Kia Time, Riverside Kia, Riverside Ford Don't be fooled like i was.... Macon Georgia
Little did I know that my first Kia Time purchase would turn into a never-ending battle between my wallet and these dealerships. My 2003 Kia Rio was my first car purchase - brand new for a reasonable price. If I would have known that I would have had to keep investing more dollars into this small compact car the deal would have never been made.
Problem after problem occurred throughout my time with this car - leading up to a breaking point. It came down to buying a new engine or a new car. Me, being a college student, was not prepared to buy a different car. With my Rio having 80,000 miles on it and my mom giving a helping dollar - we invested 4,000 for an engine with a 1 YEAR WARRENTY. As we drove my new and improved car off the lot - we discovered it was not improved at all. We took it back to get more work done, having been told "There are always glitches with new engines".
Months pass and things begin to look better until one day there seems to not be any oil running through the engine. We put a quart in before i headed to Kia Time for it to be looked at. Within the 100 mile drive to the dealership - we had to stop twice to put in 2 more quarts of oil just to get it to move. We got there only to find that Kia was bought by Riverside Ford, I guess due to the complete mess of a dealership that it was past. Riverside Ford said they would be glad to look at it by the end of the day. We mentioned our 1 YEAR WARRENTY, they said they had it on file.....
MONTH AND A HALF LATER... No one will return out phone calls. Day after day we try calling different people at Riverside Ford and the "new" Riverside Kia. No one will give us any answers to what could be wrong with the car. On top of that - the one person we did talk to claims that they have no files on us, there is no warrenty, and nothing is wrong with the car!
We went through the service dept, sales dept, up to the manager and owner - nothing was being done about my car. They claimed it "was not their responcibility".
Finally someone calls offering a newer car for a ridiculous amount of money. I respond in saying I could only do that if we could receive some kind of money back for the engine that we thought would last through the year - "No". I wondered if we could just fix the car with the remainder of the year warrenty we were promised - "No"
In conclusion - I made another dumb decision and bought the newer car for a lower but still not saitsfying price. Not only did they get away with my old car and the money we invested in it, but they got away with more of our money that we invested into another P.O.S KIA!!
When will I ever Learn!!
I also did research and Riverside has two previous accounts of failure to fulfill guarentee of a warrenty.
DO NOT TRUST RIVERSIDE KIA OR FORD!!!
Jennifer
Eatonton, Georgia
U.S.A.
4 Updates & Rebuttals
Riversideford
Macon,Georgia,
U.S.A.
The other side of the story
#5UPDATE Employee
Fri, January 16, 2009
As with many situations, there is more than one side to the story. Riverside Ford/Kia came in on the end of the problems with this particular Rio. She was upset because she was told she was not under warranty with the new engine. The problem was, as far as we could tell her warranty was backed by the previous dealer, not by Kia. Since the previous dealer was no longer in business, there was longer any warranty. When Riverside Ford purchased the Kia Time dealership, they purchased the assets only, not the corporation, so any liabilities of Kia Time remained the solely of Kia Time. We tried to come up with an amicable solution, unfortunately none could be reached. I am disappointed that she blames our dealership that had been in business for a couple of weeks for problems she had over the course of four years.
As for the comment "I also did research and Riverside has two previous accounts of failure to fulfill guarentee of a warrenty.", well first it's spelled "guarantee" and "warranty", but Riverside Ford does not issue warranties, they simply perform warranty work on behalf of Ford Motor Company. If Ford denies a warranty claim, that is not the fault of Riverside Ford. Most often it is the fault of the owner for failing to properly maintain their vehicle.
Friendly Help
Anderson,South Carolina,
U.S.A.
Maybe you can start learning now.
#5Consumer Comment
Sat, July 12, 2008
Consumer Reports publishes tests on cars they buy anonymously. CR has an 'Auto Issue' every April, and they publish 6-year reliability charts on almost all brands. CR also offers brand & model specific buying information. Find CR at your public library, or subscribe at $98 for 5 years., $26 for 1 year. You can also visit Consumer Reports com.
There are also websites that discuss despicable dealer practices- from the inside.
Friendly Help
Anderson,South Carolina,
U.S.A.
Maybe you can start learning now.
#5Consumer Comment
Sat, July 12, 2008
Consumer Reports publishes tests on cars they buy anonymously. CR has an 'Auto Issue' every April, and they publish 6-year reliability charts on almost all brands. CR also offers brand & model specific buying information. Find CR at your public library, or subscribe at $98 for 5 years., $26 for 1 year. You can also visit Consumer Reports com.
There are also websites that discuss despicable dealer practices- from the inside.
Friendly Help
Anderson,South Carolina,
U.S.A.
Maybe you can start learning now.
#5Consumer Comment
Sat, July 12, 2008
Consumer Reports publishes tests on cars they buy anonymously. CR has an 'Auto Issue' every April, and they publish 6-year reliability charts on almost all brands. CR also offers brand & model specific buying information. Find CR at your public library, or subscribe at $98 for 5 years., $26 for 1 year. You can also visit Consumer Reports com.
There are also websites that discuss despicable dealer practices- from the inside.