Consumer affairs has sent me out a complaint form but i know its going to turn into a legal matter so i am just gonna get straight to it.
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Be aware you may need to 'bleep' the location so m***o holden p**t st . Just so oa don't get done for slander
Bad news David - hope it works out for you when you take this further. :)
To be Safe, Holden Dealarship would be a better change ;)
Good luck with it all mate
OK well this is lengthy but this is it a complete play for play af my dealings with Metro Holdens port rd and Holdens Australia
To whom it may concern,
Case number ************
This letter is to express my concern & disappointment regarding the servicing, treatment & advice from Metro Holden’s, Port Road in relation to my 2007 black Astra turbo, registration ****. I am writing this letter with disappointment and disgust which has resulted from the poor treatment of your service team and also from their actions and the way they have conducted their business. I feel they have not demonstrated a professional work ethic and their actions are not fair and just. I also feel like I have been ignored by Metro Holden’s servicing department and their conduct has been both un-professional and incompetent. As a result, I now find myself dealing with Holden’s customer assistance to try and resolve the issue. Below I have a detailed timeline of the events leading up to the incident to demonstrate the level of action that I had taken to resolve the issue and the lack of effort performed by the service team.
·At approximately 15,000km I noticed a very slight knocking upon gear change. The knocking sound was occurring every time I changed gears. I immediately bought this to the attention of Metro Holden’s. I did not book an appointment but stopped past the servicing department for someone to inspect the vehicle & see if there was an issue. A mechanic took my vehicle for a test drive as I waited in the waiting area at metro Holden’s. I had explained to the mechanic before the test drive the issue with the gears but upon return advised he could not fault the vehicle and that it was fine. No suggestion was made by this mechanic that I should book the vehicle in for a service or have it more thoroughly inspected. With the mechanic being a professional, I took his advice that there was no issue with the vehicle. This occurred sometime in April 2008. As I had not booked the car in for a service, there was not documentation nor were there any notes made on the computer. I remember the mechanic who looked at my vehicle but do not recall his name. If I were to see him again I could easily point him out.
·At 29,832 kms, a further 14,800km since I first noticed the knocking; the vehicle was due for a service. I bought the car in on the 31/12/08 and told them about the clunking issue with the gears & that it had not ceased. I thought it may have been an engine mount as I had previously been told that there was nothing they could fault with the gearbox after the test drive. I assumed the engine mount would be repaired or replaced during the service. I left the car with the Metro Holden’s Servicing department and they advised they would have a look at the vehicle to try and locate and repair the clunking in the vehicle. Later that afternoon, I received a call from the servicing department advising the vehicle was ready for me to collect. I asked the gentleman if they had fixed the clunking sound or replaced the engine mounts, the gentlemen replied that the engine mounts were fine and the vehicle is not making the noise or knocking. I returned later that day to pick up my vehicle. Upon leaving I noticed the car was in no better condition than prior to me bringing the car into the servicing department and the car had continued to have issues with knocking and clunking whist changing gears.
I then contacted the service department again and advised that the car is still having issues with the clunking or knocking of the gearbox and I thought that they had fixed it. The response from the servicing department was that the vehicle was not making this noise upon road test. At this point in time I could not understand why they were unable to notice this knocking in the gearbox, as it was evident to other people who had been in my car that there was an issue there. I find it very hard to understand why the issue was not picked up and this is frustrating as I had taken the correct pre-cautions to make the servicing department aware of the issue and to take this into consideration when servicing my vehicle. As it was New Years Eve, I felt the response I received from the servicing department was negative and I felt as if they did not want to deal with it as it was New Years Eve and an inconvenience. Holden’s serving department advised they would have to conduct further testing and if I could return the car. I advised them I would need a loan car as I need the vehicle for work. It was some two weeks wait for a loan vehicle, I advised them that I would call back and book a suitable time and date for further testing. Before I was able to do so, my car was involved in a collision when it was parked in a car park. The vehicle had full comprehensive insurance and was repaired by a reputable and approved repairer. This process took 4 months in which the vehicle was not driven much.
·Upon receiving the vehicle back after the collision, I booked the vehicle in to get repaired on the 15/04/09 with 30,761km on the odometer. I bought the vehicle in on the morning of 15/04/09 and left it with Holden’s servicing department. I was waiting for a phone call but decided to call myself and enquire on the status of the vehicle. I got told that they replaced the rear engine mount and the car was fine so I picked up the vehicle. After leaving the premises, I again noticed the car was still clunking on gear change. I called to explain that yet again the issue had not been fixed and that I have had enough and it was ridiculous. I also wanted to know why I had again been told the issue was fixed when it clearly hadn’t. I decided to personally go into the Holden’s servicing department at Metro Holden, where I was told that they were having trouble pin pointing the problem. They advised that they would keep changing all the engine mounts one by one until the problem stops. To me this seemed like a waste of time but as they were mechanics I took their professional advice and I booked the vehicle in again.
·At 31,682 kms I booked the vehicle in for service on the 20/04/09. A courtesy vehicle was booked. I again bought the vehicle into the same metro Holden’s servicing department. Together with the mechanics we checked the car over in the workshop so I could show them the area where the knocking and clunking was coming from, hoping to give them a better understanding of where to look as, at this point they had no idea still as to what the issue was. After some time looking at the vehicle, the group of mechanics looking & observing were unable to diagnose the issue from a visual point of view, although at his point the mechanics agreed there was indeed a clunking noise and an issue that needed to be located and fixed. They then placed the vehicle on a hoist and on further inspection found the engine mounts to be in good working condition. Anyone would assume the issue would then be somewhere else. I then left them to continue working on the vehicle and returned to the counter to sign paperwork in regards to a courtesy car. Whilst doing this I was told that I would receive a phone call when my vehicle was ready. I advised them I would need notice in advance before I could return the courtesy vehicle so I could make arrangements with work and I was then told that the courtesy car would need to be returned by the end of that business day as they needed it for the next morning. This to me meant that my car was to be dealt with in a rush as they needed the car for another customer the following morning. This frustrated me as I had taken my car to the servicing department three times prior to this occasion and the issue had still not been resolved. The issue was becoming more serious and I felt the service department was not fulfilling their obligation to resolve the matter. It also begun to worry me greatly as I did not believe it was getting the servicing required. I felt that getting the courtesy car back for someone else to use was very rude, as again it made me feel the issue with my car was not significant. I explained to the servicing department that if the car was not fixed by the end of the day I would not be returning the courtesy car. I was told not to worry about it. I left the servicing department and by the end of that day I received a phone call and was asked to come in as my vehicle was ready. I again came in thinking that everything had now been fixed. I asked what the issue was and they advised that they had changed another engine mount and that it would now be fine. Again upon leaving the department, to my disgust the clunking and knocking was still evident. I returned to the service department immediately and exchanged words as I was angry, frustrated and again let down. I told the staff in the servicing department that this type of service was unacceptable and not only have they wasted my time on several occasions but when I questioned their competence I was treated with disrespect and was spoken to rudely. I believe this was because of my suggestions perhaps their mechanics weren’t up to speed with servicing and knowledge of the European models. I believed after taking my vehicle there on the numerous occasions the issue would have been located let alone resolved. I felt I was spoken down to by staff. I had to then wait a further 21 days to re-book my vehicle again as they indeed needed their courtesy car back for following morning. I managed to get another booking on the 11/05/09.
·Again I bought my vehicle into the metro Holden’s servicing department on the morning of 11/05/09. This time I picked up the courtesy vehicle, gave them my keys and left only to get a phone call about two hours later asking me to come in. On return to the service department, I was asked to have a few modifications removed and my car back to standard. I was told this was because they were having trouble pin pointing the issue. I again became agitated as because of the mechanics failure to resolve the issue and lack of expertise, I was going to have to remove modifications on the vehicle that had not previously been an issue when servicing the car prior. I was advised that the parts that were fitted were making it difficult to source the problem. I was annoyed as I had clearly stated earlier that the issue was coming from the gearbox or the engine and the modifications fitted to the vehicle (wheels/springs/exhaust) do not interfere at all with these areas. I advised metro servicing that if they were unable to figure it out, I would then take vehicle to another Holden dealership for servicing. I then called City Holden and booked it in for the next day being the 12/05/09.
·That morning of the 12/05/09 driving to City Holden, I was stationary in traffic and I went to take off and the gearbox gave up in very big way depositing oil and gears onto the road. I called Holden assist and to my surprise Metro Holden had not renewed my Holden assist. This was again another fault as I had a service not more than six months ago and it was common practice to renew the membership every time you have a scheduled service with metro Holden. I rang Metro Holden to see why they did not renew it, and in the mean time they organized a tow into their work shop. I arrived at Metro Holden’s with the tow truck driver. I was advised by Suresh, who had been dealing with me and my vehicle recently, not to stress. I was angry as the issue had far gotten out of hand and had now escalated as a result of Metro Holden’s incompetence to resolve the issue to begin with. Suresh also advised that we would sort something out and that everything would be ok. I then left Metro Holden’s with the advice that I would receive a phone call once that had had a look at my vehicle. I went to avis to collect the courtesy car. I had this car for some time while my car was being assessed. After some time, I was contacted and advised that Holden’s was not going to replace or repair the gearbox under warrantee as it was not a manufacturing fault and that I would have to make a decision to repair or replace the gearbox myself.
I feel that failure to locate the issue in the early servicing days meant that this incident could have been avoided or intercepted. I felt like I have been blamed and my driving habits used as excuse for metro Holden’s serving department incompetence and lack of knowledge when servicing my vehicle. Not only did I make numerous efforts to allow Holden’s the opportunity to service my car and locate the issue, but I dealt with rude and disrespectful servicing staff. It is my understanding that a serving department maintains vehicles and fixes or advises the customer of any issues, my experience with Metro Holden’s is the servicing department constantly advised the issue was fixed when indeed it hadn’t even been located. I believe I took all the correct steps to ensure the issue with my car was rectified but was constantly given excuses and misinformation. I am personally disgusted and appalled at how the matter has been handled and the response I have received. This not how I expected Holden’s or it associates to act as a company.
I feel the reason given as to why the gearbox will not be replaced by Holden’s is outrageous as the issue is not to what may have caused the gearbox to go but more so the actions the service department took in trying or lack of trying to prevent the issue by fixing or diagnosing the problem many services ago. I have tried to discuss this with your business manager. Mechanics have an obligation to do their job and there is a standard that needs to be met, in this case Metro Holden’s have not met those standards at all. I have been treated unfairly, disrespectfully and misinformed by the servicing staff. This has caused a great deal of anguish and undue stress that could have been avoided if the servicing department were competent in their actions. I also believe that the servicing department’s lack of knowledge with European models may have been an issue with the diagnosis of my vehicle. This became evident in my discussions with the mechanics.
Another concern is that if the Holden’s service department was unable to locate the issue due to modifications then why was I not advised at an earlier time to remove the modifications, not at the last instance, this again may have lead to the issue being resolved much sooner. If the parts were making it difficult to locate the issue, why was it not suggested the first time these modifications be removed or why was it not required during servicing to have the modifications removed.
I have spoken with a separate mechanic and was advised that larger wheels, springs and exhaust would in no way have contributed to the malfunction of the gearbox. Upon receipt of this letter, I am providing Holden’s Australia with seven days to come to an agreement with myself as my next step is seeking legal representation.
Yours sincerely
David ******
In reply this is what they said
Dear Mr ******
Ref No: ********
We write in reference to your 2007 Holden Astra SRi Turbo Hatch, Vehicle Identification Number ******************.
We understand you have raised some concerns with your vehicle’s gearbox and as a result of these difficulties you are requesting that Holden cover the cost of the replacement gearbox.
Please be advised that upon inspection by Metro Holden, we confirm that no evidence of manufacturing defect was found. In consideration, we review the nature of the concern, distance travelled and also vehicle history. Our assistance does not extend to items arising from external influences or wear and tear.
In light of these factors, we advise that we are unable to accede your request for assistance. Please be advised that as per the Owner’s Handbook, Chapter 9-6, Holden New vehicle Warranty covers the replacement or adjustment of those parts found to be defective in materials or workmanship from factory.
We thank you for taking the time to contact Holden and allowing us an opportunity to respond. Should you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned at Holden Customer Assistance on 1800 033 349.
Yours sincerely
****** ******
State Business Representative
So excellent customer service isn't it they didnt even acknowledge a single thing except they have no responsibility not even an apology that it has blown out to this nothing!!!!! bunch of mother loving Wankers
So i got OCBA on the case they did try but holdens are standing firm on this and feel that in no way they are responsible, metros port rd or holdens Australia.
So OCBA asked if i could get a separate report as to why the box has failed and if it was picked up earlier if it would have been avoided as it would help in court or getting them to accept some responsibility , no one wants to do it as there are not many gearbox specialist in Adelaide and the ones that are around all do some form of work for holdens and also to say, do not want to bite the hand that feeds them and the ones that will are to small and say there word against holdens will not get me far.
So i found an engineering firm called tonkin engineering who specialize in reports for court and stuff like this as they are a law/engineering firm but they want 1k for a report just to look at my gearbox and either way it does not guarantee me anything.
Obviously this would not be the first time holdens has had someone dispute there liability so they know what they are doing and also i do have some things not in my favor so i doubt i will come out on top with this report or if i pursue this further lawyer ect it could back fire and cost me more than it needs to.
Consumer affairs tried to help but they have no back bone..... they are a little soft.
So it leaves me having to fix it myself :mad:
So people take it from me if you have a problem with your car and it persists with holdens looking at it, take it else where.
I now feel that obviously they knew what it was in the first place by letting it get worse they managed to wipe there hands of it .
mate thats a terrible outcome i feel for you.
was it $7000 for the replacement? I'd be tempted to get Tonkin to have a look at it as a matter of principle. If it was a defect, take holden up on it. if it wasnt, fair nuf cough up the money for the replacement.
I'd hate to have to go on thinking that i got screwed by a corporate mate.
This may be a bit more involved than you would be bothered with but have you attempted to contact TV stations? Over here in Sydney Today Tonight always covers all these little consumer things where they stalk the crap out of the executives and demand interviews lol
"no comment no comment please back off" [as he hops into his private jet].
etc.
all the best mate
"Why aren't you answering our questions, Mr. Travowski? Is there something you don't what the Australian public to know?" etc.
Harsh luck. Typical big business always looking out for themselves. I must say though the letter was well written; you couldn't have done any better on your end.
Yeah i want to but its an expensive principal i just want my car back apart from the few weeks in between its been about 6-7 months including the accident (parked might i add) that i have not had the car .
My mates have told me to but i dont want to be on tv for something like this also i have a few things against me mods young ect
but apparently there are some signs you can get
"dont buy this car its a lemon"
put it on the front window and park it out the front of there business.
tell me about it.......
I tried to be as professional as i could kinda makes me sick the way they have handled them self's.
Also probably bad timing with this GM debt at least i can say i contributed to helping holdens stay in business :rolleyes: