For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful?

"windmere" wrote in message

 > So you are still considering a Hyundai? I'm kind of pleased since I am
too.
 > I can tell you my experience with Hyundai's service. It was the best.
 >
 > When I bought the Pony in 1984, Hyundai was a new company in North
America.
 > They had all the pride, friendliness, accessories, and comfort level of
 > visiting the dealership that Saturn strives for now. They treated me like
a
 > valued customer the whole time until they closed down about 14 years
later,
 > and then we followed the service manager to the Dodge dealership he moved
 > to, and had our servicing done there.
 >
 > I am not getting this kind of good service or eagerness to please from my
 > Toyota dealership. Their attitude is that the Toyota Corolla can do no
 > wrong; they brushed off my concerns for a long time and I had to make
 > repeated trips there. "If you can't duplicate it for us we can't fix it",
 > and "It's normal" are their mottos. I know it doesn't happen with every
new
 > car, but I expected Toyota to take more care with their customers if
 > something went wrong, since they have such a fantastic reputation. Not! I
 > learned the dealership is not the company, it's just a bunch of people,
some
 > of them not even well trained. If this happens to you with Hyundai it is
not
 > unique to them.
 >
 > With the Hyundai Pony, I bought it after test driving many cars and
feeling
 > it was my car. I never thought once that I made a mistake, and I never
 > looked at new cars again for many years. There were no mysterious problems
 > when it was new, just regular maintenance and repairs over the years. When
 > something was wrong I took it in the same day. They always treated me with
 > such courtesy and the car ran beautifully after they were through with it.
 > They also used to vacuum and wash it free as part of the service.
 >
 > I remember when my Pony had a recall because some of them had a potential
 > problem. It never happened in mine and I wasn't going to take it in but
they
 > called me and insisted I take it in to replace some wire, under warranty.
 >
 > I can tell you what happened when my daughter bought her brand new Honda
 > Civic in 1999. They had scratched the paint when doing the detailing, and
 > when she took it back to have it fixed they used some caustic liquid and
 > rubbed it in hard, assuring her that it would fix the scratch, but instead
 > they scratched a bigger area. And they wouldn't admit it, or fix it any
 > further until she complained in two letters and then took it to another
 > dealer. Also - her air conditioner leaked water into the front seat when
 > the car was a few months old. Hondas are supposed to be perfect too,
aren't
 > they?
 >
 > There is no particular reason to blame Honda, Toyota, or Hyundai overall
for
 > individual experiences with service departments. I tell you these things
 > only so you will stop thinking only Hyundai is a risk.
 >


Even if there wasnt, there is. The people in the business dont want to work
with Hyundai.
They want to work at Honda, but they couldnt keep up the pace and the
scratched a fender once...so they now work in Hyundai...
And they treat your car like a kid dying of cancer. They dont care about
its diet, they dont care about its looks, they dont think it will grow up
into a mature old car...

Also the design is good generally, but it save just a few cents, Hyundai
make major stuffups. Like non-removable trim ... like the cheap paint (thin
paint, cheap polishing procedure, etc) ...

I know, I own one - unfortunately.
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful? 

On Wed, 31 Dec 2003 22:35:49 -0600, "FerdyPooh"
wrote:

 >Hey Kaboomie, I know this is OT for this newsgroup, but please describe the
 >problems you've had with the Jetta----what year, TDI or gas, etc.
 >
 >I was considering the Jetta before I got my '04 Sonata GLS---

**Hi Ferdy. I've had 2 Jettas, both 2003s. Yea, I know. Wacky. The
first Jetta was a 2003 GLS 2.0l automatic (gas). That Jetta rolled off
the lot new with sticky brakes, unaligned headlights and unbalanced
wheels. I got the headlights fixed (and a broken inside light the
mechanic discovered) and the VW dealership said they couldn't feel
anything else wrong with the car. I went back again and insisted on
going on the test drive with the mechanic. I was forceful and he
admitted to feeling something wrong with the brakes.

He greased the glide pins (?) and some other brake components. He
balanced the back tires but did such a lousy job that I had it re-done
at Torrington Hyundai back in CT. Now, these were fairly niggly
problems, except for the brakes. And the brakes were better but not
where I felt they should be. I only had the car for 9000 miles. Oh,
and just before I turned in that Jetta, the radio mysteriously went
dead a few times and only a few seconds each time. The bolstering on
the driver's seat where you get in the car frayed drastically at 1600
miles. The car just seemed like it was put together a little
haphazardly but still a very solid car compared to others in its
genre. The gas mileage was mediocre around the city but great on the
highway and it handled okay. Was very good in snow.

I traded that one in for a 2003 Jetta GLS 1.8T manual. Nothing like
learning how to drive stick on a little car with a monster engine. I
bought it on Halloween and it has 2K miles on it. So far, no major
problems. :::knock on wood::: One thing that bothers me is that the
synchros in the manual transmission are slow. It occasionally has had
problems where it won't go into 1st or reverse. But now that I'm used
to driving manual and the quirks of the car, it happens only very
rarely. Unlike the 1st Jetta (one of the 1st in the 2003 run), this
mid- to late-run Jetta seems more sturdy than the 1st. The brakes are
great, the interior beautiful and it had no problems off the lot. The
seat bolstering is fine. (Both interiors are/were leather). Handles
great, it has the sport suspension and some fat 17s. I haven't driven
it in significant snow yet though. Next winter, I might get 16-inch
steelies with snows on them.

Am I expecting eventual problems? Yes Some weaknesses: sensors
(MAF, O2, etc), the electrical system, back brakes (early
replacement), bulbs, among other things. Then again, perhaps,
everything will be okay. These seem to be some of the consistent
problems that I've read about on some of the VW forums that I
participate in. On the flip side, the engines themselves have been
described as bulletproof (esp. the TDI) though surrounded by some weak
peripherals. The transmissions go untouched for 100K.

Is this car fun? Damn fun! I love it. Though I'm not as confident with
my shifting yet, I've been told by a couple of long-time stick drivers
that I shift just fine. The interior is just so solid and
nice-looking. It was quite comfortable on a 700-mile trip from MI to
CT. Oh and remarkably, the 180hp 1.8T gets much better gas mileage
than the 115hp 2.0l ever got especially around town. I still can't
believe it. However, my cousin's TDI still kicks my ass mileage-wise.

Any other questions from anyone, feel free to ask

kaboomie
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful? 

As I mentioned in my first post Robin, if you're having ANY doubts, you
shouldn't go with Hyundai. As for me, while I'd obviously rather not have
these problems, so far I consider them minor inconveniences (thus far), that
are outweighed by the pleasure I get from the car. I test drove an Accord,
Sentra, Infinity G20(?), and an Acura RL (the midlevel one), and I truly
enjoyed, and enjoy the XG350 the most (and my previous car was an Acura
Legend). Again, you should take a few test drives on any car you're
interested - Hyundai or not. If you don't love/enjoy it, don't bother.

A friend who works in the auto publicity trade - and who likes Hyundai -
says that the reason Hyundai gets high customer satisfaction is due to
costs. When someone is saving thousands of dollars over a comparable car,
they're probably more a little willing to let the small things slide than if
they were to pay a lot of dough and expect a problem-free experience and not
get it. Like the body shop owner last year who loved my Hyundai as he also
complained about the problems he was having with his top of the line
Infiniti..

OTOH, ask me again in a few years. If I'm having spending more time in a
rental than my 350, I may have a different answer.
-Good luck,


"Robin" wrote in message

 > Do you think that in only 2 yrs of owning this car, you should be having
 > any of these problems? One common repair I'm noticing on this NG is a
 > battery that dies early.
 >
 >


 >
  > > I have an '02 XG350 purchased in March '02 from Glendale Hyundai in
  > > California, and the dealer has been great (so far). About 15 months into
it,
  > > the car wouldn't start and had to be towed from work to the dealer
(turned
  > > out to be a defective battery). The only hassle was waiting 90 minutes
for
  > > Hyundai's subcontractor to tow it to the dealer (in retrospect I would
have
  > > been better off with the Auto Club - which I kept because of my wife's
car).
  > > Still, the dealer replaced the battery quickly and at no charge. Other
work
  > > done has been an oxygen sensor replaced last week, the inside dome light
  > > replaced a few months ago, and the air bag warning light has gone off
twice,
  > > resulting in rerouting of the wires under the seat. This may very well
be a
  > > design flaw. It has helped that the service writer at my dealership
seems to
  > > work for the customer. This may not be the case everywhere.
  > >
  > > Since I had the same concerns as you when I bought my car, I made sure
to
  > > upgrade the basic warranty to the 10 year bumper to bumper (4B), which
  > > includes a rental car for up to 4 days per incident. I got it for an
  > > additional $940.00, and it was part of the sales price that I financed
  > > (dealers will try to charge as much as they can for the 4B upgrade). I
  > > didn't need it for any of the other work done, but this week I needed a
  > > rental car when I had the second airbag warning problem (the dealer was
  > > backed up for the day). I was in and out of Enterprise Car Rental and
back
  > > to the dealer in 15 minutes.
  > >
  > > If you're interested in a Hyundai, test drive a car at different
dealerships
  > > in your area to get a sense of each dealership. That's what I did. It
now
  > > seems easier to find a Hyundai at a car rental company (Enterprise
carries
  > > Sonatas and Accents). You could rent one for the weekend to so how it
really
  > > feels. That wasn't an option when I was looking. At the time I also did
a
  > > lot of research online (MSN CarPoint, this group and the Hyundai
Connection
  > > were most helpful). Consumer Reports at the time had little info on the
  > > XG350 and was of no use. Even though they now rate the Sonata and Sante
Fe
  > > highly and the XG350 fairly well, it seems as if they do so grudgingly.
  > > FWIW, at the time my wife had major reservations about the Hyundai
purchase,
  > > but now thinks we did good - although she still wants a Corvette...
  > >
  > > Good luck...
  > >


   > > > If the warranty sways me toward Hyundai, my nightmare would be that
   > > > the dealer tells me "there is no fix for that problem" or "Hyuandai's
   > > > just do that". I think someone posted here that he got those kind of
   > > > responses.
   > > >
   > > > It will help me to know your assessment of the customer service
offered
   > > > by your Hyundai dealer in the event you had a problem(s), if the
   > > > warranty covered it, including use of a loaner car, and if the
problem
   > > > was satisfactorily fixed the first time you brought it in and within
   > > > reasonable timeframes.
   > > > Thx.
   > > >
   > > > --
   > > > To email, replace x with 4.
  > >
  > >
 >
 > --
 > To email, replace x with 4.
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful? 

In article ,
"Briggs" <briggs DeleteThis @sbcglobal.net> wrote:

 > As I mentioned in my first post Robin, if you're having ANY doubts, you
 > shouldn't go with Hyundai.

And I'm taking that advice seriously, Briggs. I also liked your advice
to rent a car I'm interested in for a weekend. I'm going to do that.
The reason I was considering getting a Sonata LX over another Accord EXL
was to save money and they seemed close in comparison looks wise,
actually I think the Sonata is more attractive. But now that I've
become aware of the XG350, I'm tempted to look at it - which defeats the
purpose of getting the Sonata over another Accord EXL V6. The Xg350 is
about the same price as the Accord.
Robin



As for me, while I'd obviously rather not have
 > these problems, so far I consider them minor inconveniences (thus far), that
 > are outweighed by the pleasure I get from the car. I test drove an Accord,
 > Sentra, Infinity G20(?), and an Acura RL (the midlevel one), and I truly
 > enjoyed, and enjoy the XG350 the most (and my previous car was an Acura
 > Legend). Again, you should take a few test drives on any car you're
 > interested - Hyundai or not. If you don't love/enjoy it, don't bother.
 >
 > A friend who works in the auto publicity trade - and who likes Hyundai -
 > says that the reason Hyundai gets high customer satisfaction is due to
 > costs. When someone is saving thousands of dollars over a comparable car,
 > they're probably more a little willing to let the small things slide than if
 > they were to pay a lot of dough and expect a problem-free experience and not
 > get it. Like the body shop owner last year who loved my Hyundai as he also
 > complained about the problems he was having with his top of the line
 > Infiniti..
 >
 > OTOH, ask me again in a few years. If I'm having spending more time in a
 > rental than my 350, I may have a different answer.
 > -Good luck,
 >
 >


  > > Do you think that in only 2 yrs of owning this car, you should be having
  > > any of these problems? One common repair I'm noticing on this NG is a
  > > battery that dies early.
  > >
  > >


  > >
   > > > I have an '02 XG350 purchased in March '02 from Glendale Hyundai in
   > > > California, and the dealer has been great (so far). About 15 months into
 > it,
   > > > the car wouldn't start and had to be towed from work to the dealer
 > (turned
   > > > out to be a defective battery). The only hassle was waiting 90 minutes
 > for
   > > > Hyundai's subcontractor to tow it to the dealer (in retrospect I would
 > have
   > > > been better off with the Auto Club - which I kept because of my wife's
 > car).
   > > > Still, the dealer replaced the battery quickly and at no charge. Other
 > work
   > > > done has been an oxygen sensor replaced last week, the inside dome light
   > > > replaced a few months ago, and the air bag warning light has gone off
 > twice,
   > > > resulting in rerouting of the wires under the seat. This may very well
 > be a
   > > > design flaw. It has helped that the service writer at my dealership
 > seems to
   > > > work for the customer. This may not be the case everywhere.
   > > >
   > > > Since I had the same concerns as you when I bought my car, I made sure
 > to
   > > > upgrade the basic warranty to the 10 year bumper to bumper (4B), which
   > > > includes a rental car for up to 4 days per incident. I got it for an
   > > > additional $940.00, and it was part of the sales price that I financed
   > > > (dealers will try to charge as much as they can for the 4B upgrade). I
   > > > didn't need it for any of the other work done, but this week I needed a
   > > > rental car when I had the second airbag warning problem (the dealer was
   > > > backed up for the day). I was in and out of Enterprise Car Rental and
 > back
   > > > to the dealer in 15 minutes.
   > > >
   > > > If you're interested in a Hyundai, test drive a car at different
 > dealerships
   > > > in your area to get a sense of each dealership. That's what I did. It
 > now
   > > > seems easier to find a Hyundai at a car rental company (Enterprise
 > carries
   > > > Sonatas and Accents). You could rent one for the weekend to so how it
 > really
   > > > feels. That wasn't an option when I was looking. At the time I also did
 > a
   > > > lot of research online (MSN CarPoint, this group and the Hyundai
 > Connection
   > > > were most helpful). Consumer Reports at the time had little info on the
   > > > XG350 and was of no use. Even though they now rate the Sonata and Sante
 > Fe
   > > > highly and the XG350 fairly well, it seems as if they do so grudgingly.
   > > > FWIW, at the time my wife had major reservations about the Hyundai
 > purchase,
   > > > but now thinks we did good - although she still wants a Corvette...
   > > >
   > > > Good luck...
   > > >


   > > > > If the warranty sways me toward Hyundai, my nightmare would be that
   > > > > the dealer tells me "there is no fix for that problem" or "Hyuandai's
   > > > > just do that". I think someone posted here that he got those kind of
   > > > > responses.
   > > > >
   > > > > It will help me to know your assessment of the customer service
 > offered
   > > > > by your Hyundai dealer in the event you had a problem(s), if the
   > > > > warranty covered it, including use of a loaner car, and if the
 > problem
   > > > > was satisfactorily fixed the first time you brought it in and within
   > > > > reasonable timeframes.
   > > > > Thx.
   > > > >
   > > > > --
   > > > > To email, replace x with 4.
   > > >
   > > >
  > >
  > > --
  > > To email, replace x with 4.
 >
 >

--
Do not email if posting response. To email, replace x with 4
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful? 

There is no typical "Hyundai" dealer. You need to do your homework
before you buy the car...ask around, see if the dealer your buying
from has a good reputation. This is not specific to Hyundais, you
need to do this with ANY dealer. Good dealers are the most inportant
thing in the chain.
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful? 

In article ,
xiaoding2.TakeThisOut@mindspring.com (Xiaoding) wrote:

 > There is no typical "Hyundai" dealer. You need to do your homework
 > before you buy the car...ask around, see if the dealer your buying
 > from has a good reputation. This is not specific to Hyundais, you
 > need to do this with ANY dealer. Good dealers are the most inportant
 > thing in the chain.

Yes, you make a good point. I'm planning to stalk the service dept
waiting room at my local dealership not only to ask about their customer
service, but also, their experience with their cars since I still
haven't made a decision on Hyundai (also considering Honda Accord EXL or
Nissan Altima).

--
Do not email if posting response. To email, replace x with 4
 >> Stay informed about: For your warranty repairs, has your dealer been helpful?