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Old 15th September 2016, 16:38   #136
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

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Originally Posted by quickdraw View Post
Click-baity headline if I saw one: Fed up with delay in delivery, customer rides off with demo bike.

Definitely gave the impression the bike was stolen from the showroom. Only reading the article you realize the frustrated owner took the demo bike in lieu of a new one and even got it registered in Pune.
At least one guy was spared the agony the others are going through now!
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Old 15th September 2016, 19:32   #137
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Me and an affected customer have been in contact since this began. Since all methods of making Kawasaki do something useful have failed, I thought we could try to intimidate them with numbers, number of signatures on an online petition.

I've never taken online petitions seriously, created a few sarcastic ones myself, but I think in this case they might work. All these big shot managers sitting in Japan don't care about random news stories in random Indian newspapers and websites. But if they see a number of backers behind a petition, notice the digits, then that might make a difference.

You can check out the petition here. If you feel it'll be something useful, please sign it and share it with others who you think might appreciate the situation. The bigger the number, the bigger the impact.

I've also created an article based on this thread, news stories, and talks with Mandheer. You can read it here. Following this thread can become a bit painful, my attempt in this article has been to condense all the information into as less words as possible.
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Old 15th September 2016, 22:01   #138
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

So as per this notice on Mr. Chadda's client website they clarified that the so called "Agent" (Refereed in legal doc) is actually their authorized dealership

I wonder what Mr.Chadda would say now??
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Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative. EDIT: Bikes delivered (page 11)-kawasakistatement-10th-august.png  

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Old 16th September 2016, 00:03   #139
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Akhil, I appreciate your efforts for trying everything thats possible to help the 11 souls who have faced what we could summarise as the worst buying experience I can ever imagine. I have signed the petition and hope some sensible steps are taken in order to resolve the issue.

It's very sad to see how we, Indian consumers have been taken for a ride time and again. First Italians, then Brits and now Japs. Is there anyone who is doing things right out there? Reading all this, I am scared to even purchase a new bike thinking don't know who would decide to take us for a ride.

My only interaction with SNK Mumbai dealership was when they had arranged test rides of all their bikes back in Feb'15 and never in my wildest dreams I had imagined the same dealership running into such problems. Last weekend, I was riding on the Palm Beach road and I saw Suzuki superbike showroom which has opened in the same place where Kawasaki dealership was there, so I am not sure if the dealership even exists now.

Since this is not the first time that such a fiasco has happened, may be if some of the consumers who have been impacted can reach out to old Ducati owners who had to face similar situation to gain some prospective how they managed to recover their money back.
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Old 16th September 2016, 01:14   #140
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Quote:
Originally Posted by mijnoirhammer67 View Post
But after reading the forum, i still don't get why these duped customers aren't talking to the person in charge. I would simply sit in the shop until i got my money. I don't want no bike no more after being harassed and lied to. Especially not from Kawasaki. If they keep saying it'll be a week or two, id say give it in writing. After which if they do not hand me over my bike, i shall unleash a whole Consortium worth lawyers at their heads. Like when you feed a pack of hungry lions with some raw meat. That position the dealership owner would find himself would be biblical. If its been months and the money hasn't been returned, maybe the customers aren't doing enough to light a fire under his feet. A greater impetus needs to be put forth i feel.
Reading through everything I'm wondering the same. IKM can get away with the legal loophole easily and there's no point going after them right now because as per them they haven't received money from SNK to supply the bikes which seems to be the whole funda behind their dealership appointment contracts. I don't know if only Kawasaki works like this or all Indian vehicle dealers work like this. Does Kawa not have a regional manager who handles these dealership/svc networks? Its also odd that IKM says SNK is just an agent and not part of their brand when the dealership sign itself uses the term Kawasaki. You wouldn't be able to run a Kawasaki riding gear stores without getting a legal notice from IKM for using their trademarked name without permission. So that's something you can argue about with lawyers.

I would focus firmly on the SNK owner right now and see to it that the court grants refunds and additional damage costs to every owner even if that means the court decides to auction that guy's properties off to settle the balance. If he's absconding as per the owners here then its up to the cops to nab him out of the hole and take him to the courts. As long as the owners have official reciepts of transaction between them and the dealership the courts will eventually have to rule in favor of the owners.

Last edited by Nithesh_M : 16th September 2016 at 01:17.
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Old 16th September 2016, 01:26   #141
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

I am not on FB but what does this mean? Has Satyen Karandikar fled to Bahrain? As per news reports , it says he is not answering calls and is absconding .
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Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative. EDIT: Bikes delivered (page 11)-screenshot_20160916010803.png  

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Old 16th September 2016, 15:08   #142
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

As the days go by, instead of intervening & finding a amicable solution, Kawasaki is shamelessly trying to distance itself further from both the errant dealer & the affected customers!

Hope the affected customers have filed Sec 420 Cheating case against the dealer & Kawasaki.
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Old 17th September 2016, 08:12   #143
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Really sad to see the state of affairs. What makes it even worse is that Kawasaki has been hush hush about the whole episode. The same manufacturer goes all guns blazing against Japanese and European superbike makers, here in the US. On any given trackday, I see the Kawasaki factory guys in full force; setting up stall and handing out testrides. I have been very satisfied with their sales and service here. They really go that extra mile to make sure you are happy.

As they say, competition is always good for the customer. In India though, Kawasaki has had a dream run in the Litrebike space with no immediate competition. Time for other manufacturers to explore the business potential in the superbike space. With more competition, the Indian consumer would finally get the premium purchase experience that is missing now.
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Old 21st September 2016, 22:12   #144
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

The skeletons keep falling out the closet.

Initially there were 11 affected customers, plus the guy who rode away with the test-ride ZX14R. Recently a few more joined in.

One customer had paid for a Z800 in April, then cancelled the booking a few days later. He never got the money back. Just like with the other customers, SNK gave him a cheque that bounced.

In other news, it looks like 2 more people from Vashi forcibly took bikes from SNK, not clear at this point if they are also demo bikes like the ZX14R. They are still facing trouble with the registration process though.

On top of that, one guy from Lonavala booked 2 bikes and hasn't got anything yet, and another person has come forward with the same issue.

Total number of customers without bikes: 14
Total number of customers who forcibly got bikes: 3
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Old 22nd September 2016, 10:12   #145
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

It's in today's Pune-Mirror,

http://www.punemirror.in/pune/crime/...w/54452470.cms

[2 cases registered against Wakdewadi vendor with Khadki police; accused on the run and has filed for anticipatory bail unsuccessfully]

Last edited by Ajitsingh208 : 22nd September 2016 at 10:13.
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Old 22nd September 2016, 13:15   #146
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ajitsingh208 View Post
It's in today's Pune-Mirror,

http://www.punemirror.in/pune/crime/...w/54452470.cms

[2 cases registered against Wakdewadi vendor with Khadki police; accused on the run and has filed for anticipatory bail unsuccessfully]
Yes, and it is the same dealer Satyen Karandikar. Shocked to see this is not just confined to one dealership.
All this continues while IKM smugly sits through and trying to find a new dealer, at their convenient pace.

Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative. EDIT: Bikes delivered (page 11)-img20160922wa0013.jpg

Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative. EDIT: Bikes delivered (page 11)-img20160922wa0009.jpg


Quote:
Originally Posted by RiderZone View Post
The skeletons keep falling out the closet.

Initially there were 11 affected customers, plus the guy who rode away with the test-ride ZX14R. Recently a few more joined in.

One customer had paid for a Z800 in April, then cancelled the booking a few days later. He never got the money back. Just like with the other customers, SNK gave him a cheque that bounced.

In other news, it looks like 2 more people from Vashi forcibly took bikes from SNK, not clear at this point if they are also demo bikes like the ZX14R. They are still facing trouble with the registration process though.

On top of that, one guy from Lonavala booked 2 bikes and hasn't got anything yet, and another person has come forward with the same issue.

Total number of customers without bikes: 14
Total number of customers who forcibly got bikes: 3
The two Vashi customers are Z800 buyers apparently. Then there's another Chennai customer for ZX14R, and one local Mumbai resident for Z800.
The Lonavala customer paid for 2 bikes yes, and is the one who filed case in Pune too.

I have a few receipts, of the Chennai and the Mumbai customer too.

Not sure how many are there, but when I spoke to Tarun Khanna of IKM, he said he was aware of these customers, but didn't share how many more are there.
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Old 24th September 2016, 22:25   #147
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

It's a shame way Indian dealerships ruin images of premium segment. Added to that, even the companies dont rectify. Am pretty sure they are noticing it but God knows whats stopping them to react. Not like sales are bad. Customer Company Individual concept is completely forgotten by people leading these companies.
Is this kind of issue prevalent only here or its everywhere, I mean the absence of reaction from Companies and how they find a solution.
Its deeply disappointing to realize these idiots wash away our dreams with their ego/stupidity.
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Old 24th September 2016, 22:37   #148
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

And now all of a sudden their website is down. Probably updating their new dealerships details.

http://www.kawasaki-india.com
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Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative. EDIT: Bikes delivered (page 11)-screenshot_201609242236132.png  

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Old 25th September 2016, 11:14   #149
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sachin_Nair View Post
It's very sad to see how we, Indian consumers have been taken for a ride time and again. First Italians, then Brits and now Japs. Is there anyone who is doing things right out there? Reading all this, I am scared to even purchase a new bike thinking don't know who would decide to take us for a ride.
Companies aren't afraid of the law, they aren't scared of angry individual customers. But what they are petrified of is bad press. It completely kills their reputation. If it's from independent websites, that means they can't be shut up with advertising deals either.

See what happened with Skoda. In some months, it trades the last place with Fiat on the sales charts. The brand's reputation on the street is finished, despite making some seriously good cars.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ajitsingh208 View Post
It's in today's Pune-Mirror,
Why is 'Kawasaki' not even mentioned in that article?

Quote:
Originally Posted by pratap.pratu View Post
It's a shame way Indian dealerships ruin images of premium segment.
And it's equally a shame that companies don't have checks & balances for their dealerships. You know what the difference is between awesome Maruti service & shoddy Nissan service? The parent company. One that cares, hires the right dealers, continuously monitors its processes, studies feedback from customers, takes corrective action etc. And one that doesn't.

Quality is never arrived at by mistake. It it always the outcome of hard work.

Kawasaki's idiotic managers simply didn't care. And now, their reputation has taken a big, big hit.

Quote:
Originally Posted by v12 View Post
And now all of a sudden their website is down. Probably updating their new dealerships details.
It's back, but the news / press release & dealer sections are down.
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Old 25th September 2016, 11:46   #150
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Re: Paid for Z800, but no bike! Kawasaki uncooperative, says "we haven't received money from our dea

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Originally Posted by GTO View Post
Why is 'Kawasaki' not even mentioned in that article?.
Nicely spotted, I hadn't realized that omission when I saw the article earlier

Quote:
Originally Posted by GTO View Post
Companies ... But what they are petrified of is bad press.
The corollary, and possible answer to your question is: The press are terrified of losing ad revenue.

Their equation for naming and shaming a company goes something like this:
Quote:
If potential earnings/TRPs/eyeballs gained is greater than potential ad revenue loss, then run the story, else censor the story.
In this instance, they'd have thought that the attention gained by an article about "rich boys' toys" would have been on the lower side - maybe the 14 affected, and a couple of hundred more. Not worth annoying a major advertiser, and definitely not one with some manner of ties to a big name like Bajaj. (Disclaimer: "rich boys' toys" is just the view some people have of superbikes, not my opinion.)

On the contrary, what makes it possible for TBHP to be neutral, and scathing of or praising a manufacturer is the brave decision not to be sponsored by car advertisements.
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