Two Hyundai’s sit in the driveway; a 2005 and a 2008. Both cars are reasonably reliable and reasonably economical. They get us from Point a to Point B in relative comfort.
The problem with Hyundai – and Ford and Chevy and Toyota and … every brand you can name – is with service.
Never mind that the current batch of vehicles make it almost impossible for the vehicle’s owner to do anything. To change a headlight in the Hyundais the battery has to come out. That’s still better than a pre-Ford British Jaguar that required the entire front grill assembly to be removed, but a long way from the simplicity of a 60s-era Ford.
Since I can’t do more than change a bulb - I can remove the battery to access the bulb – I have to depend on “trained” mechanics to do the work. The only question is: For what were the mechanics trained and why don’t they check their work?
Cases – plural – in point.
Ford: I once owned a Ford Diesel. Good car; 40-plus mpg when I was traveling 120 miles-a-day. For its first oil change I took the car to a dealer. The service guy drained the oil and put in 4 quarts of oil and a new oil filter.
Trouble was, the Diesel required 5 ½ quarts of oil and TWO oil filters.
Later, the starter hung up. I pulled into a Ford dealership (a different one) and watched several service people chat while ignoring me and my coughing car. Finally someone came out and told me to raise the hood so the battery could be disconnected. The batter, a monster to crank the Diesel, was housed in the trunk.
Jump ahead to the Hyundais.
The 2005 needed a 4-wheel alignment. Took it to a Rick Case Hyundai service department. The service people aligned the wheels and then told us that the car needed new shocks – excuse me, struts. So what’s wrong with this picture? After new struts are installed, the wheels have to be aligned. To its credit, the Rick Case dealership refunded what we paid for the alignment. The car then went to an independent shop for both struts and alignment.
The 2008 had a recall on an assembly related to the brake lights. Took the car into a different Rick Case Hyundai shop for the work. The car had been working fine; I check the brake lights every morning as I back out of the driveway.(Lights reflect off the across-the-street neighbor’s cars.)
The Rick Case service tech did the job and returned the car to me. I left knowing my vehicle was now better than before.
The next morning I tried to start the car. No battery. Got a jump and returned to the dealer’s shop. “Since you “fixed” the car, it won’t start,” I complained. “Maybe there’s a loose wire or something.” The service consultant assured me a mechanic checked the work and it was OK. The battery, however, needed to be replaced. Never mind, the service consultant said, that the battery showed a 12.61V charge.
OK. The battery was 61 months old. The battery in the 2005 lasted 7-plus years, but maybe Korean batteries from 2004 were made better than those from 2007. I went off on Memorial Day and bought a new battery. The car was parked in the driveway.
That afternoon the Spouse returned from visiting friends and saw the 2008’s brake lights illuminated. She though t I must be in the car. No, the car was empty and the ignition was off.
NOW we knew what was dragging the battery down; brake lights that stayed on.
Next morning the battery again was depleted so I got out the cables and jumped it using the 2005’s battery. Then I made a bee-line for the Risk Case dealership where the car had been “fixed.”
In the end, it took me three trips to the dealership to get a relatively simple procedure correctly performed.
All this could have been avoided if the original mechanic – I guess they are “technicians” now thanks to all the electronics – had done some quality assurance on the work and if the service consultant (service writer) had done any quality control.
Rick Case’s service staff FINALLY got it right and I’m supposed to get a check as a refund for the battery I should not have had to buy.
Maybe it’s not just QA/QC that’s missing. Maybe its caring about the job that’s missing.
This “who cares” attitude permeates almost all industry. Read a newspaper (if you can find one) or listen as tv “news” people read the news; the “journalists’” command of the language is enough to shame a junior high English teacher or even a junior high student who appreciates the language. Management’s laissez-faire attitude must infect the rank and file; “If the boss doesn’t care, why should I?”
I don’t know if I’ll ever take the Hyundais back to a Rick Case dealership; there are a number of other Hyundai dealers within easy travel distances. The question is: Are the other dealers’ service departments any better?
By the way, according to the Service Manager, the cause of all the car’s battery problems was a faulty part installed as part of the recall. But the agony and cost to Risk Case, and Hyundai Motor America, for “technician” time – the job was billed at $100/hour! – could easily have been avoided if someone, anyone, had taken a moment to make sure the end result of the part and the installation process left the vehicle in better condition than when it arrived. In this case, the “fix” was worse than the possible problem.
For want of a nail . . .
