[rockporiom]

Couldn't find a thread relating to this topic. If there is any such thread request the mods to merge it.

Yesterday gave my kizashi for the brake issue reported here : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ing-issue.html

They needed my car to do some tests and make a FTR( field trouble report). Well 2 days without a car is very inconvenient so I asked them to give me a shuttle/replacement car for the period of 2 days. They agreed for the same and showed me the 2 vehicles that they had. One was a yellow wagonr and the other a silver baleno. They asked me to test drive both and choose which ever I liked.

THE WAGONR
Well in one word the test drive was HIDEOUS. The car screamed in the first 2 gears due to a loose belt which the mechanic said he would adjust if I take the wagonr. But the car had more issues like poor clutch response and low pick up. So I rejected it straight away.

THE BALENO
I was looking forward to this as I had heard a lot about the baleno and wanted to drive it. Well the test drive was horrible but much better than the wagonr. The A/c and clutch is great. But the left door power window doesn't work and the power ORVM makes loads of noise when adjusted. The rear bearings are toast and makes huge irritating noise when you go above 60. The boot is full of parts used for overhauling the engine. The stereo didnt work. The exhaust rattles. The engine malfunction light ks on but acvording to the service center it was because a wire was cut by a rat. The fuel cap is opened using a coin due to faulty cable. But since the car was drivable and as I had no other option went forward and took the car for 2 days. As soon as I drove for about a km the car jerked and lostpower and went off. After a few starts it started and worked and is working till now(touch wood).


My question is are these shuttle cars just a formality? Shouldn't the service center have usable and serviced cars so that the customer doesn't think that he is given a car just for the sake of it?

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to Indian Car Scene. Thanks for sharing!

[Pandher]

Its the truth that the customer is given a car just for the sake of it, its a formality. A well maintained replacement vehicle is too much to ask for here in our country.

Moreover they dont want nice cars to be abused by the NOT MINE indian mentality.

[rockporiom]

Originally Posted by Pandher

Its the truth that the customer is given a car just for the sake of it, its a formality. A well maintained replacement vehicle is too much to ask for here in our country.

Moreover they dont want nice cars to be abused by the NOT MINE indian mentality.

I thought vw gave the same model and variant of the car in case your car got spoilt. This is what the sales man told me. For e.g. if I have a gt tdi and it gets spoilt he will give me a gt tdi replacement car till my car is fixed.

[mints21]

Car manufacturing companies started the concept of replacement cars for the convenience of customers but the dealers because of their own profitability tend to choose a car which is either a car that was used for test drives or a car that has been extensively used as a helpline. Moreover, most of the mechanics at the workshop are so habitual of abusing the car to its maximum toleration levels that it cannot remain fit for customers like us. Even our cars are driven inside the service bays in the most scariest manner. Even if some dealer wants to give his customer a good genuine car as a replacement vehicle, he will find it difficult to maintain one given the way their staff deals with these cars and majority of the dealers leave it to service advisors to handle customer frustrations and are rarely available.

[rockporiom]

Originally Posted by mints21

Car manufacturing companies started the concept of replacement cars for the convenience of customers but the dealers because of their own profitability tend to choose a car which is either a car that was used for test drives or a car that has been extensively used as a helpline. Moreover, most of the mechanics at the workshop are so habitual of abusing the car to its maximum toleration levels that it cannot remain fit for customers like us. Even our cars are driven inside the service bays in the most scariest manner. Even if some dealer wants to give his customer a good genuine car as a replacement vehicle, he will find it difficult to maintain one given the way their staff deals with these cars and majority of the dealers leave it to service advisors to handle customer frustrations and are rarely available.

You can imagine how the baleno was maintained as it had an over haul at just 50k kms. These mpfi engines can go much more than that. The car was a demo vehicle and is now nearly 9 years old. The least they could have done was repair the bearings as it caused a headache with the amount of noise it made.

[el lobo 6061]

I believe poor quality of loaner car is dependent on Showroom or a particular company. At VW you can get a VW Polo or same car, but definitely it wont be in this pathetic condition. As for BMW, they had once given a fellow bhpian a demo car temp registered while his car was being repaired.

Definitely its the showroom to be at fault or may be you just cant expect these sort of customer service from Maruti.

When Maruti's most expensive car Kizashi owner is treated as such I can't imagine what if a Maruti Alto 800 goes in for repair, which loaner car would he be given.

[libranof1987]

Courtesy/loaner car. What's that?

We've had cars from 3 different manufacturers till date: Honda (City), Maruti (800, Alto, Zen) and GM (Corsa) and in the rare instances that the car was going to be stationed for multiple days, none of them offered a loaner car.

The Zen was once parked for 10 days because some part wasn't available and Corsa for a week because Chevrolet A.S.S. didn't stock the Corsa's clutch assembly. Straight no, when I asked for a loaner.

For one, very few actually care about customer convenience; a loaner car isn't a dealbreaker when you decide A.S.S. Second, given the so possible misuse and abuse, an A.S.S. wouldn't want to risk a demo/TD/trade-in car for a customer. Absolutely rubbish, I agree. But reality.

I'm glad you at least got a rickety loaner car!

[TMRT]

I think it is the insurance companies that have to play the key part in offering loaners to stranded drivers. Loaner car should be part of a descent comprehensive policy, only then will the dealers or workshops would consider loaning the claimant.

[zenren]

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

When Maruti's most expensive car Kizashi owner is treated as such I can't imagine what if a Maruti Alto 800 goes in for repair, which loaner car would he be given.

He got a loaner because he is a Kizashi owner. In most cases, they don't offer a loaner.

Don't expect an Alto 800 owner to be given a loaner by any Maruti service station. He'll be given a lift to the nearest bus stop

[ghodlur]

Where is it generally mentioned that when high end cars like Kizashi are in repairs they get a replacement car? In the owner's manual?

I thought the replacement cars (or as it called Loaner cars) were being offered as a part of optional add ons when the Insurance policy is being bought.

BTW what/whose are the spares seen in the 6th Picture?

[Sheel]

Many different persons with different mindsets, having driving skills varying from zero to hero, drive these cars.

You can imagine the rest. ASC would have tried maintaining them first, but how much can you do if one customer bangs the car from rear and the other pukes inside the car?

[rockporiom]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Courtesy/loaner car. What's that?

We've had cars from 3 different manufacturers till date: Honda (City), Maruti (800, Alto, Zen) and GM (Corsa) and in the rare instances that the car was going to be stationed for multiple days, none of them offered a loaner car.

The Zen was once parked for 10 days because some part wasn't available and Corsa for a week because Chevrolet A.S.S. didn't stock the Corsa's clutch assembly. Straight no, when I asked for a loaner.

For one, very few actually care about customer convenience; a loaner car isn't a dealbreaker when you decide A.S.S. Second, given the so possible misuse and abuse, an A.S.S. wouldn't want to risk a demo/TD/trade-in car for a customer. Absolutely rubbish, I agree. But reality.

I'm glad you at least got a rickety loaner car!

Originally Posted by TMRT

I think it is the insurance companies that have to play the key part in offering loaners to stranded drivers. Loaner car should be part of a descent comprehensive policy, only then will the dealers or workshops would consider loaning the claimant.

Originally Posted by zenren

He got a loaner because he is a Kizashi owner. In most cases, they don't offer a loaner.

Don't expect an Alto 800 owner to be given a loaner by any Maruti service station. He'll be given a lift to the nearest bus stop

Originally Posted by ghodlur

Where is it generally mentioned that when high end cars like Kizashi are in repairs they get a replacement car? In the owner's manual?

I thought the replacement cars (or as it called Loaner cars) were being offered as a part of optional add ons when the Insurance policy is being bought.

BTW what/whose are the spares seen in the 6th Picture?

Originally Posted by el lobo 6061

I believe poor quality of loaner car is dependent on Showroom or a particular company. At VW you can get a VW Polo or same car, but definitely it wont be in this pathetic condition. As for BMW, they had once given a fellow bhpian a demo car temp registered while his car was being repaired.

Definitely its the showroom to be at fault or may be you just cant expect these sort of customer service from Maruti.

When Maruti's most expensive car Kizashi owner is treated as such I can't imagine what if a Maruti Alto 800 goes in for repair, which loaner car would he be given.

Firstly, the kizashi had to go in due to to the brake issue and is now back after some tests and there is a strong chance for a recall. They even found a faulty engine mount and have secided to replace it under warranty.

Secondly, there is no discrimination as to which car you get. There is a bulletin board which states which cars are available with their registration numbers. They told me to test drive both the cars and choose which ever car I like. The best part is so that you don't have to hide your face while driving these pieces of scrap metal they have put a big sticker on the bonnet stating replacement vehicle.


Thirdly, they provide you with all documents of the car. The car had its own comprehensive insurance. They make you sign a document that states that you will be responsible for any trffic challan or accident.

Fourthly, the parts lying in the back are parts that were used to rebuild the engine. Must say that the engine work was real good as the engine definately had power but was let down by rattling exhaust and jumping suspension. The parts were clutch plate, some gears, belts, etc.

[Mr.Boss]

Thats really a car in pathetic condition and that too a loaner for Maruti's high end car.

But we cannot blame the dealership 100% for poor maintenance. Even the customer should take proper care of it. To give a few examples,

1) One of friend neighbor who bought their first car (Swift) was a beginner in driving. He never drove his brand new car inside the city in peak traffic. But once he got a loaner car (Alto) he used it to test his expertise in city driving, gifted the car with some dents & scratches, left the car back to dealership without even informing them about the happening (car already had some deep scratches and dents, so the new ones can't be figured out at first sight)

2) My cousin experimented power slide in a loaner car. Who never revved high his own car.

3) Happen to see a customer bringing back the loaner car to dealership with loads of dust & bird drops. He doesn't bother to clean the windshield atleast.

To be crisp, we (both customers as well as dealers lack self discipline)

[LobsterB]

My experience has been a bit better with Concorde Bangalore. Have got three Loaner cars so far. 3yrs ago a Safari 3.0 Dicor, was clean and ok, but wasn't in the best of shape mechanically. 1yr ago got a Vista Quadrajet which was quite ok. Recently got a brand new Manza aura Quadrajet that has done just 350kms.