Most severe problem with Subarus: Subaru dealerships?

[Gnuman]

OK, I have been on this board for a few months now, and I have noticed a trend that I find disturbing. Aside from the 2.5l head gasket issues, the biggest problem Subaru owners are having is finding a dealership that treats them like a human being. . .

 

Subaru seems to be trying to address the head gasket issues, but it seems that we must take on the dealership issue ourselves, or at least bring it to the attention of Subaru. This poor treatment at the dealership will drive away customers and place the whole company at risk. . . Any ideas on this?

 

(Sorry this is not New Gen Specific, but this is the side of the board I live on. . .)

[mtsmiths]

Gnuman, from the responses on this board, sadly few Subaru dealers CAN be trusted. They seem to run the gamut from incompetent to downright crooked.

 

The dealer in my hometown can't be trusted. I visited one in Maryland while on a trip and they seemed honest, but they were Subaru idiots (actually I think that they were just more interested in their Volvo line).

 

Guess that's why we call them Stealerships. 'Tween them and GM (and the new generation stylists) I don't give the marque long to live ... can you say Edsel, DeSoto, Nash, Hudson, etc., etc., etc.

[swi66]

For quite awhile just after getting warranty work done I would get a call from Subaru America within a few days to see if I was satisfied, and they would ask several questions. Then there was my 94 Subaru which was the Subaru from hell. Kept going back to the dealer again and again for the same problem. I would get the cheerful call to ask if I was satisfied, they were shocked to find that I was not! They had no idea how to respond to a disatisfied customer!

 

And it was an automatic thing from them to call, and they really didn't have a clue. Now I readily admit to being quite beligerant when I am talked down to by a dealer, especially when I knew what the problem was and was getting sick and tired of them second guessing me and trying to band-aid fix the car. Especially when it was a 35 minute drive to the dealer to drop the car off, and they didn't offer loaners, and because I was 35 minutes away I was out of range for their "courtesy shuttle". So it was always 2 cars making the trip to drop off and pick up.

 

For me it tooka threat to make them buy the car back through the lemon law as it was back so many times for the same thing.......which they certainly did not want as the market for a "used" postal legacy was not good. Then I got them to have a trouble shooter come out and meet with myself, the mechanic, and the service manager, and had him confirm MY diagnosis.

And again I received the call to ask if I was satisfied.....................I asked if they ever did anything about any of my "other" gripes about the dealer, and they admitted they had no idea what I was talking about.............

And every time I griped I also griped about the lack of a loaner, or a ride home...........not a thing done..........ever.

 

Currently I have a 98 Legacy.............will most likely be my last as I don't have a local dealer I can trust..........I keep trying to fix my own.

 

swi66

[swi66]

For quite awhile just after getting warranty work done I would get a call from Subaru America within a few days to see if I was satisfied, and they would ask several questions. Then there was my 94 Subaru which was the Subaru from hell. Kept going back to the dealer again and again for the same problem. I would get the cheerful call to ask if I was satisfied, they were shocked to find that I was not! They had no idea how to respond to a disatisfied customer!

 

And it was an automatic thing from them to call, and they really didn't have a clue. Now I readily admit to being quite beligerant when I am talked down to by a dealer, especially when I knew what the problem was and was getting sick and tired of them second guessing me and trying to band-aid fix the car. Especially when it was a 35 minute drive to the dealer to drop the car off, and they didn't offer loaners, and because I was 35 minutes away I was out of range for their "courtesy shuttle". So it was always 2 cars making the trip to drop off and pick up.

 

For me it tooka threat to make them buy the car back through the lemon law as it was back so many times for the same thing.......which they certainly did not want as the market for a "used" postal legacy was not good. Then I got them to have a trouble shooter come out and meet with myself, the mechanic, and the service manager, and had him confirm MY diagnosis.

And again I received the call to ask if I was satisfied.....................I asked if they ever did anything about any of my "other" gripes about the dealer, and they admitted they had no idea what I was talking about.............

And every time I griped I also griped about the lack of a loaner, or a ride home...........not a thing done..........ever.

 

Currently I have a 98 Legacy.............will most likely be my last as I don't have a local dealer I can trust..........I keep trying to fix my own.

 

swi66

[cookie]

dealer with my local BMW dealer. The BMW dealer fixed it the way I wanted and there was not much to fix.

The Subaru dealer has made me whack my forehead enough to make it flat. On the one occasion when I got to talk to the shop manager he and I found a lot to agree on. To be fair I tend to think anyone who agrees with my diagnosis is good.He also agreed with me that the pilot bearing should have been replaced with the clutch.

One more thing to be fair about was that Subaru paid me back for the head gasket job I had done about a year later and well after the end of the original warranty.

It is the phase one owners who have suffered the worst as those cars are old enough that no one covers them.

[felipe01forester]

I don't have any issues with Subaru of Dallas. They seem to be OK to me.

[rmrc51]

From what I've seen at my local dealership, "Brown Toyota Subaru", they take customer satisfaction to an entire new level that I never experienced before. Every customer is greeted by the mechanic that performed what ever work was needed on their vehicle. They go over all symptoms, concerns and future preventative maintenance. As I said,,, so far,,, they seem like they really have their act together! This dealership is located in Charlottesville, VA.

[Gnuman]

From what I've seen at my local dealership, "Brown Toyota Subaru", they take customer satisfaction to an entire new level that I never experienced before. Every customer is greeted by the mechanic that performed what ever work was needed on their vehicle. They go over all symptoms, concerns and future preventative maintenance. As I said,,, so far,,, they seem like they really have their act together! This dealership is located in Charlottesville, VA.

So it seems there is some hope after all. . .

[bajavwnsoobnut]

well the Dealerships around here are resonable and when I take the 04 in for warranty work at Carr they usualy send a letter saying that I will be expecting a questionare from SOA asking how the serviceing went and usualy they get good marks

 

Lithia is good also but I dunno about Wentworth but have heard some good things about them

 

but wongleflute Hannah on the other hand I will stay away from at all costs cause of the stuff my parents went through when they got a 98 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.9 Limited from then and had a treatment package installed (the Jeep went back 4-5 times with scratches in the paint, glass, and various pieces of plastic and one of those times they were appologetic about the detailer puting a scratch in the door and they repainted the entire door) but still uhuh no way am I taking my Imp there at all for anything

 

as for Royal Moore they have had some good complements that I have heard about AND they sponsor alot of Motorsports including RallyCross and also are known for being the most lenient about performance upgrades and such

 

Gresham Subaru/Nissan is one I havn't heard alot about yet but been in there once and they have a SCHWEEET 240Z in their showroom

 

and I do have gripes about some other non subaru dealerships around the area *cough* gresham toyota/1-800-own-a-car *cough* about some issues I had with them that I despise even going pass them at all (that's when they get the 1 finger salute when I pass by them at all)

[Strakes]

I think it has to do with the individual(s) who own the Subaru dealer and their ability to set up an environment that allows workers to enjoy work. Here in Knoxville, TN...Grayson Subaru (which owns BMW, Jeep, and Pontiac dealerships here also) just plain sucks in customer service. Getting work done through them is like pulling teeth. I've been flat out lied to about a particular service bulletin on my 2002 among other things. The turnover is high, because I never seem to meet the same employee again...and then see them working at another dealer. However, 40 miles away in a very small town (Harriman, TN) Earl Duff Subaru has great customer service. It seems that the turnover is low there because, I've seen the same faces for about 6 years.

 

Some manufacturers have more of a controlling interest in their dealerships. For example, Lexus & Infinity. They come down hard on their dealerships if customer service is not up to a certain level. I don't know if Subaru is that way though.

[rweddy]

OK, I have been on this board for a few months now, and I have noticed a trend that I find disturbing. Aside from the 2.5l head gasket issues, the biggest problem Subaru owners are having is finding a dealership that treats them like a human being. . .

 

Subaru seems to be trying to address the head gasket issues, but it seems that we must take on the dealership issue ourselves, or at least bring it to the attention of Subaru. This poor treatment at the dealership will drive away customers and place the whole company at risk. . . Any ideas on this?

 

(Sorry this is not New Gen Specific, but this is the side of the board I live on. . .)

I have found this to be true with almost every manufactures dealership service departments. This is much more the norm than it is normal to have a good dealerships. I have owned subarus, Toyota, nissans, Hondas, etc.

I have said this many times before if you want work done correctly do not go to the dealership.

There are several reason for this.

 

1st

There is too much of a disconnect between the service manager or writer and the mechanics. 90% of the information you give the service writer never gets to the person working on you vehicle. You will find out that most writers know less than you about vehicles and mechanical systems in general. So even if you give them a very good description of the issue, they will either not write it down or have know idea what you are talking about to them and just nod their head like they understand what you are talking about. I have actually gone into a dealership and told the writer what the problem on the vehicle is, and since it was under warranty did not want to do the work myself. After 4 more trips they had still not replaced the part that was causing the issue, but they had replaced $4000 worth of other parts. So I complained got the part for free from the parts department and did the work myself to fix the issue.

 

2nd

The dealership training programs and the type of work most mechanics is dealerships do trains them to be parts swappers. When you bring a vehicle in for work and it is under warranty they only get 50% the hourly rate they would be getting for non-warranty work. So instead of taking the time to trouble shoot issues it is cheaper for them to just throw parts at it since parts are covered by the manufacture.

 

3rd

The dealerships are used to seeing mostly newer vehicles because most consumers will not spend the $$$ after warrantee to take it to the dealership. So as soon as a vehicle is few years old they see less and less of them so their experience with older vehicles is limited in comparison to a independent specialty shop.

 

I have found very few dealerships that I would trust to fix a issue or even do work on my cars. If I do not do the work myself then I will go to an independent specialty shop that works on my make of vehicle. This is why I call them stealerships!!!

[bajavwnsoobnut]

well there are a few of those around here too but the ones that I have pointed out are pretty knowledgeable and in fact Lithia has the old books still from 72 on up to today for FSM and Parts! and alot of the guys there have been working at that dealership (under different owners/management) since 1978 or so! so it is interesting talking to some of those guys cause they are cool and knowledgeable about even the Gen 1 vehichles like mine

[Gnuman]

Some manufacturers have more of a controlling interest in their dealerships. For example, Lexus & Infinity. They come down hard on their dealerships if customer service is not up to a certain level. I don't know if Subaru is that way though.

From what I have read here, perhaps they should be. . .

I would like for Subaru to go from being an "also ran" which is where they seem to be sitting now, to being one of the major players in the field. They have great cars, and most of the owners of these cars become fanatics of the line (myself included) as a result. It seems that a number of poor dealerships is the only thing holding them back. . .

[bajavwnsoobnut]

well might suggest to people to call that # and/or write to that address and complain if they think there are issues with the dealership

 

the stuff I am mentioning is in another thread hold on and I will dig it up

[bajavwnsoobnut]

ok I got this a few days ago from the Subaru Website:

 

Customer Service: 1-800-SUBARU3

Eastern Hours: 8:30 - 5:00 Monday-Thursday, 10:30 - 5:00 Friday

Central Hours: 8:30 - 5:00 Monday-Thursday, 9:30 - 4:00 Friday

Mountain Hours: 7:30 - 4:00 Monday-Thursday, 8:30 - 3:00 Friday

Pacific Hours: 7:30 - 4:00 Monday-Thursday, 7:30 - 2:00 Friday

Written correspondence can be sent to:

Subaru of America, Inc.

Subaru Plaza

P.O. Box 6000

Cherry Hill, NJ 08034-6000

Attn: Customer/Dealer Services

[Ranger83]

We have purchased two Subarus from Wakefield [MA] Subaru. Their service department is the best dealer service department I've dealt with, of any brand.

 

IRA Subaru, a few miles away, by contrast has a reputation for pushing parts. And Car Mart Subaru in Wilmington MA is probably on a first-name basis with the Attorney General's office.

 

Salespeople are a different matter. We're buying a Subaru wagon for our NH office and I took a Legacy wagon for a test drive at Manchester Subaru. I had a good enough price form them and planned to buy that day.

 

Q. What is the ground clearance of the Legacy.

A. Don't know. (No one at dealership knew - it's 5.9")

 

Q. How do you lower the seat?

A. This seat isn't adjustable for height (it is).

 

Q. Is a limited slip rear differential available on the Legacy?

A. They all have it. (Only available on Outback).

 

Q. What kind of mileage do they get?

A. "15 to 30 mpg."

 

Q. How long have you worked here?

A. "Eight months."

 

This is when I turned the car around, drove back to the dealer, and left.

Subaru has two product families with three engine configurations. Just how hard can this be to learn?

[Commuter]

I'll throw in a good word for my dealer, Subaru of Mississauga in Ontario Canada. It has helped some that I actually know the Service Manager, (even before I got the car), but I really haven't had to go to him very much at all.

 

They know how I like to take care of my car. They haven't given me any grief when I wanted them to put on stainless steel braided brake lines, or a Whitleline sway bar, or a light weight crank pulley, etc. The service writers (one in particular) are quite knowledgeable and I feel they capture what I tell them. They even rotate the tires in the pattern I ask for. I usually get some discount on parts, even labour.

 

They treated me exceptionally well a few years ago when I went thru my head gasket issue and conrod bearing failure. I feel I'm still in their debt for that one.

 

I've heard complaints about them, and other dealers in the area. You are never going to satisfy everyone. I do agree that in general, the dealers need to improve customer relations. And this is not just for Subaru.

 

Commuter (97 OB, 425,000 km)

[Lesbaru]

Williams Subaru/Williams Auto World in Lansing MI was always good to my Legacy and my gf's Forester. John the service manager would take time to explain (which I always appreciate) and would bring me back to the work area and point out things. He called us a couple times to check on repairs and make sure the cars were doing ok, and was especially kind after they repaired a mess a bad indie made of my hub. I thought they were expensive, but they were cheaper than a certain dealer in Seattle/Shoreline... (my son proudly informed me that he and his grandparents made farting noises as they drove their Impreza by that dealership last week.)

 

Williams Subaru is pretty small. Maybe it's a size problem; maybe bigger dealerships lose the personal sense and start to treat customers like resources. I've seen that in different clinics I've worked in. Larger clinics tend to milk patients for money, while smaller ones tend to want to heal people.

[Gnuman]

Williams Subaru/Williams Auto World in Lansing MI was always good to my Legacy and my gf's Forester. John the service manager would take time to explain (which I always appreciate) and would bring me back to the work area and point out things. He called us a couple times to check on repairs and make sure the cars were doing ok, and was especially kind after they repaired a mess a bad indie made of my hub. I thought they were expensive, but they were cheaper than a certain dealer in Seattle/Shoreline... (my son proudly informed me that he and his grandparents made farting noises as they drove their Impreza by that dealership last week.)

 

Williams Subaru is pretty small. Maybe it's a size problem; maybe bigger dealerships lose the personal sense and start to treat customers like resources. I've seen that in different clinics I've worked in. Larger clinics tend to milk patients for money, while smaller ones tend to want to heal people.

Lesbaru, I'm glad you found a dealership that you could work with. That last story you mentioned (the spark plugs issue) upset me no end. I used to be a Service Manager (at a bicycle shop), and I understand the importance of good customer relations, and I hate to see people acting on predijuice(sp) when taking diagnostic information. . .

[WoodsWagon]

Ditto for Ranger83's remark on uneducated salesmen. Subaru of Milford, NH, had a salesman last time I went there whou didn't know jack sht about the cars he was selling. He even admited that he was 2 mo's from a ford dealership. Kinda sad that subaru dealerships would be hiring ford castoff salesguy's. He seemed desperate for a sale, and wasted all the enthusiasm I had built up in the customer by not bothering to give reasons to buy the car, just that this is the car you want. Why do I want it? ah, susch and such review said so and so. Who cares?

 

Their service department is clueless too. My aunt had a problem with her 98 impreza sport. The brake idiot light kept coming on, so she would take it to the dealer. They would check everything, call it fixed and charge her for the service. A week later, the light would come back on. She repeated the process three times befor coming to me. The brakes were rock solid, no leaks, but the light was being tripped by low fluid. checked the booster vaccum line...wet. Seems the last seal on the master cyllllinder leaks. I told her not to worry, just keep pouring fluid in. Told her the kind of fluid, where and how much, and she now does the same service the dealer was for a few bucks. I told her to have the master cylinder replaced when she gets the chance. sad that a 16yr old can out diagnose a trained subaru technition in a parking lot. for free too. The new subarus just keep getting uglier too. I think the brand is doomed.