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How to Effectively Complain about your Car Problem
What "tricks of the trade" have you used to get your dealer or automaker to go the extra mile to fix your car?
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For out-of-warranty things, a couple times over the years I have written an email to Customer Service at headquarters, politely explaining my situation, why I'm disappointed, and reiterating that I've had (fill in the number) of their new products over the years, and that my beef isn't with the dealer--it's this specific product. I also reiterate that I utilize the dealer for routine service stops.
I've had great luck just doing the above couple things. But then also, I don't 'turn the radio up' if something in the vehicle doesn't seem right. I get it in soon.
People think that if they publicly complain, they will get their stuff fixed faster, but I would guess that most companies don't have staff that are solely dedicated to answering Facebook or Twitter comments. I get to it when I can (always within a few hours) but the whole process would be faster if people would go ahead and make their public complaints, but then send a direct message with their contact info."
Help Us Help You: One Company's Social Media Rep Explains How To Get Complaints Resolved (consumerist.com)
Dropped it off at dealer two or three times only to get the 'could not re-create' answer, likely do to the fact that by the time they got to it the black vehicle had been cooking in the early morning sun and had gotten to warm to re-create. I did persist though and managed to take a lunch time ride to dealer on a really cold day when it didn't get warmed up enough circumvent problem and they had a tech walk out just to prove the light was on. Annoying , but got to where we needed to be to attempt fix.
Carrie Carvalho of Arlington, Mass., used a little-known tactic: Filing a formal defect petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, requiring the agency to review her concern."
Petition by Owner Prompts Recall of 183,000 Honda Vehicles (NY Times)
Winter driving will always consume more fuel especially if you live in a region where you have snow or slippery roads where your AWD is constantly engaged, therefore using more fuel.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Of course, they could not replicate when I left the car on several occasions. This is a smallish GM dealer, and customer service is their hallmark. It's the main reason I do all my business there.
Usually the same mechanic works on your car, so I asked to leave the car and have the serviceman drive it as his personnel vehicle until it could be solved. In the third week, it finally replicated, and he had his OB? scanner plugged in, and got a code. It turned out to be a crimped wiring harness.
Car was returned completely fixed with a full tank of gas!
Then there was the time I got a seat on the last flight out of Atlanta because I was the only bumped passenger from the cancelled earlier flight that asked rather than demanded. The desk and gate agents made sure everyone at that gate waiting to be called for standby knew that my being considerate got me the last seat.
Safety Complaints
What you should do. If you discover that something you bought is defective -- even after the written warranty has expired -- contact the retailer and manufacturer to ask for a repair, replacement or refund. It doesn't matter what the retailer's return policy is."
With warranty protection, you have more rights than you think (courant.com)
In a typical lemon-law case, a lone consumer starts with arbitration, generally choosing among arbitration firms approved under each state’s lemon law. If the outcome is unsatisfactory, there are provisions to appeal, including the courts.
But now a few automakers are trying to do away with those resources by taking advantage of something consumers have done for decades when buying a vehicle: signing an agreement with the dealer to use arbitration to resolve disputes. Some automakers — including Honda, Toyota and Mercedes-Benz — are arguing that these sales agreements cover them, too."
Automakers Push Back Against Consumer Protections (New York Times)
I am sorry to hear about your misfortunes, but I really don't think you can hold Kia to task for this. The car is 13 years old. Literally, exactly, unequivocally, 13 years old. Out in the real world, is there any manufactured item that we would hold the manufacturer responsible for after 13 years?
Offhand, I can think of one - Zippo lighters. You can run over a Zippo with a piece of heavy equipment, squash it flat, send it back and they will replace it. No questions asked.
There used to be one other. When I was a kid, back in the last millenium, my father always bought Sears Craftsman hand tools. Sears stood behind the Craftsman hand tools, no matter what you did to it, they would fix it or replace it. But that stopped several decades ago, and I no longer buy anything from Sears.
Back to your story - Do you really think Kia should stand behind their car 13 years later? I don't.
Facebook - Scion tC and XB - Defective Trunk Hatch Handle.
Toyota had a TSB out but now they are paying for the fix via a warranty enhancement.
Sometimes the car company decides it's smarter not to fight.
"Toyota Motor (TM) has learned to say “uncle” when it comes to sudden-acceleration claims. Just a few weeks ago, the giant Japanese carmaker was still talking tough in public about fighting hundreds of lawsuits alleging that its vehicles were prone to accelerate without warning, causing injuries and deaths. Not anymore."
“Despite nearly three years of litigating this case and unprecedented access to Toyota’s source code, plaintiff’s counsel have never replicated unintended acceleration in a Toyota vehicle and have failed to demonstrate that any alleged defect actually caused” accidents, she told me. But pretrial rulings by Judge Selna apparently made Toyota reconsider.
Toyota Adds Relief for Buyers Hurt by Government Shutdown (Business Week)