So I am in need of a little advice. I just want some help and some different perspectives on whether I am being ridiculous. Also I thought it may help people decide whether Hyundai is a manufacturer that you are willing to give your money too and give you a peak at what customer service you can expect.

--Long Story--

My wife and I bought a brand new 2012 Hyundai Tucson AWD to replace her old vehicle, give us some more space and to help assist us through winter. We bought the car two Saturdays ago and the following 4 days after the purchase date we had to spend at the dealer with the check engine light on. After many excuses and quite a few hours sitting at the dealer the final verdict was the car had a faulty transmission and it needed to be replaced. We purchased the car with 30 miles on it and at this time it had 200 miles on it. All of which where put on the car during our 40 mile round trips to and from the dealer to get the damn thing looked at. Each time they had an excuse of why the light was on and in the end they settled on faulty transmission. The car was never actually used by us for anything other than driving it too and from the service department.

I sat down with the general manger of the dealership to discuss my options. I told him I think its fair that Hyundai refunds my money or replaces it with a new identical vehicle to replace the one that came with problems from the factory. He told me as a dealership they can't replace it so they and myself would have to discuss it with Hyundai Motor America.

After almost two weeks and many phone calls I have reached the verdict that the people I have spoke with are not willing to take responsibility for the manufacturing defect and make me a happy customer. They offered a 10 year 100k limited warranty that is NOT transferable between owners, it would apply only to the time we owned the vehicle. I argued that the car's resale is now depreciated because of the severe work that had to be done right after purchase, that's going to be a huge red flag to future buyers. They didn't seem to think it was their responsibility to be responsible for that.

I spoke with regional managers and regional parts and service managers and got no where but rude, rushed conversations saying that Hyundai doesn't owe me anything. They replaced the transmission and are trying to send me on my way.

What would you all do in this situation? We spent/are in the process of spending $25k on the car. It's been the worst customer service experience I have ever had, with constant unmet deadlines and people who have committed to calling me back who never have. The dealer Fairfax Hyundai in Fairfax VA has been horrendous about communication as well. I now have a car I am going to be constantly concerned about and many hours of frustration, stress and wasted time. I honestly feel if the vehicle was delivered to the dealer with a problem, sold to us with that problem we shouldn't be forced to keep the problem. The last guy on the phone I spoke with was a total ***** and told me that this is really a 1 in a million chance for this to happen. I argued then why can't you make that 1 person happy, if you have a million other perfectly built vehicles. He stabbed at my intelligence and wasn't even listening when I tried explaining the situation.

It has been a rough two weeks and I will never buy a Hyundai again and I will recommend others not to as well.

Started a gripe in attempt to spread the word, probably has a more detailed story too.

http://www.gri.pe/4753005

 

Very sorry to hear it, but it's a reminder that, after hearing so many MINI complaints, no car or manufacturer is perfect.

I don't blame you for trying to get a replacement, very good to try. But not surprised at the outcome since they will have to take a hit when re-selling it themselves.

Personally, I wouldn't stress over it too much.

If and when you sell your car, you may take a bit of a hit on the sale price, but overall, probably not too much.

And if you're like me and tend to drive your cars until they die, then you've still got a decent warranty for the time being and will probably have a decent car to use.

 

I think the lack of effort on Hyundai's part to make it right has been the biggest issue. The treated me like crap, never called me back and forced me to do the leg work on getting everything taken care of. Instead of them taking a hit they are going to let their customer take the hit. Perfect customer service technique.

 

I used to sell Hyundai's and I would never buy one. I wouldn't even take one if someone gave it to me. I haven't seen a Hyundai salesperson that isn't rude and the service people they hire are morons.

 

Sad to say, customer service across the board has gone to hell in a hand basket. I have gotten to the point where I am nearly shocked when I receive good customer service.

I bought a brand-new 2012 MINI that had no Sirius satellite service even tho it was supposed to.

My salesman made a single call to MINI and said they will have to get back to me.

After not hearing from MINI for a month, I asked my dealer for help in resolving the issue and they won't even bother to answer my emails now.

 

There was a thread on this board not long ago started by a New MINI owner who bought a 2012 MINI Cooper and had the engine totally blow up within like 90 miles. Thread was about rather thay should demand a new car or accept having the engine replaced. Not sure how that turned out but it shows something like that can happen with any mfg. I'll try and find that thread and post a link

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ld-you-do.html

 

I feel for ya but they are doing what I would expect, fixing the car to as it should be. The same scenario would happen if the car was at 30k miles, they would fix the tranny and the car is yours. It does sour the deal that it happened right after taking it home and they provided poor customer service.

Sorry, but I imagine that is all you would get with most brands, the extra step of replacing the car with a new one would lie on the dealership to take that hit and sell a used car with 200 miles on it.

 

This is never a big deal until it happens to you. Most of us would be furious and demanding exactly what I am demanding in this situation.

 

I understand, I am not as mad now as I would be if I was in your shoes. Logically looking at it though the same course of action is being taken weather it has 200 miles or 92,000 miles (assuming the powertrain of Hyundai would cover this, 10yr, 100k right?) Would you be less mad at 92k miles, I bet you would. Does it suck more because it has 200 miles, yes. But look at it from the contractual side of things, are they making the problem right, yes the tranny will be replaced and if no more issues arise they satisfied their end of the agreement. The situation blows, no doubt about it, but the car is yet to be a lemon, hence the reason for lemon laws.

While not a desirable one, do you see my point?

Sorry if I am not compassionate enough, I do agree it sucks big time.

 

This whole time I have not been claiming they have any legal responsibility to refund my money or replace the car. But from a customer service stand point they should have damn well tried to please me. They are on a slippery slope at the moment but have been gaining some popularity in the US. When they treat customers with disrespect and don't return calls or make false promises, especially when its regarding a problem from the factory, they are going to begin a descent back to where they were as a company 10 years ago. And I am going to do my best to share my experience with as many people as I can.

 

It can help to complain on a public forum sometimes. I saw one woman on Fb complain about her MINI cooper breaking down twice in one month after just buying the car.

But here's one thing that's very important...

She came across as more disappointed than angry, which makes it easier for a dealer or a company to want to help. Her comment was something like:

"Really MINI? Two breakdowns in under 5 weeks of taking ownership?!"

That was all it took. MINI USA saw her post and replied right away and said they'd help.

As the saying goes, you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Not saying you did this of course, but if someone is yelling and screaming in anger, they're not likely to get much help.

 

Yeah this has sort of been my approach with everyone I spoke to over the phone. i have been very polite and just explained my feelings and what would make me a happy customer. No luck so far, just attitude and uinterest returned.

 

Yeah - I hear ya. Part of me is jaded. I have yet to have a "great" experience with a dealer. Sometimes fair, sometimes bad—never great.

And numerous times I have said "never again will I buy a Honda!" Both the dealer and my CRV have been mediocre.

But this is usually after yet another problem with the front-end. Afterwards I accept that my other family members who have Hondas don't have many issues and I consider Honda's track record overall and I admit that I still might consider one in the future.

Cars are a necessary evil—but if you gotta drive something evil, you may as well have fun doing it. That's why we got a MINI.

 

I see it as you having two different issues. One, the mechanical replacement of the defective part, has been repaired and the extra warranty should help smooth over that speed bump. I do not see the resale value being affected. You do not have to reveal the repair to a prospective buyer unless you wish to, and if you did I wouldn't think that it would stop someone from buying the car. It is not like people are buying Hyundai's and making sure they are number matched cars.

Now the issue with poor customer service is another matter. You may get more traction by focusing on this issue with the appropriate people and seeing what you can get in regards to some compensation for your troubles. Maybe a free 30K service, or something along those lines. Obviously nothing can change how you have been treated to this point.

It maybe hard but your best choice might be just to focus on moving forward from here. Who knows, the car may turn out to be the best car you have owned....it IS possible.

 

I too saw this, very interesting. I was actually surprised at how quick they replied.


I do think it really sours the deal when as a person you feel disrespected by the simple act of not being listened to or even acknowledged by the simple fact that they don't return calls...especially when they say they will.

Even going to a dealership isn't going to make it right to the effect of what you are looking for. Let us know what the American HQ people of Hyundai have to say. Seems the next logical step as the dealership is sucking big time.

 

My dad is a Mini owner and I frequent the mini forums to keep in the loop with what's going on, as we share a similar passion for cars. That said, I own 2 Hyundais, a 2011 Hyundai Sonota and a 2011 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 R-spec. Just thought I'd share my experience with my local Hyundai Dealerships as well.

I bought my wife's Hyundai in Sep. of 2010, it now has almost 20k on the odometer and have only had one problem at 16k with the push button start (the brake pedal switch wouldn't engage) which is a common problem with the early 2011 Sonotas, took it to the dealer and within 2 hours I had it in the shop, diagnosed, replaced with a new "improved" switch, and I was back on the road.

My 2011 Genesis Coupe I bought in July of 2011. It now has 6k miles, and unfortunately has a 5th gear grind issue (a problem with the syncros that many genesis coupes have apparently) as it was only a slight grind and didn't happen everytime I shifted I didn't worry about it until I threw a CEL. At that point I knew I had to take it in and have them check all of my problems, as I had also noticed that the Leather on the bolsters of my drivers side seat were worn down already. I took my car in to the dealership they took 2 hours to diagnose everything (faulty throttle body, grinding transmission, and worn seat cover) They set me up with a loaner car right away, ordered my new throttle body and had it over-nighted, the next day at lunch time they called me up and had it replaced and ready to go (safely driveable) and they have a new transmission and seat cover on order that should come in Tuesday of this week. No questions, no hassle. The car will be back to expected condition.

I give all the credit for all of my hassle-free service to my local Dealerships service department, it has nothing to do with corporate Hyundai, so at different dealerships you're going to have different experiences, don't throw all of Hyundai under the bus for poor customer service at one dealership.

In regards to the "depreciated value" it's not like the car was in a wreck, nothing is going to be reported on a car fax or anything, unless you choose to disclose this information to a buyer (which if it runs correctly should be a non-issue) that may make them think twice, but if it's an OEM part installed by a factory certified technician it's as good as factory.

In regards to wanting a new car I think that's kind of ridiculous, now if you keep having issue after issue, that's where lemon laws come in and they'll get you a new car, Unfortunately, quality control isn't perfect and sometimes there's faults, but it's my opinion that these things happen and as long as they fix the car to factory condition it's a non-issue, that's what warranty's are for and Hyundai has one of the best ones out there (my wife's Sonota has 10yr/100k mile bumper to bumper and mine has 10yr/100k mile powertrain and 5yr/60k mile bumper to bumper).

In conclusion I think Hyundai is a great car for the price, With the Sonota I paid under $23k for a large mid-sized sedan with sunroof, 18" alloy wheels, navigation, leather bolstered seats and a 200hp I-4 that gets 28mpg around town and 35mpg+ on road trips. Any similarly equipped Toyota, Nissan, or Honda would have been $5k+ more with a worse warranty.

Similarly, my 306HP RWD sports coupe with 19" alloys, Bluetooth, and leather bolstered seats was under $25k, there's nothing else even close in the price range and I get more looks, compliments, and stunned looks (that it's a Hyundai) than you could imagine.

Motor on

Phillip

 

Have you spoken to a lawyer that specializes in Lemon Laws? I would recommend looking to see what the law is for your state, they are very different from state to state, and possibly just giving one a call. Go to someone who specializes in Lemon Law, they can tell you quite easily what they outcome will be and will not take the case unless they know they can win. I've been there, done that.

I can't really make any comment on if your car would fall into a Lemon Law because of how different the laws are and that I don't know every specific but it's not hard to look them up and give it a try yourself.

 

Sorry about your troubles.

Looks like I made a good move not buying a Hyundai.

 

To the OP, you seem to understand that you are asking for a favor; that contractually, they don't have to do what you're asking. And what you're asking for is not trivial - the financial hit to refund your money is probably on the order of $3K-$4K.

It is very unusual in the situation you've presented that a mfg would "eat" a deal and take the car back. It's done, but very rarely and only in situations where a mfg has some unusual reason such as a long-term customer who has bought tens of cars from the same dealer, someone influential in the industry, etc. If people want to knock Hyundai for not stepping up, they should realize that the situation would be identical with Mini, Honda, MB, BMW, Toyota, etc.

The customer service reps you've talked to are bound by company policy and the amount of goodwill money they have is very limited. Almost all car companies would do the same. If you are digging in your heels and won't take anything less than a full refund, I'm not surprised that they're saying "no" and they will continue to say "no" no matter how long/hard you scream. As to their being rude, this is unfortunate, but my experience is that once a service rep realizes that they can't meet a customer's demands, they lose interest in further discussions. This may come across as rude, but they're just being realistic and spending their time on problems which can be solved.

I think customers have a tendency to think that companies should universally adapt a "make the customer happy" policy by their experiences with larger retailers on small purchases. Costco can afford to do some pretty ridiculous returns and eat the cost on $100 items. But as the size/expense of the item gets bigger, it becomes financially impossible to act like Costco. No car company can stay in business offering full refunds on cars simply because the car has an initial mechanical issue.

So you ask politely and hope for the best. They may say no which is their perogative. As to saying "no" impolitely, well, that's just the way life is.

I think it is time to move on. Get your car fixed and drive it. At this point, you're whining more than being constructive.

Lemon laws do vary from state to state, but generally, they kick in only when repeated attempts to fix a problem fail. I would think you're a long ways away from this. Now if the new transmission doesn't solve the problem, then you might have something.

- Mark

 

I drive past Fairfax Hyundai at least twice a day. I feel your pain. Unfortunately all you can really expect is a new transmission. My concern would be that if the people in the sales and business offices are idiots, what about the mechanics who will be working on your car? Good luck. Hope it works out.

 

Agreed. I would consult an attorney.

 

5spoke, Now that that you have a new transmission in the Hyundai, how is it running? I have heard great things about them recently and the wife is considering replacing her Outback with a Hyundai. Consumer reports rates them very highly and I understand that is based on reports from the owners of these cars.

I regret to hear that you've had problems with yours.

 

Do I think that you should get a new car... I do.

Will you... No.

Hyundai is doing well in the US, they are no longer in the "Repair Mode" they were in when they came to the US. They were almost as bad as YUGOs were. There was a point when insurance companies would not even cover you if you had one. Fast forward 25 years, they are selling cars like hotcakes... they have a winning strategy, create a nice car at a solid price point, and it is working. They do not care if you are unhappy, because you are outnumbered 1000 to 1. Put this on top of what others have said, that CS is a disaster, no one cares about the customer anymore. It is sad, and it is wrong, but it is what it is.

They will fix the car... and I think the 100k is a good deal. I am not sure why you are worried about the resale value, it is a Hyundai... drive that thing into the ground and in a 100k miles go get a new one. In my mind, Hyundai's really are disposable cars. I can NEVER see a day where a 2012 Hyundai fetching 200k on the auction block. I would eat my MINI!

I had a 1990 Hyundai Scoop when I was in the service. I put 127k miles on it, and donated it when I was done.

 

This is a MINI forum, isn't it? This is why I never buy anything but a manual tranny.