MMC SHOCKER!

[Ron]

I've had my Elise for a month and recently after a short run i noticed steam coming from the rad on to the windscreen. Because i'm new to the car i naturally panicked and took it in to MMC for a checkup even though there was no loss of coolant and no temp rise.

I was in the showroom while they looked at it (saturday before lunch) for about 30 minutes. I came back and they told me that it was a hole in the rad and it would need replacing at a cost of £700! (including labour etc). I booked it in but then decided to get a second opinion so thanks to this forum i found Jude Performance and took it to Dan last weekend.

He did a full test on the rad and he couldn't find a fault with it. He put it down to water pooling on the rad after rain and it steaming off which he told me is a common eliseism.

Now is it just me or is this outrageous behaviour from MMC? I think basically they didn't bother to do a full check because it was saturday before closing for the weekend and they played on my (then) ignorance and tried to nail me for 700 big ones!

I'd appreciate any thoughts on this.

By the way, Dan at Jude Performance was excellent. He did me an A service and a Cam Belt change for £300 and i'll DEFINITELY be going to him for any work from now on and i've recommended him to 2 of my elise owning mates.

If you get good service you'll tell 10 people. If you get bad service you'll tell everyone!

[ryallm]

Unforgivable incompetance from MMC, but sadly this seems fairly typical. Simple solution, adopted by lots of people here - resolve never take your car there again.

Mark

[Victor Meldrew]

When you posted MMC shocker, I actually thought for once some one had recieved good service from MMC for once and was posting in a state of shock at not being ripped off.......


......obviously there still doing what they alway have done. They treat us like ar*****es and expect us to pay for the privilage.

Welcome to the reality of having only one Lotus service agent in Scotland. The only reason to go to MMC is for waranty work. Even then, I would still be tempted to take the car to a dealer in northern England.

Dan is a top bloke. The service is superb.

[renmure]

That is terrible. All my problems with MMC probably fall into the catagory of 'little niggles' which in all honesty I would usually just grin and get on with it. Reading some other peoples experiences is actually a real eye opener. If a small(ish) band of enthusiasts like us are in the position of not being able to recommend the Main Dealer for pretty much anything then its a really poor state of affairs.

I havent been to Jude (yet) but I am glad that Dan is doing well out of this forum. If all you have to do to be popular, respected and trusted is to do the job competently, efficiently and reasonably priced then you would imagine a Main Dealer would at least get the first two right.

Jim

[Gareth]

Steam coming from rad is very common....I panicked the first time I saw it too

[dezzy]

That's strange that they tried to claim it was a fault. That was one of the first things the MMC Glasgow salesman told me when I bought the car. He said it was quite natural and not to panick. It's actually quite amusing looking at other drivers' faces staring at the car.

I'm definitely going to Dan's for my service!

[PhilA]

When you posted MMC shocker, I actually thought for once some one had recieved good service from MMC for once and was posting in a state of shock at not being ripped off.......

snap!!

[renmure]

I think MMC just made an error, there's no way a franchised business that size can afford to be deceitful.
Paul

I am sure that you are right. There is no way a franchised business that size should be making that sort of error tho.

Jim

[Ron]

Appreciate all your comments lads. I was astounded and was seriously thinking about writing a letter to them. BUT, i may need them in an emergency so i'm just gonna stick to dissing them on here and try and divert as much business away from them as possible. I don't like the way the astons and lotuses share the same service area and front desk. They assume we have money to burn.

This is no reflection on Graeme and the guys in the sales department. He seems like a decent bloke and he sold an S1 to my best mate 2 years ago who loves it.

By the way, i've heard of a garage in Falklands that may be going to be a lotus specialist. Does anyone rate them. Sticking with Jude's though. Newcastles a good night out anyway.

[Rich H]

I heat wrapped my 4-2-1 so I get clouds of steam front and rear when it rains overnight... Get quite a few funny looks I can tell you!

I get to the traffic lights at the top of the road, come to a stop, the water runs off the bonnet and into the rad and the steam catches up from behind and I get total white out for a few seconds...!

[Novice Racer]

I think MMC just made an error, there's no way a franchised business that size can afford to be deceitful.
Paul

Eh...

Very trusting Shoomer.......

Many franchised and other businesses, small (Insurance Trading, Eskbank, Midlothian, £11 million fraud) and large (Geron, $multibilliion fruad) have been and will coninue to be decietful for profit or personal gain.

If businesses were as trustworthy as you claim, there would be no need for independant auditors.



NR

[The_Rossatron]

How can you accidentally find a hole in a radiator though?

And the steam on the windscreen problem is an extremely well known TADTS. Graham even told me about it on a test drive.

[Ron]

I know! It's all very suspicious. But i spoke to the engineer/mechanic chap who looked at it and he told me in no uncertain terms that it was unfixable. To think i booked it in with saskia (nice but clueless) at the front desk to get the job done that monday before i had a rethink! When i phoned to cancelled they'd already ordered the rad so i made up some lame excuse why i couldn't come in.

I was so close to being so poor for no reason. Thank god for decent down to earth blokes like Dan at Jude's. Passion over Profit.

[basil]

I think MMC just made an error, there's no way a franchised business that size can afford to be deceitful.
Paul

Well they managed to seize my engine and damage bodywork on my car and denied it

[Titanium S1 111S (gla)]

That is outrages. That a dealer does not know the eccentricities of their cars is simply not acceptable. If they thought that the radiator was leaking they should have pressure tested the cooling system rather than suggest a replacement part which costs £700 and is completely unnecessary. Two unforgivable mistakes – negligence!

Frankly I think that MMC should be reported to trading standards for that one.

Imagine the number of non-technically minded people who are not members of our little community and who get ripped off by that mob.