Trouble with my Chrysler
product. . .
Was I expecting anything less?
Well...Yes, I was.
Meet my
Neon. . .
This was
my Neon when I bought it . . . A Happy Little Car, really.
I bought my Neon brand new, back in the Winter of 94' (yes,
I purchased one of the first ones offered to the public...
probably my first mistake).
All of the "experts" raved at
what
a "great" car it was. I believed them. I knew Chrysler's
track record from the past (my folks owned a couple
of Chryslers), but I was willing to believe that the
"New
Chrysler" would come though for me.
Here is
my Neon now . . .
After
I let no less than 4 dealerships touch it !!
(not to mention that the car
had to "break" in the first place)
What
happened next could be constituted as a
"NIGHTMARE".
My Neon would spend the rest of its life
in and out of the shop for various "issues" (read: problems).
I want it to be known that I REALLY
want to like this car.
When it runs properly, it really is a fun, fast and
enjoyable car to drive. However, these times have been
few.
I will not bore you with too many of the details on this
vehicle's service life. Let's just say that it has been to
one of several dealers (depending on where it decided to
"quit" that day) for a total of 23
separate visits, requiring
over 75 different
items needing to be fixed (from loose door
handles to a "blown" head gasket). The maximum number
of attempts to fix a single item was recorded at 6
(I
believe it was my turn signal stalk that wouldn't operate
properly...finally a Service Bulletin was issued by Chrysler,
admitting that there was a problem with these...one of
over almost 1 dozen
Service Bulletins that I have received
on my Neon, describing problems with the car that needed
to be fixed). All from a car that is STILL under warranty
with 55,000 miles showing on the odometer.
Where was Chrysler in all of this? Good question...I don't
have an answer. They SAY that they will be there for you.
Take a look
at their "Customer One" program. I'm supposed
to be number one? Really?
After countless calls to the relations group in Detroit,
the ONLY commitment I could get out of anyone there was,
"I'm sorry sir. There really isn't much that I can do for you
except call the dealer to see if we can convince them to
do the repairs at no charge." What good is the relations
department if they can't do anything for a car that is
under warranty??? I thought they were supposed to be on
MY side???? That's what I figured the "relations" in
relations department was all about.
The REAL kicker here is that when I asked to speak with
a Manager or Supervisor, I was denied several times. Why?
According to the Representatives a spoke with, "I don't
have a Manager." You mean to tell me that they are self-
managed? Who watches over to see that things get done
around the office? Boy, I wish that I could be accountable
to only myself...
As hard as a tried, NOBODY would let me speak to a
higher authority. NOBODY. You'd swear that I was trying
to get hold of the President of the United States or
something. Sheesh!
In other words, I had no way of getting my concerns
"voiced". I felt like it was, "Well sucker...We got your
money. Now you're on your own."
Well, I'm getting towards the end of my warranty period.
Think I'm a little nervous? Try convicing my wife and child
that they can be confident in getting into that car day
in and day out without having to worry...It's on my mind
often. As a matter of fact, just last week the car decided
to overheat. When I brought the car in, they could find
"nothing wrong." Really? Try telling THAT to my wife (who
was in the car with me when the needle "pegged" itself on "H").
Sure, I could try and trade it in, but have you seen the
resale on this car??? Obviously, there are many other
individuals out there who are seeing something similar
to what I am, because there's absolutely NO resale
value in it anymore. Anyone want to take a "bath" with
me (and I'm NOT talking about the hygiene kind)??? This
car isn't worth SQUAT.
So, I either put up with the troubles or lose a whole lotta' money.
This is not to say that ALL Chryslers are "defective".
It's just to say that, with all of the trouble that I have had with
mine that it would be a safe bet to say that I will
NEVER
EVER NEVER
purchase another Chrysler product again. EVER!!
I have simply had too many instances where someone
could have picked up the ball and run with it. However,
everyone seemed to want to drop it. That's o.k. if this
is the way you want to run your business (in this case,
several business since I had to deal with so many), but
it's not the way that I do
business. It all could have been
solved so easily.
By the way...Have you seen the "recall"
bulletins lately?
Guess who's product seem to dominate the charts? It
doesn't sound like just a "fluke" to me...
Similar incident(s)? E-mail me: