I would like to take the time and let everyone know about my recent visits to Larson Audi in Fife. I have been getting my vehicles serviced there for around three years and in the past, I would never seem to have any issues at all, until recently. I have two Audis, an A4 and a Q3, and just sold an A6. All my vehicles were serviced strictly at Larson Audi. I will explain what I have gone through recently. I personally like to get my vehicles detailed from top to bottom, wash, wax, and vacuumed, cleaning of interior, polishing the leather, engine clean, ect… Larson Audi does not do this onsite for some reason and opt to have a third party offsite do this. This is where the problems started. About a year ago, my vehicle had an engine service done, oil and what not, along with a detail. Upon pick up, I inspected the vehicle, and the engine bay was completely dirty as if it had not been cleaned at all. I said something to Sarah, and she said, come on… your expectations are too high… so, I said, alright then and inspected the rest of the vehicle. I noticed something amiss with my steering wheel. It looked as if the chrome ring around logo had been peeled back and left a crease in the chrome. This left me suspicious as it was not like that before. So I asked Sarah to check my air bag for consistencies to make sure that the third party detailer, (whom Audi won’t tell you who it is), may have swapped out my airbag. I was treated as if I was a conspiracy nut, but the check came back normal. It was super fishy! I took my car and left with a bad taste in my mouth, but kept optimistic with the benefit of the doubt in mind and the fact that I love the brand. May 2015 Again, it was time for yet another service on my A4; I opted into another detail to be done, knowing that it very well may be going back to the same place.
Upon time to pick up the vehicle, I received a call that it was ready, and was asked to pay for the service over the phone…”really” I said. I said no and went in to inspect the vehicle. I paid the lady for the work and proceeded to load the kids into the car, and that’s when I saw it. I saw a huge dint in the passenger side rear corner panel over a foot long. I was completely shocked. It looked as if it had been crashed! So I emmediently started to take pictures and inspect the rest of vehicle. Upon more inspection, I noticed that the rear bumpers’ paint had been stripped by what looked like a pressure washer. One of the center caps looked the same… My gosh! I asked my advisor to look at it and she said, “Oh, you dropped it off that way”. Oh no I didn’t… She was trying to put the blame on me and not take any responsibility for this accident. Sarah then came out and said, no, the car wasn’t dropped off that way and we take responsibility, here take a loaner car and we will fix it for you… Well, crap. Who did this? Sarah told me that it was the detail shop that they did the dent but they too were reluctant to take responsibility for this, but eventually relented. So at this point, my suspicions about the air bag seemed more valid… It also could have happened inside Larson for all I know… I still really don’t know what happened. The car took over three weeks to eventually get back.
When I first got it back from the dent fix up, the paint that was stripped off the bumper still showed lines from 30 feet away. I asked for that to be redone until it looked normal again. I was treated as if I was just bitching at that point, but I just wanted my car back to normal. Sarah said, “ I am soo done with this car”… and I thought, “Really”? after what just happened, I am getting treated as if I am an inconvenience… Like I am causing trouble… Sarah did apologized for the incident and promised to make it right. I received a $100 gift certificate (which is enough for 1 Audi t-shirt), and they painted a scratch on trunk that was there when I bought it, as compensation... hmmm… That sucked! They potentially dropped the value of my vehicle for resale and all I got was a $100 and some extra paint that they had to do anyway… June 2015 At this point, I am extremely upset with Larson Audi, but I love the brand so much, that I went in to Larson Audi Fife, two months later, and purchased a 2015 Q3. During signing, I was told I did not qualify for a customer loyalty credit due to the fact that we wanted our credit union to be the financer and not the preferred Audi finance company that has higher rates… I had to fuss in order to get it, but I finally got the credit, but only after getting red in the face mad and going off for 10 minutes… What, I am not loyal? During signing, they were extremely pushy on upselling us with extended warrenties and clear coat protectants… Dang, lay off. I know it’s your job, but No means no guy. The Q3 was had factory imperfections that they did address well in service, but I opted into getting my passenger and drivers window tinted to match the factory tint that came on the car. When I received the car back from getting it tinted, I was expecting it to look awesome. It did not. Both sides color do not match and there were over 40 air bubbles underneath the film. So I complained and I was treated as if I just b***h too much… But they redid it. Upon second go around, I saw more bubble’s underneath the film… I said, I still see bubbles, and Sarah said, “Nothing is perfect, you have to accept that”.
To this date, it is very noticeable that the color is not the same. I am forced to drive around with bubbles and mix matched window tints… That’s not Luxury… Why did I give them more money? That was stupid. I guess I am too nice. August 2015 Ounce again, my A4 needed service and I brought it in for mechanical issues. Larson is the only place I have ever taken this car so I felt like I had to, because they know the car, probably more than they like. During check in, I requested that the front skid plate be reatacted to bumper because the two clips holding it up are gone for some reason. Someone forgot to put them back on. The service advisor called me on the phone and told me what the mechanical issues were. A fuel pump. O.K. Go ahead… I told her that the car was sitting for a month because I was driving my new Q3 and that the tire were low.. can you check them please? So when I went in to pick up the car, my advisor told me that they did not button up the skid plate for me because I wouldn’t want to do it because the clips are too expensive and there is a bunch of little parts… blah blah blah… really? So I just paid for the fuel pump and left. As I pulled out of Larson, the car seemed extremely dirty, and was tugging hard to to the right. Wow, what is wrong here? So I pulled into the gas station and put some air in the tires and took it through a wash… I then went home and put two screws in the skid plate… now it is fine. I am doing their work for them… I know that washing a customers car is complimentary, but it is not good to give a car back that was not that dirty when it was brought in. The skid plate issue? I don’t know…Lazy I guess. Sarah swears by the report that the technicians put in and they said that the tires were all perfect but that was not the case. This leads me to believe that the car was not test drove after the fuel pump to insure a proper fix. All they did was put in a pump and see if the code came back. The computer did most of the work… Yes, their diagnostic system is top notch, but, as a mechanic, there are proper procedures that should be followed during mechanical repair. This was not done. That wasn’t hard to spot. If they had tested their work, they would have seen the tires were low and popped a little air in there and all would have been well. I left a survey about this incident and I received an email back from Sarah with the tone of “how dare you”… and hinting that my expectations are too high for them there and that I should find another shop that can fill my expectations… I thought that Larson Audi is where Luxury resides. Sure doesn’t feel that way. Their work is not cheap. It cost thousands most ever time. Value should be there but is not. Sarah says that I am the only customer that has consistent issues, but I highly doubt that. As you can see, I have been through the mill with Larson Audi. The only nice thing about Larson is the new loaner cars they give during service. I DO NOT recommend going there. As your driving their new loaners, they are actually taking you for a ride. Literally. If they do make you drive cheap rentals from Enterprise, that’s not great either. Don’t be fooled.
There is clearly a break in communication within multiple departments there at Larson Audi. When I responded over the phone to a rep name Amanda about the most recent survey, she had asked me what I would like done about this issue? She asked, “Would I like a free car wash or an oil change”? I said “NO, I want this issue to be addressed in order to improve efficiency and make the dealership better. I also plan on buying a Jacket, so maybe a coupon, NOT a gift certificate; a coupon would be helpful as I still planned to bring my vehicle back, until I received an email from Sarah stating that I complain too much. I want to BUY a jacket, not get one for FREE. That is petty. Can go online for that… As a customer, I choose were to spend my money, and not the company telling me when and where to spend, unless I did something horrible, then they can refuse service, and in Sarah’s eyes, Bad surveys are horrible. She wrote that I know the surveys mean so much, but honestly, I don’t know anything about that…We never talked like that… We never stood around the water cooler together discussing employment… I am a customer, not a coworker. Sarah is extremely defensive about constructive criticism and is taking it personal and is also trying to make me look as if I am a customer that is out to get something for free, so this is my motivation to tell everyone about the Larson Audi service deficiencies. This is not the case. I have nothing to gain here. This is a lose-lose situation for us as for them. Now because Sarah thinks we should do business elsewhere, our extended warranty (Cilajet) for the exterior of the vehicle will not transfer to other dealerships thus needs to be refunded to us. Other BBB complaints prove extended warranties are dealership specific and it was purchased approximately 60 days ago for that dealership so a $1500 approximate refund is in order. Sarah is not running the service department well and it shows.
First of all, I have been in four times this year and every time I was in, I was greeted by a new service advisor. Each advisor does not know my cars well, or the brand, at all, nor do they seem to care (Chip does seem knowledgeable) as I am just another number. It seems as though Sarah’s management is not consistent in the hiring process and consistency is essential to a fluid running business. Badgering customers about constructive criticism is a poor leadership quality and does not at all employ extraordinary leadership. No other company I have ever experienced in the corporate world does this. High heels and a fake smile do not make you a great leader. It takes much much more. If it wasn’t for Sarah’s email upsetting us, we more than likely would have never contacted anyone such as the BBB or left reviews online. This time she has gone too far. It’s beyond an email though… her email only intensified our issues. I always thought that a great business followed the model that “The customer is always right”. This is not the case with Sarah. The customer is always wrong with her. At least in my case. Why is that? What other customer don’t see is the way that I have been treated about concerns of my vehicles. Nobody sees this, so it is my duty to bring this to light in order to improve efficiency. This is not at all driven by an urge to get even with the dealership or fulfill an inner frustration, nor receive any free money. I have plenty of that. God has blessed me with an abundance of everything a human would need, and then some.
I am stating the facts and the fact stand by themselves and don’t lie. When Sarah was a service advisor, prior to her promotion, I always would give her perfect surveys. When she became manager, things started going downhill. This is a clear reflection of her management skills. Who else would know better than a customer like me, to know what really is going on? Would a worker ever say, “yah, I don’t work well all the time”…? I think not. Sarah takes the surveys personally, instead of utilizing them for improvement. It is clear in her previous emails, of her stubbornness to accept my feedback as factual and correct, and her willingness to correct issues caused by the service department. This is not good for business. I can only speak on how I am treated and do not know if this is a trend in behavior, yet it very well could be. I am glad to bring things to light that others may wish to blow off. The facts stand that my Audi A4 and Q3, both have defects that were made by the service department. The 2015 q3 needs the tint to be redone by a professional that has done thousand of tint before. Sarah told me that this is now being done onsite and that leads me to believe that because they just started doing this, they don’t have the experience to do this 100 percent as of yet. The Q3 has bubbles between the film and the window. I addressed this issue and was not given a solution. I want a solution to this as it is their responsibility. I would like to take the vehicle elsewhere and I believe that the dealership should refund the money I paid to have it done professionally, as it was not done right TWICE already. The A4 was involved in an accident in the possession of the Larson Audi service and it is also their responsibility to make this right. I have enclosed pictures that will show that the fix to the accident that THEY caused, and is still to this date, not correct. I believe that they should cover the fix to make it correct and remove the blotchy paint, and bring my car back to normal as it was prior to bringing it there. This is not much to ask. I could have played hard ball with this issue and I chose to give them a chance to correct everything and be nice instead.
Don’t take my kindness for weakness. I was and am ready to take this issue to the next level, but I still have faith that this can be fixed in a professional manner, and not in the combattative way that Sarah is currently dealing with this. I asked via the BBB for approximately $500 to fix both issue that they caused, but this is just an approximant. It could cost more. Who knows? This is not a joke. This is deffenantly something that western Washington in whole would be floored by if they knew about. I believe that the dealership will come to their senses and fix the problems that they made, and not try to shift the blame onto me with stubbornness. This is what I want. I want my cars back to normal. That’s it. I don’t want your acceptance, I don’t need friends, and I just want my cars correct. I am the customer and the customer is supposed to be KING. I am the one spending the thousands, not making the thousands. Why would a customer look forward to that? Money does not come easy. It takes blood, sweat and maybe even some tears along the way to get it. It is the dealerships’ privilege to have a customer that is willing to give their money up to them. Not the other way around as Sarah says. This is a bad leadership quality. That’s bad for business. I really like the way my cars get fixed mostly, as I have had a lot of work done that is fine and good. I appreciate the good work done, but I don’t appreciate the attitude I receive from Sarah about her trust in her technicians. It’s like she is the mother hen and will protect them at all cost, even if they are wrong. This is not how a company excels because issues get buried in red tape and swept under the rug. Companies need to know the inner workings, in order to run smoothly. If Sarah puts on a happy face that all is well, how will the company improve? That is what all this is about. In a nutshell. If you can’t tell a customer following, then something is seriously wrong.
I want answers to these questions. What is the company that does the detailing for Larson Audi Fife? What actually happened to my car for it to get dinted during service? Not who, what? Do you use a pressure washer to clean vehicles onsite at Larson? Do you test drive all vehicles after service to ensure proper fix has been done? Do you ask all customers who don’t leave perfect surveys to go elsewhere? Does the car washer utilize the same rag used on brake dust to wipe car down as this causes swirls? Why are there new service advisors every month? Is it taught in meetings to have advisors request payments via email to be made over the phone, sight unseen? Who is Sarah Volzes manger? Who is her boss? Do you utilize a surveillance system onsite to ensure quality? Including shop, garages, registers and parking lots? Can you tell me how much it truly cost for two belly pan clips for my car? Is it customary to give dirty loaners to high paying customers? Is it ok to get frustrated with customers no matter how picky they are? Do you discriminate on customers according to the year of their car? IE, older Audi, not as important…? Is it proper to tell a customer that their expectations are too high? Is it customary to sweep all negative issues at Larson Audi under the rug? Did you notify the Washington State Patrol of the accident that was caused in your possession with my car? Does job security take precedence over improvement? Can you explain the process from start to finish of how your vehicles get from Larson Audi in fife, to the location where they get detailed? Do the cars get towed there or are they driven to location, and by whom? Do you believe that my request for my car to be back to normal is not warranted due to receiving $100 and some touch up paint as attempted compensation? Do you deliver all window tints back to customers with bubbles in them at Larson Audi? If no, how was that achieved?
These entire questions are valid and should be able to be addressed by any service manager in the industry that has exceptional standards. If my questions as a customer cannot be answered with truth, clarity and preciseness, than there is a breakdown in the management in the service department of Larson Audi.
Please feel free to discuss this matter with upper management as their insight will greatly affect the proper outcome of this case.