Experience with Trident Hyundai Indiranagar.

[drivingfreak]

I have dealt with Hyundai dealers (Bangalore) twice till date. Once with Advaith (Residency Road) in 2005 and now with Trident Indiranagar (2009).

I have always found prices at Advaith higher (a hundreds to a couple of thousand) than Trident. May be they want their great location rentals to be paid by customers. Surprisingly, they are also costlier in their accessories too. Courtesy level have been average.

Here is my experience journey with Trident (Indiranagar)

The initial experiences through TD
============================
After running my Maruti (Alto) for 4+ years, this time I thought of exploring a different car. Swift was an obvious alternate. During that time I saw the mouth watering 4.99L ex-showroom offer on Getz CRDi. I rushed to the Trident Indiranagar showroom and asked for a test drive.

Very courteous staff, well educated about their products, know what they are selling and not over-flaunting.

I was promised a test drive over the weekend (Sunday) and fixed 4pm as the time. I was told that I could get loads of free goodies (music player - Lie.1, corp discount of 5K - Lie2, etc), and I came out happily waiting for Sunday.

On the TD day, I was given a plush new vehicle for TD. I surely smelled something fishy when the ODO was stuck at 12kms and when I asked the service guy he said all Hyundai TD cars are like this. I could not believe but this was my first time with Hyundais so did not bother much.
Later, after reading through TBhp threads, I realized it could indeed be a customer vehicle. I never knew Trident gives customer cars for TD. Had I known, I would have preferred not to take the TD and not to buy the same type of vehicle from them.
Anyway, I did not abuse the engine or suspension during the TD, I enjoyed the ride thoroughly though

For booking the car, sales guy gave me a great offer (4.5K corp discount + foot mats + mud flaps + auto-cop + teflon + 3M brand sunfilms). The hangover of my drive was so high that I did not care much and sure torn the check.

When asked about the music player, he said he never committed that and when asked why not 5K corp discount that he promised, he said it was never 5K, it was 4.5K and in fact the day when he took the booking, he was about to offer 3.5K (my memory was fresh enough though).

I also asked some discount on the extended warranty which he said is 9K+ (same as Verna, because of same engine). He said discount is not possible and I can opt for the warranty later when there are offers (Lie3).

Before the delivery
==================
I was also told that there is an exchange bonus (Lie4) even if I sell my existing car to non-hyundai reseller or end customer. It was pure luck that they called me and informed me in time that the exchagne bonus is *not* applicable for CRDi. Else I was about to dispose my car for a lesser amount.

In parallel I was also scared that my vehicle would be used for TD and hence used to keep a close check at the dealership venue. But they had other two branches also. Can't go there everyday hence kept praying God.

The D day
===========
On the day of delivering the vehicle, the sales guy was least interested in doing anything (that should be done as part of his job while delivering the vehicle).
He did not explain me much about the vehicle, he did not keep the vehicle clean from inside (outside it was raining so I would like to ignore that), he did not explain properly about the service intervals, he lied that there is an extended warranty available on this car while selling it, and the list of woes goes on...
This was the time I started feeling the "great" difference between a Maruti customer and Hyundai one. Every moment of my dealing with this Hyundai dealer kept reminding about my first car buying experience with Maruti (Mandovi). As Maruti aptly ads, with them, you are the King!

Anyway, car is more important than this guy and his interest in doing his job professionally. And anyway, there was hardly anything (except tilting the steering) that I did not understand in this car.

He made me sign all the documents without filling them, including his feedback form (which I did not want to mess because it was a happy occassion for me).
This again reminded me of Mandovi wherein they sent a postage prepaid envelope with feedback form and for sending them within a week they would put me as part of their lucky draw. Can you feel the difference?

The sales guy also tear off the green page which mentions the extended warranty. He said this will go to service station. He said my car has 2 years unlimited mileage warranty. But on paper I dont have anything (after he tear off that page). After hearing so many lies, I am not sure if this is true.
Hyndai (Getz CRDi) owners can you please confirm this?

Though promised auto-cop, he gave me Hyundai embossed remote key. When asked why, he said it is indeed auto-cop but Hyundai has tie-up so the name. Can this be true?
I had to just look at the brighter side and feel happy that he offered me this accessory and that too with warranty card.

Teflon coat: I dont see that tinge in my car. When asked, he said, all cars come with teflon coat. There is nothing that needs to be done. And I was wondering why did he then promised me this as an additional goodie? And I still wonder if my car is teflon coated or not. My guess, it is not.

Sunfilms, not yet done, he said this is not the right weather (its mostly cloudy and about to rain in Bangalore). He though promised that he will get it done. I am hoping for that but the clouds in Bangalore are not off yet. I hope he does not kill this promise at least.

Overall, for buying a Hyundai car, I was at peril of these dealerships. I am sorry to compare (it would insulting for Maruti in doing so) but having dealt with Maruti dealership, I feel Hyundai has a very very long way to go and Bangalore badly needs more dealerships to create a competitive environment.


After Sale
=========
- By mistake I paid a bigger sum and "I" had to follow up for the refund. I remember the same thing happend with my Maruti and the sales guy came to my office to deliver the check with a simle

- No one called for days together to take any feedback.

- I had 3 problems

When my friends asked, if you could go back in time, would you buy another (non-Hyundai) car and I said Yes! Though I loved Getz CRDi thoroughly, for the experiences that I had with Hyndai, I would rather settle for a Maruti, anytime! (I wonder how Tata, Mahindra and Ford would be in dealing with their customers when Hyundai which is more popular on the customer service scale is like this).

After all this, I now know what everyone means when they say Maruti is miles ahead!

Unless Hyundai is the car you want to buy and unless you don't mind mediocre treatment (at least compared to Maruti), make sure you go to the right Hyundai dealer and make sure he gives you everything in writing so that you can catch them for their lies (read: over promises) while selling their cars.

My Rating for Trident Indiranagar: 2.5 out of 5

[kuttapan]

I was surprised by their attitude as well. After dropping into their showroom twice, they never called me(promised to call when i20 test drive car was available). I diddrop in again to test drive the i20 crdi, but decided not to buy. Never received a follow-up call till date. Is this how you sell cars?

[benbsb29]

Originally Posted by drivingfreak

Though promised auto-cop, he gave me Hyundai embossed remote key. When asked why, he said it is indeed auto-cop but Hyundai has tie-up so the name. Can this be true?
I had to just look at the brighter side and feel happy that he offered me this accessory and that too with warranty card.

The Autocop which you get from the dealer will indeed bear an embossed manufacturer logo. The same is in the case of the Autocop for my Ford as well. Does the booklet mention it is an Autocop? If yes, then it is. Call up the Autocop helpline and they would attend to any issues with the remote locking of your car.

Originally Posted by drivingfreak

Teflon coat: I dont see that tinge in my car. When asked, he said, all cars come with teflon coat. There is nothing that needs to be done. And I was wondering why did he then promised me this as an additional goodie? And I still wonder if my car is teflon coated or not. My guess, it is not.

Teflon coating and how effective it is, is highly debatable. Search around on the forum, and you would realize. Not sure how much you can make out if it has been applied.

[muralisk]

drivingfreak - am truly surprised that with all this, you still went ahead and bought the car from this dealer. You said that the car is important and the sales guy.

How do you know that its the same with the service folks as well?

This is atrocious service to say and sad that people are still buying cars from such dealers. I feel that this should be escalated to Hyundai.

[HappyWheels]

So, who is this sales person (!!!) at Trident?

[ArunV]

Originally Posted by drivingfreak

Teflon coat: I dont see that tinge in my car. When asked, he said, all cars come with teflon coat. There is nothing that needs to be done. And I was wondering why did he then promised me this as an additional goodie? And I still wonder if my car is teflon coated or not. My guess, it is not.

Sunfilms, not yet done, he said this is not the right weather (its mostly cloudy and about to rain in Bangalore). He though promised that he will get it done. I am hoping for that but the clouds in Bangalore are not off yet. I hope he does not kill this promise at least.

Regarding teflon coating, the same thing happened to me when i took delivery of my Verna from Trident Showroom, Hosur road. I asked them for the warranty card for the teflon coating so that i can do the next coating in 6 months. and the reply was, 'Since this is free, it is only one time and we dont give any warranty for coating'.

And Sunfilm, i has asked them to use 3m instead of garware(Which was a part of the deal) and when i went to see the car before registration, the car had garware. I had to ask them to remove it and use 3M. This also wud not have happened if i had not noticed it.

[rohan_iitr]

Hi drivingfreak,

Sorry to hear about your bad experience at Trident Hyundai Indiranagar. I also visited this showroom once to take a TD of i10. (Finally purchased from Advaith Hyundai on ORR)

The Hyundai test drive vehicle will always have big "test-drive vehicle/demo vehicle" stickers on it. If not, it is a regular vehicle for sale, which is being used as TD vehicle with the speedo disconnected. I personally feel that one should never TD such a vehicle.

Especially for Getz (which has 3 engine variants), I have read a lot of funny TD stories on Team-BHP:
1. Getz 1.1 TD vehicle is not available, you can take a TD of Getz 1.3 to get an idea of the space and handling of Getz, followed by a TD of Santro to get an idea of the power and performance of the 1.1 engine, and do your calculations considering the extra weight of Getz.
2. Getz CRDi TD vehicle is not available, you can take a TD of Getz petrol to get an idea of the space and handling of Getz, followed by a TD of Verna, because it uses the same engine. The performance of CRDi engine would be even better in Getz because of the lesser weight.

I feel that the buyers should maintain a strong stand that they will TD the car with exactly the same engine option which they intend to purchase. Also, buyers should refuse to TD fresh vehicles, which are not marked as demo vehicle.

Most dealerships have the tendency to make false promises in order to seal the deal quickly. Have you read the article on Team-BHP "How to buy a new car in India" written by GTO ? It clearly says that you should make it a point to get all commitments in writing, without which these promises do not hold any value at the time of delivery.

I am also guessing that you have not gone through the article on Team-BHP regarding the pre-delivery inspection.

Don't worry about the warranty, most cars are covered under warranty for at least 2 years. You also have the option to take extended warranty for an extra 1/2/3 years beyond that. When you take the vehicle for first free service, the service advisor will tell you about the extended warranty.

You should never sign black documents. It may seem like extra work or a waste of time, but you should make sure that all blanks have been properly filled before signing the dotted line. (This is true for any transaction, not just for car purchase)

Hyundai remote locking systems are in fact manufactured by Autocop. You must have got the Autocop warranty card and user manual for the same.

Teflon coating is not that big a deal. Most experts on Team-BHP advise against it. If you have got it as a freebie, well and good. It is not that easy to make out whether it has been done or not, just give them the benefit of the doubt.

This thing I totally fail to understand. Why on earth did you sign the blank feedback form if you were not satisfied with the whole experience ? If you are not satisfied with the sales person, this is your chance to let the dealership know that their staff is not doing a good job.

I remember a friend of mine refused to sign the feedback form because he had a "bad" experience at a Maruti dealer. The poor sales guys forgot to put a red ribbon on his alto at the time of delivery. This was enough for him to let them know that the customer is the king and can't be treated like crap. He kept the feedback pending for the next 2-3 months, and the dealer literally kept begging him to send the (good) feedback to MUL. Followed by this, MUL representatives from Gurgaon personally visited him in Bangalore to inquire in detail about problems faced by him at the Maruti dealership.

I am not justifing this type of behaviour, I just want to emphasise what a powerful tool the feedback form is.

Also, I do not justify the sales tactics at Trident. But you need to understand that the sales staff are under a lot of pressure, and sometimes they resort to unethical practices in order to boost the sales. As a customer, you should also be more alert and not fall for their cheap tricks.

Final words, try to forget this bad experience and enjoy your lovely car !
If you are not happy with Trident, try Advaith for the services.

Rohan,
Bangalore

[malgudi]

Looks like Trident service has gone downhill. I bought by getz from trident in 2006 & it was a very smooth sailing & pleasant experience. The sales team was very courteous. I bought mine from Trident showroom from the Sankey Road Showroom (near palace ground).

[drivingfreak]

Originally Posted by drivingfreak

- I had 3 problems

The problems were:
1. The AC vent rotor on the right hand side of driver was not rotating fully. It used to stuck half way through. Should this not have been caught during PDI?
Mods: Why not add this stuff as part of the PDI checklist?

2. The front left window mirror made "chuck" sound while pulling up/down. This too I feel should have been caught during PDI.

3. The wheel alignment was not correct. And the joker at the service
station was not ready to accept it.

He made me believe (by driving @ 40+ speed) that the alignment is correct. I had to again go to their station by escalating the issue to get it fixed.

All problems resolved after escalating to Sandhya, the customer care head of Trident. Again, no one called asking me if the problem was resolved. That says it all.

[drivingfreak]

Originally Posted by benbsb29

The Autocop which you get from the dealer will indeed bear an embossed manufacturer logo. The same is in the case of the Autocop for my Ford as well. Does the booklet mention it is an Autocop? If yes, then it is. Call up the Autocop helpline and they would attend to any issues with the remote locking of your car. ,

The only thing I saw in the booklet (cover) was that it bears the name Hyundai. I will see the booklet again and confirm this.

Originally Posted by benbsb29

Teflon coating and how effective it is, is highly debatable. Search around on the forum, and you would realize. Not sure how much you can make out if it has been applied.

I realized teflon absence when i saw 2 thin (as if marked with pen) white lines in my car (may be due to my cleaner pressing his cloth hard while cleaning). If I am not wrong those lines wont have come had there been a teflon. Yes, I too read it on TBhp that it is not recommended to have teflon coat but because it was part of a promise it deserved a mention here.

Originally Posted by muralisk

drivingfreak - am truly surprised that with all this, you still went ahead and bought the car from this dealer. You said that the car is important and the sales guy. ,

Sorry, I meant the car was most important than this guy and his services. I got the news and feeling that this could be the last chance to buy this engine at this price that too with a sizzling hot RED color.

Originally Posted by muralisk

How do you know that its the same with the service folks as well?

I have posted my service experience as well (as a separte reply).

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

I feel that the buyers should maintain a strong stand that they will TD the car with exactly the same engine option which they intend to purchase. Also, buyers should refuse to TD fresh vehicles, which are not marked as demo vehicle.

I did smell something fishy and as I said when I asked him why the ODO is stopped, he said *all* hyundai TD vehicles are this and the ODO is disabled because these cars would then go and sell in the second hand market. Because I was a first timer with Hyundai, I never realised this could be hogwash.

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

Most dealerships have the tendency to make false promises in order to seal the deal quickly. Have you read the article on Team-BHP "How to buy a new car in India" written by GTO ? It clearly says that you should make it a point to get all commitments in writing, without which these promises do not hold any value at the time of delivery.

Before I gave the check I was so impressed by the attitude and genuineness of the sales guy that I did not ask for any written proof for me. However, in his file, he has written all the accessories I mentioned here.

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

I am also guessing that you have not gone through the article on Team-BHP regarding the pre-delivery inspection.

Did I miss something on PDI front in my car?
I was in no mood to argue with them on the condition of the car because we went in a happy mood to drive the car out and not to point him on things like some amount of dust on the foot mats.

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

You also have the option to take extended warranty for an extra 1/2/3 years beyond that. When you take the vehicle for first free service, the service advisor will tell you about the extended warranty.

As mentioned, this was another lie. Even if I want (by paying) I cannot get extended warranty for this car. The car is now officially stopped. One lady from service station confirmed this when she called me specailly to sell the extended warranty till the she did not know it was CRDi version that I bought

Originally Posted by rohan_iitr

You should never sign black documents. It may seem like extra work or a waste of time, but you should make sure that all blanks have been properly filled before signing the dotted line. (This is true for any transaction, not just for car purchase)

It was infact a white document, just joking on your typo
I did not want to sign it as it is, but the way he presented the document to me and our mood of running out with the car made me do it. In fact, he presented the form before doing all the work that he was supposed to do and I sure thought he would live up to all that.

Final words, try to forget this bad experience and enjoy your lovely car !
If you are not happy with Trident, try Advaith for the services.

Well said, I am in absolute love with this car and though I agree with the claims from most of you about its power, for me, I feel it is delivering me the thrust that I badly needed all these years of driving an 800cc car.
Can't wait for 2K mark.

Please do also read my post on the first 1K experiences that I am going to post soon.

[drivingfreak]

Originally Posted by malgudi

Looks like Trident service has gone downhill. I bought by getz from trident in 2006 & it was a very smooth sailing & pleasant experience. The sales team was very courteous. I bought mine from Trident showroom from the Sankey Road Showroom (near palace ground).

Forget Trident, see Hyundai for yourself, I tried their omnipresent toll free number 1800-11-4645 for almost a month (and just before typing this post), it gives me a busy tone every time. Till date I could not speak to anyone on that number.
Sorry to do that again, but compare it with Maruti's 1800-1800-180. I remember calling them (in 2005) just to ask if they have a mountain light (as if my decision was pending because of such stupid reason in the Alto car and she replied, Yes!, with all enthusiasm

Now, how would I ever Hyundai in case I need them in the middle of a hill or a highway?

Note:
I spotted one On Road assistance car and saw this number 98450 22611 (Bangalore number), not sure if they would pick up my call or come to say... Mysore if not Manali to help me in a problem.

[puneet8796]

I did my TD at Trident since it was very close to my home but I felt the sales person was not giving sufficient importance to me as a prospective customer. I went to Advaith and they were prompt and responsive.

I booked my I10 from Advaith and next day I get a call from Trident - "Sir why did you book your car from Advaith when you took a test drive with us?" and his tone was like you are a culprit. I promptly gave my feedback saying I felt you did not want me to buy a car from your dealership!

My purchase experience at Advaith was impeccable including detailed description of the car by the manager himself.

And I disagree with the point that Advaith charges higher to compensate for their premium showroom location. I compared the price of I10 to the last rupee (along with freebies I was getting) and it was EXACTLY the same in Advaith as in Trident.

[rohan_iitr]

Originally Posted by puneet8796

And I disagree with the point that Advaith charges higher to compensate for their premium showroom location. I compared the price of I10 to the last rupee (along with freebies I was getting) and it was EXACTLY the same in Advaith as in Trident.

The vehicle prices will always be the same in all car dealerships - Advaith or Trident.

But one area which needs improvement in Advaith Hyundai is the accessories section. I have purchased my i10 from Advaith Outer Ring Road showroom, but I was not satisfied with the accessories team.

- First of all, they don't provide you with a printed price list of accessories. Which means that they will quote some random hand-written figure, over which you have to bargain like in a fish market. Because of this lack of transparency in accessory pricing, they may be charging more from ignorant customers. When they saw that I was having the Trident price list of accessories, they gave me fair prices automatically and also some discount over the final figure.

- The accessory guys were not that well informed, and there was a lack of co-ordination between the accessory and sales teams.

- Simple accessories like gear lock, wheel caps, door side moundings were not available. He told me to get them fitted from after market dealers.

- They tried to play a trick on me by not providing the accessories' bill at the time of delivery. My sales advisor told that the accessories' bill could not be generated because of a technical snag, and I can collect the bill after a few days. When I contacted her after a few days, her attitude was like - "you can contact the accessories section directly, I am out of the picture the moment the deal is sealed".

Rohan,
Bangalore