Durango to Hell!

So, this guy brings his 2006 Durango in because it had an unfortunate meeting with the curb.  He drops the car off Friday.  We put it on the rack and not only has he taken an eight inch chunk off the edge of the passenger front rim, he hit it hard enough to bend the torsion bar.  Now, the bar was special order but we got it overnighted for him and we got the new rim from dodge. 

I signed for these parts late Saturday afternoon and the mechanic got to work removing the old bar from the truck.  We sit these bas down next to each other and we’re all scratching our heads because they don’t match.  Well, it’s 5:30 on a Saturday in Vegas and the dealer has closed.  This is when the fun began.

I talked to the customer (I’ll call him AH):

Me: “I’m sorry to tell you, but your truck isn’t going to be ready tonight beca-”

AH: “What the F*CK do you mean it isn’t going to be finished tonight?  My truck has been there two days now!  What kind of incompetent @ssh*les are you guys?  Oh, my truck is going to be finished tonight, I don’t care who finishes it!  You can take your @$$ out there and do it yourself and I’m not gonna pay for it!”

Me: “Yeah, so if you want anything done to this vehicle, you’re gonna talk to me like you’re a grownup.  You aren’t gonna talk to me like I’m your child, that’s not how you get things done.”

AH: “I have this f*cking rental car and I’m not trying to keep paying for it while you guys scratch your asses.  I want my truck back!”

Me: “Like I said, you yelling at me isn’t going to accomplish anything.  I’m driving my car home tonight so you aren’t hurting me with all this nonsense.  We didn’t expect the vehicle to be done until Monday and that still stands because the mechanic is off on Sunday anyway.”

Wrong thing to say…

AH: “I want to talk to the f*cking manager now!”

Me: “Let me get him.”

I got my manager and he picked up the phone.  I assume he was still foul mouthed because my manager told him that he could talk to the Service manager on Monday and he wasn’t going to listen to him anymore and he hung up the phone.

Nothing got accomplished on Sunday because the car dealerships are closed on Sunday. (This did not help the customer’s foul attitude.)

Monday, we call Dodge and they let us know that they sent us the left torsion bar and not the right according to the part number on the bar.  We ordered the correct part and got it overnighted.

Tragically, Tuesday Dodge called us to let us know that the part is on national backorder and it may be a few weeks before we see it.  We call the customer to let him know.  Again, my manager handled this call and the customer let him know he’d come later to kick our asses, he told him to bring it.

He came in and let loose.  We’re all incompetentwe shouldn’t be let loose around cars and he wants his truck fixed NOW!  About halfway through his rant, my manager relaxed and got a smile on his face.  This might have been because the customer was questioning whose fault it was that his truck wasn’t finished.  We didn’t tell him that it was probably his fault for hitting the curb in a 2006 model vehicle. When the tirade was over, he told AH that if he wanted his truck back tonight, he could have it. 

He went in the shop, got the old torsion bar and put it back into the truck, put the broken rim on it and had the guys push it out of the shop.  He walked back up front and handed the keys to this guy and told him he could have it.

Now, most people don’t come to the shop because they’re looking to drop a few hundred dollars.  Of course we realize that our customers have lives and that they need thier cars, but we don’t always have control over parts, especially on new cars.  We’re even willing to help eat the cost of repairs if something goes wrong and the customer ends up not having thier car for a few days.  We’ll try to help with rental cars, taxis, rides home, soda, whatever.  However, when your anger takes control and you can’t help but call us names, we aren’t so willing to do anything for you.  Even if that means we’re going to lose money or a customer.  Now, had this guy been nice, he pobably could have gotten his labor for free, instead, he ended up paying to get his truck towed. 

We’ve all been on the other side of the counter and we’ve all been screwed, but I can say I’ve never cussed out my service writer because I knew that everything isn’t thier fault.  So, a note to the public, be nice through your anger, or at least civil and most people will bend over backwards to please you, but too many names will get you nowhere (because your car won’t get fixed).

Another topic I’d like to touch on is engine oil.  Believe it or not people, you car/truck/van can only take so much oil before it starts to have problems.  This guy came in with a 2000 Sebring.  He left the car with his ex-wife for a few days and when he brought it home and the next day there was oil on his driveway.

Oh yeah, we brought this into the shop and it was horrible.  It was about two quarts overfull, and she blew the front main seal, the oil pan gasket was leaking the plugs were soaked, just problems.  We imagine that it had to have a few more quarts in it because he didnt add any oil and it was leaking like nobody’s business.  Apparently, on this model vehicle, the crankshaft has to come out partially to replace the front seal and it calls for like 9 hours of labor. 

Strangely, the same day, this woman brings her mom’s 98 Escort in because it also seems to have too much oil.  I asked the lady how she knew, she said the dipstick had no oil on it so she added a quart, then another.  Finally, she bought the gallon size oil and added it.  I went to her car to assess the situation.  Well, the dipstick read full…like, 3/4 of the way up the dipstick full.  She didn’t seem to have any other issues, so we hooked her up, fixed her oil problem and advised her to take the car to get serviced regularly (after we showed her how to read the dipstick).

The Sebing, well, we fixed the oil level, but he declined further repairs.  We released the car to him (after we advised him to keep his car away from the ex).

In the end, this is all I have to say: 

1. Don’t be an AH

2. Ex + car = thousands (duh!)

3. If mom’s oil is low, get an oil change.