mazdadude
ZOOOOOOOOOM ZOOOOOOOOOM
- :
- '16.5 Mazda CX-5 Touring
Gawd, I wish I had your dealership. (bowdown) I'm so jealous. I hate you. (kiss)
If you are in Nor-Cal I can recommend 1.
Gawd, I wish I had your dealership. (bowdown) I'm so jealous. I hate you. (kiss)
Hold on, you spoke to two dealerships who hung up on you half way through your conversation. How long were your conversations with them? you were asking about the difference between the left and right strut assembly? Can you describe the questions that you were asking of the service department. It might help to clarify what exactly was going on, as well, some on here might be able to answer your questions.
So--How would anyone in the service department know you paid cash for your car?
Are you suggesting you should be treated better than someone who financed their car?
Or bought a base level Mazda 3?
There's no excuse for bad customer service--but it should have nothing to do with how you paid for your car.
Did you point out to any of them that you paid cash? Because that would make me want to hang up too...(eek)
It's actually only in the US right now and is being offered by manufacturers like Volvo, Cadillac and Porsche and by independent companies like Clutch Technologies.
Your vehicle, insurance, registration, detailing and maintenance is all covered with a flat rate monthly fee, all you have to do is put gas in it.
When you want to switch to something different, like SUV to Sedan, you contact them and they bring a replacement to you.
With services like this and Tesla and Genesis offering full concierge services with their vehicles, maybe one day I won't have to see the dealership at all.
Could it be possible that a lot of people including us here on this forum just have too much expectation from dealerships/service centers?
...now that I own a Mazda I basically adjusted and lowered my expectations so as not to be too hung up and disappointed in case ecxpectations were not fully met but so far my local Mazda dealership is fine.
Come to think of it most of us will only get to deal with the service shop 2-3 times a year for those regular maintenance and any other defect/recall/warranty work and that's only less than 1% of the time. Of course major defects and repairs are an exception...
We also have to understand that these people who work at dealerships/manufacturers are people like us who also work for a living and are car owners like us and may not be perfect at times...the point is to maybe revisit our expectations...just a reality check. I totally agree that if service is bad that it has to be pointed out.
Not sure here but did you try and contact the salesperson who sold you the vehicle? I sometimes do that in cases I can't get a hold of the service dept...I always hold these salespeople on their commitment when they sell you the vehicle that they'll look after you and your business even after your purchase. Though they may not be able to answer your technical or service inquiry at least they can either get it for you or get a hold of someone from service dept to contact you back
My dealer has been wonderful. Owned 3 Mazda’s, all serviced and purchased the same dealer. Nothing but praise to go around.
Honestly, from a few posts you have made, you keep bringing up that you paid cash, or are offended that the dealer has to verify your identity via your social security number (federally mandated BTW), you sound pompous. Not saying you are, but perhaps during your conversation with the dealer that “hung up” on you, the conversation went in that direction? Not making any accusations here, just stating what I’ve observed.
I’m just trying to understand why a business would hang up on a customer, and it’s usually well deserved. Unless there was a phone issue on their end. Just sayin’.....
Answering the phone without hanging up? If I can't expect at least that much, I'm not quite sure what "too much" means, really. I called back the next day and finally got through to three dealers. One of the questions I asked was for the per quart price on Mazda's Hypoid Gear Oil SG1 fluid for the rear differential and transfer case.
- One dealer told me (I'm not making this up) they don't carry Mazda's Hypoid Gear Oil SG1 in stock, that it would need to be ordered and that it would take 1 week for delivery to the dealer.
- One dealer told me they had it in stock for $17/qt
- One dealer told me they had it in stock for $58/qt
In the case of the first dealer, how on earth do service vehicles at all without stocking one of the primary fluids so necessary for service! I felt sorry for the guy in parts on the phone that I did not even ask him that question. I have a heart and did not want to embarrass him on the phone. You could hear in his voice that he knew it made no sense - yet that's the answer he gave. It was almost as if he was afraid that the other shoe would drop and I would ask the question, but I simply let it go and told him to have a great day. It was embarrassing for both of us, really. No Rear Differential Fluid anywhere in the dealership! Come on - what's going on here.
In the other two cases, why would there be such a massive differential in pricing for the exact same product. They all repeated the name of the product back to me, so this was no misunderstanding or confusing Mazda ATF FZ with Mazda Hypoid Gear Oil SG1. There is a $41 differential here and no explanation as to why.
My expectations when spending my hard earned cash on a brand new vehicle are reasonable.
- Please deliver a new vehicle without prior damage of any kind. This expectation was violated.
- Please handle my vehicle with care when brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs. This expectation was violated.
- Please have the facility to take care of any service, maintenance and/or repair when needed. This expectation was violated.
- Please make a genuine effort to offer fair pricing. This expectation was violated.
- Please do not cause additional damage to my vehicle after it has been brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs. This expectation was violated.
I don't know what others deem "reasonable expectations" but I believe this to be reasonable.
This might be ok for Dating, but not for Buying! Lowering expectations on your capital going out the door is not good management of capital. You have a right to maintain your standards and they should be high enough to at least meet the above minimums I outlined above.
Unless you were like me and many others who once upon a time bought a brand new Lemon straight from the factory and then spent countless days, weeks and months trying to get Managers, Regional Managers and dealership Owners to solve problems that you did not create and were of no fault of your own. I've heard of stories where Mazda bought back defective vehicles and I must admit, those stories do make me feel good about Mazda proper. But, we are talking about Dealers here and I'm just wondering if it is time for this whole "Dealer Model" thing to go the way of the ole Brontosaurus - bye, bye.
Do we really need Dealers?
Can't the Manufacturer tool up for an extension of their current business model to take care of service, maintenance and repairs?
Why not simply Buy Direct from Manufacturer?
There's got to be a better way than this current Dealer Model. It is broken - severely.
I walked in on a mechanic who was pounding the crap out of my brand new Corvette once. He was literally pounding on a door panel with all of his weight. The car was being brutalized by this guy all because he could not get the interior door panel to snap into place on the door. He saw me come around the corner towards his secluded bay and turned blue in the face. Without me saying a word (I just looked with my jaw on the floor), he said and I quote: "I've got to fix it - right? Sometimes it just won't cooperate." I never said a word to him. His conscious got the better of him and he offered that little insight into his brain. In his mind, because the car "won't cooperate," he has to cause extraneous damage that was not there before I brought the car in for work.
The fitment of that door was never the same. The air seal was gone. It leaked when it rained. It leaked when I washed the car by hand. It rattled when driven on the freeway. The window popped when raised fully. The interior elbow rest creaked when leaned on while driving. He got the panel back on, but he destroyed what was a perfectly sound door in order to do it. And, that was just one of the many sagas that I had with that dealership over this Corvette.
Dealers who create BRAND NEW problems that never existed before you bring the car to them, are dealerships that should be put out of business entirely, IMO. But, hey - maybe my expectations are too high.
Companies find ways to show their appreciation for customers at all levels. However, I seriously doubt that FedEx or UPS is giving me the same sweet deal that it gives to Amazon and for pretty good reason - Amazon is driving a level of revenue to FedEx and UPS that I will never match. I'm fairly confident that the Toll Free 800 Number Amazon uses to contact FedEx and UPS about lost or delayed packages is not the same "Toll Free 800 Number" that you or I get. Once again, for very good reason, no doubt.
Wow, never heard of "so many issues"...maybe either dispose of vehicle and switch to a diff brand or just find other dealers or try diff service centers would be your options.
Unfortunately we cannot change the world right?
Your expectations are definitely different than mine and other owners and will never be the same as these are subjective same as the level of satisfaction. What's reasonable to you may not be reasonable to me or vice versa.
- Please deliver a new vehicle without prior damage of any kind. This expectation was violated.
- Please handle my vehicle with care when brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs. This expectation was violated.
- Please have the facility to take care of any service, maintenance and/or repair when needed. This expectation was violated.
- Please make a genuine effort to offer fair pricing. This expectation was violated.
- Please do not cause additional damage to my vehicle after it has been brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs. This expectation was violated.
That's why companies have standards they adhere to.
The ultimate question now is - what are you going to do about your experiences?
If you think that the fact that you bought Mazda's most expensive vehicle, that you now are somehow on par with being a corporate account ala FedEx serving Amazon, you have a lot to learn about business.
Customer Service Foundation Principle 101: Every single contact a Customer or Potential Customer has with your organization needs to be positively memorable for all the right reasons. Absent that net/net result - you are not doing your job in the public facing role of Customer Service & Support.
This is not rocket science.
Correct--except that you said that you deserve better because you bought a top of the line vehicle, and not an entry level compact, and made the comparison to the FedEx account with Amazon.
...If this is the kind of treatment that I can expect after paying cash for the Mazda Flagship on just a phone call, I can't imagine what would happen if I dared take my now beloved Signature into one of these dealerships for service and/or repairs...
I picked the Mazda CX-9 Signature because it was 85% of the Volvo XC-90 Inscription at 50% the cost - a logical choice. If I have to drive 100 miles to locate a dealer with the right attitude, then I will do exactly that. Or, if I have to find a local Independent Mechanic schooled/trained in Mazda technology with an attitude of genuine customer service, then I'm willing to hunt that down as well (if it exists).
Funny. I always thought the world was what we make of it.
The antithesis would be the following:
- Please deliver a new vehicle with prior damage.
- Please do not handle my vehicle with care when brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs.
- Please have limited or no facility to take care of any service, maintenance and/or repair when needed.
- Please make no genuine effort to offer fair pricing.
- Please cause additional damage to my vehicle after it has been brought in for service, maintenance and/or repairs.
I (personally) can't think of anyone who would prefer the antithesis - including those employees who work at Dealerships. Lord knows they would want the antipode when they are on the buying end.
I know of a GM Dealer that ultimately was put out of business because they routinely violated those five (5) baseline standards above. They existed in a very affluent, high net worth area when they finally went under after putting too many customers through the grind. Karma? Who knows. However, standards do apparently matter to some new vehicle buyers.
My gut tells me that finding a trusted former Mazda Wrench with core integrity and his/her own shop would be the absolute best thing in the world for my new CX-9 Signature. I'm on the hunt for it. I hope I can find it. It would be a huge (massive) victory, if I can.
In truth, I would actually not have a problem in paying him/her more than what I would pay the dealer. Why? Because I would know that I could trust him/her. And, that's what it boils down to... Trust. I don't have that with most dealers on the planet. They have given me ample reason not to trust them. I have long (well documented) reasons for not trusting them and they keep verifying my findings and conclusions about them every chance they get.
To not be able to professionally handle something as simple as a phone call is not just wrong - it is embarrassing.
Buyers needs new model. It is time.
No, that's what you said because you are having a hard time reading prose in context. But, that's not my issue - getting my CX-9 serviced properly by a reputable dealer.... now that's my issue indeed. The written prose say "especially."
"Especially," does not preclude "other" but it does leave the door wide open for those green with envy to assume they are being excluded. So, which is it - can you read prose in their proper context -or- are you green with envy that somebody bought a CX-9 Signature using cash? Either way, it is your problem to contend with.
Assumption is the mother of all misunderstanding and the great granddaughter of all amusement. Stop assuming. Start reading (and comprehending) in the full (and proper) context given. Thank you.
That is inclusive of a buyer's common sense not a pretextual requirement of dealer behavior. The contextual requirement followed in the body of the complaint. Clearly, you misaligned the prose and injected your own conclusions - based on what evidence?
Anyone paying top dollar for the best a company has to offer deserves and should expect that at least a phone call would be handled properly (at the very least) as a matter of straight forward common sense. Any other expectation would be a novel rejection of common sense and better judgement at best.
Hell yes - because I paid cash for the Flagship, do I then want a dealer to at least be able to handle a phone call. Are you kidding me - you can't be seriously offering some kind of rational argument against this line of reasoning, could you? I don't see how anyone could and maintain a straight face while doing it, quite frankly.
Cash + Flagship = Answer the Phone Professionally. Period. No questions asked. Indeed, without question.
Anymore questions?
Find a good mechanic and don’t even look back,
..unless you want a bunch of monkeys working on your car while robbing you of your money.
The BMW dealerships can be even worse in terms of customer service, yet those buyers have paid substantially more.
Personally, I believe anyone who buys a car from Mazda, regardless whether it is a base model Mazda 3 or top of the line CX-9 signature is entitled to good customer service. Unfortunately much of the time, this is not what you get. I haven’t brought my car back to the dealer not once, I don’t need the hassle.
If you find a fair reputable mechanic that works on a variety of different cars without an issue, he can work on your Mazda.
Japanese vehicles are more logically engineered in terms of DIY intuivitiy compared to the more expensive German/British Marques.
Best of luck with your search whether it’s a real mechanic or the dealer.