I bought a piece of garbage Sirius Sportster SP-R2 Replay satellite radio. Two days after I received it, and installed it in my car, I noticed that 2 of the 10 preset buttons (with little lights in them) flicker and go out after driving in the car a short while. I immediately called and requested a replacement (2 days after initial purchase), and was told that I would have to send the entire package back at my own shipping expense.
This customer service representative informed me the department was plagued with problems. She told me a new team of employees were coming in from a different department in an attempt to improve the department and might have other options for me. She suggested this because I would not have potentially forfeited the mail-in rebate, due to a possible change in serial numbers. So she took my information and assured me one of these people (who was supposedly coming in to improve the department) would call me back in the middle of the following week, as it was a holiday weekend. I never received any phone call. At the time only the radio seemed bad. The car kit was already installed in my car and the wires for power and antenna were already running through my headliner, which I did not want to remove.
I decided to wait and see if the problem went away, but it only got worse. I was trying to avoid dealing with their horrible customer service, because I knew that since no one from Sirius ever called me back, this was to be an indication of things to come. The unit still heats up very hot and it is inevitable it will eventually burn up and become useless. The light problem happens more frequently now. After 3 weeks, and within my 30 day return policy, I attempted to get an RGA number by calling several days in a row to The Sirius Store (the people I bought it from). They did not pick up the phone. On day 30, I got home from work at 6:00PM, and called immediately. They finally answered the call at 8:00PM, only to tell to claim that the computer was down. They were adamant that they could not (and, more disturbingly, would not) do anything to help me. They informed me that I should take it up with the manufactures' one year warranty. [Note: I did try to take it up with the manufacturer, but the manufacturer does not answer the phone either].
At this point I requested a manager, and was put on hold for another 20 minutes, only for them to hang up on me. I immediately called my credit card company to start the dispute process, which I have never done before in my life. The story gets worse from here. Just for the record, there are several unattractive stipulations for the plan I signed up for, which is why I was a little hesitant about returning the unit in the first place. I signed up for a lifetime subscription which states if the unit is lost, stolen, damaged or fails, and the consumer has to obtain a new one, you are subject to a $75.00 reconnection fee. This can only be done 3 times before your account is terminated. Furthermore, I am still waiting for a $50.00 mail-in rebate that is based on the purchase price and serial number of the unit being activated (that I am assuming will never arrive based on their non-existent customer service).
Meanwhile, I was waiting for a response from the credit card company. To compound these problems even further, the unit that was suction cupped to the windshield of my truck (per the manufacturer's written instructions), apparently unsecured itself from my windshield. I found it had unsecured itself when I returned to my truck for lunch one day. It was dangling by its wires, because the required antenna that had snapped internally. This obviously rendered the unit completely useless. I once again attempted to call The Sirius Store, and the manufacturer, with of course, no answer. The reason I invested nearly $700 in this piece of junk was so I can listen to Howard Stern (commercial free as promised).
The commercial-free advertising is deceptive because there ARE commercials.in fact, Sirus' whole advertising campaign is based on this supposed commercial-free radio. I still had the broken radio and wanted to at least listen to it (since I had spent $700 on it). So one day before Howard was to make his commercial-free debut, I ripped open the cradle, cut the wire, soldered and secured the antenna permanently back inside to make it semi-operational again.in addition, I was promised by Sirius to be able to stream Howard on my computer at work, which has turned out to be another lie. Their online streaming system is simply unable to handle the volume of users. I am unable to install an antenna at work because the antenna has to have a clear view of the sky, and unfortunately, my office is obstructed. I would never, in my right mind, buy a boom box from Sirius after having to deal with their customer service, or rather, lack there of. About 2 weeks after I rigged the Sirius radio I received a phone call from my credit card company (Chase Bank). They were very sympathetic with my situation, and offered to attempt a chargeback with Sirius. I explained the antenna situation, and then they told me if I were to send it back in its current condition then I would probably lose the case. This now leaves me out $700 with a rigged up piece of junk with poor reception, and non-existent customer service from a completely mismanaged company. I am embarrassed to say I own stock in this company, and I will have to ride out the stock in order to recoup my losses. Do something to stop this now before another consumer is victimized by this deceitful company!
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