Ok guys, here's a story for you so grab a brew and your **** and settle down.

I bought my new Crossfire (it's a manual coupe) from a UK dealer in the North of England in March of this year and loved it from the start. I was living in Germany at the time and it was a dream on the autobahns leaving Mercs, Beemers and Audis dead in their tracks. I then moved back to the Shrewsbury are in UK in April and, of course, the car came with me.

On the 25th of May, I noticed that a problem had developed with the car. So, I set off for the local dealer (Westbury Garage, Shrewsbury) to have them look at it. The problem was this . . .

At idle speed (warm or cold, it was the same) the engine seemed to have problems maintaining a constant speed and would "hunt" slightly. In addition, the whole car rocked. As well as this, whilst driving the car and changing gear, the revs would suddenly "do their own thing" and the engine would either speed up or hold the revs. Yes, my foot was clear of the accelerator - if only it was something that simple!

So, as I said, I popped the car into the dealer and asked them what could be wrong. They offered to have a look at the car if I left it with them and my mate (who had followed me to the garage) drove me home again. At the weekend, I'd heard nothing from them so I decided to give them a call. (Bear in mind, I had no car now).

I was eventually put through to the service department and was told that "a part" was needed and it was on order. The car should be ready on the Tuesday. Great, I thought, problem sorted. I called them on Tuesday filled with hope that my car would be restored to its prime and ready for me to blast (legally, of course ) around the hills of Wales.

Yeah, you guessed it - it wasn't ready. Apparently, the wrong part came through and it would be another 10 days (yes TEN DAYS!) before the correct part would be there. Understandably upset, I enquired why it was going to take so long.

"Because that's when the next shipment comes in," was the reply.

"Can't you get it any sooner?" I asked.

"No," was the reply.

"Can you give me a replacement car in the mean time so I can get to work?"

"No," was the reply. "They need to be booked 14 days in advance." However, they told me I could have my car back, complete with the faults as described.

"Won't it damage the car if I drive it like this?" I enquired.

"No," was the reply (a pattern was emerging!). "Fuel consumption might go up but it should be ok."

Fine, I wasn't happy, but there was little else to do but go and collect my poorly car. 10 days later, I'd heard nothing from them so I called them (notice who is making the phone calls) and asked if the part has arrived. It hadn't but they would call me as soon as it was in. 3 days later, I called again. Part still not arrived.

At this point, my rag was beginning to become unsure of it's position and so I called Customer Services, Chrysler UK to express my displeasure at the service I was receiving from one of their franchises.

"We'll get right onto it, Mr Clark," I was assured.

2 days later, I called Westbury Garage and asked if the part had arrived.

"Yes it got here yesterday could you bring the car down there and leave it with us?"

I quizzed them why they hadn't called me yesterday and how long they would need the car. A vague response about them calling me and it should be a quick job - about 5 minutes.

My mate took me down to the garage and dropped me off. Foolishly, I told him that it would be a quick job so he could scoot off back home. Oh yes, they had changed the part - but the problems remained. Much scratching of heads and sucking of teeth went on. My rag was undeniably lost.

"When are you going to sort this out," I demanded? "I've waited 3 weeks so far!"

"We need to run some tests and then we'll have a better idea."

"Run the bloody tests then!"

Tests were run. Fault codes came up . . . more scratching of heads and sucking of teeth.

"Never seen these codes before," said the technician.

"What now then?"

"I'll send an e-mail to Chrysler UK and get advice," he said.

"How long will this take?"

"Can you leave the car with us and we'll call you when it's ready?" he asked.

"Fine, give me a replacement so I can go home."

"No, we need 14 days notice to book a courtesy car."

GRRRR! So, I took my car (still not well) back home and settled my nerves with a stiff single malt. Over the next few days, I made several calls to the garage to be told they'd had no reply to their email.

"Had they tried calling Chrysler UK?" I asked with as much patience as I could muster.

"Er no - we'll do that today."

"Call me back when you've got an answer," I said.

2 days later, I'd heard nothing so I called again.

"We still don't have an answer and we've changed lots of parts with one of our stock cars but the problems are still there."

I don't believe this, I thought. "I'll call you back."

I called Chrysler UK and spoke to the Customer Services Manager to explain what was going on. On several occasions I had to state my name, the details of the car and the problems I was experiencing. (Don't they have records?!?!)

"We'll speak to the garage and get back to you," they said.

What do you think? Nahhh - like hell, did they call back!

I called them the next day.

"Oh, we called the garage," they said. "Unfortunately, the technician has been in hospital and so we don't know what the problem is. Can you explain it to us again?"

Fuse gone . . . that was it!

"I've paid bloody good money for this car and I expect a car that works properly," I fumed. "If that doesn't happen (and I accept that sometimes it doesn't) then I expect good service to sort the problem out. I think I'm being pretty reasonable here, how about showing me some respect as a customer and GET MY CAR SORTED OUT!"

"I'll need to speak to the manager and call you back," said the Customer Service assistant.

"No you won't," I said! "I know what you're like for this - I won't hear from you again! Go and talk to him now and I'll wait on the phone." (What the hell - it's only MY phone bill!)

10 minutes later, the chap comes back on the phone.

"Sir, there's nothing we can do until we get in touch with the garage and find out what they've done and what the problem is."

In despair, I bluntly told him to get something sorted and I would be in touch every day until it was.

After many subsequent and similar phone calls, the days rolled by and my patience had been worn wafer thin. Again, I called Chrysler UK and gave them an ultimatum.

"You have three choices now. Either I get a new car, my purchase price refunded or this problem gets sorted out NOW."

"What do you want us to do, Mr Clark?"

"I would have thought that was obvious! However, as you seem to need it spelling out, you can arrange for someone to come here to my house, collect my car, leave a suitable alternative and sort something out before the end of the week or I'm going to court."

"There's no need to be like that, Sir!"

"Right!!! You've got the choices, you have my details. I expect a solution within 5 days." I said and put the phone down.

2 hours later I received a phone call.

"Hello, this is Cumbo Chrysler in Stoke. I believe you're having a problem with your car. I'll be round to collect it in about an hour and I'll leave you a Jeep Cherokee until we get it sorted."

It seemed I was finally getting somewhere - about time too, it was now July (Yes, JULY!)

True to their word, Cumbo collected my car and it was ready on the Thursday. Staggering! When I enquired what the problem was, it was (apparently) a simple valve that regulated engine fuel & air supply that had failed.

I was astounded that such a simple thing could take two months, numerous phone calls and several verbal battles to get repaired!!

[hr]

So, why am I relating this story to you all? Well, there are a number of reasons.

Firstly, I want to make other crossfire owners aware of the problem itself and, should they encounter similar symptoms with their own car, then tell your dealer the detail this story and it may help them diagnose the problem.

Secondly, this was a bad experience with a particular garage (Westbury in Shrewsbury) whom I was later told have a history of messing people around. I would recommend using another Chrysler dealer.

Thirdly, to say thanks to the chaps at Cumbo for getting my car back to its prime.

Fourthly, to highlight the ineptitude and incompetence of Chrysler UK Customer Services. If the place I was working in was run in a similar fashion then we, in the UK, would have been speaking German for the last 60 years.

[hr]

I will admit to thinking very hard about whether or not to ever buy another Chrysler after this episode. I adore the Crossfire and am tempted to go for the soft top next year but I am very, VERY disappointed by the after sales service I have received.

If you have had any similar problems with either the technical aspects or the customer service side of things, I'd love to hear about them. I hope you've enjoyed reading this - if it hadn't happened to me, then I'm sure the whole "circus" affair would have been mildly amusing to me too!

All the best! I wish you happy (and trouble free) motoring!

Regards,

Clive

 

LOL... **** have a different meaning on this side of the pond. "Not that there is anything wrong with it".

I'm glad to see that you finally got your issue resolved. What an experience.

 

That's one hell of an aggravating episode, P-Pilot. And the most effective solution in these perverse circumstances is probably to do what you just did -- publicize the issue, reward the good dealer, and warn other owners away from the bad ones. It's disgusting that we have to do this, and on both sides of the pond, but I'm afraid that is what Chrysler's irresponsible neglect has reduced us to doing in the absence of another satisfactory response. The Crossfire is a spectacular vehicle, but the lack of quality service leads to incredible frustrations and the opposite of the "halo" that Chrysler thought it was building.

 

Somehow we need to organize ourselves, collect all these documented experiences and mail them with a cover letter to a high level executive at DC, demanding warranty work be transferred to MB.

 

Guys,

Thanks for your support! Although it pains me to say this, I'm glad I'm not the only one!

With regards to the "****" issue - apologies! Naturally, I meant "cigarettes" . . . "not that there's anything wrong with it!"

Keep 'em coming! (Am I ok to use that phrase in the same post as "****?" . . . Just a question )
.
Regarding the Mercedes debate - I'm not so sure that would help much. Another story, in brief . . . I bought the missus an E Class and took it to the local dealer for a service. Now, I'm aware that customer service in Germany is renowned for being poor but I didn't expect to wait half an hour before being spoken to. When I was served, there was much aloofness as if to say that I didn't deserve to be there until they realized that, actually, I was there to have a car serviced and they should be nice to me!

Perhaps it's me but I didn't have this problem with Audis, Saabs or BMW . . . it really makes me wonder! Perhaps I should be grateful that it only took them 30 minutes to deal with me, rather than 2 months in the case of the Crossfire!

Generally, I have the feeling that many car dealers just don't respect the fact that Joe Bloggs has spent his hard earned cash to get a car from them. All I'm asking for is fair, courteous customer service . . . is that really too much to ask for?!

 

Not at all, I have run Audi's for 16 years now, and just about to order another one.

All I can say is you are right, Audi customer service is second to none.

Our Chrysler dealer has recently closed and all work has been transferred to our local Merc dealer, so I will soon find out what the service is like.

 

P Pilot. That's one Traumatic experience. At least you've found a reputable dealer.