Okay my first negative review on a companys FB page. (Thanks for the encouragement Adam Sternberg) My name is Shawna Glasser and I wanted to give you some history before I tell you about my personal experience today at your dealership. My husband and I have a long history with Fords. Fords really hit the mark for being fun to drive and very comfortable. They miss the mark; however, on reliability. My husband and I got sick of being in the service department frequently and knowing the service advisor better than some of our relatives. We ended up replacing both of our vehicles within a 7 month period. (In 2010/2011) We decided we would be either Honda or Toyota drivers from that point on. We shopped for a new Odyssey or Sienna in 2010. The Odyssey won over the Sienna. The main reasons were the Odyssey was cheaper, we were able to add a roof rack that we couldn’t with the Sienna, and the sales people at Honda wanted our business. The Findlay Toyota dealership acted like it was a privilege to purchase a Toyota. They also were upset with us that we had spoken with a sales person and then called the Costco wholesale line to see if they had a better deal. I’m sorry if the sales person didn’t like it, but it’s business, get over it. Seven months later, our Ford Escape needed far more repairs than it was worth and we decided it was time to replace it. We again, shopped for the CR-V or the Rav4. Honda one-upped Toyota again. Only this time, because we needed a vehicle that was less than 179 inches to fit in our garage and the CR-V was 177” and the Rav4 was 181”, that was a major plus for the CR-V. The CR-V was $6k cheaper with no real difference and the Toyota sales people, again, really didn’t seem to want our business. We are avid hikers, take kayaks to the lake, bicycle, and just needed a more rugged vehicle than we got with the CR-V. We call it a “soft” 4 wheel drive, because lets face it, the toughest vehicle in the garage between the CR-V and the Odyssey is the Odyssey. We still had the garage space issue to contend with and most of the time the CR-V is a commuter vehicle, so we thought about renting a 4x4 when we really needed it. We happen to notice a neighbor who was selling a 1997 4-Runner. It is really old and it almost has 150k miles, but it is in excellent condition and we figure it is a Toyota and will last us as a 3rd vehicle for a while. It has amazing 4 wheel drive power and it is just a solid vehicle. For that reason, we are planning on keeping it 5 years. Our son will be driving in 5 years so we will get a brand new 4-Runner and pass the CR-V down to him. So that brings us to today. We’ve owned the 4-Runner since August 2013. We figure with it being a 3rd vehicle, getting very few miles, and only running it once a week, we can get away with oil changes every 6 months. I brought it into your dealership for the first time. I was greeted by, I guess, a valet driver. He just told me to stand where I was and didn’t really tell me why or for how long. I waited a few minutes and the service adviser came out. He was friendly enough. He brought me to his desk. The first thing he told me was my oil change was going to cost $495.00. (The 90k mile service) Then he talked about the timing belt that he was sure needed to be replaced for another $200. I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you how much of a turn off that was. No one had looked at the truck. It could have just had the engine replaced for all he knew. Over the years with Honda, I have always liked their service. The oil changes are $5-$10 more than my local Jiffy Lube, but I never wait more that 20 minutes and they show me worn parts to replace so I feel like they aren’t selling me stuff I don’t need. They take the car in as an oil change and they add things as needed. I told the service adviser I didn’t have the 5.5 hours to wait and I certainly wasn’t expecting this oil change to cost $700, so I needed to think about it. He offered a shuttle or a rent-a-car as he really wanted me to get this service. I declined. He wrote in big letters on the service invoice that I “declined” like I was a bad person. I told him just the plain oil change would be fine. Your oil change is $80.00! I understand 4x4 oil is more expense, but Honda charges $31.25 for a V6 mini-van. On top of being obnoxiously priced, I was handed my receipt and given a 2 hour wait time. I hate to keep throwing Honda in your face, but I have never waited more than 40 minutes for an oil change. Just as I sat down to start the waiting process, I received a phone call from the school nurse. My daughter was throwing up in her office and I needed to take her home. I am a stay-at-home mom and normally am 5 minutes away, I couldn’t believe my luck. Surely, my truck couldn’t be in yet, so I could just cancel and head toward the school. I ran to the adviser’s desk at 12:06pm, told him what was going on and that I needed to leave. He said he understood and my vehicle would be out in a “couple of minutes.” Luckily, I called my husband and had him leave work just in case. The “couple of minutes” was an hour and six minutes, just for your information. Do you know how long an hour and six minutes is to a sick eight year old kid who wants to go home, climb into bed, and have her mom make her feel better? It was an eternity for her. Thank you for that. Come to find out, they had done the oil change and that is what took so long. Okay, I understand that, maybe the truck was on the lift and parts were already taken apart, but they took the time to wash the truck afterward. They found something leaking oil, they suspect the valve cover gaskets. Am I surprised a 17 year old truck has a leak? No. Do I mind giving this truck the maintenance it requires to keep it in good working order? No. Do I mind over paying, waiting for long hours during repairs/maintenance, and paying for unnecessary work? Yes. None of the recommended repairs came with a print out of the cost. I called and left the service adviser a message and requested he e-mail me with those details and I have not heard from him. The highlight of my visit today was meeting John Barr. I thought it was great that he is your dealership’s spokesperson, yet he seems so active on the sales floor. We watched some soccer together. You know, during that time I shouldn’t have been there. I think since this vehicle is so old and doesn’t have the sensors and the warning lights that normal shops can’t use diagnostic equipment on, I will just use the Midas across the street from my house for repairs. That will also allow me the flexibility to get home on foot in a matter of minutes. Not only are you losing service repair work on this older 4 Runner, but this may cost you a sale in the future as well. As much as we love this 4-Runner, I don’t know if I am willing to go through a difficult sales process AND service experiences every time I visit. That is how I feel. I hope over the next 5 years you are able to change my mind.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 00:44:06 +0000
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