Ourisman Chevrolet of Bowie

Review: To the following recipients:

· General Motors (via standard mail)

· Ourisman Chevrolet of Bowie (via email)

· Maryland State Attorney General (via email @ [email protected])

· Revdex.com of Maryland (via online web form)

I am writing this letter to describe a horrible customer service experience I had at Ourisman Chevrolet in Bowie, MD. I own a 2002 Chevy Venture Minivan that was purchased at Ourisman Chevrolet in September 2002. Over the years, I have paid many thousands of dollars in costly repairs for this car (approximately $7000 in actual repairs that do not include normal maintenance like new tires or oil changes).

In November 2013, I contacted Ourisman about a very strong gasoline smell in the car. I also stated that I had trouble filling the gasoline tank as the nozzle constantly clicked off whenever I attempted to put gas in the vehicle. I spoke to a customer service agent at Ourisman named [redacted]. I was very clear in telling [redacted] that I did not wish to spend too much on this car as the blue book value is only $3000. The cost to diagnose the gasoline smell was $137 which I agreed was worth my money to determine if the gasoline smell could be found and eliminated for a reasonable price. [redacted] called back with a repair cost of $853.73. This price was the outer limit of what I was willing to pay to repair the vehicle. For any costs over that price, I would have paid my $137 diagnostic fee and then cut my losses and looked to purchase a new car. Since the repair cost was under my threshold, I agreed to pay and picked up my car.

Once the car was back at my house, my wife and I noticed a strange new noise in the car. Also, I noticed fluid spots on my garage floor which had not been there before. I called [redacted] and told her about the NEW problems. She agreed to take the car back and look into these new problems. A day later, [redacted] called to say that the recently replaced part to fix the gasoline leak was faulty and was replaced by Ourisman for no charge. However, the fluid spots on my garage floor were caused by a leaking power steering fluid and leaking intake manifold gaskets. According to [redacted]’s estimate, the cost to repair these leaks was in excess of $2000.

For many obvious reasons, it did not make any sense for me to dump $2000 into a car that is only worth $3000 when I already just paid $853 for a repair just a few days earlier. I spoke to [redacted] the service manager there and he offered no remedy to fix this problem other than me paying $2000 for the repair.

Here are my problems with the Ourisman Chevrolet Service Department:

1. At the time of the original repair, I complained of a gasoline smell and problems filling the tank. I was told that, at a minimum, I would need to pay $137 for a full diagnostic assessment of the car.

2. I specifically told the service manager [redacted] that I did not want to spend too much money on this car as it is 11 years old and I have already spent thousands of dollars in repairs over the lifetime of the car. At this time, I set a limit for myself of $1000 for any repairs.

3. When the car was repaired and returned to me, I noticed leak spots on the garage floor that had not been there before.

4. Ourisman claims that the leak spots are not new and the work they performed to fix my gasoline leak did not cause the leaks. I completely disagree with this as the leak spots were not on my garage floor prior to the service.

5. However, EVEN if the leak spots were on my floor prior to the initial service (and they were not), if [redacted] had told me that the original repair estimate was for $3000 dollars (instead of $853), I would have paid the diagnostic fee and NOT paid for the gasoline leak repair. I would have simply picked up the car and traded it in for a new purchase.

6. I paid $137 to Ourisman to diagnose the initial problem. After paying for the initial problem for $853, they did not find the SECOND PROBLEM, until after I took the car back to the dealership.

So, now I am stuck with a car that is leaking steering fluid and oil and the costly repairs I just made are worthless. The Ourisman service department is either incompetent (for not finding these major leaks during their initial assessment) or complicit in not telling me the full extent of the problem with my car.

I would like Ourisman to remedy this problem by refunding me the total cost of the repairs = $853.73. I know that Ourisman will never do this but I would like a written response about the failure to adequately diagnose my car the first time. If Ourisman had done their job correctly, I would have never paid the initial repair cost.

Thank you,

[redacted]Desired Settlement: I would like the full cost of the repairs to be refunded to my credit card = $853.73

Business

Response:

The fuel pressure regulator is on the top left front of the engine. When it is necessary to replace it, there is raw fuel loss. We presume that the reason that the customer never saw a drip on the ground is because it was not significant enough to drip, yet built up oil residue on the exterior of the engine. When the gasoline was lost from the regulator replacement, it washed down over the oil residue and caused it to drip on the ground. Had there been a significant leak from the engine area at the time of the first service, we would have recommended that as well.

It is relevant to note that this is a 12 year old vehicle with 118,574 miles and is at that point in its life cycle when (as **. [redacted] points out) that one must consider and decide repair expense vs. replacement on each service visit. And that each service visit is likely to result in service recommendations that were insignificant or, did not exist on prior visits.

The work we did, fixed the stated concern that the vehicle was brought in for and the customer does not dispute that. The fact that the vehicle needs additional service now does not make the work we did , improper, defective or unneeded and does not justify reimbursement.

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

After the initial repair was complete and returned to the dealership because of new leaks and problems, [redacted], the service agent, told me that my van was leaking oil and steering fluid. At that point, I made a decision to not spend any more money on this car. I was concerned about the safety of my family and did not want to spend even more money on the vehicle. This problem was not found during the initial assessment and evaluation which cost $137. It was only found when I returned my car because of new leaks AFTER Roger's serviced my car. All of this is detailed in my original letter.

I feel that Roger's Chevrolet should refund to me the cost of the repair minus the assessment fee.

Regards,

Business

Response:

Good afternoon [redacted],

Below is our explanation for the decline in reimbursement:

The fuel pressure regulator is on the top left front of the engine. When it is necessary to replace it, there is raw fuel loss. We presume that the reason that the customer never saw a drip on the ground is because it was not significant enough to drip, yet built up oil residue on the exterior of the engine. When the gasoline was lost from the regulator replacement, it washed down over the oil residue and caused it to drip on the ground. Had there been a significant leak from the engine area at the time of the first service, we would have recommended that as well.

It is relevant to note that this is a 12 year old vehicle with 118,574 miles and is at that point in its life cycle when (as **. [redacted] points out) that one must consider and decide repair expense vs. replacement on each service visit. And that each service visit is likely to result in service recommendations that were insignificant or, did not exist on prior visits.

The work we did, fixed the stated concern that the vehicle was brought in for and the customer does not dispute that. The fact that the vehicle needs additional service now does not make the work we did , improper, defective or unneeded and does not justify reimbursement.

Please let me know if there is anything else you need from us. Thank you.

Best regards,

Vice President / General Manager

Ourisman Chevrolet of Bowie

16610 Governor Bridge Road

Bowie, MD 20716

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because:

Review: I am very unhappy with the service I have received from this dealership. My initial experience with your service department was having the phone answered with an unprofessional "hello" instead of a proper greeting. I was then left on hold and hung up on twice without even getting a chance to tell anyone what work I was interested in having done. After several attempts to get through to service, and after leaving a message for the service manager, I had to leave a message for the general manager just to get a call back.

After speaking with the the general manager the service manager did call me the same day. I brought the car in to have the rear main seal replaced, to see what was wrong with my brake system, and to examine the car for any other issues. I was informed by [redacted] that my front calipers needed to be switched and my entire brake system bled from each caliper. He also said I needed a new clutch which is almost brand new. I had him send me pictures of the clutch which was fine. He also suggested a few other unneeded repairs. I told him to proceed with fixing my brakes and rear main seal only On 11/30/13 my driver side rear caliper fell completely off of my rotor as I was driving down Route 50. I lost almost all braking ability instantly. Luckily there was plenty of room in front of me and no one was hurt.

I called the service department and informed the woman what happened and asked the her to speak with the service manager who never came to the phone. When she came back to the phone she said the dealership would be sending a tow truck at no cost to me as well putting me into a rental car. However, this morning [redacted] called me asking me to pay for a tow bill of $194 as well as diagnostic fee. This is the complete opposite of what I was told before and what I would expect from a dealership of your size and name. I have [redacted] and could easily have my car towed to any repair shop at no-cost. I asked [redacted] to have the service manager call me.

He called me back with an nasty, rude, and generally unprofessional attitude. He expressed no concern that I could have been seriously injured or killed. He immediately informed me I needed to pay the tow bill as well as a diagnostic fee. After explaining the situation to him he remained unchanged in his rude demeanor and continued to insinuate that it was my fault and was because of who installed the calipers before it was brought to Ourisman Chevrolet of Bowie, MD. When I was given a price of well over $300 for my brake repair I was told the price included the front 2 rotors swapped and my brake system bled at each individual caliper. If someone touched the caliper it would clearly be loose to the touch since the bolts were not tightened at all. The bolts were so loose they fell out after less than 2 weeks of driving.

I also had exhaust clamps I purchased from your dealership, when having them installed at a few days later at [redacted] they noticed my tie rod was extremely loose as well. They tightened it in a matter of a few minutes. This is another repair your dealership suggested I replace unnecessarily instead of taking the time to tighten. They did not inform that the loose tie rod could have gone any moment causing my steering to become ineffective most likely leading to a crash.Desired Settlement: Service manager fired. Car repaired properly.

Business

Response:

COMPLAINT: The original Repair Order states “OWNER STATES FRONT BRAKES ARE INOP (CALIPERS WERE PAINTED AND NOW THEY DO NOT FUNCTION )

CAUSE: CALIPERS ARE MOUNTED ON THE WRONG SIDE

CORRECTION: SWAPPED FRONT BRAKE CALIPERS FROM SIDE TO SIDE AND BLED BRAKE SYSTEM

Subsequent Repair order which was 515 miles and 11 days later, states:

CUSTOMER STATES CALIPERS WERE JUST REPLACED AND A CALIPER FELL OFF. GETTING CAR TOWED IN

VEHICLE ARRIVED WITH DRIVER'S SIDE REAR ROTOR NOT ON VEHICLE.

NEW REAR TIRES HAVE BEEN INSTALLED ELSEWHERE (WERE BALD AT PREVIOUS VISIT) CUSTOMER STATES THAT PREVIOUSLY, HE HAD A 3RD PARTY REMOVE ALL 4 BRAKE CALIPERS FOR PAINTING. DURING CUSTOMER'S PREVIOUS VISIT, CUSTOMER STATED THAT THE FRONT BRAKES WERE INOPERATIVE AND DID NOT FUNCTION. ON THIS PREVIOUS VISIT (SEE REPAIR ORDER #[redacted]) WE FOUND THE FRONT BRAKE CALIPERS HAD BEEN REINSTALLED BY THE 3RD PARTY ON THE INCORRECT SIDES. WE HAD SWAPPED THE CALIPERS BACK TO CORRECT POSITION & BLED THE FRONT BRAKES. THE REAR WHEELS WERE NEVER REMOVED AND THE REAR BRAKE WERE NOT BLED AT THAT TIME.

THE REAR BRAKES HAVE NEVER BEEN TOUCHED BY OURISMAN CHEVROLET OF BOWIE AND OURISMAN CHEVROLET IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE IMPROPER INSTALLATION OF THE DRIVER'S SIDE REAR CALIPER THAT FELL OFF. CUSTOMER IS FULLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE TOWING BILL ON THIS VEHICLE.

OURISMAN CHEVROLET OF BOWIE RESPECTFULLY DECLINES TO SERVICE THIS VEHICLE FOR ANY REASON UNRELATED TO WARRANTY CONCERNS.

CUSTOMER WAS ADVISED IN PHONE CONVERSATION WITH SERVICE DIRECTOR & GENERAL MANAGER ON 12/3/2013 THAT THE VEHICLE IS READY FOR PICK UP AND WILL NOT BE RELEASED WITHOUT PAYMENT OF THE TOWING INVOICE.

CUSTOMER WAS FURTHER ADVISED THAT AS POSTED IN THE SERVICE DRIVE, HE WILL BE LIABLE FOR STORAGE CHARGES OF $25.00 PER DAY BEGINNING 72 HOURS AFTER HE IS NOTIFIED HIS VEHICLE IS READY FOR PICK UP. WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION/APPROVAL BY CUSTOMER FOR DIAGNOSTIC CHARGES, THE VEHICLE WAS READY FOR PICK UP ON MONDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2013. STORAGE FEES WILL BEGIN TO ACCRUE AT 9:00AM EST, DECEMBER 5, 2013.

Narrative:

It appears that someone had removed the calipers and painted them. Then they reinstalled them on the wrong side which put the bleeders at the bottom and the hose at the top, thus making it impossible to bleed the brakes. At no time did we remove the rear wheels for any reason.

The vehicle was then driven for 515 miles and 11 days before he lost the left rear wheel and rotor. Mind you, there is no way for a rotor to comer off without first removing the caliper.

Customer should seek redress from whoever removed and painted then reinstalled the calipers incorrectly. Not us.