joust75

iTrader: (1)

Am I the only one who is thinking about that scene from Ferris Buelers Day Off? Two 'sweet trustworthy proffesionals' were entrusted with the Ferrari Cali. WRONGLY
Labshark... whats up with you hating on this guy? Are you naive or did you just feel the need to vent on those people we all hate who overreact?
Bini is not overreacting. Are you forgetting how expensive a car is ? Much more a Z?

You think a Z is so rare that they regard it as a Civic? Obviously you dont own a Z. If you did you would know whats up. All sorts of people still query me: "What kind of car is that?" "Dude is that a Porsche?" I STILL get this stuff every day! The Jiffy Lube people couldnt even work on my car three months ago because they didnt know what my car was and they had no documentation on it!
There are people out there who will drop your grandma and kick her in the face to get a few bucks. Some of these people have jobs and work at places like Jiffy Lube. Do you think these types would hesitate to do E brake pulls at 50 MPH and Clutch drops at 5 grand on YOUR Z just because they respect the Hallowed institution that is Jiffy Lube?
IS it still not a big deal to you Labshark? Is it great that some random delinquent's life was enriched because he got to burn rubber like a god in your Z? Then consider this...
Lets just say that you will end up driving 70,000 miles in your Z before you sell the thing. In my case I will have ended up paying $38,000 OTD for that 70,000 miles. Subtract the 18 grand you get for the resale and you have paid $20,000 dollars for your mileage and use of a sweet car. That is .28 cents a mile. When one considers the fact that massive clutch drops and frequent runs to the redline add to the wear of the car and can add $$ to this figure it becomes kind of serious. To think that some dik put the equivalent of 1000 miles of wear on your car in 4 miles.

I think it is the institutions responsibility to prevent joyrides like these. Its only money but is it really okay with you if some punks **** on something you worked hard for?
If so you are a better man than me. If not don't disrespect someone who is upset about it!

BigBadBuford

I remember a thread about this on LS1.com a while back, but the guy got his car back with something like 50+ miles on it, not 4. I am pretty sure that once you sign to let them work on your car you are in effect giving them permission to drive your car. I really doubt you'll get anywhere with your complaint, 4 miles could just be a normal trip around the block. Unless you have proof they were beating on your car I think you'll have a hard time getting much satisfaction from the dealership.

Zmoney

That sucks, i would be pissed too!

I dont let the dealer do my oil changes, except for the first free one. If you must get it done go to a drive though Mobil, that way you can see what they are doing. Or like you said, just change it yourself from now on and know you are getting it done right.

c350z

If so call the general manager, the regional and then call Nissan North America and complain. I would then also call the Better Business Bureau. There is no reason for them to have driven your car unless they saw another problem, in which case they would have told you when you came to pick up the car. They do not value you as a consumer, they have no integrity or character. DO not put up with it.

In regards to the three people telling you to get over it, it is obvious they do not own a 350Z, and are probably the sort of people who would take a customers car out for a joy ride. Ignore their ignorance.

Sorry to hear about your experience. One last thing I would call your local news channel that does consumer stories about businesses screwing people and tell them your story and I would also write your local newspaper. The bad press will be bad for business, let the dealership know you plan on doing this and then do it.

Bini2

iTrader: (2)

Thank you for all the responses thus far....positive and negative...it's all perspective and that's what I am looking for.

FYI, I completed a draft of the letter that I will send, and it felt really good getting it down on paper. I have been in situations before where I felt taken advantage of. In those situations, I wrote letters that resulted in to what I considered to be a success. I will obtain results if I am persistent and escalate as needed. When I have results, I'll post them.

As far as what I plan to accomplish, this is a good question and something that I asked myself yesterday when this all occurred. What can I do now? The situation has already past, and unfortunately I cannot warp space-time. The main reason for doing this, as some have pointed out, is for the principle of the matter. Secondly, just as speaking with my money will make a small difference, so will sending a clear fact-based message to management. Couple these two actions together, money and message, and I should see noticeable results. Finally, we must not forget the therapeutic benefits of getting this all out. :lol:


If I managed this shop, I would like to know how my customers feel about my service / product. If I fail to do this I either won't be in business for long, or will have lackluster sales. Neither of which I would want as management. Also I would like feedback on my management staff and employees, so that I can know who to reward and who to get rid of. What if this is a pattern with the shop or an employee of the shop? What if there have been 2 other complaints in the last 3 weeks about unprofessional behavior at the shop? Again, I would want to know and I would indeed act. I refuse to believe that all automotive managers are cold and heartless bastards. So this letter also serves as a courtesy letter to upper management. I am such a nice person.


Something that might not be too clear is that the shop in question was not a Nissan dealership, this was a mechanic (Firestone Automotive -- there isn't a Nissan Dealership close by) that is within walking distance of my office. This is the first 350 Z that they have ever worked on.

I hope that clears things up. Now if you will excuse me I am going to the Atlanta Zoo during my lunch break. They are opening a new exhibit today. I find petting and feeding the animals to be very relaxing.

Thanks,
B

travelmadness

hey labshark7,

why say that it is a waste of time!

OBVIOUSLY, everyone on this board has at least SOME extra time on their hands, or they wouldnt be posting messages like these. Writing a letter to them would be more productive than posting messages to my350z.com.... that is, he would probably get his $ back.

iris

Hey Bini,

Well the same thing happened to me in February, but at a Nissan dealership. SIX MILES. I called NNA, wrote a letter to 2 divisions of NNA, the general manager of the dealership, the service manager, and the owner of the dealership. And I posted all over this board. Universal City Nissan, btw. It didn't do anything, BUT it did make me feel a lot better. Actually I found out that Nissan doesn't have any system where they keep track of service records/complaints, which is pretty lame.

There's really nothing you can do about it but get over it. It took me a whole month.

For you people who haven't had it happen and say what's the big deal, I did NOT want some greasy mechanic sweating and farting on my Frost Leather seats! Makes me want to
!! Sure, she still runs fine, no nicks or scratches.

But SO WOULD YOUR GIRLFRIEND IF SHE CHEATED ON YOU AND DIDN'T GET AN STD. Yup, still in working condition, right? Doesn't matter, it's still the thought of some smelly ******* inside your baby that makes me want to KILL.

jckolnturn

iTrader: (1)

I would be pissed too but why would they waste their time with your car when they could screw around in a brand new one? How many miles did your car have on it when you got it? Mine had 11, those were probaly a very hard 11 miles, driven by numerous people who know you will never find them out like the guys unloading at port, the shippers, etc. etc. If it bothers you write the letter, post here, tell everyone but if you went in there a month from now it will happen again.
PS i went to wal-mart for an oil change because my dealer couldn't get me an appointment for over a week and it was great. They used Mobil 1 synthetic oil from a bottle off the shelf and i watched them do it and they vacuumed the car and topped off my washer fluid all for 30 bucks, plus no unwanted miles.

350zSpeedRacer

Man, those of you who think this guy is over reacting, must not have ever had a bad experience at a shop. I'd raise all kinds of hell if someone decided to take my car for a joyride--no matter how short. I ALWAYS right down my milage (and now that I have TWO trip computers, I reset the second one and display the first one). And I refuse to sign any paperwork until I look over my car, first. Yeah, I've been burned--but I'm sure as hell not going to let it happen again.

Let us know how that letter turns out, man, and I hope they take you seriously! If not, let us know exactly which place it is--that way we can at least warn all future potential Z customers.

marhot

Dude, follow c350z's advice. It's the best I've read yet...

Write a letter and send it to EVERYONE including your local TV station. There is NO excuse for them driving the car to check it out their work. How lame. Be sure they know that you're complaining to everyone else also.

And never go back!

Good luck in the future.

Peace

Blue Liquid

Same thing happened to my brother's S2000. Came back with 15 extra miles on it. He let it go, but I wanted him to take action. They're criminals. It's called auto theft where I come from. They're supposed to change your oil, not drive it to 'test' it out. That is such BS. What are they going to test? Maybe to see if your 0-60 times improve with fresh oil? Screw those bastards. The doctor doesn't 'test' your girlfriend when she's through with her gyno exam does he? HELL NO.

Giedrius

Some reading for you guys

http://www.svtperformance.com/forums...5&pagenumber=1

Go to the link in the first message and read...

marhot

WOW!

We're pretty mild on this thread compared to the those guys!! LOL

Peace

joust75

iTrader: (1)

Perfect analogy Iris!

joust75

iTrader: (1)

Ahhh justice. It occurs so rarely these days!!

350zdanny

I don't care what any of you say, nothing will happen if he/she writes the letter.

Don't be idiots. It's definitely not right, and I would not let it go, but that's just the way of the world. I don't like it but I can't do anything about it. I don't even like my dad driving my car, let alone some grease monkey ******** that I didn't give permission to, but why add wasted time to that. It's like salting a gunshot wound.

If you want to take action, go down there and ask who worked on your car (they keep records of that). Then, confront them that way. See if you can get them to admit it, yell a little, throw some punches (if you're into that stuff), then let it go.

If it was Honda, you could give them a poor customer survey, but Nissan doesn't use them.

Montez

Yeah oil changes donot require test drives, not at all. Only required when something you hear is bothering you and you wanted it fixed otherwise nope.

chee-z-name

I'm taking the Z in to the dealership where I bought it to address a rattle in the dashboard and the driver's side door. Clearly they are going to have to raod test the car to try and diagnose the problem. Before reading this thread I was paranoid about how they would drive the Z so I was planning on asking that I go with the mechanic on the road test. After reading this thread I am paranoid about even letting the car out of my sight. Any suggestions regarding any actions I can take to make absolutely sure they don't abuse the car during the repairs?

mdelia

There are probably a few things you can do.

1. Write down the milage and set a trip computer a bit before you get to the dealership so it has something like 4 miles on it.

2. Reset your MPG/ AVG Speed indicator when you get there. If you get your car back with 2 miles over and the average speed is like 30+ and low MPG, you know they were on the gas a lot.

3. Set the Rev Indicator / Limiter. I'm not sure, but does valet key allow them to change things on the car's computer?

4. Let the service manager you drop the car off with that you expect it to be treated with respect. Maybe if you really want to be a stickler, say that no one but him is allowed to drive the car. Get it in writing.

labshark7

I can see it now, people's heads are going to role over this one. The case of the missing 3 miles, they owe you big for this. Someone deseves to be fired, yeah fired and arrested.

No wait, thats to nice, they should be forced to pay you $5,000.00, and give you free oil changes for the next 5 years.