Dash Rendar Posted February 3, 2009 Author Share Posted February 3, 2009 Well, there's the update... I didn't get a call back on Monday morning as promised, so I chased on Monday afternoon. The guy I spoke to told me they didn't get back to me due to all the snow and stuff... Fair enough, I suppose. He told me he had communicated my issues to the workshop, "as he saw them". (Which basically means, I think, that he told them I complained of a crack that he is adamant wasn't there when it left Toyota.) He said the workshop were "not interested." But then he followed up by saying they would repair the damage anyway, as a gesture of good faith. So I can take my car in once the weather has cleared up, and they'll sort it out. So, all's well that ends well, I guess. It could have gone worse... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Class One Posted February 3, 2009 Share Posted February 3, 2009 Make sure you inspect it thoroughly before driving it away this time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted February 14, 2009 Author Share Posted February 14, 2009 Well, it's back at Toyota Octagon for the next few days. I can't help but think something else will be a-miss when I get it back. I'll certainly try to inspect it thoroughly, but last time it was filthy, so it was hard to spot anything! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted February 20, 2009 Author Share Posted February 20, 2009 Got the car back today. The crack has been repaired, and they've sprayed just that particular area. The spray job isn't very good... It actually looks a bit grey (rather than black) and blotchy. But at least the car is back and I don't have to take it there again. A lesson learned, I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 As stated above, I'd recommend anyone wanting any bodywork done to avoid Toyota Octagon in Binfield at all costs. When I picked up the car for the second time last week, I could tell it wasn't a brilliant job, but it also didn't look that bad, and I was so fed up of them that I just wanted to get away. But now I've inspected the car in sunlight and artificial light, I can see that the work is horrendous. The entire nosecone is completely covered in scratches. These didn't show when I picked the car up. They're the kind of surface scratches you might expect if you rubbed hard using a sponge dipped in filthy, muddy water for about 10 minutes. I'm hoping some severe polishing with a strong abrasive polish might remove this damage. Also, the paint blending is awful. In the artificial light, you can clearly see where they've been respraying part of the nose cone. And finally, there are now several micro-cracks where the nose cone meets up against headlights on both sides, which implies they had some difficulty putting it back on. I should take it back a third time and get it rectified, but the thing that really puts me off is the body shop guy named Steve, who was unfriendly, unhelpful, uncommunicative, and borderline rude, right from the start. (And he was like this even when I turned up as a customer for the first time, with work to be paid for by the third party insurerer.) In addition, when I picked up the car, a couple of the chavvy body work lads wandered over and starting saying crap like, "I don't like Japanese cars. Audis and Volkswagens are real cars. You should get one of them!" Bear in mind, I've never met these people before, and I'm a customer having my car fixed by them. How unprofessional is it for their body work chavs to come over and express their opinions in this way? And furthermore, if they dislike Japanese cars so much, why are they working for Toyota? Another more senior body work guy started a conversation with me while I was waiting for the guys to polish out the scratches, and then walked off mid-conversation, when it became apparent he was bored! That was just blatantly rude. So, to conclude, I don't want to take it back, and I will be paying another garage to do the job properly, when I can afford it. It's a shame, as I've now been put off Toyota in general. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SupraStar 3000 Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 What a nightmare mate I no longer use toyota garages for the same reason. They seem to employ chav's and dont care about customer relations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Rendar Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 I had thought that they might put some effort into ensuring I was satisfied, given that the same garage once completely wrote-off Sharpie's car, and they well-know that we do communicate our experiences to a large body of people. There were some very nice people that I spoke to at Toyota, but I fear they are only the 'front-line'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fearless Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 What a nightmare, I was in my local Mr T picking up some parts and a customer was questioning their bill. Apparently had brought the car in for an MOT and told them to carry out any work needed to pass MOT. Well they had 1 item on the bill they were not happy with: £37 to make good wing mirror and what did that involve: a strip of sticky tape for £37 ! Yes good old Toyota but to be fair I am sure they are no worse than any main dealer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul mac Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 sorry to here this mate, my local Toyota garage are always dead helpfull, they are 25 miles away and have even delivered spares to my house, they always stop and chat about the car, sad to say your experience is probably more the norm than mine, i would seriously send an email to the top banana at the dealer and maybe copy Mr T (UK) aswell, it probably wont go anywhere but the management may genuinly not know what goes on in the workshops and if they get enough complaints they will have to act Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colsoop Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 Take it back ! Ask for the manager of the dealership and explain that you want it sorted out properly. Don't take bad workmanship ! If this fails to get a response politely explain that you will be writingto Toyota uk head office and will also be taking legal advice. write down all the details you have posted here (stick to facts) and then send said letter to Toyota uk. Take pictures to support your claim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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