Sunday, February 11, 2018

Good Customer Service


 Unless you're new here, you know that we bought my wife a 2011 BMW 328i xdrive back in November. I told you the story about returning it to the dealer for a mirror replacement and headlight adjustment. I also told you about the front differential not having much if any oil in it and the noise coming from it. It's easy to bitch when things don't go as expected. This isn't that kind of story.
 Last Monday their service department looked at the car and put some dye in the differential and asked me to drive it about four hundred miles. I did so and returned last Friday so they could re-inspect the car. There is some question on my part as to how much of a differential leak they found but they stated there was definitely an engine oil leak. The tech had stuck a magnet in the diff and came up with a lot of metal. This wasn't a news flash to me as I already have enough experience with axle problems to know that much noise equaled metal shavings. Anyway, they didn't want me to drive the car and gave me a loaner. Not a car I'd choose myself but I can't complain about a 2018 escape with a thousand miles as a loaner.
 On Monday I heard from them that basically they were trying to decide what to do. My warranty that came with the car was up but this was kinda a grey area. They would call me back with more details. I wasn't nervous but the guys in our shop sure did tease me and came up with a number of scenarios, all of which I came out on the short end. On Thursday I decided to call and was told they were replacing the differential and fixing the engine oil leak but the gal didn't know when it would be done. On Friday they called and said I could pick it up which I did yesterday morning.
 The forty five mile ride home was gonna be the determining factor on how I felt about this whole ordeal. To my relief the only noise I heard on the ride home was the sound of the tires on the pavement. Having a good differential make a big diff!
 In some past posts I may have nitpicked at a few things concerning Holiday Automotive and Holiday Budget Center but in the end they have done everything they promised and then some, all the time with a smile. They did this for us and the only input from me was a four minute phone conversation and bringing them the car. They earned the Greasy Shop Rag stamp of approval because they went above and beyond my expectations and I will go back to them when I look to replace my old Dodge pickem up next fall. You should do the same.

Later.

8 comments:

  1. Nice to here good things about a dealer!

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    1. I guess they're not all crooks. The last time I bought a car from a dealer the check engine light came on the first week. They ended up installing an eight hundred dollar cat converter.

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  2. Nice to hear. Over the years I have purchased a number of vehicles from dealers simply because I liked their service departments. Too bad most dealerships haven't yet figured this out.

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    1. We sell Husqvarna saws. When someone asks me if they are better than Stihl I say they are similar. The difference is if you buy from the right dealer.

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  3. I must admit that I tend to be very suspicious of any service department associated with a dealer. These days, many seem to be part swappers. But nice to hear that you are satisfied with the experience.

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    1. I have about three hundred miles on it this weekend and it still sounds fine but I must admit my fingers are still crossed.

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  4. Scott, a nice ending to a story that really could have gone differently. Here's to a lot of carefree miles!

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  5. Thanks! Ya, I'm glad it didn't go differently.

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