wildcatter

Hello All,

Just picked up my spankin' new 2005 DSOM Coupe this morning and am having a ball. Quick question: how do I get my reading lamps on the rear view mirror to turn off? They are always on, even after the vehicle is powered off. The switches on the mirrors don't work. The button to the left of the steering wheel that turns the lights on/off below the dash doesn't affect these lights either.

I used the "courtesy" delivery option to get the car delivered to my local dealer (they did not have allocation to sell me an '05). The dealer was extremely rude and refused to show me anything about the car. They just threw me the keys and a stack of manuals. My son and I had the main manual out on our laps trying to figure out how to start the car to drive it home. We have not been able to find anything in the manual about the reading lamps staying on.

Thanks.

VET4LES

Just push them up and they turn off. At night they stay on for a few seconds after you get out and close the door.

Braced

This happened to another guy last week. try this thread:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...12&forum_id=74

Hope it helps.

SB

wildcatter

Thank you Braced! The solution in that thread posted by OttoNP did the trick.

lager99

You must have got it, it's the switch to the left by your leg.

bub

RE: "I used the "courtesy" delivery option to get the car delivered to my local dealer (they did not have allocation to sell me an '05). The dealer was extremely rude and refused to show me anything about the car. They just threw me the keys and a stack of manuals."



This is uncalled for. You just bought a $50k car.

You should report this clown to GM Customer Service.

That should change his tune.

Also, I would suggest taking it to another dealership for service if practical as well.

-CKB

carjon

Turning the courtesy lights off should be in the FAQ. Seems to have replaced the "which suspension / what color" question as #1 these days.

The dealer probably didn't know anything about the car to show you. Had the same experience from the dealer that I actually bought from. No excuse at all. If you don't know anything about a car you shouldn't be allowed to sell it. They do get paid for that delivery by you also.

2bubbas

My first order of business would have been to look in the owners manual but asking the Forum would have been my second choice. Not!

wildcatter

Here as Paul Harvey would say is "the rest of the story":

After waiting nearly 2 months the car naturally came in while I was out of town on vacation. I immediately made plans to return and pick up the car. I spoke via long distance telephone to the fleet manager at the dealership who, as it turns out does the "courtesy" (i.e. "discourtesy") deliveries. He promised to keep the car indoors until I could pick it up. He was very standoffish and abrupt with me. I could tell that things were not going to be pleasant. I went out of my way to try to be courteous and polite with him but he just wouldn't warm up.

I got back on Friday evening, July 1. The manager had refused to let me have the car on Saturday (or Sunday), and the dealership was closed Monday the 4th of July. So I had to sit at home for three days waiting for an opportunity to pick up the car (it had been paid for in cash by wire transfer a week earlier). The manager promised to have the car ready for me on Tuesday the 5th at 9:00 am. I had to take another half a day of vacation.

I got to the dealership at the appointed hour. The car was not ready. Turns out it had actually arrived at the dealership a week earlier. I finally got taken back to the "detail shop" where a small army of guys were frantically washing the car and trying to pick all the gravel out of the tire treads. The only place on that facility where you can find that gravel is the back lot outside where they keep the inventory. Judging by the amount of cleaning going on it appeared to me that the vehicle had been kept outside on the back lot during the torrential rain storms we have had here lately.

I was then informed that there was a (quote) "factory defect" on the front of the car. Something with a footprint about the size of a nickel had been pressed down on the front of the car next to the left front corner of the hood hard enough to leave a ding and slightly twisted the seam between two body parts. The manager said they could "try" to fix it but he didn't recommend it and by this time I wouldn't have wanted their body shop to touch the car with a ten foot pole. It appeared to me that this most likely occurred during shipping, but since the dealer had failed to note the damage with the shipper I had a sneaking suspicion that I was going to get caught in a bout of finger pointing. I could just hear it. The factory would say: "no way would we have released a car with that defect." The shipper would say "I didn't do it --it was like that when I got it." The dealer here says "it was that way when we got it", etc, etc, etc.

Unfortunately things continued to go downhill. He said the car would be ready in "20 minutes". TWO HOURS later me, my wife, my kids, and half the people in the dealership were taking the place apart trying to find my manuals, spare FOB, navigation DVD etc. Somebody finally found them in the bowels of the dealership. Wanting to get on my way I asked the guy if he could just give me a quick once over of the buttons I would need to get started. He rudely refused saying (quote) "This is just a courtesy delivery. I shouldn't be showing you anything. Besides, I have customers waiting." I replied: "what about me? I've been waiting for over two hours?" He said, "well maybe if you come back tomorrow..." I cut him off and informed him that I would NOT be coming back to his dealership and was very sorry that I had used up any of his time.

My twelve year old son and I then got out the manual and started to figure out how to start the car. There were other customers around admiring the car who witnessed this exchange and they guy finally decided he should at least tell me we needed to press the brake pedal down before pushing the button.

We got out of there fast. The low fuel chimes immediately started going off when we got on the road. I located the gas gauge and saw the needle was below the red at zero. We gassed up at the first station we came to about 4 miles down the road after sitting in front of the pump looking like ***** reading our manual to make sure we used to correct fuel, etc.

Needless to say we will be looking elsewhere for service and will NEVER buy a car from that dealership. This was my first experience buying a new GM vehicle. If this is how they treat buyers of their flagship vehicle who are willing to plunk down $60K to buy a vehicle I can readily see why they are doomed as a company.

Our last new vehicle was a Honda Accord. I located it and negotiated the price over the internet from e-Honda and took delivery from our local Honda dealer. We were treated like royalty there. When we take the car in for service they fawn over us like we are rock stars or something. Man, what a difference!

When I got back to work and related my story I was surprised to hear story after similar story of how all my colleagues got abused at that Chevy dealer as well.

Oh, almost forgot. I was quoted a $200 fee for courtesy delivery. Actual cost: $294. I wasn't expecting a lot for $200, but then again, I wasn't expecting to be treated like dirt and get charged 50% more.

And finally... I had previously told the guy I was interested in an extended warranty. He didn't even want to sell it to me. He totally blew that off.

b4i4getit

Wildcatter - What city/town did this incident take place ?

mpuzach

Absolutely inexcusable. I've got to think that G.M. would want to know about this. (But then again, who knows?) Anyway, I hope you tell them of your experience. You may want to also send a letter to the owner of the dealership. I'm very curious to know where this happened.

Jay13

Dealership name so we can all avoid it please.

wildcatter

Service Chevrolet
Lafayette, Louisiana

(I have learned from many people now that their nickname is "No Service" Chevrolet).

mpuzach

Think they have an e-mail address? We ought to flood them with e-mail links to this thread.

wildcatter

Tempting, but probably better not to burn a bridge by ticking them off. They are the largest dealership in the extended area here (how they maintain that status I have no idea) and who knows, I may be forced to go there again some day.

Probably wouldn't do any good anyway. One of my ex-colleauges just informed me that her husband works for one of the larger local businesses here that, after many complaints to the dealership, pulled their fleet business and are going all the way to Baton Rouge for cars and service now.

I honestly think that they just don't care.

mpuzach

All I can say is, you have amazing self control. In your shoes, I'd be looking for ways to hurt their business big time.

carjon

Based on the way that I saw the factory inspect the outside of a Corvette before it leaves the line, there is no way that that damage occured at the factory. The vehicles are inspected again by the factory and Allied together before Allied trucking accepts the vehicle. So either in shipping or at the dealer. Hope you got pictures before you took the car because it sounds as if that dealer will say, the damage wasn't there when they delivered the car.

I also think the cars are shipped with 1/4 tank of fuel so how you had so little??? What was the odometer reading.
I'd complain to Chevrolet, GM and the dealer who sold you the car. Somebody should know and be able to do something.
I'd have to ask for compensation for the blood pressure meds I'd be taking after that delivery.

Michrider

Sons of Bitches.

They get paid by GM to deliver the vehicle - fully prepped, full of gas, and features explained to customer.

Tell them they owe you the PDI payment and gas that you did not receive but they were paid for by GM.

Send your complete story to the GM address in the owner's manual.
And when you get a survey, burn the sons of bitches with an "extremely dissatisfied" in every box.

Those F'n ****** shouldn't be allowed to sell bicycles, let alone the best sports car in america.

wildcatter

Although the damage is slight and is probably not generally noticable to someone not detailing the car, I also find it very hard to believe that the factory released the car that way.

As for the odometer, it had 6 miles on it when I drove the car out of the dealership.

Another Yellow

You should have received a full tank of gas. You paid a courtesy delivery fee and they should have gone over the car operation with you. Best they didn't sell you an extended warranty. Probably would have charged you twice what Ken Fichtner sells them for. Ken has sold many warranty packages to Forum members.

Maybe it's best they didn't put gas in. Most likely they would have used regular.

Frank