Dodge 5 Star Service Seals the Deal...

[Joe Dozzo]

for Ford.

I've owned my 98 GTS from the get-go, thanks Cole "Slaw" (another fine Woodhouse hand whom we seldom hear about) and it's performed nearly flawlessly for exactly 3 years now.

Two weeks in and the drivers window quit working. Result at Denver 5 Star dealership #1, $11000 worth of damage when lot boy spins cars on public road...

2 years, 51 weeks 5 days and 22000 miles later, my second ever trip to a(nother) Denver are 5 Star dealer...

I took my car in the end of last week for a tire mount/balance, 20K mile fluid replacements and final check-up just before going off warranty. No major issues, except the call at 11:30 am from the Northglenn Police Department checking on car stereo serial numbers. Someone broke into the Dodge dealers "locked" facility the previous evening and was removing tape decks / CD's at 3 am, mine included. Not just into a fenced yard, but into a locked building.

Did I hear this from Dodge when the Service department opens? No.

Did I hear this when Dodge call Northglen PD? No.

Do I think I'd ever have heard of this from dealer? You decide...

Was I PO'd? You bet!

Fortunately, the thieves were startled by something and left most of their bounty behind, including my Alpine. Unit recovered and re-installed and I was assured by local 5 Star dealer #2, they would "make things right".

I have to tell you I was expecting the entire service for no charge ($1063) and said so. I would have probably even been happy with some sort of discount. I got squat.

Thanks to the stupendous service I've received locally with Dodge, I've decided to forget the new Viper and have put down a deposit on Ford's awesome new GT-40. I've had nothing but superior service (here in Denver) on 30 years worth of Ford vehicles.

I will have to give Dodge and Team Viper credit however... The GTS (sans service, of course) is a truly spectacular automobile and will continue to share garage space with the GT-40 when it arrives.

 

[GTS Dean]

Uhhhhhh....

Hmmmmmm.....

No comment.

 

[FrankBarba]

i'd like to be in line right behind you...ford didn't accept my deposit. is your dealer an svt authorized dealer? let me know..

 

[jimandela]

I asked about the 5 star issuance. When I called to complain about extremely poor (4-1/2hr wait for a oil change) on a 98 minivan.
I questioned "what can i do to have this dealership lose it 5 star rating?"
NOTHING!!

Aparently anyone (dealership)that asks to be 5 star is 5 star??

Sorry to hear you leaving Viper world but it is DC's own fault.

They should have a better check and balance... nice answer..
NOTHING!!!
Good luck with your Ford!!
JIM

 

[Steve Ferguson]

Wait until you get that great Ford service. I was a life long Ford backer, that was until I had an ugly incident. But after the years slipped away, it became evident that this is a dealer issue, not a corporate one, thus Fords have been back in my life. I hope your service goes better than mine?

 

[Janni]

Ya know what - while this problem of poor dealer service STARTS at the local / dealer level, I truly belive that it is a D-C problem. Somewhere, sometime the MANUFACTURER needs to take responsibility for the ethics and operation of their sales and service outlets. I know that the manufacturers cannot OWN dealerships - and I understand why. HOWEVER, every other manufacturer that has a semi-independent distributiuon channel has a system of checks and balances to make sure the sales *** service outlets are performing these services ot a level that is on par with the manufacturers product. If it isn't they lose the franchise.

5 Star, Blue Oval, blah blah blah - seems to be more another sign to buy than anything. Our EXCELLENT NC Viper dealer lost their 5 Star rating becasue they MOVED to a new facility - and could not get it back until they had operated for one year at the new location. Same owner, same GM, same Service manager. That tells me the system is flawed.

Let the manufacturer get wind that the dealer may be scamming them on warranty claims and they'll be there like white on rice. Let 4700 people complain about a dealer's service and they'll say that there is nothing that they can do. How come Lexus has such a loyal following? How can they manage to have dealers that treat the customer and their cars with respect? I had a Mercedes and was very pleased with the service. I am generally very happy with the service I get from my Dodge dealers. But I know that a local 5 star dealer left a comstomers Viper out in the RAIN with the WINDOW DOWN so that his owners manual is now watersoaked and stained... And ther eare MANY more horror stories.

Can we not put some teeth into this program so that you know when yo go into a 5 star dealer that the work will be performed correctly, efficiently and professionally? How about screening the Viper dealers? Same dealer mentioned above has their "Viper Sales Specialist" that could not name their Viper Tech 4 months ago and still cannot today! How about making sure a Viper selling and servicing dealer has an ultra low profile lift so that your sills won't be damaged? How about making sure that the Viper Techs get ANNUAL training? (Most get better constant training by reading this board)

I don't think we can place all the blame on the dealers - in this era of specialization, no one wants to clainm responsibility for an overall ownership experience, and yet that is what drives loyalty and repeat purchases. (try calling the cable modem folks when you have a wireless lan, router and a PC 0 each support desk will point to the other...) Let's link the front end of the store with the back end - make sure the sales people try to get you back for GOOD service. Cannot tell you how many cars I sold when a customer hd their old car in for service...

Perhpas things will improve as the economy is slowing and there are fewer ways to differentiate yourself to increase sales. (Have noticed recently the fast food experiences have been better - apparently due to the fact that hte employment screening process has been upgraded to something more than taking a pulse...) In the meantime, how about PVO looking into a better outlet for their products? How about PVO dealers with sales and service people EXCITED about the product? Wouldn't that be fun. How about making sure that the sales people know more than I do when I come in, or at least enough and don;t make stuf fup when they don't...

Look at the Woodhouse model - sales and service work together as does Parts - Bob brought Nancy Shanno to the ViperDays Finals so that she could put faces with names and we could meet her - THAT is what I am talking about.

I really don't think we are asking for too much.

Off soapbox...

 

[Steve Ferguson]

There is a chance your dream will be heard. There is a plan on the table to make sure Viper's are treated right at specified dealers. More should be out soon.

 

[Y2K5SRT]

First off, I hate to agree with you on service but I definitely will. I sat through my first local VCA meetings listening to horror stories about almost every 5-Star dealer in town. I have experienced mixed results with many of them myself - even when I stayed and watched the car personally (95% of the time). Joy rides, scratches (one dealer backed their parts truck into a friend's GTS in the outside lot), and much worse. Even my favorite local dealer (the lesser of several evils) is atrocious when it comes to scheduling - I end up waiting for hours to get work done. At least the tech is a decent guy and knows what he is doing. Having experienced Lexus service I had hopes that Viper service would be at least half that. Instead I find it mediocre at best, and it is worse because it is a Viper - it attracts all the lot attendants that want to drive it or lean all over it. Even found one guy half-sitting on the hood. And there was the time the lot cleaner went up with a leaf blower and proceeded to blow all the dirt and sand towards the car from every angle (four feet away).

I have had excellent service experiences with only two dealerships: Woodhouse (a couple hiccups quickly remedied) and Chuck Anderson Ford. Oh, and my experiences at other Ford dealerships besides these two were just as bad when I had my Navigators. Even had one Ford dealership take my SUV to lunch with six mechanics - when it was in for an oil change! I was standing in the service entrance (seething) when they pulled up with their drinks in hand...

As to the GT40, I would venture to say that it will come out under $100K, despite the "guesstimates" when it was simply a concept car. I am sure that you would have received similar estimates for the Viper before production was announced. Indeed, the powerplant in the GT40 is the same motor that is currently producing 380 HP in the Ford Lightning pickup truck. A few inexpensive (to Ford) tweaks and voila! 500 horsepower. The Viper motor is a $10,000+ hand-built engine, whereas the GT40 motor is a mass-produced V8. As with 99% of the show cars, some of the more expensive materials used for the concept are unlikely to make it to production. The "composite" body is probably the same as the Viper - composite resin. It's a gorgeous car that I wouldn't mind owning myself, but try to imagine the current Viper with a V8 selling for $100K+. Not a chance. I'll bet the GT40 ends up being a $75,000 vehicle. Of course that's just my opinion, I could be wrong...

Chris

 

[-RUNNR]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Y2KGTS:
I'll bet the GT40 ends up being a $75,000 vehicle. Of course that's just my opinion, I could be wrong...

Chris

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

For $75k there will be one in my garage. If they think they will get $150k from my poor butt they are sadly mistaken.

-- back to subject --

As far as service goes, there are horror stories about every dealer. I have never found a "clean" dealer. If you think one brand's service is any different from another brand, you are mistaken...

 

[fred]

After 42 years of buying a ton of cars, mostly new, I can tell you that from my perspective very little has changed in the way Dealers do their buisness. There are some good Dealers but many more poor ones. The internet is making more of them more competitive on price but service issues are still out there.
Car Dealers and Lawyers! Ughh

 

[Viper Wizard]

YES 5-STAR IS A #@**#!& JOKE!!

Before "Daimler" took over 5-star was something you [Dealer] EARNED and was NOT easy to get! There were very few 5-Star Dealers around.

When "D" took control they wanted more Dealers to become 5-Star [marketing!], so they droped the "Customer Ratings" to below average and tacked on a $400 price tag to get 5-Star! Today ANY Dealer can get 5-Star for $1100.

When "D" did that I told them to put it were the Sun Don't Shine!

Since 1972 when "Customer Satisfaction" or "5-Star" started and to this day we have busted our "Kahonnas" to mantain 100% Customer Satisfaction, from Neons to Vipers!!

In a nutshell DON'T GO BY 5-STAR, IT'S BS!!!!

DC I hope your reading this! Maybe you'll learn something?

[More then likely, NOT!

] If you want [DC] you can call me and I can tell you how it should work!

Hey RUNNR & fred,
There may be ONLY 10 "CLEAN" Dealers in this Country and I AM one of them! You are right, most of them ****!!

 

[Hostile]

Viper Wizard
I hate it when you sugar coat things,tell them how you really
feel LOL.

Skeeter

 

[SMCBUILDERSINC]

ANOTHER GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO MENTION HOW BAD SAVANNAH DODGE HAS TREATED SEVERAL OF US AS WELL. HERES A THOUGHT


TO ALL THE EMPLOYEES OF DAIMLER WHO ARE CRUISING THIS BOARD, TAKE NOTICE, YOU ARE LOSING POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS, PEOPLE ARE UPSET, YOUR SERVICE *****, YOUR STANDARDS ARE SUB-PAR. STEP UP TO THE PLATE, FAST TO ACCEPT PAYMENT FOR A VIPER BUT SLOW TO HELP ANYONE OUT WHEN YOUR PRODUCT FAILS. GET THE HINT.....


AND I REMAIN,
ANOTHER PISSED ON VIPER OWNER

 

[Viper Wizard]

Hostile,
I'm making a fist and one finger is pointed UP!

[Hows that!]

24 Hrs. Later--The Other Hand Is Closing. BP IS UP!

<FONT COLOR="#ff0000" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Viper Wizard on 02-22-2002 at 08:10 PM</font>

 

[Matt M PA]

I too really like the GT40...but the target price is too steep for me....$150,000 to $200,000. The GT40 would have been REALLY tempting, but not at that number.