
Sentras and Versas have a drive belt replacement in the 30k service. at that point they look BRAND NEW still, but they still get sold.

Nicksta, this wasn't my first bad experience at Grayson. My girlfriend was interested in a 330 that had just come off lease. The used car manager started things off by telling her that he could not justify giving her low trade-in value on her Maxima since they only catered to high class customers at his BMW dealership. Then he asked us if we were just joyriding today or would running her credit be a waste of his time. He then said that he could not talk any further regarding the price until she proved how serious she was by giving him her social security number. We left the dealership as soon as they "found" her keys. 2 hours later she paid cash for a G35 Coupe at Harper Infiniti.
I guess stupid is a part of their corporate culture.

no harm then in getting a G35... of course, if it had been me.. I would have stopped by to tell their manager in the G35...

In reply to windsordeluxe:

I would say turkey creek syndrome but they where that way before turkey creek.

I did find a parts guy there that took some time to see what was available for my E21. He must be new and therefore not indoctrinated into the system.

I have no idea how they sell so many cars.

Y'all are sophisticated buyers compared to the average buyer. Grayson's sells the experience or to people who dont like cars but want the aura(and yes, owing a Hyundai is now fashionable). Being a lawyer, I can tell you what dealerships are s***holes from the complaints against them.

I bought a hyundai before they were fashionable... the dealer was a E36 M3hole back then

mad_machine wrote: I bought a hyundai before they were fashionable... the dealer was a E36 M3hole back then

Hyundai has hipsters now?

mad_machine wrote: I bought a hyundai before they were fashionable... the dealer was a E36 M3hole back then

Pfff. I was sponsored by Hyundai when it was embarrassing to be seen in one

If a dealer tech yelled at my wife there would be revolution. I'd go in and verbally rape him.

whenry wrote: Y'all are sophisticated buyers compared to the average buyer. Grayson's sells the experience or to people who dont like cars but want the aura(and yes, owing a Hyundai is now fashionable). Being a lawyer, I can tell you what dealerships are s***holes from the complaints against them.

And I can tell you that 99% of lawyers give the good ones a bad name.

This sounds very much like Smail auto in Greensburg PA.

I needed a brake caliper for my RX7 and nobody in town had one. I checked with the stealership and they in fact had one.

My name and vehicle were entered into their system (big mistake on my part). Every month I would get some offer for maintenance or coupon for parts. I got an offer from them because it was time to do the 110,000 mile service on my RX7.

The offer was $150.00 off (or something like that) to do the 110,000 mile service which included a timing belt change. I called and asked what all was included in teh 110,000 mile service. They told me all about the service and how important it was to change the timing belt on these vehicles.

I let the person on the other end of the phone know that RX7's do not have timing belts or chains or gears. I then asked what they would have done if I brought the car in. I am pretty sure that they would have charged me for a timing belt change if I had brought the car in.

I have NUMEROUS other stories about this dealer.

They are the suck.

^ They probably sell apex seal replacement jobs to owners of piston-engined cars.

^ You are also assuming that is was an engine timing belt. Perhaps it was a timing belt in the A/C or the radio?

That generation of Elantra doesn't need a timing belt tensioner. In fact, of the 3 I've done, none needed them even approaching their 3rd timing belt.

Waterpumps... well they're not driven by the timing belt so it's no big deal. Most last through 2 belts, some were replaed early underwarranty.

I've been in dealerships now for over 10 years. I've never worked in one that acted this way. In fact, when we do get a sleazeball that pulls this E36 M3, they get E36 M3canned prett fast.

Bobzilla wrote: That generation of Elantra doesn't need a timing belt tensioner. In fact, of the 3 I've done, none needed them even approaching their 3rd timing belt. Waterpumps... well they're not driven by the timing belt so it's no big deal. Most last through 2 belts, some were replaed early underwarranty. I've been in dealerships now for over 10 years. I've never worked in one that acted this way. In fact, when we do get a sleazeball that pulls this E36 M3, they get E36 M3canned prett fast.

I've never had a problem with the service/parts side of your chain......they berkeley people over on new/used stuff though.....have for ages. (this was before the used values of cars went skyhigh...)

In reply to pinchvalve:

Timing belt...it's for the clock. DUH!

novaderrik wrote:

aussiesmg wrote: This is why all dealers get a bad name and the good guys get dragged down with the bad. Same issue cops have.

the bad ones ruin it for the other 1%?

I have a feeling you don't play well with the law.

don't forget, customers are just as bad on the other end. Like the call I just recieved. Needed 2 bulbs, ordered one. Then proceeds to call and complain that he didn't order two and we're charging more than the dealership. When I explain that we ARE a dealership and he's paying 30% less than retail prices from any dealership in the country the phone got real quiet.

N Sperlo wrote:

novaderrik wrote:

aussiesmg wrote: This is why all dealers get a bad name and the good guys get dragged down with the bad. Same issue cops have.

the bad ones ruin it for the other 1%?

I have a feeling you don't play well with the law.

i don't "play" with the law, but sometimes i do interact with them, even tho i'm never doing anything egregious enough to actually warrant their attention other than being 38 years old and driving beat up older cars..

a typical interaction with a police officer for me goes something like this:

five-0: how's it going today

me: here's my license and insurance

five-0: do you know why i pulled you over

me: because you're bored. am i getting a ticket?

five-0: where are you going

me: (points forward) that way.

five-0: where are you coming from

me: (points to rear of car) back there

five-0: i'll be right back.

goes to his car, runs me thru whatever database they run us thru these days to make sure we aren't Al Queda or something, even tho he knew exactly who i was and had my entire driving and criminal record pulled up on his laptop before he even flipped the LED cherries on his fancy new Charger on to pull me over.

five-0: (giving back license and insurance) have a nice day.

me: i'm not getting a ticket for the cracked windshield?

five-0: (looks at cracked windshield) i didn't see it until now. have a nice day..

this was the transcript to the 3 times i got pulled over this summer in my Camaro..