Anyone else have a hellacious experience with their FIAT Studio/dealership like I did?
I'm not a fan of publicly trashing businesses so I won't say which one this is - but I have been VERY disappointed in the quality of service since I bought my Sport in July. It has been one hassle after another, and some of the most pathetically unprofessional behavior I've ever seen in a sales context.
1. The sales person who first "hooked" me was a fried-looking, gravelly-voiced older woman who stank of cigarettes and was covered in pet hair. She cracked sex jokes and seemed to have a limited understanding about spec/tech details of the car. I know, I should have walked then, but this was one of few studios in my area. My options were limited.
2. When I finally signed the papers, I asked for the 2nd (spare) key. Which is standard, and essential to my situation as my boyfriend and I share a narrow driveway and have to move each other's cars a lot. There was no 2nd key. They tore the studio apart looking for it, I was at the dealership until 9pm trying to figure it out. They said, "we'll send it to you."
3. Over the last 4 months, I have called the dealership maybe a total of 8-10 times asking about the 2nd key. I would speak to someone different each time and be promised something different each time. It became almost like a game; I'd call about every two weeks and repeat my story and I'd get another name, and the following week that person would no longer be there or "wasn't in." YES I spoke with several "managers," a different one each time. On every call, I've been calm, cheerful, concise, clear and articulate. There's no chance in **** they couldn't understand what I was after. One time, I even called the 1-800-FIATUSA # and did a 3 way conference call with THE FIAT rep and a "manager" at this deslership who promised to call me back.........and never did.
4. One of the times I called, I **** you not, the phone was picked up by a male who sounded DRUNK. He was slurring his words so badly I couldn't understand a thing, and he giggled and hung up on me! I am not making this up.
5. For a punch line, FINALLY a female who answered the phone seemed to actually care about my situation. She actually called me back. She apologized profusely for all the runaround I'd been getting, and made an appointment for me to come in to get the 2nd key programmed and resolve the situation. Yay!
6. Boo! I drove the 35 miles to the dealership on my day off........and found this:
- they didn't have the proper cables to program my key
-the mechanic who was to do it called in sick
-the dealership/studio was in pieces, with construction debris everywhere, so they made me go down the street to the old Chrysler service desk, where no one knew what I was talking about
-the slimy "manager" at the FIAT studio was very obviously sick, blowing his nose and coughing all over everything. When he found out I'm a nurse, he seemed more interested in asking me what he could do to feel better instead of helping me. Then, he went outside to smoke a cigarette. Wow.
7. A seemingly sympathetic mechanic offered to drive to my house that upcoming weekend, leave me a loaner, drive my car to the Studio, program the key and drive it back to my house himself. We made a deal of it and exchanged cell#s.
8. I canceled plans and waited all day that Saturday for him and he never showed. I called the dealership again, and his cell, and neither #picked up.
9. As a side note, my credit union is bugging me for the new title and registration info. It's been almost 5 months and nothing from the DMV has shown up, no plates, no title, no nothing.
I am without my promised 2nd key, without a title or plates, my USB is dead, and she needs an oil change. Should I just go to another dealership? Should I call the DMV to see what's going on?
Is there a way to report this whole situation to some corporate entity at FIAT USA or Chrysler? When I called the 1-800-FIATUSA # they basically told me, these FIAT Studios are actually independently owned/franchised Chrysler dealerships and therefore there is no corporate oversight and nothing I could do. I don't believe that. Short of dragging their name through the mud on forums like this and Yelp, what can I do? Any ideas or discussion would be so appreciated.
I'm not a fan of publicly trashing businesses so I won't say which one this is - but I have been VERY disappointed in the quality of service since I bought my Sport in July. It has been one hassle after another, and some of the most pathetically unprofessional behavior I've ever seen in a sales context.
1. The sales person who first "hooked" me was a fried-looking, gravelly-voiced older woman who stank of cigarettes and was covered in pet hair. She cracked sex jokes and seemed to have a limited understanding about spec/tech details of the car. I know, I should have walked then, but this was one of few studios in my area. My options were limited.
2. When I finally signed the papers, I asked for the 2nd (spare) key. Which is standard, and essential to my situation as my boyfriend and I share a narrow driveway and have to move each other's cars a lot. There was no 2nd key. They tore the studio apart looking for it, I was at the dealership until 9pm trying to figure it out. They said, "we'll send it to you."
3. Over the last 4 months, I have called the dealership maybe a total of 8-10 times asking about the 2nd key. I would speak to someone different each time and be promised something different each time. It became almost like a game; I'd call about every two weeks and repeat my story and I'd get another name, and the following week that person would no longer be there or "wasn't in." YES I spoke with several "managers," a different one each time. On every call, I've been calm, cheerful, concise, clear and articulate. There's no chance in **** they couldn't understand what I was after. One time, I even called the 1-800-FIATUSA # and did a 3 way conference call with THE FIAT rep and a "manager" at this deslership who promised to call me back.........and never did.
4. One of the times I called, I **** you not, the phone was picked up by a male who sounded DRUNK. He was slurring his words so badly I couldn't understand a thing, and he giggled and hung up on me! I am not making this up.
5. For a punch line, FINALLY a female who answered the phone seemed to actually care about my situation. She actually called me back. She apologized profusely for all the runaround I'd been getting, and made an appointment for me to come in to get the 2nd key programmed and resolve the situation. Yay!
6. Boo! I drove the 35 miles to the dealership on my day off........and found this:
- they didn't have the proper cables to program my key
-the mechanic who was to do it called in sick
-the dealership/studio was in pieces, with construction debris everywhere, so they made me go down the street to the old Chrysler service desk, where no one knew what I was talking about
-the slimy "manager" at the FIAT studio was very obviously sick, blowing his nose and coughing all over everything. When he found out I'm a nurse, he seemed more interested in asking me what he could do to feel better instead of helping me. Then, he went outside to smoke a cigarette. Wow.
7. A seemingly sympathetic mechanic offered to drive to my house that upcoming weekend, leave me a loaner, drive my car to the Studio, program the key and drive it back to my house himself. We made a deal of it and exchanged cell#s.
8. I canceled plans and waited all day that Saturday for him and he never showed. I called the dealership again, and his cell, and neither #picked up.
9. As a side note, my credit union is bugging me for the new title and registration info. It's been almost 5 months and nothing from the DMV has shown up, no plates, no title, no nothing.
I am without my promised 2nd key, without a title or plates, my USB is dead, and she needs an oil change. Should I just go to another dealership? Should I call the DMV to see what's going on?
Is there a way to report this whole situation to some corporate entity at FIAT USA or Chrysler? When I called the 1-800-FIATUSA # they basically told me, these FIAT Studios are actually independently owned/franchised Chrysler dealerships and therefore there is no corporate oversight and nothing I could do. I don't believe that. Short of dragging their name through the mud on forums like this and Yelp, what can I do? Any ideas or discussion would be so appreciated.
