Maritime Motors of Fairfield, Inc.

We have resolved [redacted] complaint and he has traded in his vehicle for a new [redacted] from Maritime [redacted]. Everything has been worked out amicably. 
[redacted]

Review: I purchased a 2005 [redacted] on 2/12/13 with approximately 92,000 miles. The vehicle came with a limited 90 day/3K mile warranty. However, a full diagnostic sheet of all mechanics and operating systems was provided to me upon the sale stating that the vehicle was in top working order. After driving the vehicle for a couple of days a noticed a few minor issues, driver side mirror turn indicator was not working, there was no antenna, etc. These issues were repaired within an acceptable period of time. Then came the big issuesshortly after the warranty expired, we started having MAJOR problems. The transmission blew ($2,500 estimate, $1,100 paid), air conditioning line leak ($1,000 estimate), brake line broke ($1,200 estimate), transfer case leaking ($150 estimate), air bag sensor ($150 estimate), wheel well unbalanced. In the 6 months of owning the car we have spent $1,700 in repairs. That cost only covered repairing the transmission and brake line, the latter we had fixed at a private garage. All other items are still in need of repair. We worked with [redacted] at the [redacted] location who continually told us he would make good on this bad deal. We thought he would be true to his word. He When we had the transmission repaired he advised me that if I decided to trade the vehicle in towards another vehicle on their lot, he would discount the cost of the repair off the car purchase. Well, that was not the scenario when we went in to purchase a new car, not only did he not include that discount, he offered us $4,500 less than we paid for the car after 6 months and $1,700 in repairs not a man or company of their word. I have given them several opportunities to correct a bad situation. Buyer beware!! Do your due diligence and have your OWN mechanic give you a seal of approval before purchasing.Desired Settlement: Since we have previously attempted to come to a mutually acceptable way of resolving this issue. We are now requesting a full refund for all repair cost incurred. As we will not be purchasing another vehicle from this dealership and the refund credit was not applied when we looked at a replacement SUV.

Business

Response:

October 22, 2013

Review: after purchasing a 33,000.00 car they informed me a few months later that I had to pay extra for a roof rack.

I purchased a Chevy Traverse for XXXXX.00 back in Feb. At the time I did not notice that the roof rack was missing. I am now planing on going on vaction and noticed that I do not have one. I went back to maritime motors and informed them that I needed one and they told me that the vehicle does not come with one and that I would have to pay extra for it. I became very upset because this is a XXXXX.00 car and I should be able to get a rack with out paying more. The sales rep never informed me that, that was not included with the vehicle. This is something that should have been mentioned to me by the sales rep. this is 2012 and I have never heard of such a thing. Desired Settlement: I would like my roof rack installed at no charge to me.

Business

Response:

Business Response /* (1000, 11, 2013/07/24) */

First of all, the first notice of this complaint was received by email on July 22, 2013. We did not receive any notice on June 26, 2013, as is indicated in the history of this complaint. Consequently, we were unable to respond earlier and I am sorry for that.

[redacted] purchased a 2012 Chevrolet Traverse LS from Maritime Motors on January 5, 2013. As Ms. [redacted] stated in her complaint, at the time that Ms. [redacted] took delivery, her Traverse did not have a roof rack. This was not something that we hid from her or could have hid from her. When you look at the vehicle, it is very clear that there is no roof rack. Her Traverse did come with C Channels to which cross bars can be installed to create a "roof rack" for storing cargo on the roof. Those cross bars can be installed for a fee. If you buy a vehicle without a roof rack, even a $44,000 Traverse LTZ, unless you specifically request one and pay to have one put on, the purchase does not include a roof rack. The manufacturer has gone away from including them in the base model because the aerodynamics of the vehicle greatly affects its gas mileage/fuel efficiency. Tests have shown that a roof rack, even an empty one, can lower the fuel efficiency by 5-12%. If you put luggage or a Thule box up there, you lose up to 25% of your fuel efficiency. Because gas prices are ridiculously high, the savings in fuel for a vehicle without a roof rack installed can be substantial. Thus, roof racks do not come standard on the Chevrolet Traverse. It is an option that has to be specially ordered or installed after the fact by our service department at an additional cost. Because of the ample storage area in the rear of the Traverse and the ability to fold seats down for more storage, not everyone elects to have a roof rack installed.

Ms. [redacted] was never promised a roof rack as part of her purchase. It is unfortunate that Ms. [redacted] did not anticipate her need for a roof rack when she purchased the vehicle. Whether she did request one then or today, a roof rack would not be included in the cost of her vehicle. It would be installed for an additional charge no matter what. I am not sure to whom she spoke to at our dealership or what price she was quoted; however, if she is still interested in purchasing cross bars so that she can carry cargo on the roof of her Traverse, I would be happy to offer her a discount on the parts and no chare for the installation as a gesture of good will.

Review: DO NOT USE [redacted] MARITIME MOTORS OF FAIRFIELD CT FOR ANY SERVICE OR ANY CAR PURCHASE!

I have had nothing bad luck with the service department. I have nothing against the folks at the service desk they tried to be as helpful as they possibly could. I do have an issue with the quality of the service being performed on my car and the owner of this dealership. Let us begin with one of my fist visits for a simple oil change and tire rotation, somehow the tech forgot to torque down the lug nuts on my rear left tire. I only noticed after I was driving from the dealership parking lot. I was lucky the wheel didn’t off the car. That being said, the service manager tried to accommodate me with a free tune up, so I decided to give them another try. I returned again, this time I needed my catalytic converter replaced (the car is only three years old go figure). So this time while the tech is replacing my catalytic converter he somehow cracked the exhaust manifold in my car. I was watching the tech as he was working on my car, I saw how hard he was jerking the part out of my car and his reaction after it was removed. Again the service manager comes over tells me the tech found a crack in my manifold but not to worry it will be covered under the warranty. I said ok no harm no foul. The report stated that it was cracked during removal. A few weeks after I started to hear a high pitch humming noise resonating from the front end of my car whenever I was accelerating at or above 75Mph. It would disappear as soon as I took my foot of the accelerator. So again I take the car back to the dealership. I took the same tech that worked on my car from my previous visit for a ride in an attempt to replicate the issue. I was hoping he would be able to advise me on a course of action to repair my car. So I bring the car up to speed so the tech can hear what I’m talking about, and he hears it. His response had me a little taken aback. He tells me “that’s normal for a car with this many miles. Its normal wear it’s something you will have to learn to live with”…. So after a couple more weeks of driving this noise is getting worse and I just can’t take it anymore so I bring the car back to the dealership. I take another tech for a test ride and he ends up recommending we take a look at the transmission. The tech tells me it will only take three days. So I wait on it a couple days to free up my schedule before I make an appointment online. I get an email from the service manager saying they need to reschedule because they will be too busy on the date that I had chosen. So we end up settling on a date that is more accommodating to the shops schedule but also convenient for me to drop my car off. I drop my car off and the dealership sets up a rental for me through [redacted]. When I arrive at [redacted] they say the only ** vehicle they had ready was a [redacted]. I know it’s a nice car but I commute to work so the extra cost of gas did eat a little into my budget. Three days pass and I call up to see how my cars doing, I’m told they haven’t touched my car yet it may be a couple more days. Two weeks pass and my car is finally ready to be picked up. It’s a Saturday morning and it’s rather busy at the service counter. Only one person is working the counter and she seemed rather stressed with the burden of taking on so many customers all at once by herself. Myself I am rather irritated at this point that it took two weeks for someone to even touch my car. So when it is my turn at the counter I was unfortunately not in the best of moods I just wanted to get my service report and go. The lady working the counter came off as rude to me when I tried to ask for the service report and she could not produce one. She is obviously stressed. I return what I felt as rudeness in kind by making my displeasure with the situation known verbally in the vicinity of other customers waiting for there cars . (I have since regretted doing so and have apologized to the women since; I hope she has no ill feelings from our encounter). When I get to my car it is absolutely filthy. The outside was matted with dirt and leaves the inside was full of dust and oily residue. I did not have time to go back and complain as I was running late to work as is so I called up and asked to speak with the owner of the dealership. Unfortunately he was not in so I left a message asking for him to call me back. As I am driving to work I noticed not only had the sound issue not resolved but it had gotten worse. It now appeared at 30Mph as well as 75Mph. The owner ([redacted]) returns my call, I tell him about all the issues I’ve been having with the car and the service provided. I vented about the Women at the service counter I told him about the condition of my car and how long it was in for service. I also told him that the sound issue has yet to be resolved and in fact had gotten worse. At first he seemed to only care that he had to pay for a rental for two weeks, but he did apologies for the dirty car and the longer then normal wait for the car. He tells me that he will accommodate me with a full detail of the car upon my next return to the dealership; he also stated that he will add it to my file so the service department will be aware. So after a couple of days of driving my car and debating about returning to this dealership I make another appointment for my car to be looked at. The gentleman at the service counter (the same gentleman I’ve primarily been working with when I check my car in for service) was very kind and very attentive to my needs as always. Again I have no complaints with anyone at the service desk. I was again set up with a rental from [redacted]. This time the only ** car they had available was a [redacted]. After a couple of days of sitting in traffic with this car my back was killing me. I received a call from the same gentleman at the service desk, he was calling to inform me that the techs believed that they pinpointed the issue; they believed the issue was with the transfer case. I told the gentleman of my rental situation and he was kind enough to set me up with a loaner from the dealership. The gentleman called me again to inform me that the new transfer case was installed but the tech would like to take the car home with him overnight just to test everything on the car. I was rather uneasy about having my car parked somewhere that I was not familiar with, I felt safer leaving my car at the dealership. The gentleman informs that the car should be ready to be picked up the next day. I drop by the next day eager to see the results of the repair, the gentleman tells me to take my car for a test run just to make sure they nailed the issue. As I get to my car I noticed right away that it was not detailed as promised, but that’s no big deal they could do it another time. When I get in my car however I see that all my change is missing, again no big deal it’s just change. I also notice papers that I keep in my center console strewn all over the floor. I go to put the paper’s away and that’s when I notice that my [redacted] that I have always left in my car the entire three years that I have owned is missing, my old cell phone that I use as an emergency back up is also missing along with my eye glasses that I always keep in the car. When I walk around my car to see if someone had broken into my car I also notice a dent on a piece of chrome paneling on my door. To put a dollar amount of the missing items it would be and estimated $900-$1000 worth of merchandise. I go back inside and ask the gentleman what happened, who was in my car? He asked the tech who had worked on my car but the tech genuinely seemed just as perplexed as to what had happened to my belongings. I ended up filling a police report. The gentleman informs me that the service manager and the owner were both out and would not be back until Monday. I was fine with that, I knew nothing could be done to replace the missing merchandise but I did want make the owner aware of the incident. As I’m driving the car over the weekend I notice that the noise did disappear at the 75Mph interval but was very much present at the 35Mph interval. On top of that the transmission was stalling and jerking between third to fourth gear as well as fifth to sixth gear. So I return Monday to speak with both the owner and the service manager. The service manager informs me that the owner was not available and that he needs to look into the matter. After which he would like to give me a call back, but more than likely that they will not cover my missing items. I tell him I did not expect the dealership to cover the missing items but that I would rather resolve the issues with the car today and that I would wait at the dealership to talk to the owner. I was under the impression this meeting would be arranged already by that Monday. So I tell the service manager I will be waiting in the sitting area so I can cool down while we wait for the owner. After about two hours of waiting the owner comes out of his office after one of the sales associates inform him I am waiting to speak with him. He brings me to his office along with the sales manager; he also called for the gentleman that had been helping me. I proceed to tell the owner about the situation with my car, how the sound is still there how my car was damaged and how items were missing from my car. I tell him I am not accusing the tech that was working on my car but the items did go missing while the car was at the dealership being repaired. I tell him that the police reported no signs of forced entry. With that the owner ([redacted]) proceeds to yell at me saying how dare I accuse anyone at the dealership of stealing my items. He yelled at me as if I were one of his children instead of a paying loyal customer. He then begins screaming at me about the incident with the over stressed women working at the service desk saying my attitude was disgusting that I am an ignorant child and if I were his kid he would have kicked my [redacted] for the way I spoke to her. At this point [redacted] would not listen to reason nor will he calm down. I say to him how would you like me to record you right now so all your customers may see how you treat other customers? With that he gets up and attempts to push the chair I am sitting on out from underneath me screaming to get out of his dealership. Again I try to reason with [redacted], I tell him I am not recording you but your actions are deplorable for a business owner. The whole time the poor gentleman that was helping me with my car looks simply mortified. I cannot believe his boss would act like this in front of one of his employees. [redacted] then goes on to tell me that he received a call from another customer complaining about my attitude towards the women at the service counter. At this point in the conversation I am shaking with anger, but I attempt maintain my composure. However [redacted] notices that I am shaking and says “look at you, you look like your about to cry”. With that I tell him no I am not about to cry I am simply angry with your actions and your carless attitude. He eggs me on telling me to let it out then. I tell [redacted] no because I have more self-respect then you do. I go on to tell him how I was looking to come to an agreement with my car; I was looking to trade in my car at this point and planed on purchasing a new car. This did not phase [redacted] one bit, he simply tells me to go back to the dealership I purchased my car from to trade in my car. With that I left the dealership vowing to never come back! I am writing this so any potential customers of MARITIME MOTORS will be informed of the caliper of service to expect from the owner to the techs. The Owner [redacted] encouraged me to write this review stating that he will tell everyone online how rude of a person I was. So I implore him to do so, I would like his customers to see what kind of man he really is. I entrusted this dealership with one of my largest investments and every time I went there somehow my car was neglected, damaged, and robbed. The owner of this dealership is an embarrassment to [redacted].Desired Settlement: I want the owner to apologize for his actions, I would like to work out a possible deal to trade in of my car.

Business

Response:

We have resolved [redacted] complaint and he has traded in his vehicle for a new [redacted] from Maritime [redacted]. Everything has been worked out amicably. [redacted]