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Damaged.....whilst At The Dealer


Johnnyboxer
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To set the scene....

I have (HAD) a mint, (repeat minter) 2002, genuine 19000 mile Toyota Hiace D4D Powervan in shiny Silver, bought it about 6 months ago and very pleased with it.

Purchased privately, with 1 former owner, Toyota FSH, original bill of sale etc and for half the price of a new one.

One of those rare purchases that all is well and for once you've dropped on your feet.

So it's due for 1st MOT on 31/1/2005 and warranty expires then also, so I follow the Toyota advice and if they give it the first MOT then anything it fails on (excluding consumables as wear & tear items) then they'll replace under warranty FOC.

Leaves it on Monday last, said keep it for the week and sort it, plus there were a couple of minor warranty items to attend to (seat belt not recoiling as fast as I'd like, there was a paint blemish on the NSR Door and some bolts on grill had corroded)

There was me, feeling all warm and cosy about Toyota warranty, as nothing was too much trouble.

Later that week (wait for it) I get a phone call...........

Another Toyota garage's Parts delivery driver smacked his Hiace Van into yours, whilst it was parked on the forecourt..

How Bad???

The Driver's door is Kaput and the panel's damaged, back from the Driver's door.

To be fair, the offending (other Toyota dealer) party is paying in full naturally and is supplying a complete New Door (not a new skin or filler only job) and they will sort out the crease in the rearward panel and they'll have to spray the whole side of the van (because it's Silver).

However they said the Van would be 'good as new' and you wouldn't tell it had happened

The garage rang yesterday to say the Van was ready, so I went off to collect it.

When I got there, it was on the forecourt, so I had a good look around before going in.

I was NOT impressed.............the bodyshop that they had sub-contracted the work to had made a !Removed! mess!!!

There was Silver overspray all over the Black plastic front wheelarch liner and fittings,plus the Stainless exhaust was now painted Silver and so were the Black rear shock absorber and suspension linkage.

On top of the overspray problem, the new paint in places felt rough, as if the paint hadn't been 'cut' properly or lacquer not applied correctly and there was new damage to an unrelated area (front wheel arch)

Plus one of the original warranty repairs (a blemish on the NSR door) had just been filled (poorly showing a crack in the filler and a 'shadow' where it hadn't been rubbed down properly) and just taped up before spraying, so angular lines showed where the paint hadn't been bended in or cut into the original paint.............a home sprayer with an aerosol couldn't have done a worse job.

So I rejected the work at the Toyota Main dealer and they have sent it back to be rectified, because the work wasn't of a standard for a main Toyota dealer and the resale value would be knocked down, because of the poor work.

I'm tempted to ask for a new wheelarch liner,as they couldn't remove all the overspray.

Initially I was amenable when it happened...............but now I'm !Removed! angry because of the shoddy job, arranged by a Franchised Toyota Dealership to my vehicle, which was damaged whilst in their care

So now I've been without my Van for 10 days now (although to be fair they did offer another Demo Van, as a loaner)

I'm also tempted to ask for a 'cut-price' or FOC service, that's due in March, for all the grief to a previously mint (the garage's opinion too) Van

I would appreciate your views on anything I should do now.

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Thats really harsh, I'm sorry to hear that they were as bad as that..

Usually the CAB is very good for this kind of advice. May be worth giving them a try.

Sorry I can't be of more help.

Cheers

Dave

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I'm very sorry to hear that.

May I suggest a few things:

1) Make sure any agreements you make with the garage as to repairs / compensation are put in writing NOT verbal. Also ensure that they depict a true and accurate description of events and what they are doing to rectify it. Remember you do not have to accept anything they put your way. This is entirely their fault so they should do everything that they possibly can for you.

2) Take pictures with a good quality camera of absolutely everything you're dissatisfied with, on the forecourt - not at home. A digital camera would be ideal if you have one or can borrow one.

3) Don't sign any kind of agreements that have not been fully checked and approved by yourself or a third party.

4) Get them to provide you with a temporary vehicle which is up to or more than the standard of your own vehicle. After all, they have essentially made you immobile through their own neglect and stupidity.

Hope that helps a bit.

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I'd be tempted to tell them that you'll take the car to another repair shop and make sure you get a proper job done. Then send them the bill.

My mother had someone hit her up the back end in her Nissan Pulsar. She went through their insurance and took the car to the local Nissan dealership. The sub-contracted it too. When the carb was returned there was a massive leak in the boot somewhere. It went back to the bodyshop to be sorted. The car came back again and there was still a leak. In the end she told them where to go and took it to a friend of mine who has a good contract spraying all the Audi's from a local showroom. He sorted it in half a day free of charge for her (even though it would have been the ins company paying). Of course she has since recommended this mate to every friend of hers, and they use him now. LC Accident Repair in Letchworth North Herts if your interested.

The moral of the story: There's alot of dodgy characters out there that haven't got a clue what they're doing so go by word of mouth if possible and never, where possible use the dealerships sub-contracted repair shop. They rake the money in and do sod all for it.

I feel better now :yes:

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Did I ever mention the word Spanner monkeys before when Talking about Toyota dealerships???? :angry:

Bad luck mate....

just another reason why I will not let them get their grubby mits on any of my cars!

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the time i went to toyota my handbrake cable kept coming loose from the brake drums. which meant it wasnt holding, the car was sitting in a car park on a slight slope on day, i put the handbrake on (and before u say i overstretched it i didnt i am very careful about that) and after getting out of the vehicle i heard the sound of wire stretching and the car began to roll..... so i took it to my local dealer, they fixed it, and 3 days later. BANG! away it went again....so back i go and they do it again and guess what..... still never worked. they tried to accuse me of fiddling with the adjustments myself but i didnt.

then after going back i discovered that they guy who was doing the work on my car was a GCSE "work experiance" student...

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