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Comments
By, the way I haven't had any problems except a few minor problems initially since we bought the vehicle and it's been all the way from the heat of South Florida (where I live) to the tops of the Adirondack and Smoky Mountains. So we've given it a good workout. I'm seeing soooo many more on the road here in the Fort Lauderdale area and it's kind of neat to know I was the 1st to own one here in my area. When we went up north we saw them all over the place. Looks like Buick has a winner!!
Anyway, here's some articles that may help:
Warranty Tips & Advice
The Finance, Warranty & Insurance board has a few warranty discussions (more in the archives), and this one you may want to browse:
"Warranty Gold" Claims
Steve, Host
In referring to your first diagram - if I attach the cover to H1,2,3, and 4, that's when I get the sagging. If I attach it to H1,2,5, and 6, then I don't get the sag, but the cover now cuts the storage area in half.
My salesman was going to try to find out what is and isn't the right way to install it. I think today I should call him back.
Is there a good spot on an RDV to stash a key? (Maybe this shouldn't be posted in public for obvious reasons. I can be emailed at evely7 "at" tokyo "dot" c o m .)
Other than the possibility of a bad guy finding a poorly-hidden key, is there a reason not to stash a key like this?
Thanks for any ideas and input.
I'll keep ya posted.
I keep a key hidden under my back bumber and have had to use it a couple of times. I figure a crook will hotwire my car before he'll crawl around underneath looking for the hidden key.
Steve, Host
LoL! Don't count on it - they know every trick in the book and then some.
tidester, host
Another perk of driving a MV; no one wants to steal it anyway, and if they do it's not going to be a great loss!
Interestingly enough, "of the 200,000 calls Onstar advisers receive each month, about 500 are to report stolen vehicles." link
Plus, "the distinctive OnStar antennas are actually a deterrent to some car thieves." link (maybe I need to steal one of those for my van? j/k!).
Steve, Host
Warranty Info Link from RDV Forum
Glad to hear you're enjoying your RDV.
islandpete: Yeah, I'm kind of like you. I seldom drive the RDV. My wife drives it all the time and loves it. And I agree w/ you, the RDV Key Fob is a joke. I'm surprised the other regulars here haven't commented on it. There should be a recall or a "fix" for it. The question is, will enough people make enough noise. Or do we just kind of sit back and except an inferior situation on what is suppose to be a "quality vehicle"? It seems given a choice, the big carmakers, GM or Ford, or whoever will hide there heads in the sand if they can. Hopefully they don't do so with this issue.
Anyway, it's good to see you on the boards again. Take care.
John B.
Sorry, I guess it's a regional problem.
Just changed the oil last weekend. DIC oil monitor warning came on at about 4500 miles. Used Mobil-1 oil and filter.
other times opens from 60-70 ft away. Where is the receiver for these
radio signals located on RDV or LeSabre?
I think at times when mine worked at great distances there was some
metal next to the car that bounced a signal toward the car giving a
higher strength signal received.
Is the receiver in the rear view mirror along with other dimming electronics?
Or is it in the rear 3rd tailight assembly?
I'll ask my service manager the next time I'm there.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Islandpetes Key Fob Results(N.Y.)
Paulmlac Key Fob Results - Midwest
Meanwhile, you won't belive this... We got the RDV out from "service" last Friday. They've had our car practically a month. When I picked it up, it was filthy; exterior dirt everywhere. On this visit we told them that one of the second row cup holders had broke and that it needed to be fixed. Well, when I came to pick the car up, they said their repair guy couldn't figure where the cup holder came from. The service writer asked, perhaps I mistakenly got it out of another car...???? Hello !!! These guys supposedly work on them every week; they sell them across the street at their "sales lot". And supposedly their service manager drove a RDV for 6 months. Yet they couldn't find where the cupholder went. Nor did they bother to phone me ask for some "guidance'. And so I showed them that afternoon when the car was suppose to be ready.
The clock/radio was supposed to have been changed for the second time now due to the incorrect time problem. Well, after I got on the road and was about to pick up the kids at 3 pm from school, I realized the clock was 10 minutes slow. I called the manager on this point too, and he said, "Well, that shouldn't have happened." And oh yeah, while I told the manager that I was extremely dissatisfied w/ everything that's happened at his shop (btw, you may recall they wrecked my rack & pinion steering in their shop while they were replacing the transmission) he said, you know you can always go some place else.
I am about to fire off a letter to Buick/GM. If anyone knows the best place to send such a letter to report a pathetic Buick/GM "service" shop, please let me know. At, this point, you might say that I am extremely dissatisfied w/ GM and Buick. Given a choice, I'd probably buy Honda or Toyota. My mechanic had counselled me as such before I made the RDV purchase 18 months ago, but I thought Buick would prove to be a quality Company. Boy was I fooled. Chalk this one up to the "School of Hard knocks".
John B.
Your dealerships service department certainly sounds completely inept to me. They have caused you nothing but grief, and it is completely their fault.
I would certainly write a letter to Buick and let the brand manager know (is it still Jack Bowen?) what you've been through but especially, I'd write a letter to the owner of the dealership...you may yet get some well deserved satisfaction.
Keep us posted, huh?
Brian
P.S. Even if you bail on us and get a Honda, we'll still like you.
manager? I would give them a chance to explain
they have an employee problem or other explanation. Be sure to quote that "you can go somewhere else" speech.
Then write to Buick. All Buick will do is fax
a copy of your letter back to whomever at the dealership handles the filter-down problems. But
that might get things taken care of..., and irritate someone in charge that you didn't come to them first...
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
It's hardly what you expected when you shelled
out $28K (or what ever you spent) for your new RDV.
The cup thing speaks volumes, alittle thing for them to take care after all the other repairs. It shows what they think about your business.
Edmunds is providing you with an outlet to let us all know who and where this dealership is.
Those guys deserve some kind of consequence for their treatment of you and the situation.
Good luck
I sat down w/ the general manager today. We discussed the issues for about an hour. Some interesting revelations came up. He said they cannot wash a car at their premises because it was against the law. He said they'd have to spend about $150,000 to get a "water separator" in order to allow them to legally wash cars. I suggested, perhaps driving it to one of those spray & wash or drive-through car washes. He somehow rationalized that they couldn't afford to send a mechanic on a test drive through a car wash with the cost of benefits and such. I asked, "Can you afford to lose a customer?".
He seemed a bit surprised that his "technicians" couldn't find where the cupholder went; or that the clock came back to me with the wrong time. Through it all though, he admitted they've had some lousy service at their facility for a number of months. He attributed it to poor management decisions.
He explained away his service manager telling me, "You know, you can always go somewhere else", by saying, you know, we all have bad days and perhaps that was one of his. Well, maybe so, but that won't keep me there as a customer.
At the end, he had the service manager come in and apoligize, and the GM did as well. But you know, it's like when you know a restaurant serves bad food, you're not likely to feel comfortable going back. The only "reaching out" he tried to do for me was to sell me an extended warranty. That might have been music to mmeehan's ears, but not mine at the moment.
As the general manager seemed to be covering for the service manager and his own management style, I'd like to inform GM/Buick of the situation. I'd hate to think that other people, spending hard earned money, will need to experience the pathetic service that we have over the past 4 months. In that regard, fedlawman, or whoever knows, should I drop a line to the Brand Manager? Or who would actually care enough to do something about this dealerships's problems? Thanks again for you ideas and your support.
PS: How do I find out the CSI Standings (Consumer Satisfaction Index) of other local Buick service facilities. Is there a place to get "true" service information; or is this kept a secret. Thanks again.
John B.
Steve, Host
I always recall the auto dealer in Cincy who had $400 in pinstriping, 3m spray spot repellant on the the seats, and a wax job with a special name and charged more than $400 ($485) seems
familiar for the $40 worth of items. I'll bet that bought a lot of baseballs and bats for the dealer!
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Not sure where in N. Cal you are, but several GM dealers in the SJ area have on-site car washers. Even a lowly oil change gets you a free wash. Problem is, the dealers are so busy you have get an appointment a week in advance.
Incidentally this "service" place is Colma Buick, Pontiac, GMC - I'd recommend avoiding them at all costs.
I can easily go to Burlingame Buick or pehaps to SF Buick. But before I do, I'd like to get some "independent" verification as to how good or bad these places are. I don't imagine they can get worse than Colma Buick, Pontiac, GMC. If anyone knows how to find this kind of info, that'd be great!
Also, I had inquired earlier, does anyone know who, at the corporate level, would do the most w/ this kind of feedback. Thanks for any advice.
John B.
The service department, however, I cannot speak for since I'm out here in Stockton and our RDV hasn't hit any service issues being only 2700 miles right now.
Sincerely hope your troubles end though.... feeling for you.
Took it out in 10" of New England snow this morning and was amazed. Between the handling in winter weather and the sit-up-high feeling, I think we've made a very good choice. Let's hope we feel this way a year from now.
Thanks to all for your comments and insights.
There is no contest here, Rendezvous quality and reliability are both very good and it's resale will be better also.
At 60, I'm surprised your dad isn't looking at the Grand Marquis, which is also a good value, but not an SUV.
Regarding Kia, some swear they have turned the corner and could be a budding "Honda". Are ya feelin lucky ?
What do you think i should start haggling at? no trade in and cash purchase!
...you should see what the Kia site says about RDV's....I'm torn at what to believe!..regarding my dad being 60....a young 60.
I've had to convince them to go for something other than a Toyota...My wife and I have been pretty much been given the chore of "you pick it"...
When you get them under a couple of hundred bucks, they will agree, but then try and get it right back with the "local and national ad fees".
What are they saying at the Kia site ? Can you post the link ?
BRAKES, 4-WHEEL PWR DISC ABS $600.00
CX FWD PACKAGE NO CHARGE
DRIVER/FRONT PASS SIDE AIR BAGS $350.00
TRACTION CONTROL $175.00
TOTAL OPTIONS $1,125.00
TOTAL VEHICLE & OPTIONS
$26,245.00
DESTINATION CHARGE
$625.00
___________
TOTAL VEHICLE PRICE* $26,870.00
.
The front and side views of the RDV look good to me, regarding the rear view, it could be better but "Butt Ugly" is going alittle too far.
If the RDV wasn't built in Mexico, you could sell your Dad on the American vs Korea issue.
Is he a NAFTA fan ?
To be honest, invoice with a 4K reabte is not a bad deal at all if you choose the RDV ! IMO
That said, I think it's important to note that both cfocfo and dindak are NOT Rendezvous owners, and yet they've had kind words for the vehicle in this forum for nearly two years now in the case of dindak and almost as long for cfocfo. I might quibble with particular opinions that they might hold, but both individuals have been balanced in their comments in my opinion.
CWJ
I guess as you say it is down to personal choice. My theory with the RDV was...If I could get a 28K car for around 22K with the rebates and haggling, then that seems like a sweet deal...but I've not driven it yet and may not like it. However, it does appears that both KIA and RDV owners are generally very pleased with their cars.... no one who owns one has said "Do not buy it"...so far!
One issue that may be a non-issue is the "availability of parts". My mechanic (non-Buick, thank God!) recently told me of a customer situation where a part for a Hyundai or another Korean-make car (Not Kia, I know) was not even available, at all... I know it doesn't make sense, but that's what happened to one of his customers.
Now strange as it sounds on "part availability", I've been waiting almost 2 weeks, not counting the week Buick "service" had my car and couldn't figure where it went/came from, for my 2nd row cup holder. Not a pressing issue by any means, but a symptom of Buick's poor service which is "not all good".
All-in-all, I'd think GM would have an overall better chance of always providing parts for your car 3-5 years down the road, even if it does take a while.
Good luck w/ whatever car suits you.
John B.
Buick Rendezvous AWD : 18/24
On average the Sorento gets 4.5 mpg less, that adds up, especially when gas is $2 / gallon in some places now.
When the low fuel light first comes on, about how much gas is left in the tank?
When the gas gauge points to the bottom of the scale ("empty"), about how much gas is left?
I happen to live in an area where gas prices vary widely depending on where you are. Driving another 15 miles might save me 20 cents a gallon or more, but it won't be worth it if I run out of gas on the way.
Thanks for any thoughts here.