My wife and I unfortunately bought two Hyundai Accents (Automatics) from Dennis Pontiac Hyundai Isuzu at 2900 Morse Road in Columbus Ohio. Between both cars we now have had a total of five (5) transmissions! Both received their replacement transmissions at the 30,000 mile mark! In fact while we had a rental car for a week we waited for my transmission to come in to replace the orginal, only to have that replacement blow out before we even drove it, only to wait even longer for my third transmission!
My wife she is on the second transmission. But that is not the problem that I'm dealing with now and why you have seen my magnetic signage on our cars and our friends cars.
It is due to the fact that now that our "warranty" for the vehichle has run out - Dennis Auto Point refuses to repair what ever is ailing my wife's cars transmission - AGAIN! You see everytime we get a good 2-3 days of rain in Columbus her "check engine light" illuminates and the car starts to sputter and lose power. Now mind you when it is sunny and dry outside - the car runs fine however when the weather turns, its as if you are riding with someone learning stick shift - again this is an automatic. So we take it into Dennis Auto Point for repairs and so far, everytime (while under warranty still) they have hooked up their diagnostic computer to reveal a code that states that either cylindar 1 or 4 or both is mis-firing. Great right? No problem you might think - but no.
The first time they got this code they said it was the fuel injectors that needed cleaned and of course those aren't covered so we paid through the nose for that repair. Did it solve it you might ask? It seemed as though it had because it had had several days to dry out. We took it home only to have the same symptom occur again! We took it back and explained to Bob in service what the problem was - mind you now it had the SAME SYMPTOMS so they enter that fact in their little computers and again hook up the diagnostic tool only to reveal the exact same code. This time their "expert" mechanics state that it is the spark plugs. Nothing else this time just spark plugs - so I leave and replace them with our mechanic as this again would be an expense not covered under the warranty.
Three days later the check engine light is on and the vehichle is again sputtering and lurching and losing power. So we take it back to Dennis Auto Point, do the diagnostic routine and this time it is not only the spark plugs (which if you recall are new, installed by my brother-in-law a certified mechanic that does know how to gap them properly) but also the spark plug cables! No problem you might think, finally we've found out what the problem is but NOOOOO! We pay to replace those two items and a few months later in the rainy season of good 'ol Ohio check engine light comes on and this time it is on the freeway with a semi driving up my wife's bumper, she loses all power and coasts to the berm of I-270!
Well today when the car gave trouble we took it unfortunately to the same fools again since Ricart Hyundai (even though they're a mile away) does not allow us there for service since we sued them in 1993 and won and is part of the settlement. So it is basically the only Hyundai service center within 20 miles of our house. Today they inform me that our Hyundai Factory Warranty has expired and that they know the problem.
They NOW say that it is the ignition coil! They tell me that for $230 some odd dollars that they can fix this problem for me! I tell them that the symptoms of this car have never changed, that their computer should be evidence of that, but no, they expect me to pay as my warranty has expired in the past few months and I do mean less than 6 months. We're talking maybe three or four months.in my opinion, and the opinion of everyone I'm opening my mouth up to on campus and at the grocery store, it is a problem that they have not yet figured out or even offered to send to a transmission specialist at their expense -as Ricart Ford was forced to do for us.
Since it is a problem, a consistant unchanging problem, we feel as consumers of two of their vehichles (my parents have purchased three (3) vehichles from them now) that they should and ought to be obligated to consider this problem "grandfathered" in. Keith Dennis the owner of this dealership has apparently not instructed his "service" team, and I use this term with much laughter, that repeat customers are often future repeat customers for life, especially since we are just now 30 and 29 years old. Would it kill them to make the repair or better yet - how about just diagnosing the problem correctly.
Our problem is the fact that the very generic diagnostic tool does not specify items such as plugs, hoses, and apparently the ignition coil, otherwise it would have been solved the first service call! It is quite obvious to any layman that they are fishing for a solution in a system that is connected and related to each other and when that solution doesn't do the trick they move on to the next component that has not been replaced.
Today I got a call from their service department manager who argued and hid behind the fact that they had in fact repaired the car and had not seen in 14 months. He spoke over me very rudely every time I tried to explain to him that PepBoys serviced this car in the spring, March specifically (yes I do have the paperwork) as well as an ASE certified technician in McConnelsville, Ohio when it broke down and absolutely would not go then when it poured in August. Both service centers told me they didn't want to sell me anything as they think it is some sort of transmission problem that needs a specialist.
But this "know-it-all" service manager hid behind the last date of service on his computer about our car, in his joke of a shop, and offered nothing not even the parts if we paid for labor - which is still quite unfair.in the past year I have taken this vehicle four (4) times to AutoZone where they will hook up the diagnostic tool to your car for free and every time we got the same code regarding the misfire on cylinder 1 or 4 or both. Sounds like an engine problem to me or as stated by two qualified mechanics - a transmission problem. The sad thing is the fact that the only good service representative they have is Bob and he did all he can do and he even admits that he is very much aware of how often my wife's silver Hyundai Accent has been in there with the same consistant problem virtually since we purchased it.
So thank you to all who are supporting me in reading this and for the five cars out there with my "Talk to me before purchasing anything from Dennis Auto Point" signs. Keith Dennis if you are reading this - you have the power to satisfy a customer and a family that has spent money to buy FIVE vehicles from you in the past 5 years alone. I attend Ohio State, Capital, and upon occassion Columbus State with all of my friends at Ohio Dominican and Columbus State. That's a whole lot of young people in the market for Accents that we're loving to tell all about Hyundai Accents and the junk that they are - but most importantly how lousy and truly money hungry your dealership is.
Your computer system has my home phone if you feel like being a smart business man and doing the right thing. Here is hoping you're a real man that wants to satifsy a customer. We bought these cars to get us through our college years and I was just accepted into a medical college out further west. When I move next spring I have five vehicles carrying my signs to warn others even while I am gone. I know at this time when I'm back to set up practice I will never buy from Dennis again. I once read in Forbes that when you are pleased with a business you usually praise it up one side and down the other to at least two or three people. But when a business crosses you, you tell at least a dozen people.
Guess what Keith Dennis, I'm telling the whole darn campus everyday and my friends are covering the others - not to mention two of the other vehichles spreading the truth about you are at Walford and Northtowne, just a stones throw from your dealership. Oh yeah and my wife's car when it makes it to New Albany to work is read by most of the insurance company she works for as she has her own parking space right up front!
Peter
Columbus, Ohio
U.S.A.
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