mmswm, Your Honda dealer must be owned by the same morons that run our local Hyundai dealer.
Last year, I had an issue with the transmission in my Hyundai Tucson. I call the local dealer (where I bought my car) and after leaving at least 3 messages for them to call me back, finally get to talk to someone to explain the situation. Now, I am a mechanic's daughter, I've been around cars since birth, and I've logged a lot of time in my dad's garage helping him fix cars.
When I explained the issue with the transmission, I was told it was "probably just a sensor." I know darn well it's not "just a sensor" and that the tranny is going to need to be replaced. I get the condescending "now just how do you know that???" I explain that I've been around cars for quite awhile. I get laughed at. I ask to speak to the shop manager, tell him I didn't appreciate the condesending behavior and go through the whole spiel once again. Then I'm then told "that's not under warranty". I have the warranty paperwork right there in front of me and it says in black-and-white that transmissions ARE covered. Then I'm told my car is out of the warranty period. No, it's not. When I tried scheduling the appointment, I was told that the hours on the website are wrong, they don't have evening hours. I'll have to drop my car off in the morning and no, they don't offer loaner vehicles. I ask how I'm to get to work for the 2+ days my car will be in the shop (since I know that a tranny replacement will take at least 2 days). I was told that unless I find someone to take me to work (not an option), I am getting a vacation.
I say forget it and go looking for a Hyundai dealer near work. I find one, call them and tell them I am one p!ssed-off woman and I'm not about to go through what I just went through with the local dealership. I explain the situation and the shop guy tells me that transmission issues are VERY common to that particular model year and yes, it's under warranty. It takes 3 days to get the new tranny and fix my car. They have a shuttle to and from work for me for the first day AND they arrange for a rental car for me for the next two days -- at no cost to me. Car is fixed and runs like a dream.
Guess who isn't going back to the local dealership.
Unfortunately, the local dealership is the only one close by for my sister. She's had issues with her Hyundai -- nothing major, but things that needed fixed. She called with one issue and they needed to order a part. Told her they'd call her to make the appointment when the part came in. Over a month later, no call. So she calls them. Oh, yeah. That part sat here on the shelf for weeks and nobody knew who it was for. They put it in someone else's car just the other day. They'll order another part. She called them every day until the part came in. Her husband drove her to the dealership to pick up her car after it was fixed. He's standing off to the side as she's getting her keys and signing paperwork. The shop manager tells her that without the warranty, the work would have cost nearly $500 and "I bet your dad is happy it was under warranty." She just looked at him. The shop guy nods toward her husband. She says "no, my HUSBAND couldn't care less what it cost since it's MY car and MY money."
They had offered her free inspection when she bought her car. First time she takes it for inspection, they tell her she needs new brakes. Um. No. She does not. She and my dad put those brakes on the car the day before she took it to be inspected. They tell her, no, those brakes are bad. She whips out her cell phone, calls Dad, hands the phone to the shop guy and say "tell him how bad those brakes are." Dad must have ripped the guy a new one over the phone, because the guy told Sissy to have a seat in the waiting area for a few minutes and then they came back to tell her that her car passed inspection. They had brought her car around for her to pick up, and while she's signing paperwork, the guy that drives the cars from the lot into the garage and back BACKS INTO HER CAR. Crunches up the front, busts the radiator, busts a headlight.
The Hyundai dealer is now at her mercy. She took her car in a month ago with an issue with the heater not working right. Says she's not waiting until the snow flies for them to fix it. They tell her it's fixed, but she says it's still doing what it was doing before. It's going back to the shop tomorrow. Meanwhile, she ran over the remains of a deer that someone hit and since her car sits low to the ground, everything underneath is covered with deer guts. Dad told her to run it through the car wash and have them spray off the underside of the car. She opted not to - the car is going to the shop deer guts and all. She figures after the grief she's dealt with from them, a few deer guts will just even up the score.
She's been my sister for nearly 40 years. I know better than to get on her bad side. Trust me. They're lucky it's just deer guts.
