Complaint Review: Volkswagen Of America - Aristocrat Volkswagen

I should have known something was wrong when the used 98 Cabrio VW I purchased from Aristocrat VW in 2001 was delivered to me DIRTY. The salesman, exasperated, explained that the cleaning guys refused to clean the car, so he did what he could. He even gave me a bottle of cleaner HE had purchased. This salesman was gone a few weeks later. I assume he quit in frustration.

But the real issue is that in 2003 my convertible top began dry-rotting and tearing (one of many things wrong with the car). I learned of a class action lawsuit against VW, and soon received a letter from VW of America stating that they would pay for 50% of the cost of the replacement of my convertible top. I contacted Aristocrat VW June 10, 2003 for the second time (my earlier message never got to the intended recipient), and scheduled a visit to the dealership. I sat at a service manager's desk as he typed in all of my information and informed me that he was ordering a new top for my car - a top that would cost me $710. He said it would be ready for installation in 4 weeks. Seven weeks later, I called Aristocrat VW. They told me they had no record of me being in since 2001.

Needless to say, they hadn't ordered the top. In the meantime, the interior of my car is getting drenched in rainstorms. It smells. Mold and mildew are next. Let's hope that the crash sensor, which I believe is located inside, does not get affected -- This could cause an airbag to deploy accidentally or cause it to FAIL to deploy in an accident.

Aristocrat VW blamed everything on Volkswagen of America and said it could be "indefinite" when the parts would arrive. Their parts manager got nasty with me and told me that it would cost me nearly $1,000 to get the top replaced. Their service manager yelled at me that he had told me "at least 6 to 8 weeks!" and hung up on me, and the general manager told me they make no money on these situations, so he'd rather not deal with any of this. He also lied and told me that, "VW said they will not replace your top." Obviously, this company doesn't want to follow through on promises, and they are too stupid to realize being good business people could get them more business.

Volkswagen of America denies everything Aristocrat VW had told me, but, as another poster stated, they are no piece of cake to deal with, either. Customer service from the top down at this company is HORRENDOUS. The "advocates" go by a script. Two of the five I spoke with were nonargumentative and somewhat friendly. VW of America is saying one thing; Aristocrat VW in Sanford, FL says another. No one is being pleasant. And in the meantime my VW is becoming a pond-on-wheels. I will NEVER purchase so much as a PEN from this company again. This is the worst customer service I've encountered in a LONG time!

Penelope
Sanford, Florida
U.S.A.