Stealership Service Rant

As I'm sitting here at the stealership waiting for them to load test my battery and replace (quoted an hour to hour and a half) of course I'm going to get on the tundra forum. Battery is only 16 months old (purchased truck new in June 2018), surprised it's already on it's way out. I explained to the service advisor it was just clicking this morning while all the dash and headlights were fine and after a few attempts started normal, which I've never experienced before with a bad battery. He didn't want to hear it and just said replace the battery under warranty. I'll take it, hoping it's not a starter issue or anything else.There was also what sounded like a loud thump (bass) from the speakers when I turned the key back from trying to get it to turn over. Is that normal? He wouldn't take no for an answer to have the 15K mile Toyota care taken care of since the battery was going to take over an hour by the same tech anyway is what I was told. I don't have a load tester, but it takes 5 min and a wrench to change a battery. Which I would do if it wasn't a free replacement.

Meanwhile I over hear some other service advisor complaining that he lost a huge, easy job. An 06 Avalon had a battery light on and it was a $2200 alternator job. I guess I never realized these guys work on commission for the work? I knew they always try to push additional services and maintenance, but loudly advertising with customers nearby doesn't seem professional.

Long rant, I'm done. Back to reading other posts.

 

yep they make commission on what they sell you...last time I went there, they were trying to sell me an alignment on a brand new vehicle..

 

Fix the battery and get me out of here. I walk in dealership and put on my best agitated performance, which isn't a performance. I start pacing around farting and spitting dip on the concrete just to let them know I ain't got time for no BS

Thanks for the heads up on the commission thing. Any car place sees a woman come in out of warranty and they start licking their chops. Fix everything that's wrong and pay a fortune or let me let you talk to sales about one we have on the lot

 

Last time I went....they were selling an old man a new set of tires.....he was literally shaking because of the fear they put in him that he would crash on his old set. Told him that he shouldn't even leave the dealership to drive anywhere. I shit you not....then the lady they charged 29.95 for a battery cleaning.....assholes

 

Went for 30 k service , I have prepaid maintenance plan. Dealership still tried sell me below

injector cleaner 189
Oil flux add on 189
Brake fluid drain and refill 189

Told them stick to factory specified maintenance only. Service advisor started throwing tantrums how factory warranty will cease because you are declining dealer specific service.

Told him “ stick to factory maintenance guide that has already been paid for. If Toyota declines my warranty if any , I will fight in court”.

 

That's BS. You don't even have to change the oil for 60k and it will be under warranty. Running it low may be a different story.

 

Sad and aggravating to see this happen. People work hard for their money, they shouldn't be scared into handing it over to the service advisors.

 

I'm in sales the last 15 years but came from ops. I tell it straight up to my customers. No upselling what they don't need. A car dealership reminds me of a small casino. I do my own stuff once no more warranty. Just make sure it's all fixed before the warranty is done, and that should get you down the road another 100K. I'm actually going to do the tranny fluid exchange and plugs at 100K. Rolled over 82K. Figure I got a couple of years before I need to do it just using it for tooling around and not using it to drive to work. I finally have a place that I can work on my stuff.

 

That is about $2000.00 too much. Alternators fail mostly due to the brushes wearing out. Less than $50.00 in parts and unless the alternator is in the crankcase should take no more than 1-2 hours R&R.

Dan

 

The dealer warrantied the water pump on my wife’s Sequoia then said the serpentine belt needed replaced, $200+, (under 30,000 miles) because some antifreeze may have dropped on it. Told my wife she shouldn’t risk driving around our little kids with it like that. I’ve never went back to those assholes since.

 

How the hell do these people sleep at night?

 

On piles of our money

 

Well this dealership used to be good. I think recently changed the GM. Looks like going downhill now.

 

I had no idea they’re commissioned based. Or even if not commission, they have some form of comp tied to the services they sell. Shady...

It doesn’t help the maintenance manual is so indecisive. So many fluid changes are either “inspect” at a particular mileage or “replace” under those special conditions. Either situation can be milked by the service manager.

 

I had my brake fluid flushed and refilled at Brakes Plus for 59 bucks out the door.
I despise dealerships. Low life clowns who could care less about you.

 

These are terrible stories. I'm really fortunate to have had only great experiences with my local dealer over the last 15 years. So much so, when I moved 200 miles away I drove back to them to purchase my Tundra.

 

Well I have been ad advisor fo Honda product now for 4 yrs....I have always sold just whats needed and give options on what's not and can wait.....I get shit from my manager but I tell him I refuse to sale bullshit.....i used to take my truck to toyota yrs ago so i know the customer side and i treat customers the way i would want to be treated. I also tell them what items should be taken care of as far as prioritizing

 

EXACTLY! Everything is listed as never needing replaced OR replace under special conditions!

 

Well, I use to work at a few dealerships in college and would hang around a lot in the service department. The dealer I worked at was very old school and there was not any up selling or BS and they were very very busy!!! No need to and mostly older clientele in a very small town. Very old school thinking. All of there guys were salaried and no commission.

I would say 75% of dealers are in a commission based pay scale for their service department...... These are the ones you want to try and avoid.

 

I had the same issue when I drove for AAA back in the late 60s. Owner wanted me to tow in vehicles I responded to with service calls, even if it was just a bad battery connection. I would typically fix it on the spot if it was quick and easy (battery terminals, dirty automatic choke, tighten a belt, etc.). Boss was always on my case to look for other things to sell and tow in to inspect. My customers were happy with my method. If I did see something that needed attention back at the station I would recommend that I tow it back (or to their favorite mechanic, or to their home).

Dan

 

lots of Whiskey and doobers.

 

I actually think that the only people that work in a dealership that ARE NOT on commission (of some sort) are the following:

1. Cashiers
2. Porters (people that drive you back to work)
3. Front desk phone receptionists
4. Detail and wash personnel

Everyone else is told to look for ways to get more from the customer.

 

Sad but true...

 

Not sure about how Toyota Techs get paid these days, and even if its different between dealerships, but i can say for sure that working flat rate in a big shop is the worst! When i worked for Mazda in the mid 80's, every guy in the shop was perpetually pissed off because most of the work that came in was warranty and warranty paid Diddly! Back then the going rate for us was $15.00/hr, and an oil change got you .3hrs/per change...about $5.00. After getting A.S.E. certified, and hundreds of hours of school from Mazda, i came to the realization that it was almost impossible to make real money working flat rate. If dealerships were smart, they would find qualified guys and pay them a healthy salary. In the end the dealership, and the customer would win. OK. that's my 2cent rant.

 

We’re flat rate.. pay is meh, I make buy but working on stuff outside of work is where I can afford to mess with my vehicles/guns/audio stuff.
Oil changes are .3
Tire rotations are .2
Warranty is typically shit pay but sometimes there’s some good ones.
Customer pay is nice, but our labor rate and parts costs limit what come in. And honestly Toyota’s don’t break down enough to feed all 16 full time techs we have. In the end I’m typically 40-50 hours and it’s alright I guess? No overtime pay sucks.. but it’s a living. Will I stay in a dealer forever. Not at this pay rate. But for now it’s alright

 

I hear you empty_lord, was just trying to make the case that good techs are hard to find, and maybe they need to rethink a way of retaining them. When i told my service manager i was quitting, he asked me why. When i told him i couldn't afford to work here anymore, he didn't have an answer, and just wished me well.

 

There’s good ones out there. Typically we’re the ones not getting the 60-70 hour weeks because we try to take pride in our work! Dealer work ain’t the holy grail of automotive work some people think! lol hell there’s guys with no certs making more than me just because they’re hacks.

 

Correction: On piles of what was your money. You traded it to them for services/vehicles remember?

 

You're absolutely right!. The guy in the bay next to me had his lower draw of his toolbox filled with oil filters he never installed. When he wasn't changing the customers filters he was looking through the warranty book on things he could write/make up. He made 70-80 hrs a week without breaking a sweat. The worst part was that everyone in service knew he was doing this, but they ignored it because they got paid also.

 

That’s the big issue. I’m not a big pusher on “flushes” unless your cars actually ready for them. But the guy across from me recommends them all.. the new one is a throttle body cleaning for .7... I mean seriously? The only time I’m clean a throttle is if the battery gets disconnected for anything.. and I’ll do that for free! The pay setup is part of the issue with dealers.

And the greedy corporate owners.. not a whole lot of family owned dealers out there anymore. At least by me.