I just picked up my car from Art Carr transmission for the second time, and you guys won't believe this. I walked up to my car and did a quick inspection of the entire car and noticed that the front spoiler was completely scraped up. I was so mad, because I told them that the car was really really low and when you test drive PLEASE be very careful of the front lip. The sales guy told me no problem, we drive lowered vettes all the time and we'll make sure it doesn't scrape. This is how it used to look and you can see how low it is:


I can't even look at it now, it is messed up big time. The paint is mostly scraped off and the the clear coat is all cracked. When I confronted them about the spoiler, the saleperson told me that he didn't know who test drove the car. So he went in the back and asked who drove the car, when he came back he told me so BS and said the person that drove your car went home already. I will ask him Monday. I said don't bother, give me my F-king keys and I will see you guys in court.

I then drove straight to the city courts and filed a suit against them for the damages done on the spoiler and the towing bills. I throughly read over the warranty paper and on there it doesn't state anything about towing not being cover by warranty, so I think I have a pretty solid case.

To make matters worse. On my way home I noticed the transmission is lagging big time shifting into OD, it doesn't seem to want to shift into OD at all?! the shift up light would come on and it doesn't shift up? When I reach speed above 80mph then it shifts! So I called them back and told them that I am coming back right now and you guys better fix this problem FAST, the sales person told me that everyone had gone home for the weekend, so I would have to come back monday (I live 80 miles from Art Carr) On top of that, I did a WOT run in 3rd gear and this Bit*h would not shift into OD under WOT. :mad

I have to say that this is the ABSOULTE WORST experience I have ever had dealing with anyone in my entire life. It has been a complete nightmare, I still cannot believe this is happening, I take SO MUCH pride and joy in my steel blue and these guys just act like it is no big deal, and cannot even build a transmission that just runs, forget about racing, it doesn't even work right!

Aside from all these problems, I will say this: the transmission shifts VERY HARD! It pounds me in the seat evertime I gun it, but I just wished I didn't have to keep going back and making things right.

 

Paul, this totally sucks the way things are going for you.:mad It sucks even more since you are a friend and not just someone that I am reading about there experiences.

I think I told you that I used to be a paralegal, so if you need any help preparing things for court just let me know.

 

I feel your pain. I spent tons of $$$ on a new 3.73 rear, which took almost a month to complete :nonod: . Then when I picked it up, it felt really weird. By the time I got home, I lost 2nd and 3rd gear. The bastards blew my trans and had the ***** to charge me the $200 to tow it back 50 mi's. Well 3 weeks later they said that the trans was done. Picked it up, and it wouldn't downshift. wth Well it was Saturday before closing, so they said you can leave it and they'll take a look, but I wouldn't be able to pick it up for another week. After 2 mo's without it I just took it home. I did fix it and now runs perfect...but now the rear's leaking. Can't wait for the run around on this one.

Now on to yours. That's an awsome car, you can certainly tell that you put your heart into it. Get the spoiler re-painted, and take the trans to a "reputable" mechanic. I know the feeling when the Vetts not 100%...it eats at you. Bring the recipts to court and make them pay!!!
Good Luck :flag

 

Chill.. It is just a car!!! Yes it looks great, and I am sure you will be able to make it look as good if not better.

It kills me when people talk of their vettes as their babies. I have 2 kids, 1 Vette. No comparison. RELAX!!!!! It can and will be fixed!

 

Chill??? Whats going on is total :bs.



[Modified by OrangeC4, 6:06 AM 7/14/2002]

 

Sorry to read about your problem Zee :nonod: Have had terrible problems with AAmco transmissions here in Floirda. :mad Sounds like they all went to the same transmission shop training course. :D

From the post it appears you just picked up the car and found the problems. You're justified in being ticked off, but...Unless there are MAJOR differences in the civil court systems in California as compared to Florida, here are a few things you're going to have to do.

First thing to do is Chill out a bit, be cool :cool: It's easier tho think straight when you're in control...trust me on this one :cheers:

1) Give them an opportunity to correct the problem to your satisfaction.
2) Be reasonable about the time frame. They should give the problem their immediate attention, but if you call back at or after "official" closing time, they are not going to be able to do anything about it until Monday (unless open on Sat/Sun). Monday 1st AM they should be on it!
3) Talk with them about the tow bill. In an effort to promote good public relations, :smash: they should at least offer to split the bill with you. Of course, if you were already home or nearly there when the thing took a dump :U , it would be reasonable to assume that you had no other way to get the car to them other than tow it. At their expense! Most of these companies have tow companies on contract to provide p/u services for their clients.
If they are unreasonable abouth the matter, go ahead and have them served and start the ball rolling :boxing .
4) Do some background on the company (the one you are dealing with and not the parent company). See if they have a history of customer complaints or civil suits. Did they win/lose? What was the nature of the complaint, etc. BBB? How were complaints resolved?
5) Also, if there is a parent company outside the local group you are dealing with, Go to the top
:reddevil
Politely and professionally, make sure that they have facts, and understand what options you are considering. (Don't give up your cards, but a savvy corp. head will understand the postion he/they are in).
In most cases, top reps and legal types realize, P.R. aside, it's usually cheaper to make these kind of things go away than it is to defend them
-Duh...
Get all your facts and figures together, read through the contract and/or warranty carefully for exceptions and exclusions, then if not totally satisfied with the outcome...head for court.
:D
Cool, collected and prepared...You are the victim.' If you get a jury trial, juries are generally sympathetic toward the plaintiff in matters like this. Usually becase they or someone they know have had similar problems or they have a general distrust for this type of business.

I don't mean to sound overbearing or demeaning in my post, but I'm an investigator and deal with these kind of things all the time. Just telling you how I woulkd proceed if I were doing plaintiff's side or try to blow you out of the water if working for the defense :)

By the way, while you're doing backgrounds, do criminal and civil backgrounds on the boss and any employees that had anything to do with the car. Felonies, especially those of moral turpitude (theft, fraud, burglary, etc) can be usually be used to discredit/impeach a statement or individual.
If the guys got a criminal past, not gonna help him in court (if you can find a way to get it in) :rolleyes:
You might also want to check the drivers record of the guy(s) that drove your car. If their driving records are particularly bad or have recklless driving convictions, etc., mioght go to prove that the company allowed "unqualified personnel" to operate your vehicle.
Hope some of this helps your cause. Take the paralegals help. A good one is great to find and be a big help in preping the case for court. :yesnod:
If you need anything from me just send me an e-mail.
I about to go after AAmco for a similar problem with my sons Grand National.

Happy hunting and best of luck :cheers:

"Whenever possible, "victory" should be achieved through diplomatic coercion" (Sun-Tzu-The Art of War)
:flag


[Modified by STREETKNIGHT, 1:03 AM 7/14/2002]

 

Sorry to hear what happened. The car looks great. Get it repainted, fixed and hand them the bill. That's :bs

 

LoL don't Chill. I believe the word here is not "Chill"....................it's "KILL"!!!!!!!! S*** I'd be pullin a Charles Manson on their azz if they didn't do anything to compensate me for that. :yesnod: :mad

 

I agree that you must have your priorities and my family will always come first but my vette is not just a car! Maybe to some people but not me. It is a lifelong dream come true. I worked hard to get it and would be pissed if someone screwed it up. Even if they pay for the screwup it does not make up for the inconvienience. You need to talk to the person in charge and tell them what you want. If they don't agree then take legal action. First you must give them a chance to correct the problems. Good Luck, Guy

 

Yeah, sure you would. :rolleyes: Because of a car, you would kill someone?
You should seek professional help if this is how you really feel, as opposed to maybe just trying to impress everyone here with your machismo.

I agree with the people who say chill. A good example is found on the Stangnet.com forum. A guy bought a new Cobra and found that it pulled to the right. When the service people from the dealership couldn't fix it, the folks at SVT got involved. When they couldn't even fix it, a deal was finally reached with Ford to where he received a brand new Cobra! This took weeks and the guy kept his cool throughout the whole process, even when the dealership said they weren't going to honor their 3 day, 150 mile return policy. Although he did get a lawyer involved, there was never any screaming , yelling or death threats.

I have a friend who's dad fought on the Russian front in World War 2. His dad said that the guys who bragged about how they couldn't wait for battle to start were always the first to turn chicken and run for the hills once things started up. Don't listen to the supposed tough guys, Zelement. I doubt they'd really do the things they threaten, and if they did, they'd be in jail or prison. Deal with Art Carr in a mature, calm manner and if they don't come through, get legal representation. I'm sure things will work out.


[Modified by Ozman, 9:09 AM 7/14/2002]

 

I agree, this is B.S. However, how you keep from scraping your own spoiler is beyond me. No matter how careful I am, I seem to scrape mine three or four times a day. Yes, I have come to learn the nuances of diagonally driving up a driveway, etc. Yet it seems like no matter how hard I try, I scrape my own spoiler every time I drive it. That's why I couldn't even own a painted spoiler personally, not that what the transmission guys did was proper.

 

My .02.
I use a dealer for transmission repairs. Ford for Ford, GM for GM.
Dealers can screw up a car too, but they're not going anywhere and there are alternatives if they do. GM has a zone reps if the dealer can't slove the problem or wont you can contact a zone rep.

Art Carr has been in business for a long time, mistakes can happen.
I would talk to the owner of the business personally and I'm sure he'll make it good.

I send out 3-4 cars a week for repairs and use only people whos work I know is good. Some shops are right outa Steven King's novels.
Transmisson shops are 50/50 ya never know.
Good luck with your car. Its really nice and the Fiske wheels rip.

 

First off I think STREETKNIGHT gives some good advice.

I myself wouldn't chill, but I wouldn't make a scene either.

Document everything and handle it professionally.

I've been fortunate enough where any car I've had to take to someone(even an Aamco in Tampa), and have never had a problem.

The only thing close to being a problem was when I brought my truck in for warranty work and they tried to charge me for it.

 

Replies like this are uncalled for.
You've been a memebr for almost two years and you only have 16 posts? Maybe if you didn't lurk so much and responded more often, people wouldn't be as upset by your comment.

Many of us here have more than one car, but that doesn't make any of them less special than the others. I have 4 cars and I treat them all the same, and I hate when anything happens to them.

I agree that a Corvette is only a car, but remember the majority of us here on the forum are car guys, Corvette fanatics in particular, that's why we're here.

So I'm going to tell you to "Chill Out"

 

Not to start any arguments or get off the subject, but I agree with Mr Mojo on this. Here's how I see it.

Family Problems & Car Problems = Solve Family Problems
Family's Fine & Car Problems = Solve Car Problems

I don't think anyone is dumb enough to put their car ahead of their family, but that doesn't mean that he should ignore what happened. I'm sure "zelement" paid about $1500 for that trans. If Art Carr refuses to do anything, its gonna cost another $1500 to fix the trans and paint the spoiler. Now your up to $3000. I don't know about you but I could do a lot with that kinda $$$

There's a fine line between having a Corvette and taking Pride in your Corvette. I guess 99% of the Forum takes Pride in theirs. (Theirs always one)
Good Luck zelement! :flag

 

paul, like the others have said just be mature about this and don't rush it either. do give the guys at art carr a chance to set things straight and if they can't in a time frame you feel is adequate well then go through with the legal pleadings.

also for the person who used the little quote from the art of war? that quote is so true it always works.

paul read that quote and figure out how you're going to convince the art carr guys to fix your car, just push morales out there way to make them feel guilty about what they've done and what they've put you through. use things like time is money to you and they've wasted both your time and money. its a good tactic to use in these situations. i had to do such a thing when i got my vette.

take care and good luck

 

Thanks for all the support and replies. I have been dealing with this situation in a very mature matter, and it has not gotten me any results. That doesn't mean that I am going to storm in and threaten their lives or business.

I have asked them to pay for the tow bill and they have denied me at least three times. That is why I am not even going to ask them to pay for the spoiler, because I know they will deny that also. That is why I have decided to do all of this in court and have the judge be the person to decide.

By the way, there is no jury in california for small claims.

My two vettes are very very important to me, if one tihing is not right, I can't even sleep at night. Call me a fanatic if you wil but that is just the kind of person that I am. I don't have kids and I am kinda young to have them but I do understand the important of my family and the vettes would not even be considered when it's between my family and vettes.

I did pay good money for their tranny, it was $2600 installed with their 3000 converter. I will say this, the converter is awesome, way better than the B&M I used to have. Plus, $550 in tow bills and the damage on the spoiler. However, I feel that since the transmission is under warranty I cannot sue them for that because they never denied responsibility to fix the tranny, they will fix it for free, it is just going to be a hassle. Therefore, I am suing them for the tow bill and the spoiler, which I believe I am 100% entitled to.

BTW: I never scrape my spoiler, I am so used to driving lowered cars, I used to have an RX-7 that was about 2" lower, it doesn't bother me one bit, it has become second nature to me. The car is actually higher now with coilvers, then before when it was lowered with 12" bolts. It really amazes me when people do scrape everywhere with their vette's not even lowered or just lowered 1-2".

 

Do you have pic of the damage??

Sorry to hear about your troubles

 

The judge will probably ask you if you gave him a chance to make it right. I would send him or have a lawyer send him a certified letter telling him what you want and give him a week to respond. If he says "no" take him to court. That way you can tell the judge you gave him an opportunity. Good Luck, Guy

 

Sorry to hear that your steel blue is being treated like poopie. That is one impressive vette you got there. I wouldnt be surprised if the guy who drove it had no clue what he was doing. I had a lowered 90 Accord (no rice jokes please) and the manager from a local tire store nailed a man hole cover while bringing it back to me (got new tires). He split my tranny case in 2. The tire store did buy me a new tranny and the dealership I worked at did the work, but that just goes to show you that some people just dont care when it comes to other people's belongings. Sounds like you've gotten some good suggestions. Looks like it is time to even things up.