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The service department at Lester Glenn Hyundai on Rt. 37 on Toms River, NJ has not lived up to their claim of being "best in service". My husband and I just purchased a 2007 Hyundai Vera Cruz. We absolutely love the car and the experience we had with the sales man wasn't as uncomfortable and unpleasant as most dealerships however, we have had nothing but problems with the service department for the past 2 months and keep in mind we have only had the car for 3 months!
The stickey stuff on the back outside window trimming was never taken off upon purchase. In fact, the car was not even detailed, upon purchase. We drove home a brand new car that was not even cleaned properly. It was apparently getting "too late" for the service dept. to "properly detail" the car, so we were told that when we received the call that our plates were in, to drop off the car and they would give us a proper detail and free full tank of gas. We were happy with that compromise. Once the plates were in...at that point we had realized that the alignment was off and we had not received an antennea. Upon dropping the car off I told the service department about antennea and alignment and handed them my "we owe" receipt stating I was owed a detail and tank of gas. I left with my free rental and was hopeful. I was then called shortly after and told that I would have to leave the car over night. Fine...Go to get the car the next day and absolutely NOTHING was done. NO antennea, NO DETAIL, alignment STILL off. We then had it out with the service rep until the manager of the service department came out and was very apologetic. SHe stated that the window trimming had to be replaced and was apologetic that the car was not detailed. I was told the parts would be ordered and I would be called.
Fast forward 1 MONTH..still no phone call. I called them and they said that the parts were in and that it appeared I already had an appt. Neither my husband nor myself made an appt. , but I agreed to keep the one that was made...which was for this morning. I dropped the car off FIRST THING this morning and told the service rep that I was owed a FULL detail and the alignment was STILL off and that the window trim was being replaced. Left with rental. Now it is 5:30 in the EVENING and I have JUST NOW received a call stating that the parts were not in and they would have to be ORDERED! Imagine my surprise and frustration when I was told the parts were in and that I had an appt. already. The service rep. informed me that I will have to leave my car there ALL WEEK in order to wait for the parts to come in. He also informed me that the alignment was checked and "nothing is wrong with it." This is wrong because I should not have to forcefully pull the steering wheel to the right to compensate for the pulling..everytime I am driving this NEW car! I told him this and he said they would have "someone else check it out again".
Let's just say that when we are called in a WEEK to go get our NEW car, if everything is not completely rectified, we will be making a FORMAL complaint and calling the president of the company.
I am not one to complain, but I really think that after spending nearly 26 thousand dollars on a NEW CAR, I should NOT have these kind of problems already. We should have walked out with a SHINY, CLEAN, fully functioning, BRAND NEW CAR. WE are extrememly disappointed, but yet still hopeful that everything will be taken care of this week.
On Thursday, April 23rd 2009, I received a courtesy call from you about the experience we had with the Lester Glenn Hyundai Service Department. After listening to it, my first reaction was that you were putting salt in the wound. After thinking about it, I realized it was part of your job to follow-up on service repairs and that you were probably not aware of the situation. Or maybe you were.
On Monday, April 20th, my wife called the Service Department about a problem with the front tires of her car, they were bald. I was reluctant to have her drive the car at all, but since she works less than a mile from home, she drove the car in. After the call to Lester Glenn, she proceeded to drive the vehicle to the dealership.
My wife purchased her 2007 Santa Fee in November of 2006. This is the fourth Hyundai our family has purchased from you. When she first got the Santa Fe, she noticed a noise when she shifted from driver to reverse and visa versa. Hyundai was aware of this and had a fix. This was corrected.
In December of 2008, she noticed a noise coming from the front when she turned a corner. She took the vehicle in to your Service Department on December 22nd. It turned out to be a power steering leak. Instead of replacing the leaking seal your department decided to replace the rack. Also, it was discovered that the vehicle required seals for the front wheels. Your parts department did not have the parts and they were ordered. She was without her car for almost 2 weeks. We did have a loaner which we used during the holidays. We picked up the vehicle on December 30th.
In early April after driving on the Parkway in the rain, she brought it to my attention that the vehicle seemed to be all over the road. I immediately adjusted the tire pressure and asked her to observe the handling of the vehicle. She is the primary driver and would be able to see if they were any difference.
Fortunately, on April 19th, I had the opportunity to drive the vehicle to Philadelphia Airport. While driving, I heard the front tires squealing in turns and was once again concerned of low tire pressure. When I returned home I again checked the tire pressure in all tires and they were normal. Then I went under the vehicle and notice the front tires were practically bald from the inside feathering outward. Since the time of the front end work on this vehicle, we have driven the car 2, 000 miles.
We were told we needed a wheel alignment and 2 new tires. We questioned the whether the work done in December had anything to do with the current problem, since most of the work involved the steering rack and the front wheels. We were told my wife didn’t ask for a wheel alignment when the car was repaired. When work of this nature is done alignment is always required. Crossing fingers don’t always work. She also didn’t ask for an oil change, but in one of the phone conversations while you had the car in December, she was asked if she wanted an oil change and responded yes. Why wasn’t a wheel alignment mentioned if was not to be included in the rack replacement.
After my wife left the car, I called the Service Department and spoke to your Service Manager, Zina Approvato. Her concerns were not that of the customer, she just stated that there was nothing wrong done by the service department. Her claim was that my wife’s vehicle was out of alignment, which I agree. The fact is that the toe was never set after the rack and pinion was installed, as noted on the 12/30/08 Invoice # HYCS16381. She stated that a qualified mechanic with 22 years experience performed the necessary repairs. Then she commented that as far as she was concerned our conversation was over. If the mechanic has been there that long, I am sure they are good at what they do. However, there is such a thing as human error.
I am disgusted with the repairs done at your Service Department. This action could have caused a serious accident involving injury or even death to my wife, or even our grandchildren, who frequently ride in the car.
I do know what I am talking about, as I am a certified mechanic with over 45 years of experience with motor vehicle repairs. I managed my own repair garage, worked flat rate positions, and repaired and managed a fleet of trucks for a large delivery company. Never once have I jeopardized someones life and I always reviewed the work of others that I managed for complete quality repairs.
This vehicle is the 4th Hyundai we have either leased or purchased from your dealership and we have been completely satisfied. In fact, after my wife purchased her Sonata (the car purchased before the Santa Fe), she recommended the cars to her company and they made a purchase of 6 Sonatas and a few Elantras for its fleet. However, due to your Service Department, no other vehicles have been purchased at your dealership since.
We never had any repair work done on any of the previous three vehicles we owned, only regular maintenance. My wife does not drive the vehicles a lot, having only 30, 000 miles on the Sonata we traded in. At the present time, she has had the vehicle 2 ½ year, and has 17, 500 miles on it.
I am very unhappy with what transpired.
To this day no one from Lester Glenn cared about making customer recovery. (7-2-09)
Cc: Hyundai USA