Friday, May 04, 2007

The Collection - wrecks customer car and then calls him names!

Wow.. this is just shocking. A dealership trashes a customes gorgeous 996 and then, not only tries to low-ball him on repairs but calls him names when the customer tries to assert his rights!

This is spreading all over the web now, and the dealership is starting to lose servcie business. I say GOOD! That dealer should be kissing the customers ass ten-days to Sunday over this.

How did it happen? Well, it did not fall off a lift, one of their mechanics crashed the car during a test drive. How bad is it? well.. see for yourself (snagged these photos off the Rennlist discussion regarding this incident).

This is how the discussion starged:

I brought my '03 996 cab to the dealer for minor warranty work. On a road test, the tech got into an accident in my car. The impact was to the front right portion of the car. Headlamp assembly, hood,bumper, fender, door, radiators, wheel well plastics, wires, hoses, etc. It looks like at least $10,000 in repairs. My car has approx. 16,000 miles and was perfect in all ways before the wreck. What should I do???? I would think that it's not too much for me to ask them to buy my car for at least the market value just before the wreck. What do you think?

Supposedly, the tech driving my car was making a left hand turn against 2 lanes of traffic. From what he said, he was motioned by the driver of the oncoming car closest to him, to make his dangerous turn, and never saw the other car coming in the other lane, which resulted in the accident. The tech was ticketed for the accident.






OK, wrecks happen. They just do, but the way a dealership deals with someone is what we are talking about here. I could attempt to wax poetic regarding what jerks they are being but, instead read some of these quotes for yourself, from the owner of the car:

After today's meeting with 3 of the dealerships manager's, I don't feel any better about the situation. I told them what I wanted and they told me what they want to do for me. Basically, repair the car and give it back to me. I absolutely refused that suggestion and demanded to be made "whole". Apparently, no one in the meeting had any authority to deal with me. I allowed them to get an estimate from their body shop. And am awaiting a phone call back from the "real" GM. I will keep you informed....


But this is when the dealership just get's stupid.

Finally, after many phone calls and visits to the dealership, I received a phone call from the owner of the dealership that wrecked my 996. I got basically the same answer from him that I got from everyone else below him. "Sorry, but it was an accident, accident's happen." He still insists on having his body shop do the repairs and then and only then would he even consider a possible trade-in. Oh, and he also told me that I was acting like his 15 yr. old daughter. Is he kidding me!!


You should check out the full thread for all the details. Boiling it down though, the dealership came out of the gate playing hardball. Talking about fixing it up, giving it back and not compensating for dimished value.

Once a Porsche has been in a crash, value take a major hit. It's just the way the market works on these cars. And with $10,000+ damage to the car, that's not a minor incident a potential future buyer will ignore. No way.

These are are also packed with radiators, cooling lines, precision suspension parts, etc. Every nook and cranny on these things has some expensive part stashed away in there. It's really rather amazing. It looks pretty nasty from a cosmetic standpoing (new door, new fender, new hood to start) but the damage under there is what could really skyrocket the costs.

I'll be watching this one with interest.

You can also find this blog at: Technorati Profile

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Dear Rennlist Forum Members,



I am Ken Gorin, president of THE COLLECTION in Coral Gables, Florida. It has never been our practice to discuss our customers publicly. However, since Mr. Gittlemen has opened these discussions, I felt it best to respond.



THE COLLECTION prides itself in providing its customers with the highest level of customer service. Client care is, and always will be, our number one priority. We recognize that the situation with Mr. Gittleman was unfortunate and have swiftly taken the necessary steps to ensure his satisfaction in the resolution of this matter. The same day of the accident, the claim was reported to our insurance company. The car was promptly and professionally appraised by the insurance company’s adjustor and our insurance company has agreed to pay for both the needed repairs and diminished value in this regrettable accident. In addition, we wholeheartedly encourage Mr. Gittleman take his vehicle to the body shop of his choice.



Most importantly, we are thankful that there were no personal injuries as a result of this accident.



It is unfortunate that certain members of this forum have seen fit to make personal attacks against myself and my daughter. These comments are outrageous, hurtful, unwarranted and defamatory. We will not publicly respond further to these attacks. Instead, we will stand behind our outstanding reputation as one of this country’s preeminent luxury automotive dealerships.



Ken Gorin, President

THE COLLECTION