Getting my oil changed today at Toyota of Huntington Beach.... 19.95 plus they wash it (i think). Im prepared for rude service and unexplained answers! wish me luck!

 

My tire guy rotates my tires for free every 5000 miles and while I'm in there he does my oil change for $12.95. You can't beat that for $12.95 and no hassle.



Brian

 

actually i got my last oil change for 11.95 at a stealership. They were having some sale so I just brought it in cuz I was too lazy to do it myself.

 

Make sure you check all the bolts and filter once you get it back...they didnt tighten my oil pan bolt properly on my dads 4runner....of course leaked all over the place....went back and got them to do it again.

 

well i just got it back... the service guy had a very bad attitude... you know that attitude when you've been doing a job for so long that you dont show any appreciation to the customer? ya thats what i got

but while i was getting my oil change done, i started walking around teh new and used car parking lots. not one person came up to me. finallly i went up to some guy just started talking about this supra that somebody brought in. he was shocked when he discovered that nobody had helped me yet. he was 22 and recognized my last name, probably from my brother.

i told him i wanted either a 4runner or tacoma, and it must be a 4x4. we started looking around, and the only used 4x4s he had were 3 tacos, but they were all 4cyls, and i just walked on by those

then we started looking at the new 4runners... he wanted to put me in a 2003 4runner 4x4. they had the one i wanted.. sweet ass car, fully loaded. i told him all about how im leaving for the marines soon, and he totally respected me like a human being, especially for a dealer. anyway, i know that he would bend over backwards to sell me a car, not because for his business, but because of my marine corps involvement.

i blabbered on a lot about the third gen 4runners.. the mentioned they only made a locker from 96-2000, that confused him. i laughed my ass off, he had no idea what a locker was. he drives a little toyota spider, tiny little sports car. awesome guy though. he forgot to give me his card though, lol

we'll see what i can do.

finally they called my name over the loud speaker

i went and paid.. and they called my number for hte guy to pull my car up.

i waited

and waited

and waited

finally some guy went around asking people if they're waiting, and i said ya. they called my number again. finally 20 minutes after i pay for it, i got my car back.

price was 20 bucks and i got a coupon for a free car wash, not bad

 

wow, that sucks. I work at a dealership but we have better customer service and techs. Our TSI were above national average and fixed right first time is at 95.8% which is pretty damn good. Why does evrybody bash dealerships? I have had only comeback at Honda and it was for something stupid, egr ports cleaning and then the egr valve went bad in less then a week. I don't know why everybody hates going to a trained tech that looks at nothing but your particualr car, Toyota, Ford, Chevy, Honda, everyday. Sorry about the rant just sticking up for the dealerships.

 

I think the Honda dealerships in general have much better service than Toyota.
I had both a civic and a 4runner so I have been to several dealerships for both makers.
All my friends pretty much echoed me on this too.

I think some dealers make an effort and others don't....sadly it ruins it for the good ones too! :pat:

 

If you tolerate bad customer service without reporting it to someone higher up, nothing will ever be done about it. I've gotten many a bad attitude customer service people jacked up for not doing their job. You find out in a hurry if the place wants your business or is just trying to take your money.

My local Toyota dealership has an excellent service dept and the parts guys will work with you, but I wouldn't buy a new Toyota from them as their prices are too high and they won't haggle down to what I know the vehicle is actually worth, but Tuscaloosa Toyota is one of the top movers in the southeast, so they do lots of volume. Anway, stealerships are like any other business, some are great, some inhale profusely (suck).



Brian

 

I have had great service at one Toy dealer, the service writer remembers my name every time I come in and then there is another Toy dealer 20 miles away that I have almost physically come to blows with. Just plain deceitful, rude and a slimeball. I am sure there are good people out there who are employed at dealerships, unfortunately, by the time we make it to the mechanic, we have already had our opinion formed by the sales people and their familiar shell pricing game.

Since I have 'complained' about the lack of loaner cars during my service visits, my dealer has started making loaners available for patrons that are having the 15, 30 or 60K mile service. I looked at a mailed dealer flyer before the loaner cars were offered by the dealer. The 30K service listed a transmission fluid flush and refill. When the flyers with the 'free' loaner car were distributed the same 30K service listed 'a transmission drain and refill' instead of the complete flush. About a $100 difference. So lets see, for $100 I can either have my transmission changed correctly (flushed) and not get a 'free' loaner or have my transmission half-assed (drain only) changed and get a free $25 daily loaner? Hummmm? The decisions and deceit.

My biggest complaint is that I purchased the extended warranty, $799, and this does not include a loaner when my car is in for service. So, I usually have to take a whole day off of work, vacation time, to take the car in. 'Free' shuttle service is a joke, they finally get you into work by 10AM, and then they don't pick you up. If by chance the problem is not corrected the first time, I then have to take another day of vacation and wait again at the dealer for the fix or the patronizing 'unable to duplicate' line. This is what is irritating, the half-ass work that is sometimes performed when the mechanic knows it won't fix the problem. Sometimes I think the mechanic just takes 'something' apart to make me think they fixed something. Good thing I own a Toyota and have never had to visit the Toyota dealership with a major problem. Chevy & Ford are the worst.

Bottomline, when I am giving my valuable time and money to someone who is not respectful of my time and money, I get pissed.

 

I have had great service at one Toy dealer, the service writer remembers my name every time I come in and then there is another Toy dealer 20 miles away that I have almost physically come to blows with. Just plain deceitful, rude and a slimeball. I am sure there are good people out there who are employed at dealerships, unfortunately, by the time we make it to the mechanic, we have already had our opinion formed by the sales people and their familiar shell pricing game.

My biggest complaint is that I purchased the extended warranty, $799, and this does not include a loaner when my car is in for service. So, I usually have to take a whole day off of work, vacation time, to take the car in. 'Free' shuttle service is a joke, they finally get you into work by 10AM, and then they don't pick you up. If by chance the problem is not corrected the first time, I then have to take another day of vacation and wait again at the dealer for the fix or the patronizing 'unable to duplicate' line. This is what is irritating, the half-ass work that is sometimes performed when the mechanic knows it won't fix the problem. Sometimes I think the mechanic just takes 'something' apart to make me think they fixed something. Good thing I own a Toyota and have never had to visit the Toyota dealership with a major problem. Chevy & Ford are the worst.

Bottomline, when I am giving my valuable time and money to someone who is not respectful of my time and money, I get pissed.

 

In a techs defense, sometimes we don't get the best syptoms fromthe service advisor. "brakes make noise", okay when, all the time or when stopping. How fast when stopping, what type of noise, a clicking or squeking. Sometime we go talk with the cutomer and even take a test drive with them but there are some hacks. We have one in our shop right now that is on his way out Fixed right first time is at 51%, not good saying the head techs is at 98% and mine is at 92%(damn parts not in stock so not our faults)

 

A wise person once said:

"You cannot be really first-rate at your work if your work is all you are."



Brian

 

I agree dropcivic, I always give a disertation to the service writer as to my exact problem. When I get the receipt, the problem simply states, 'driver says the transmission makes a clicking noise.' How can I expect a technician to know exactly what I am explaining to the service writer? Half the time the technician 'fixes' something, but not what I brought the vehicle in originally to fix. It would be nice to speak directly with the technician doing the work. i.e small shop