Dealers..... come on guys and gals, up your game!!!
Discussion
Yesterday I went to my Land Rover Dealer to test drive the new Defender. I had set it all up properly, going first through the LR website, and then speaking personally to the person at a nearby dealership that called me as a result.
I'd made it clear that I was interested in a 6 cylinder model - the LR website has them in the configurator - as I am considering a replacement for my trusty Disco4.
No problem says the dealer person. Come in, we have example of pretty much every model, you can take you model of choice for a test drive.
An appointment was duly made, for yesterday.
That's when it all went a bit downhill.... Arrived to discover that no 6cyl cars are available to test - moreover they won't be available to test until March 2021. No matter, they said, try our D240 SE and you'll love it! Take it for a nice drive, enjoy yourself. See you in 30 mins to an hour......
They really were lovely, friendly people. You'd want to buy a car from them.........wouldn't you?
No. They saw me again in 10 mins. Oh, the car is great, and looks fantastic in the plastic, and from the limited time I had seems to drive really well..... BUT, 1 minute after starting the dash lit up with a low tyre pressure warning. The it lit up with a low fuel warning.... The trip computer said I had 6 miles of range. Sent out in an empty car!
SO back we go, and pull into the dealer lot. Then the car tells me that it needs to download some software urgently, and it will be unavailable for an hour or so whilst ti sorts itself out..........
End of test drive. Such a shame. Lovely people though. Lovely people.
I'd made it clear that I was interested in a 6 cylinder model - the LR website has them in the configurator - as I am considering a replacement for my trusty Disco4.
No problem says the dealer person. Come in, we have example of pretty much every model, you can take you model of choice for a test drive.
An appointment was duly made, for yesterday.
That's when it all went a bit downhill.... Arrived to discover that no 6cyl cars are available to test - moreover they won't be available to test until March 2021. No matter, they said, try our D240 SE and you'll love it! Take it for a nice drive, enjoy yourself. See you in 30 mins to an hour......
They really were lovely, friendly people. You'd want to buy a car from them.........wouldn't you?
No. They saw me again in 10 mins. Oh, the car is great, and looks fantastic in the plastic, and from the limited time I had seems to drive really well..... BUT, 1 minute after starting the dash lit up with a low tyre pressure warning. The it lit up with a low fuel warning.... The trip computer said I had 6 miles of range. Sent out in an empty car!
SO back we go, and pull into the dealer lot. Then the car tells me that it needs to download some software urgently, and it will be unavailable for an hour or so whilst ti sorts itself out..........
End of test drive. Such a shame. Lovely people though. Lovely people.
Sounds like you were the victim of poor customer care. Dealers like this do not help the brands sell cars which should sell themselves. The defender is fantastic from the little exposure I've had.
I would guess the car came fresh of PDI then was parked up and then thrown at you without consideration that new cars regularly need updates, and fuel is always helpful....
I had similar at a BMW dealer, only they weren't lovely people, they couldn't even be bothered to take my money after the test drive (I was literally ready to hand them the money as I was sold). Gave them the keys back and was told the salesman was busy and would call me in a week...safe to say I went elsewhere as fortunately the people selling the car have no bearing on the product itself.
I hope you find a better dealer to work with.
I would guess the car came fresh of PDI then was parked up and then thrown at you without consideration that new cars regularly need updates, and fuel is always helpful....
I had similar at a BMW dealer, only they weren't lovely people, they couldn't even be bothered to take my money after the test drive (I was literally ready to hand them the money as I was sold). Gave them the keys back and was told the salesman was busy and would call me in a week...safe to say I went elsewhere as fortunately the people selling the car have no bearing on the product itself.
I hope you find a better dealer to work with.
I’m really not concerned about the niceness or otherwise of the people I’m dealing with.
The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
swisstoni said:
I’m really not concerned about the niceness or otherwise of the people I’m dealing with.
The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Doesn’t bode well for onward care and support with the product though does it?The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Something as complex and costly as a vehicle needs good dealer support.
It’s a whole package for some people, not just what’s sat on the driveway.
Crossflow Kid said:
swisstoni said:
I’m really not concerned about the niceness or otherwise of the people I’m dealing with.
The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Doesn’t bode well for onward care and support with the product though does it?The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Something as complex and costly as a vehicle needs good dealer support.
It’s a whole package for some people, not just what’s sat on the driveway.
The package can be lovely but if the actual machine you buy is no good or unsuitable, there’s not enough smiles and coffee and biscuits to make up for it.
swisstoni said:
Crossflow Kid said:
swisstoni said:
I’m really not concerned about the niceness or otherwise of the people I’m dealing with.
The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Doesn’t bode well for onward care and support with the product though does it?The point is the car.
Clearly this car wasn’t properly prepped and the people you talked to were disorganised.
That’s got nothing to do with the car you will end up with. It’s unimportant in the big scheme of things.
Something as complex and costly as a vehicle needs good dealer support.
It’s a whole package for some people, not just what’s sat on the driveway.
The package can be lovely but if the actual machine you buy is no good or unsuitable, there’s not enough smiles and coffee and biscuits to make up for it.
Good dealer support adds to that so to say it’s unimportant is a bit of a sweeping statement.
Hope you didn't have to drive far.
I would have pushed the sales person to double confirm that they had a 6 cyl available before I left the house.
In your situation, I would simply find another dealer and go through the motions again. If you manage to find a 6cyl to test, then great, buy it from a dealer you like.
However coming on here to moan doesn't really benefit anyone apart from your self. Land Rover in shoddy sales support headline. For people who are familiar with the Green Oval and its products this own't surprise any of us
Have you e-mailed the dealer principle detailing your experience? This will hopefully enable them to improve and may even result in a call back explaining the situation in more detail.
It is unlikely that I will ever have enough cash to buy a brand new LR and therefor I will probably never ever set foot in a Land Rover dealer. However I have dealt with numerous used car sellers over the years and in my experience they all lie through their back teeth. However, this is at a very low price point. My most expensive car (Wife's C4) was bought from a large car supermarket and even then the salesman just blatantly lied about certain things he was asked.
I'd hope as you spend more the service level increases....but I am not sure that is the case.
I would have pushed the sales person to double confirm that they had a 6 cyl available before I left the house.
In your situation, I would simply find another dealer and go through the motions again. If you manage to find a 6cyl to test, then great, buy it from a dealer you like.
However coming on here to moan doesn't really benefit anyone apart from your self. Land Rover in shoddy sales support headline. For people who are familiar with the Green Oval and its products this own't surprise any of us
Have you e-mailed the dealer principle detailing your experience? This will hopefully enable them to improve and may even result in a call back explaining the situation in more detail.
It is unlikely that I will ever have enough cash to buy a brand new LR and therefor I will probably never ever set foot in a Land Rover dealer. However I have dealt with numerous used car sellers over the years and in my experience they all lie through their back teeth. However, this is at a very low price point. My most expensive car (Wife's C4) was bought from a large car supermarket and even then the salesman just blatantly lied about certain things he was asked.
I'd hope as you spend more the service level increases....but I am not sure that is the case.
I had similar with Guildford Land Rover - booked a car, speaking directly with a salesperson there, only to turn up and find the car wasn't available.
To be fair, a day later I had the exact same problem with Audi and a Q7, "oh sorry, it's the bosses car and he decided to take the day off". They also let me arrive at the dealership, and wait for the salesperson to finish with his previous appointment.
To be fair, a day later I had the exact same problem with Audi and a Q7, "oh sorry, it's the bosses car and he decided to take the day off". They also let me arrive at the dealership, and wait for the salesperson to finish with his previous appointment.
You wait until you buy one, then it really goes downhill - at least in my experience thus far. The second worst dealership experience I’ve had (the worst being Audi in Birmingham when an after sales manager threatened me with violence over the phone because they’d sold me a really bad car and wouldn’t accept responsibility until Audi UK stepped in).
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