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Kia Corporation, Hiro, Eddie, Tom, Chris ripoff, guarantee, bold face lie, stand off, Tempe Arizona
Hello, my name is Tamara. I am writing you to request your help through your program. My car is at the Tempe Kia dealership for warranty work and we are at a stand off.
This is the story. The car is a Kia Spectra. I bought the car new. The transmission had trouble from the beginning. I first took it in for warranty work in California at this time the transmission did not feel right. Of course, it did not have trouble at the dealership. The car now has 58,2XX miles on it and the transmission problems were reoccurring on more regular bases.
I took it to Mark KIA, and the service manager, told me the transmission fluid needed to be changed ($274.00) and the hesitation of the car when putting it into drive was indeed a safety feature".
I took the car to a local mechanic Gene of Gene's Auto Worx (a very honest guy), who changed the oil and the transmission fluid so this would not a factor at the dealership again.
I made an appointment with Tempe Kia to see what they would say about the transmission. I missed my appointment on Thursday because of my daughter's performance and meetings scheduled for the day so I thought I would reschedule for Monday. WELL the transmission totally went out on Friday the March 3rd.
The car was towed to Tempe Kia. Well this is where starts are: I was told by the service manager, Hiro the fluid was black and therefore all maintenance records were needed. I was able to have faxed the records from Gene's Auto Worx's and Mark KIA.
I explain that oil changes and things like that were done by family members and records were not available. The service manager, Hiro told me the transmission fluid had not been changed, I informed the mechanic (Gene) who changed it who explained it had indeed been changed and when a transmission burns up the fluid turns black.
Getting no where with the service manager, Hiro I was now the district rep Tom wanted all service records 15-30-45 day services. At this point I called consumer affairs at the corporate office.
Their office again told me receipts were needed for maintenance or no warranty work. Not giving up the next day I called corporate again. This time I got a very knowledgeable guy, Tom Morales who told me my next step should be to request a tear down, if a warrantable mechanical defect was found it would be a warranty issue.
I called the service manager back and he told me it would take 16 hours to tear down a transmission and they don't do that and can't because it is a closed unit. I reassured him that was not what the corporate office told me (he told me roughly 2 hours labor) AND that I was authorizing a tear down. Hiro said it would ultimately come down to maintenance records again so it would be pointless. Corporate told me if a mechanical defect in the transmission was found the car would be under warranty regardless of maintenance records.
So I called corporate back and left 2 messages for Tom, who gave me this wonderful advice and left 2 telephone messages which he has not returned a call to me presently.
Meanwhile Eddie from the dealership call, he called himself a liaison between the service department and the dealership. He told me to call the district service manager and talk with him directly.
Excited I call the corporate office the next day wanting to talk with the district rep for Tempe Kia. WELL I got Christopher on the phone, he was a total jerk, he said his job was to field calls and I could not talk with the district rep. I asked to speak his supervisor which he states I am the supervisor. He was rude and told me no receipts no warranty service period. He continued by saying they would not authorize a tear down of the transmission or could I authorize an outside mechanic to do the tear down and if I did they would not accept an outside opinion!!
Today, I called the consumer affairs office again. I got Tom Morales again. I told him I was filing a report and needed all the names of the reps I have spoke with. The first one was Josh Prokopp, next was Tom Morales (helpful), Carrie Donnelly (connected me to Tom's voice mail), Yolanda Abarca (connected me to Tom's voice mail), and last but not least Christian (not helpful). Tom let me know today the district rep. has been told of my persistence and is not budging.
I also called a Kia dealer, Selma Auto Mall in California. The service manager, David, told me that the unit is not closed but they do not usually fix them but replace them. I called a local transmission shop and spoke with Jordon he looked in the Mitchell guide book to make sure the unit was a closed unit. He confirmed the unit is an open unit and can be torn down. Therefore I have been completely told a bold face lie by the Tempe Kia service manager and the Kia corporate office consumer affair person Christian.
Please help me, I know this car had/has a mechanical defect and should be covered by warrant whether or not I can produce receipts for maintenance. I even bought the extended warranty on the drive train, I ask for WHAT. Don't they advertise these cars for 100,000 mile warranties and is that not a selling point.
Hello, my name is Tamara. I am writing you to request your help through your program on your side. My car is at the dealership for warranty work and we are at a stand still. This is the story.
The car is a Kia Spectra. I bought the car new. The transmission had trouble from the beginning. When I first took it in for warranty work in California I told them the transmission did not feel right. Of course, it did not have trouble at the dealership the car now has 58,2XX miles on it and the transmission problems reoccurred on a more regular base.
I took it to Mark Kia they told me the transmission fluid needed to be changed ($274.00) and the hesitation when putting your car in drive "was indeed a safety feature". I made an appointment with Tempe Kia to see what they would say about the transmission. BUT first, I took the car to a local mechanic who changed the oil and the transmission fluid, so this would not be a factor in the equation.
I missed my appointment on Thursday because of my daughter's performance and meetings scheduled for the day so I thought I would reschedule for Monday. WELL the transmission totally went out on Friday the March 3rd. The car was towed to Tempe Kia.
Well this is where starts are: I was told the fluid was black and therefore all maintenance records were needed. I explain that oil changes and things like that were done by family members and records were not available. The service manager told me the transmission fluid had not been changed, so I called the mechanic who explained it had indeed been changed and when a transmission burns up the fluid turns black.
Getting no where with the service manager I called the corporate office. I was again told no receipts for maintenance no warranty work. Not giving up the next day I called corporate again. This time I got a very knowledgeable guy who told me my next step should be to request a tear down, if a warrantable mechanical defect was found it would be a warranty issue.
I called the service manager back and he told me it would take 16 hours to tear down a transmission and they don't do that. I reassured him that not what the corporate office told me (he told me roughly 2 hours), AND I wanted to tear it down. He said it would ultimately come down to maintenance records again.
So I called corporate back and left the guy who gave me this wonderful advice, 2 telephone messages, which a call has not been returned to me presently. Meanwhile a guy from the dealership call, he called himself a liaison between the service department and the dealership. He told me to call the district service manager and talk with him directly.
Excited I call the corporate office the next day wanting to talk with the district rep for Tempe Kia. WELL the guy I got on the phone was to total jerk, he said his job was to field calls and I could not talk with the district rep. I asked to speak his supervisor and he said I am the supervisor. He was rude and told me no receipts no warranty service period. He continued by saying they would not authorize a tear down of the transmission or if I authorize an outside mechanic to do the tear down they would not accept an outside opinion!!
Please help me, I know this car had/has a mechanical defect and should be covered by warrant whether or not I can produce receipts for maintenance. I even bought the extended warranty on the drive train, I ask for WHAT. Don't they advertise these cars for 100,000 mile warranties and is that not a selling point.
Please let me know if you can help me. Phone: (address and phone number deleted - see below)
Thanks, Tamara ****
Tamara
Tempe, Arizona
U.S.A.
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18 Updates & Rebuttals
Marty
Norcross (Metro Atlanta),Georgia,
U.S.A.
Some Responses Do Not Address the Cause of Problems Via Kia
#19Consumer Suggestion
Tue, March 20, 2007
I have read some "rebuttals" posted here and there are some severe flaws in the "logic" (or lack thereof) in the postings.
As stated before, "there are no perfect machines." This much is true, and being an engineer, I can tell you that the life expectancy of a product is no greater than the quality of its design.
That being said, it is illogical to state that a product with an inherently bad (read: defective, flawed, or otherwise more statistically prone to failure) design can have problems eliminated by "average expected maintenance."
Tamara, your experience is not unusual. I personally had a close friend who went through the same experience with a Kia, and ultimately had to exercise the "lemon law" statutes after multiple failed "repairs" (read: service department's guesswork at patching the problems) due to the fact that the automatic transmission in a Kia was inherently (meaning by nature) not reliable, and unpredictable.
No offense to the average service department, but you simply cannot fix a poor DESIGN using maintenance. Prolong it, yes. Patch the symptoms, MAYBE. Eliminate the cause? Generally NO.
The remedy for a poorly designed/unreliable/or otherwise unsatisfactory vehicle, Tamara, is to rid yourself of the faulty car, do your research, and purchase a proven reliable car.
I prefer to deal with facts, not opinions. I base my statements on the Consumer Reports (and general market) history (long term) and resale value of the Kia line. I have personally seen the cars in and out and have not been impressed. If they improve, I'll change my statements respectively.
NEVER purchase a vehicle until you know its predicted reliability. Use FACTS, don't take RISKS! You see what can happen!
Bill
TEMPE,Arizona,
U.S.A.
RE-READ THE PARAGRAPH
#19UPDATE Employee
Tue, March 20, 2007
Usually, stupid is as stupid does. I said consumers, and that includes me. I have done some stupid things in my life and I can admit them. Actually, some of them were pretty funny. If stupidity is defined as loyality, protecting one's employer, doing what is right no matter what, then I am the epitome of stupidity and proud of it.
For those of you owning Kia's or thinking about buying a Kia, please do not let this blog stop you from doing the right thing. Go with your gut. Visit a dealer and talk to people who own the product. Test drive a Kia. Price a Kia. If it isn't what you need or want, don't buy it. On the other hand, if it feels right go for it and be happy like millions of other Kia owners.
I do not sell cars, I fix'em when they break. Maintain'em and they last a long time.
I will not return to this site. My conscience is clear and my direction straight. God bless you all and have a great life !!!
Dave
Potosi,Missouri,
U.S.A.
KIA Customer Service
#19Consumer Comment
Tue, March 20, 2007
In this case, if I were the dealer, no matter whether the new dealer, existing dealer, or even the manufacturer, I would replace the transmission. When I opened the lady's Ripoff page, the large, bold print hit me in the face like a ball bat. You've (the dealer, or manufacturer)got 10 years worth of bad publicity on this site.
Additional complaints toward KIA, or the dealership can do a lot of damage. A few dollars invested in public relations can go a long ways. Or, refusing to turn around the bad publicity can go a long ways the other direction. Since the Tempe dealership is under new ownership, I would do what it takes to keep this lady coming back for sales and services.
Needless to say, that's what pays your bills. You guys have to maintain and possibly grow that dealership (remember your quota). Give her the transmission with an apology. Hopefully, she will reciprocate and bring in new customers. I've been in customer service 35 years. That's how it works.
Mike
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Bad PR
#19Consumer Comment
Mon, March 19, 2007
Considering the fact that you are responding via the internet to a customer's, whether previous or current, complaint and are in the process of "rebuilding" your service department I would start by not referring to my customer's actions ,regardless of circumstance, as "stupidity."
Bill
TEMPE,Arizona,
U.S.A.
HOORAY FOR YOU
#19UPDATE Employee
Mon, March 19, 2007
I am not a employee of Kia Motors America. I work for an independent dealer. I found your blog quite by accident while looking for information about our dealership. Opening up the issue was not my intention except to protect future readers from associating my service department with the previous service department.
I have no interest except to protect the reputation of the service department I am in charge of rebuilding. I want readers to know that whatever happened during the previous regime is old history and there is a new sheriff in town.
Most important is for you to remember that Kia is a quality product and for any Kia owner or perspective owner, I promise that this service department will be the best Kia service department in Arizona. Kia owners can take that to the bank. I wish you the best and when you buy your next Kia you will see the difference.
I only wish my team could have addressed your issue, cause it would have had a different ending.....Bill
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
I will NEVER buy another KIA
#19Author of original report
Sat, March 17, 2007
Thanks for all your responses I find it funny no one has commented on this issue for one full year and just now people have taken interest, especially people who appear to be affilated with Kia. I am longer interested in this issue and have moved on. I will just say this in closing, I will NEVER buy another KIA.
Bryan
Columbia,Tennessee,
U.S.A.
100,000 limited warranty
#19Consumer Suggestion
Sat, March 17, 2007
i have worked as a tech in the field of auto repair for years and i do work for a company that has a similar warranty, basically if the manufactuer says to change your trans fluid every 30,000 miles than you have to do it, also if you have a family member changing the oil, they have to buy the oil and filter, so there is a reciept, therefore paperwork, kia has every right to dishonor the warranty for your car if you arent going to take care of it.
what do you think, the warranty work is free, no it costs someone money. kia will not authorize a tear down of a unit if it moght be a warranty issue, because they get them rebuilt inexpensively. even if you as the customer and owner of the car you cannot authorize a tear down because you want it. you need to produce service records if you want your car fixed.
Mike
Radford,Virginia,
U.S.A.
Were you overdue for changing the transmission fluid?
#19Consumer Suggestion
Sat, March 17, 2007
What does the manual specify about transmission maintenance? If the fluid needed to be changed before your 58,2XX miles and you didn't do it, then you have no warranty. And a judge will agree with that.
If not then you do have a case. However, you made it a lot more complicated by having a third party work on the transmission.
Not changing the oil in the ENGINE or any other unrelated part has no bearing on your transmission warranty.
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
perspective is everything
#19Author of original report
Fri, March 16, 2007
I am not bashing the employees; I am only stating the facts with names attached. I am not interested in going rounds with you about Kia service or products. I wrote this only as a warning to someone else that may have transmission problems on a KIA product and there would be a record somewhere that this is a issue with KIA.
I find it clever and peculiar that KIA Corporation would need to have an employee respond to the complaints posted on Rip-off.com. Are the complaints so numerous that an employee would need to be assigned to write rebuttals on behave of the company?
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
perspective is everything
#19Author of original report
Fri, March 16, 2007
I am not bashing the employees; I am only stating the facts with names attached. I am not interested in going rounds with you about Kia service or products. I wrote this only as a warning to someone else that may have transmission problems on a KIA product and there would be a record somewhere that this is a issue with KIA.
I find it clever and peculiar that KIA Corporation would need to have an employee respond to the complaints posted on Rip-off.com. Are the complaints so numerous that an employee would need to be assigned to write rebuttals on behave of the company?
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
perspective is everything
#19Author of original report
Fri, March 16, 2007
I am not bashing the employees; I am only stating the facts with names attached. I am not interested in going rounds with you about Kia service or products. I wrote this only as a warning to someone else that may have transmission problems on a KIA product and there would be a record somewhere that this is a issue with KIA.
I find it clever and peculiar that KIA Corporation would need to have an employee respond to the complaints posted on Rip-off.com. Are the complaints so numerous that an employee would need to be assigned to write rebuttals on behave of the company?
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
perspective is everything
#19Author of original report
Fri, March 16, 2007
I am not bashing the employees; I am only stating the facts with names attached. I am not interested in going rounds with you about Kia service or products. I wrote this only as a warning to someone else that may have transmission problems on a KIA product and there would be a record somewhere that this is a issue with KIA.
I find it clever and peculiar that KIA Corporation would need to have an employee respond to the complaints posted on Rip-off.com. Are the complaints so numerous that an employee would need to be assigned to write rebuttals on behave of the company?
Bill
TEMPE,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Put the whole story in writing-not just your side.
#19UPDATE Employee
Fri, March 16, 2007
I speak from almost 50 years of experience in this business and your insinuations that Kia is a bad product are completely without merit!!Mankind has yet to build a perfect machine so it doesn't matter if you drive a Yugo or a Rolls, they all have problems. While you may have had a unusual problem, if the truth be known there has to be another side to this story and you are not telling it.
We(readers) do not care about your sales experience because that has nothing whatsoever to do with a vehicle repair and you should not confuse the two. If you allowed yourself to be taken advantage of, then shame on you. That is not the products fault. If you had a problem with a car and you did not get it resolved then we (readers) deserve to know why. Kia has millions of owners and I assure you that more of them love their Kia's than hate their Kia's. Personally, I own a older Kia and I have been completely satisified with the product. So, from a satisified owner(me)to a not satisified customer(you)my suggestion is move on with life. Your bad service experience is certently not typical and from my perspective is not going to stop many people from buying a Kia if for no other reason, you simply have failed to present your case in a fair unbiased format. I suggest you direct your energy at finding a way to end your dissatifaction rather than continue chasing a historical event that has no apparent ending. One last thought, if you want to experience really good service for Kia products you should try our new service team at Tempe Kia. Bashing folks you don't know (Tempe Kia service)makes your case even less convincing to readers like me.
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Warranty's are warranty's
#19Author of original report
Fri, March 16, 2007
I agree that warranties are warranties but when a costumer can provide information that there was a transmission problem before any OIL changes were needed the problem of a FAULTY transmission should go back on the person or company that sells that product. A customer has rights and the big companies aren't willing to do what is right with the information that is in front of them.
If I were to have taken this to court I believe the judge would have looked at the proof and information provided by the customer from the dealer and ruler for the customer hands down. BUT Bill sold the customer another car because of her hurried circumstances and still got the best of her with crafty salesperson writing. So not only did she get a bum deal on a warrantee item but was like you said STUPID enough or desperate enought to buy another Kia.
Kia is a huge mistake for anyone and whoever reads this DON'T buy one.
Bill
TEMPE,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Accused individuals were terminated last year
#19UPDATE Employee
Thu, March 15, 2007
Our new service department should not be held hostage for actions committed by others. Everyone has to remember that auto dealers do not build cars nor do they dictate warranty. Warranties for every manufactured product in the world are issued by the manufacturer of product. Dealers are bound by contracts to perform warranty on behalf of the manufacturer via written policies and procedures.
Customers are bound by manufacturers to perform recommended maintenance in accordance to the written maintenance schedules. Failure to maintain a vehicle in accordance to those written requirements is the owners obligation if the owner expects the manufacturer to honor a specific warranty. Consumers who expect a manufacturer to condone a consumers stupidity usually get nothing. As it should be. Consumers who maintain their product and maintain their product according to the required schedules usually get everything they have coming and then some.
In review, my life experiences prove that if a consumer maintains a product as suggested, the life expectency of a given product will consistantly outlive its design expectations.
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
New information
#19Author of original report
Sun, March 26, 2006
I spoke to Hiro the service manager at Tempe Kia on Thursday, March 23, 2006. I contacted him since I had not received the information I requested: how much for a new transmission and why it was not covered.
ANYWAYS, I inquired if I would receive a new transmission, he replied "no, it is remanufactured; therefore I replied "does that mean you would want my core (to rebuild)? He replied "yes"; I replied "thanks for the information, very interesting."
I find it very interesting they can rebuild a CLOSE unit, but they cannot and will not "tear it down", with authorization from the owner! This is total B.S. What are they afraid of, finding a mechanical defect? Maybe I need to pursue the LEMON LAW, due to a faulty transmission from the manufacture from the day it rolled off the factor floor; and not a rebuilt transmission due to a mechanical defect.
The next day I called the corporate office and the service rep. could not explain to me why a closed unit could be rebuilt. Her reply was I can only tell you what is written on the report from the dealership from the service rep. We can call and talk to him together if you want. I do not have time for this double corporate talk. It doesn't ever make sense. Funny, huh?
Dean
Hillside,Illinois,
U.S.A.
Kia Corporate
#19Consumer Suggestion
Tue, March 21, 2006
Unfortunately, if you are expecting Kia corporate to help you, you are probably in real trouble.
In my case, I had the transmission in my Kia replaced for the 2nd time. About a week later, the brakes completely locked up. When I had it towed back to the dealership, they told me it was due to transmission fluid in the brake line. The entire brake system had to be replaced at a cost of around $1800.
I started with dealership management. Noone had worked on the car but Kia. They had just replaced my transmission. How else could transmission fluid have gotten in the brake line? No luck with dealership management so I toook it up to corporate.
I really wasn't concerned. I'd had an issue once with a Ford dealer's service and ended up calling Ford corporate. It tooka couple of days, but eventually Ford Corporate got it worked out. Surely, Kia corporate would see "the big picture".
Surely, not. They gave me the run around for 4 weeks. Passed from person to person, V-P to V-P.
Basically, you need to understand that Kia is little better than the "fat burning" scams on late night TV. They are purely a marketing company with no apparent interest or skill in building a decent car. The only goal appears to be to get you to buy just 1 of their cars. Long term customer care, brand creation, etc. are not in the picture. They are the "churn and burn" of the auto industry.
Run away. Get a new car. Take the bus. Buy a bike. Do anything you have to do to get away from the money-sucking leeches of Kia.
Tamara
Tempe,Arizona,
U.S.A.
What I want
#19Author of original report
Mon, March 13, 2006
I just want the warranty work to be done this is a mechanical defect, not a maintentance issue!