Post #302536 by VampiressRN on Sat, Apr 28, 2007 3:30 PM

I truly appreciate quality customer service and abore bad customer service.

Sorry for this long post, bu I have to rant today about the service that women sometimes get at car repair locations. First a brief history...when I was a kid, I helped my Dad with all the car and home repairs, he loved teaching me about tools, materials, and the correct way to determine why something was broken and how best to fix it (RIP Dad). Therefore, I have always had a comfortable knowledge about cars, not an expert, but I can describe symptoms of problems without having to say such rediculous thigs as "that thingababob made a whitzydoodle noise and then it...." My complaint in general is that women are sometimes treated like second class dimwits when seeking car repair. Fortunately I am not intimidated by the service managers and can usually get what I need to have done, but it still irks me.

Today, the service manager at my car dealership was an arse!!! He wasn't rude....he just had that "I'm a man that knows about cars and you are a woman that knows nothing" attitude. That is not a good attitude to take with me at a car shop...because #1...I am usually right, and #2...if I am right and you are wrong, then your will be eating crow over and over again cause I will be back every 3 or 4 thousand miles!!!

I went in today for the usual maintenance and also to have my windshield replaced. My windshield had previously been broken and replaced, by a vendor that comes to the dealership for work, so they arranged for the same company to replace my windshield again today. The last time I had car maintenance, when I left I noticed a strange crack in the lower part of my windshield. I called the dealer after I got home and said that this had happened at the delearship, but I was on my way to an appointment and wasn't able to turn around and go right back when I noticed the break. Anyway it was a wierd break at the base of the glass on the passenger side and was curved like a very large horseshoe. When the car dealer service manager checked me in today he carefully looked over my car and said "well I found a chip in the lower glass so it would have probably been a rock." "I said it was not from a rock, and had described the break to the dealership over the phone and someone had said it sounded like a stress fracture, so maybe that was what it was or else someone had laid a tool on the windshield to cause it to break like that." He immediately said "Oh noooooo, it's NOT a stress fracture, I haven't seen one of those since the 80's, they don't happen anymore." I replied that I was just telling him what the other guy told him based on the circumstances. He remained very smug...I signed my papers, went to the waiting room and did a project for work while I waited. The girl that supports the service department is a real sweety-pie and always so nice and had arranged for the windshield company to come. After about an hour, she came over and told me "the windshield guy is here and says that is a stress fracture and he will get someone to help him lift the new glass on so it is better supported this time and there will be no charge." JUBILEEEEEEE

I so wanted to give the service manager a lecture about treating women like idiots, but think he realized he had made an arse out of himself. When my car was done, he said, "your car is ready, sorry it took so long." I replied "no problem, thanks" and went to the checkout. JERK!!!

Now in all my "I told you so" revelry inside my own mind, I thought to myself....hope a rock doesn't hit my windshield anytime soon.

The RAVE part of this, is that I heard my usual service manager (who left for a short time) is back at the dealership and I will be sure to hook up with him for my next service as he is kind, courteous, and respectful.