[Biraj]

Landmark Jeep and Fiat

Address: 10 A, Moti Nagar, Opp. L & T, Najafgarh Rd, Moti Nagar, Karampura Industrial Area, New Delhi, Delhi 110015

Website: http://www.landmarkjeep.in

My car’s details are mentioned in the ownership thread. I am creating this thread about my experience with Landmark Fiat, Delhi (Moti Nagar) just in case it’s helpful for others and they are more careful while dealing with them.

Due to my health issues, I am no longer able to spend time at service stations and personally supervise the work done thus I rely on the trust that people will do their job diligently.

The last major service I got done was in 2015 and after that, the periodic service was being done at a celebrated (on this and other forums) multibrand (specialists in Fiat) service centre in Noida. While I was happy with the responsiveness and support, I wasn't too happy with the work they had done with the AC servicing. The timing belt replacement was also overdue so, I thought about getting it done from an authorised service station. All the service centres near my home have shut down so, the closest option is in Moti Nagar (about 28 KM). I spoke to the service head (a courteous guy) and got the service booked for Monday (April 23). They picked the car in the morning and I received a call in the afternoon to crosscheck all the work required.

The work required was:

• Major service (all oils and filters + coolant)
• Timing belt replacement
• AC not cooling effectively during peak summers afternoon. It was working fine but not as it used to.
• Alternator check because it had thrown a warning on the instrument cluster in February

I had to follow-up every afternoon to check the status of the work done and it took them two days for the servicing and timing belt replacement. Then another two days for AC. As per them the cooling coil and evaporator required replacement because the gas is leaking. I found it hard to believe as gas was there in the system and the AC was cooling. Had there been a leakage, all the gas would have leaked since the last time AC work was done, some 14-15 months ago. Anyway, I asked them to go ahead and get it done as long as the AC cooling returns to previous levels.

Finally, after four days I went to the service centre to check the work done and collect the car personally. They said the alternator is fine and doesn't require any work and all other work has been done. I sat in the car and saw the KM indication blinking. The technician said the Blue&Me of this car is faulty. I asked them to reset the ECU by removing the negative terminal. It fixed the issue and B&M was working perfectly well.

I paid the bill of Rs ~28K and took the car out, and then... The car died at their gate with a "Check Engine Light".

Their team rushed to the car and pushed it to the side and started checking. After an hour they diagnosed it to the dirty throttle body. They cleaned it and scanned the car, and gave me a go-ahead. The car worked fine during the drive back.

Next afternoon (Friday) I started the car and the AC gave the smell as if there's no gas, and it just didn't cool. I called them again and also escalated it to the head of customer relations in Fiat India. They arranged a pick-up for Monday, as they didn’t have any driver available on Saturday.

The car was picked on Monday morning and returned late in the evening (around 9.30 PM). They said that the gas required topping up and the compressor seems to be weak but it should work fine for now. The compressor being weak was new, as I never felt it being stressed or it cutting off or making any noise. The car was parked over the week as I work from home and had no meetings or appointment. I started the car on Sunday afternoon… And, the AC didn’t work again.

Informed them and now they are saying it’s due to the weak compressor. I don’t believe that the compressor was weak or there was any leakage at the first point. Had there been a leakage the gas wouldn’t have remained in the system for over a year. In all the calls and messages they mention only the cooling coil but they charged for the evaporator as well.

I will probably get the AC inspected outside as I have lost trust in their ability to work on the AC. After spending 5 working days and ~Rs 15,000 on the AC work I have a nonfunctional AC, which in fact was working when I gave it to them (their driver who picked the car can verify as well). Don't want to lose more time and money with Landmark.

PS: It’s important for people to stay with their cars while getting the work done especially when they own a Fiat.

[scorpian]

Get it checked outside at an independent who specializes in ac work, let him diagnose and tell you the issue. i agree with you that its very frustrating to pay and yet not get what you actually are suppose to,heck they even make things worse, a car that has been just serviced breaking down at the dealer gate is appalling,aren't they suppose to check it in a major service?
For the same reasons as you experienced i make it a point to keep my car on a day when i can take a leave and have the repairs done in front of me,once i had diesel leaking from my diesel filter housing, and the a.s.s insisted on replacing the housing when in reality it was just loose, i had to put my foot down and tell them to tighten the housing first and then if it leaks we shall replace it.
Its sad most of the A.S.S are just con artists and nothing more.

[Akib Khan]

I know how it feels when you give your car for servicing expecting the car to perform better after service but end up losing money as well as getting your car with more damage. From Maruti to skoda, every authorised service centre is there to fleece any unsuspecting customer.
I was facing problem with my i20 ac and visited A.S.S. They gave me a quote of 30k saying the compressor is not working and needs replacement. Before visiting the service station I got my car checked at a friend's garage and he diagnosed the problem as pulley issue. The service manager tried his best to make me believe that it is the compressor issue but I put my foot down and asked them to change the pulley which costed 5k including labour. My car has run 43k km till now after the change and the ac is working flawlessly (touchwood).

[Shreyans_Jain]

Problem is, with the AC repair business being seasonal as it is and this being the very peak of summer, there is every chance that the FNG AC guy will also try to con you. If basic coil cleaning is not sufficient, they invariably tend to push you towards compressor replacement, where are earn good margins. And they often unscrupulously pass on old/reconditioned compressors as new.

I had this experience last year at a 'trusted' workshop where I had been going for the past 7-8 years. The compressor of my Jazz was cutting off every time the car slowed down in traffic. The FNG onwer insisted on a compressor replacement for about 20k. The problem was later diagnosed to a faulty AC fan switch and was replaced for basically peanuts by the local Honda dealer. Talk about a role reversal!

[Biraj]

Thanks, guys. The inputs helped.

I took the car for a checkup outside. They said that there's no way there could have been a leakage and the gas would remain for over a year in a pressurised system. They checked the AC and said the compressor is fine but the pressure stat seems faulty or loose as the compressor turned on, on its own while they were checking.

Informed this to the Area manager of Fiat and he requested to send the car again and he will get it inspected properly. They picked the car today morning. While giving the car to the driver I was checking all door pockets and also the glove box, and that's when I found out another glaring mistake by Landmark Fiat. Just when I thought things can't get worse, I noticed they had not put the door-check back after connecting the doors. The doors must have been removed when they worked on the AC (removed the dashboard) and very conveniently forgot to connect it back.

What more can I say about their commitment or skills?

[Biraj]

Update on my experience with Landmark, Delhi


After I had sent the car on 11th May they worked on it for three days and returned the car on 14th. They said that the issue is intermittent and difficult to reproduce thus they will need more time with it. They returned the car as I wanted the car back.

I escalated the issue to all the key people in Fiat including Mr Flynn. I got a call from Mangesh (Customer service head of Fiat) and he promised to get the car properly checked and the door-check broken by them will be fixed.

The car was picked up again and returned on 26th stating that the compressor is faulty. The compressor started making noise for the first time on 26th. I drove to Noida for some work and the AC was working but the cooling wasn't efficient. After 10-15 km there was a burning smell in the cabin. The engine temperature was normal but the engine bay felt extremely hot and there was a strong burning smell.

I called Anupam from World of Service and requested him to get the car towed. He promptly helped and got it flat-bedded to his workshop.

I called Mangesh and told him about the episode. He wanted me to get the car towed by Landmark but I was not interested in taking my car back to that place.

Next day, I went to World of Service along with BHPian, Lapis_lazuli. We were informed that there was no compressor oil in the system and that's why the AC compressor had seized. That is what had caused the burning smell. I don't know whether to call it another mistake by Landmark or a sabotage. Meanwhile, we also noticed that the bush for stay-rod is also missing.

I would strongly recommend people to be careful while dealing with Landmark, Delhi. If you can't be present in person then please avoid this particular team. They are either incompetent or evil but certainly don't care much about cars.

Here are some of the damage they did:

1. Damage the compressor by not putting compressor oil
   
2. Break the door-check
   
   
   
3. Break/remove the bush for stay-rod
   
   
   
4. Didn't put the glove-box back correctly
   
   
   

Not in the list - time and money...