I caught my dealer service in FRAUD!!

[jfksmith]

As I said in my first reply as to contacting local T.V. station. Its not so much a matter of your money back as it is to exposing what happened to you and hopefully others will come forward with a similar story. Them paying you back is a nice quiet way of keeping it quiet. Then all your other riding buddies are the only ones who gets notified of what this particular dealer has done. It needs to be exposed on a wider scale so others who already have or are getting ready to , wont get the shaft as well. the oil change isnt the big picture and may be just one of many things that this dealer may be short changing people on. Not changing oil correctly leads to engine damage and other internal damage. Be careful and let as many others as possible know about this guy so bikes dont get ruined . RIDE SAFE and remember ITS NOT THE MAKE , ITS NOT THE SIZE, ITS HOW WELL YOU MAKE IT RISE.. JFKSMITH IM OUTTA HERE

 

[gcal]

get your money back tell everyone about the deal you got
then do all you can your self for your bike and screw every dealer
unless you HAVE to get something done there and cant do it your self

 

[diesel]

The word "scammers!" could somehow appear spraypainted across their showroom window some night. You wouldn't believe what some punks will do for $20!!!


disclaimer-this was posted for entertainment purposes only!

 

[BulletTrain]

The word "scammers!" could somehow appear spraypainted across their showroom window some night. You wouldn't believe what some punks will do for $20!!!


disclaimer-this was posted for entertainment purposes only!

 

[MET]

As I said in my first reply as to contacting local T.V. station. Its not so much a matter of your money back as it is to exposing what happened to you and hopefully others will come forward with a similar story. Them paying you back is a nice quiet way of keeping it quiet. Then all your other riding buddies are the only ones who gets notified of what this particular dealer has done. It needs to be exposed on a wider scale so others who already have or are getting ready to , wont get the shaft as well. the oil change isnt the big picture and may be just one of many things that this dealer may be short changing people on. Not changing oil correctly leads to engine damage and other internal damage. Be careful and let as many others as possible know about this guy so bikes dont get ruined .  RIDE SAFE and remember ITS NOT THE MAKE , ITS NOT THE SIZE, ITS HOW WELL YOU MAKE IT RISE.. JFKSMITH  IM OUTTA HERE

Good point.. I would still let the owner have the benifit of doubt or at least a responce until you go very public. Could just be the service department (although not likely) who is doing the scam. Think what they could be pocketing for themselves.

 

[RaiderDm]

Time for a reality check people. It doesn't matter how hard you push. Your best case scenario is a refund of your
money. Probably for just the one service. Although you might get really lucky and the Dealership owner or GM really
DID NOT know anything about it. In which case he may refund your whole prepaid maintenance agreement
and throw in free services for a year or longer. If you pushed really hard you'd probably cost the technician his job.
If you aren't the only complaint the "honest" GM has had there is the very slim chance that the Service manager
will lose his too. However that doesn't really affect you one way or the other. The good news is that you will be marked
at that dealership. That means that while you won't receive anything more than The minimum required,
you won't receive anything less. Any way good luck with your quest..



<!--EDIT|RaiderDm
Reason for Edit: "950"|1086564305 -->

 

[Maximum]

Hi all!  I am new to the 'Busa world. Just bought mine. Its a '00. Bought it with 1600 miles on it. Rides like a dream (come true that is)!! Previous owner took great care of the bike. Babied the bike even.  Glad to be here!!  

I've been reading posts in this area and I find things very interesting, to say the least.

The very first thing that I would do is speak to the manager again to get things resolved. If this meeting is not to your satisfaction, work your way up to the top by speaking with the next in line. This serves several purposes. One, it shows that you are following all proper protocol in order to get things resolved in a "quiet" manner prior to it reaching the owner. Two, it lets everyone in management know how serious you are about getting this "situation" resolved to your satisfaction. Three, you are getting names and titles of everyone that you speak with who is in a position of "authority" at this establishment so that if litigation is part of your solution you may name absolutely everyone that you spoke with to find a resolution.

If NONE of these things work, which is seriously doubtful - someone there is going to help you get satisfaction, then the next thing that I would do would be to call Suzuki and explain to them your problem and let them know about the video evidence, remember, too, to name ALL names that you have now acquired! Suzuki will have to get to the bottom of things because they know that you have all kind of evidence and names to bounce them all into court if needed. Once they have conducted an investigation, you should have your satisfaction. You should demand no less than your money back and free service for your next 4 visits should you have the desire to step foot back into the place again. If none of this works, take all of your newly acquired evidence, as well as your video tape, to a lawyer and litigate, however, I really don't think that it should get to this point with the work that you have put in and all it would have taken you is a little time and no lawyer fees.

What ever point in this scenario gets you your satisfaction, at least get the free service for your next 4 visits. It would be the least that they should do considering the circumstances.

Ride safe!!!

Max

 

[UNDRPSI]

dang man, that was a LOT of money to change oil!!!!! the dealer is a RIPPP!!!! i charge the local guys 30.00 labor plus the cost of parts to do oil changes, to help the fellow riders!!! my motto.... IF IT COSTS LABOR MONEY , TAKE THE TIME AND LEARN HOW YOURSELF, IT ONLY GAINS YOU KNOWLEDGE!

JP

 

[Haywood]

If your state has a department of Consumer Affairs or some such thing, I would send them a letter and possibly a copy of the tape. I would think they would take this very seriously and would investigate/take the matter up with the shop. At the very least you will save someone else going through this as the shop will now be 'on notice' and wouldn't want to be investigated again.

 

[#cruncherbusa]

I would contact the Better Business Bureau and speak directly to the manufacturer! Also speek to one of your local newspapers about this subject they might want to run a story about situation. Hope you get justice

 

[BlackSheep]

That Sucks Big-time
I would definitely go after them Not so much the money but the principals This guys should be running a business one could trust. If they charge for some thing they didn't do that is a fraud for one . Second is the potential's that your motors life get shortened by not having clean oil in it Go get them scambegs
Good Luck

 

[Sane_man]

I also think it's a ripoff for any prepaid service, because I think you get less service especially if they got their money up front.

Toyota keeps trying to get me to prepaid for oil changes. For $350 they will change the oil every 5,000 miles, or a max of four times a year. But if I pay for my own oil changes, they want me to come in every 3,000 miles.

My wife bought the pre-paid service for her 2002 Ford F150 truck, so she takes it in every so often for the required services. I borrowed her truck in January to drive 400 miles to Fontana, and when I was 3/4 of the way there, the truck's front end started shaking really bad.

I found that the lug nuts on all four wheels were either halfway off the studs, or were only finger tight. I tightened them and complained to the dealer on my return. A service was done to the truck one day before my trip, so they obviously rotated the tires like they were supposed too, but they didn't tightned the bolts back. I had them check the wheels for any problems and for some type of compensation. After checking the truck out, the only think they had to say in the matter was that I didn't properly re-torque the lugnuts.

 

[Kento-Moto]

This is only for reg service, can you imagine what these guyz do on a serious repair? ! ?

arrrrrrrrrrg1

 

[Zurn]

The word "scammers!" could somehow appear spraypainted across their showroom window some night. You wouldn't believe what some punks will do for $20!!!


disclaimer-this was posted for entertainment purposes only!

Thanks for the 20 bucks. I'll get right on that for ya.

disclaimer: This was also meant to further the joke. No money has changed hands and no damage to property will take place. If a fire happens to break out in a dumpster behind the aforementioned establishment, that would be considered an act of a vengeful god.

 

[eynlai]

Thanks all for the opinion and advice. Yes, I don't think they are taking me seriously at all. And quite frankly, I don't feel like I have to go chasing the next person in charge to get satisfaction in this case. Sorry, but I have tooooo much concrete evidence. As one of my fellow riders, Mike (who work closely with car dealerships), said, "you got them by the balls.", and just like most of you, when I told him of this whole ordeal, all he said was, "not good", but he didn't really realize how bad this can be for them until he saw the tape himself.

As far as sue happy, this I am not. I already offered them a chance to clear this with me if they got the owner to speak with me to arrange for a meeting. No dice. I already have a very good lawyer that I've used for other matters in the past and I will call him tomorrow to discuss this matter. I don't think any lawyer that's willing to take this case would charge me a dime. There is such a thing as working on contingency for lawyers, and believe me, I can already see them thinking "class-action" in this matter. I might see minimal out of this, but its for the satisfaction. Don't think a decent lawyer can turn this into a class-action? How many of you have SBC DSL? I did, and I got a free month of service due to some DSL customer that started a suit because SBC's DSL technicians didn't show up when they said they would to his house! He got a hold of some slick lawyer that subpeonea the records of all of SBC's DSL customers and lumped it into a class action suit that SBC decided to settle out of court for tens of millions.

Once again, I don't feel that I'm being unrealistic to believe that a decent, greedy, half smart lawyer can turn this into something a lot bigger than what this dealer expects and for this matter what most riders like us would expect. Remember, if SBC was willing to settle out of court (more than likely because they were sure they would lose) over a case of a flakey technician. What do you think a case of intentional fraud like this will kick up??

But I like the idea of sending a certified letter. Better yet, I'll just place one more call to them tomorrow and tape record it (of coarse I'll inform them of this first).

But like it or not, I got a feeling this is going to end up in the lawyers. And this is due to their unwillingness to take me seriously and work with me, not because I want it that way.

 

[jumbo]

eynlai I would like too know the name of the dealer so I dont take my bike to them. Or if you don't want to give it to the board then at least tell us what city it is in.

I dont want to go to a dealer that is not doing promised and billed work.

Thanks

 

[BulletTrain]

Thanks all for the opinion and advice.  Yes, I don't think they are taking me seriously at all.  And quite frankly, I don't feel like I have to go chasing the next person in charge to get satisfaction in this case.  Sorry, but I have tooooo much concrete evidence.  As one of my fellow riders, Mike (who work closely with car dealerships), said, "you got them by the balls.", and just like most of you, when I told him of this whole ordeal, all he said was, "not good", but he didn't really realize how bad this can be for them until he saw the tape himself.

As far as sue happy, this I am not.  I already offered them a chance to clear this with me if they got the owner to speak with me to arrange for a meeting.  No dice.  I already have a very good lawyer that I've used for other matters in the past and I will call him tomorrow to discuss this matter.  I don't think any lawyer that's willing to take this case would charge me a dime.  There is such a thing as working on contingency for lawyers, and believe me, I can already see them thinking "class-action" in this matter.  I might see minimal out of this, but its for the satisfaction.  Don't think a decent lawyer can turn this into a class-action?  How many of you have SBC DSL?  I did, and I got a free month of service due to some DSL customer that started a suit because SBC's DSL technicians didn't show up when they said they would to his house!  He got a hold of some slick lawyer that subpeonea the records of all of SBC's DSL customers and lumped it into a class action suit that SBC decided to settle out of court for tens of millions.  

Once again, I don't feel that I'm being unrealistic to believe that a decent, greedy, half smart lawyer can turn this into something a lot bigger than what this dealer expects and for this matter what most riders like us would expect.  Remember, if SBC was willing to settle out of court (more than likely because they were sure they would lose) over a case of a flakey technician.  What do you think a case of intentional fraud like this will kick up??  

But I like the idea of sending a certified letter.  Better yet, I'll just place one more call to them tomorrow and tape record it (of coarse I'll inform them of this first).

But like it or not, I got a feeling this is going to end up in the lawyers.  And this is due to their unwillingness to take me seriously and work with me, not because I want it that way.

You do understand that SBC was insured against such suits and that the ins. company paid the class action settlement off, right? Prolly didn't cost them a penny more than their insurance premiums. And yes, I know all about lawyers workin' on contingency, but usually not in cases that stand to be awarded $178.

FWIW, I think you're in a pipe dream thinkin' this will be turned into a class action suit. This is a small claims issue at best, imho.

Again, don't get me wrong, I think the dealer should pay. I just think you're wastin' yer time and resources goin' for more than your money back. Yeah, I know. You're out for blood, and it's the "principle" of the matter now. I still think you're gonna put more into this than you get out of it.

If I could get my money back on the oil change I'd be done. If I couldn't get my money back I'd see about havin' one of the local investigative reporters take in a bike and see if the same thing happens to them. Hell, they've prolly got cameras they could plant on the bike to see exactly what is done, or not done. I'd let the news network do my dirty work.

Yet another reason why I do my own maintainance...

 

[EdC]

I'd stop to think for a moment before you engage an attorney, for once you do that, any chance of reconciliation with the dealership owner goes out the window.

I'm retired from 37 years as an automobile dealership service manager.  Speaking from both perspectives - the consumer's and the dealership's - you have to give them some benefit of the doubt.  If their techs are paid "flat rate", they are paid a set amount of time to do each job.  Do it in less than the "book" time and it's like being paid overtime for regular hours.  Take longer and it's like a pay cut.  Maybe the service manager and dealer are okay, but a tech shortcut your service to make money.  Or maybe the service manager is encouraging such things to fatten his department's and his own income.  Or, finally, maybe the whole place is crooked.  Before you jump to that conclusion, you owe it to the dealer AND yourself to find out.

Talk to the owner.  Remain calm and hold off with any legal threats until he proves to you that he flat couldn't care less.  But you may find he's embarrassed and he might just give you a nice gift certificate for his parts and accessories department as well as perform the service properly in return for bringing this matter to his attention.  After all, if you bring the state down on him, you'll get your money back for the service and that's it.  And if you sue him, well, you might see something trickle into your pocket in a year or so (after your attorney siphons off his share).

There's an old saying about catching more bees with honey than vinegar.  Trust me, it works.

Ed

 

[VaBusa]

I'd simply consider this a learning experience, possibly draft a nice letter and send it to:
American Suzuki MC/ATV Customer Service
P.O. Box 100
Brea, CA 92822

Let them know what's going on, what you witnessed, express your disappointment in seeing certified Suzuki service people NOT perform the work you're paying for...

Lastly, do your own maintenance to make sure everything gets done correctly...avoid having questions about what was done or not done and just do the work yourself..

 

[bacharles]

Entirely too much to read it all, but from what I've read so far...I would have to agree with the points made by BulletTrain and the Capt. This whole scenario is truly fugged up and whatever you decide to do, I hope they pay in some form or fashion. Good Luck!


Brian