OFFICIAL LAND ROVER DEALERSHIPS... NEVER AGAIN

[wibble]

Not impressed and feel unloved..

as you will see from the disco pages i am looking to replace my '95 Defender with disco (circa 2000-2001). i am a normal sort of bloke though without a lottery win or company car budget. so the funds are resricted to around 10k.

i first of all went into my usual place and spoke to the nice man who agreed he could probably find wot were after and a resonablish price for defender agreed.. prob tho didn't have any in. he agreed that he would try and source one tho. very helpful.

not to put all eggs in one basket though a mate suggested i try an official dealer. so in i pop to a official landrover dealer ship (can't name it on hear i understand) on a main road some where between Coventry and Birmingham...

i spoke to the chap in there and said i have '10 thousand ponuds to spend on a disco' the look on his face suggested he had just stepped in something but to humour me he would go alond with  it for now...

he showed me and SWMBO to a desk and i explained i had a '95 defender to part x. he looked out at her through the window and scoffed.. oh 'one of those'... mmm not happy so far, he then said worth about 2 1/5 grand !!!! nice bloke offered me SIX THOU 4 hours ago . he then bogged off for twenty minutes to 'speak to his boss' when he eventually returned said not any thing in right now but will let you know...

If i was an embarrasment to his shop he should of said no thank  you straight away... git.

SOOOO not impressed and now will never use them again even if i had the lottery win or company car budget... and will never use an official dealer ship if this is anything to go by..

[drmike]

Isn't there some on line search system for LR dealerships where you put in what you want plus budget and it rummages through the national dealers for you? There used to be I know and they went right down to 5k LR.

Might be worth a look as not all main dealers are so snooty. They really are dumb taking that attitude as when you do win the lottery or make your million through hard work where are you going to buy the car? Yes quite.

Mike

[barmiebrumie]

Not impressed and feel unloved..
(can't name it on hear i understand) on a main road some where between Coventry and Birmingham...





Not a nice ''GUY'' then ,


John

[thermidorthelobster]

There's a nice Disco TD5 for sale in the garage down the road for ten bags of sand.  Not sure on the mileage, but it looks nice on the forecourt.

[Bob696]

save the hassle and stick with your defender. You wont need a badge then to tell everyone its a land rover  :P

[Bush Tucker Man]

Not impressed and feel unloved..
(can't name it on hear i understand) on a main road some where between Coventry and Birmingham...

Not a nice ''GUY'' then ,


John

Our 'Guy' isn't too bad, as it evolved out of another dealership that was on the Yorkshire edge of the Pennines, thus had a large farming customer base.
When I bought my 110Tdi from them, Defenders seemed to take up the majority of the forecourt

[wibble]

Not impressed and feel unloved..
(can't name it on hear i understand) on a main road some where between Coventry and Birmingham...





Not a nice ''GUY'' then ,


ha ha .. don't think i was very good at hiding their identity... not a nice GUY indeed.  thought that cos it had a green oval on the front then it didn't matter the model, age etc... is the advertising hype really hype? hope we don't go the same way as some where only the latest shinyest can come to the party , hope not. quite like the old landies now..

[Budgie]

Isn't there some on line search system for LR dealerships where you put in what you want plus budget and it rummages through the national dealers for you? There used to be I know and they went right down to 5k LR.

Might be worth a look as not all main dealers are so snooty. They really are dumb taking that attitude as when you do win the lottery or make your million through hard work where are you going to buy the car? Yes quite.

Mike

Try here on www.landrover.com.  

[Bush Tucker Man]

Might be worth a look as not all main dealers are so snooty. They really are dumb taking that attitude as when you do win the lottery or make your million through hard work where are you going to buy the car? Yes quite.
Mike

A few years ago (1994) when the P38 was first launched, a friend & myself went to (what was then) Appleyards in Leeds in his 101FC.
We parked on the forecourt half expectedly being told to move it, but actually got salesmen & mechanics coming out to examine this mythical beast from the past :D

As can be seen here our main dealer(Guy Salmon) does offer to help (bottom post)

[Porny]

Not impressed and feel unloved..
(can't name it on hear i understand) on a main road some where between Coventry and Birmingham...

Their parts department is ok though...

[wibble]

[quote, BOB 696,] save the hassle and stick with your defender. You wont need a badge then to tell everyone its a land rover

can't bob, i'm getting an old man now and the old defender shakes about a bit... and SWMBO was quite impressed too.
 

A few years ago (1994) when the P38 was first launched, a friend & myself went to (what was then) Appleyards in Leeds in his 101FC.
We parked on the forecourt half expectedly being told to move it, but actually got salesmen & mechanics coming out to examine this mythical beast from the past :D

As can be seen here our main dealer(Guy Salmon) does offer to help (bottom post)

It would appear to just be a bum deal at this particular place then, think they aim their marketing at business class or at least those with a little more folding than i... the dealership 'oop north'  seemed to be a little more friendly from wots written.

[Manicminer]

A local person to me had his newish V8 ES Discovery taken in to the dealership in Cheshire on the back of a recovery truck about 4 years ago.
It had suffered a suspension failure (I think he had about 3 in 2 years).

Anyway, he went to pick it up when it was ready. He was dressed in some shabby work clothes and covered in oil.
He had a look around the forecourt at the vehicles that were for sale. A salesman came out and said "Oi, clear off. We have nothing here for you."
To which he replied "Oh yes you have, it's in the repair shop".
The tea and biscuits came out and would Sir like this, and would Sir like to sit down?  :roll:

[wibble]

not a one off then? personaly i own a suit but only wear it at weddings and funerals...  even if i had loads a money i would still wear me jeans. mind you since whn has 10k been shabby?

[Bush Tucker Man]

personaly i own a suit but only wear iteven if i had loads a money i would still wear me jeans. mind you since whn has 10k been shabby?

My ex-boss (before I went NHS) had shed loads of money. He owned everything in the company (even the 100 or so shops)

He had at one time; DB7, Virage & a F355

He used to come into work in ripped, ragged jeans with a McDonalds  & only get changed if he had a meeting.
I remember a new rep coming from Eastmans (KODAK) & asking him when he was washing his Virage (in an off-hand manner) if the MD was in.
On being told that the MD was around, the rep told him to go & get him.

Martin got changed & certainly the rep a surprise & a lesson to remember (& no orders) :lol:  


I have to treat people with respect, as we don't know what they do. I can be dealing with a road-sweeper or a Peer Of The Realm, they get equal treatment.
One of our Consultants goes into overdrive if we get the Peer (a Lord) in, or any actors (we see David Jason, as Frost is filmed around Wakefield quite a lot)
Consultant practically tugs his forelock, then bows & scrapes :roll:
It's embarassing to watch, must be his Public School upbringing :lol:

[Andy the Landy]

He used to come into work in ripped, ragged jeans with a McDonalds  & only get changed if he had a meeting.

I usually play off 3 dealers against each other, dressed as the above quote (and I go to work like that). Get a price from 1st dealer. Tell them you will think about it. Go to 2nd dealer and get a price. Tell them also you will think about it. Go to 3rd dealer and get a price, etc..... Go back to 1st dealer and tell them what 2nd dealer offered. If 1st dealer dealer offers what 2nd dealer offered - tell them you will consider the options. If 2nd offers what 3rd will offer - also consider options. When the 1st dealer starts offering the same as dealer 3 its time to cut him out of the equation as his initial price was too high. Same can be said of dealer 3 - his price can be too low. I tend to settle with dealer 2 somewhere in the middle - if that makes sense I'm a chinaman but it usually works for me - and I swap the everyday car every 3 years

[abinitio]

Best go to another dealer, tell him the story of the first dealer and ask if he welcomes customers in a better manner before you start negotiating, otherwise you'll go elsewhere.

Any ex boss of mine, very wealthy man, used to wear jeans etc all the time, went into a 'BMW' dealership(ok so he had no taste) to buy a new car. He was in scruffy clothes and they wouldn't even talk to him. Needless to say he took his business (his plus reps cars) elsewhere!!!

[scorpio]

Wibble I went to the very same dealer looking to buy a D3 and got much the same response, so I went to Stratstone (used to be Evans Halshaw) and was treated just how i expected to be by a main dealer.

[HIPPO]

Not impressed and feel unloved..


If you think the 'GUY's were bad there try the same dealership in Stratford - far worse, especally the workshop.  Apparently its normal in a Freelander to have some oil in the header tank after a head gasket change !!!

Not Impressed is an understatement.

[Bush Tucker Man]

Perhaps we ought to ask Neil how he got treated when he bought 'Owl', & what he wore to enhance his buying power?
(I don't know if he bought from a main dealer?)

[Budgie]

I've used Land Rover Customer Service in the past to report things like this and it's great to get a phone call from the manager of said dealership after he's been told what to do by Land Rover!!  :twisted:

In my case it was getting the Disco's curly dash replaced under warrenty.
We had a Land Rover Service Agent on the island but I had to go through a main dealer to get the new dash ordered.
The dealer told me: "No problem, just bring it in and we'll change the dash for you."
Nice of him, but then I explained that to "bring it in" would involve a 3 and half hour ferry trip plus a 75 mile drive, an overnight stay for the work to be done and then the return trip. Total cost to me: 2 days away from home & about £300!!

I asked if the Service Agent on the island could do the work. "No, has to be a Main Agent for this work, just phone us when you're next on the mainland and we'll book you in."

Phoned Land Rover Customer Serive and explained the situation. They agreed with me and 30 minute later I had a call from the service manager of the dealership saying that the dash had been ordered and was being sent to the Stornoway service agent and they would call when it arrived.  :mrgreen:

[landroverkeith]

talking of main dealers i had much the same experiance in my local dealership i booked my disco in to have both the sunroofs repaired at a considerable cost. as soon as i arrived i received snotty treatment from some stuck up prat and still didnt get the car repaired, wouldnt recomend them to anyone grr lol

[Budgie]

We don't complain enough!
If you get that sort of treatment then ask to speak to the sales or workshop manager. If they are not available then tell them you will be complaining to Land Rover about your treatment at this dealership.
Make a note of when and what was said also get the persons name & position so you can quote it.
Send a copy of the letter to Land Rover and to the dealership and sit back to see what happens. :twisted:

The dealerships should remember that they are franchises that are awarded and can be pulled if the Land Rover, or any other manufactorer for that matter, thinks it is getting a bad name in that area because of the attitude of the people at the dealership.

[Range Rover Blues]

Budgie is right, we don't complain enough.  You wouldn't get treated like that in the 'states.
One thing aboys me a little about what I've been reading here, people buy Land Rover products for their reputation,  a reputation won on the backs of things like the Series and Defender models and main stealers look on these with scorn! Compare that to Mercedes' advertising campain of a couple of years ago, wall to wall classic Mercs.

Anyway, I've had it with new cars, you can't leave them anywhere these days or some t**t will get jealous and damage it for you, I had the Micra 4 days and some t*t opened a door into it, I'd had it 3 months and someone ran into the back of it, Insurance valued it at £4k less than I paid :shock:
So I go shopping in the beast, it sits glowering in the carpark looking like it's trying to start a fight, it's funny how people give it a wide berth sometimes.

[Bush Tucker Man]

a reputation won on the backs of things like the Series and Defender models and main stealers look on these with scorn!

Agreed!, the 'heritage' angle is played to the full - when it suits.
As I stated earlier, some dealers are okay.
Guy Salmon(Wakefield) had very recently a concours Series 1 (80") in the showroom
Rocar-Moores (Huddersfield main-dealer) have a Series 1 breakdown truck for promotional work

 So I go shopping in the beast, it sits glowering in the carpark looking like it's trying to start a fight, it's funny how people give it a wide berth sometimes.

That's one of the reasons I hardly ever wash mine, people don't like brushing up against it, thus don't park too close :lol:  :lol: