I want to see if anyone else has encountered anything like this. On Feb. 12, 1999, I bought a 1999 Corvette convertable. Since then I've made 21 trips to two different dealerships. Work is still done incorrectly to fix a flaw from the factory. My car was joy driven at a dealership leaving behind a broken seat belt, jammed cd player, and a
BEER CAN!!!!!!!!! I had work that was suppose to be done by another dealership, they said they did the work, but they did not install the new part the was ordered, but did there best to scam me by charging me for a part that they didn't put on.

GM's REPLY, WE AREN'T RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT OUR DEALERSHIPS DO. As long as the GM name is on the front door, I say they are.

Below is my list of troubles so far....


2/12/99
· Bought 1999 Corvette convertible from Bobby Layman Chevrolet.


2/13/99
· I was contacted by Bobby Layman Chevrolet because they wrote the wrong VIN number on the paper work. I had to go back and resign the papers.

2/15/99
· I was contacted by Bobby Layman Chevrolet again, because they got the right VIN number on the paper work, but wrote the wrong mileage for the term of the lease. I had to go back and resign the papers.


2/18/99
· I was contacted by Bobby Layman Chevrolet yet again, because the extra two transmitters that were in the car they needed back after they told me three days ago that I could keep them. I discovered the flaw in the paint and took the car and the transmitter back again.

2/25/99
· Went back to Bobby Layman Chevrolet to have door flaw fixed

7/6/99
· Went back to Bobby Layman Chevrolet to show that repairs made on 2/25 had flaked off
· I was told I had to talk to someone that wasn't working in the sales department because it was a new car problem. I told them it wasn't my problem, I was the customer and I really don't care which department pays for it.
· The guy wasn't working so I had to call him.
· Much to my surprise, he asked me to come back in and tell the body shop that new cars would pay for it.

7/13/99
· Had Byers Chevrolet replace the windshield and seal because I was hit by a piece of flying debris on the interstate.

8/6/99
· Went back.again to Bobby Layman Chevrolet show body shop and they scheduled me to be painted.

8/12/99
· Went back(again) to Bobby Layman Chevrolet to have door flaw fixed
· While it was there I wanted the climate control display checked and passenger front tire balanced
· Got rental car and was told to come back after 5pm to pick it up.
· Showed up at 6:30pm and was told car had to stay overnight but would be ready by 5pm.

8/13/99
· Arrived at 5:00 PM to pick up car from Bobby Layman Chevrolet. They said car wasn't done and it was locked in the shop and had to stay over the weekend.

8/16/99
· Arrived at 5pm to pick up car again from Bobby Layman Chevrolet. The job done was awful. The paint was orange pealed, hazy and they didn't paint the part that was suppose to be fixed to begin with. I was not
pleased. The told me that body shop was closed and I'd have to come back the next morning.
· Took car home. On the way home I noticed CD player kept saying ERR.
· Got home and couldn't find the garage door opener. So I did some research.
· Garage door opener thrown behind drivers seat.
· Bud Light beer can found behind drivers seat.
· CD player magazine removed and inserted incorrectly
· CD player lid not closed.
· The lid in trunk covering CD player not put back on.
· Passenger side seat belt jammed with about 2 feet pulled out and laying on the passenger seat.
· Unaccounted for miles

8/17/99
· Dropped car off at am to Bobby Layman Chevrolet body shop. They didn't seem to surprised when I mentioned my discoveries.
· Told to come back at 5pm, they were just going to buff it out
· Showed up at 5pm, I was told they had to repaint the door and they it wouldn't be done until tomorrow.
· Very angry, the only person with any authority I could find was the man who sits in the far right office upstairs in the showroom. He listened and apologized and said he'd call me back tomorrow. I never
heard from him.

8/18/99
· Picked up car finally at 5pm from Bobby Layman Chevrolet.
· Tire still wasn't balanced.
· The paper work had been LOST, imagine that.
· John Takkin ended up balancing my tire for me.
· John and I sat down and talked for about an hour.

8/20/99
· Received message from Terry Gordon at Bobby Layman Chevrolet, apologizing and said he'd call me on Tuesday.

8/24/99
· Talked to Terry Gordon from Bobby Layman Chevrolet who reviewed my info and passed it on to Bobby Laymen
· Bobby Layman called and left a message at my office and my house.

8/25/99
· Talked to Bobby Layman today. We are meeting tomorrow at 4:30pm

8/26/99
· Met for an hour with Bobby Layman, Terry Gordon, and John Takkin of Bobby Layman Chevrolet. I went down this entire list.
· He apologized several times.
· He offered me free service for the life of my lease. I turned it down.
· He asked what I wanted and I replied that $1100 stated in the summary below.
· He said he'd call me back on Friday..As with everyone else during this mess, I never heard back from him.

8/30/99
· Called and left message at Bobby Layman Chevrolet with Terry Gordon at 3:30 p.m. that I was unhappy that I had not heard back from Bobby Layman on Friday or yet today.
· Received message from Bobby Layman that they were still working on it.

· They tried to tell me that I bought the car $1000 below sticker and they made the first payment. Those two numbers come from the downpayment of $1500 that I made.

9/7/99
· Received proposal in the mail from Bobby Layman Chevrolet. It was a joke. I was offered 3 years of oil changes.
· Unsatisfied with the result, I contacted the GM customer care line.
· After speaking with several people, they said that I should contact the Attorney General and the Better Business Bureau.

9/8/99
· Called back to Bobby Layman Chevrolet to express my unhappiness.
· I asked for the phone number of the GM representative named Tim Lamb
· I was given the number for the customer care line again.
· They would not return any more calls and would not give me his number.

9/16/99
· Called GM Customer Service Line to see of Bobby Layman Chevrolet response.
· John Takkin reported to GM that I was given 3 years of oil changes and they'd paid one lease payment.
· I was given the oil changes, but NOT the lease payment.
· The CM Customer Service Representative tried to call John Takkin. He was out.
· I was instructed to call GM tomorrow.

9/17/99
· Called back to the GM Customer Service Line to see if there was a response from John Takkin of Bobby Layman Chevrolet. No response.
· The GM Customer Service Representative tried to call John Takkin again. No answer.
· Instructed by GM to call back Monday.

9/20/99
· Called back to the GM Customer Service Line to see if there was a response from John Takkin of Bobby Layman Chevrolet. No response.
· I was instructed by GM to call another local dealer and get the phone number to the Regional Sales Managers for GM.

9/21/99
· Per GM Customer Service Line, I called Bobb Chevrolet and talked to the assistant Sales Manager, DJ Walls.
· He asked that I call back tomorrow and talk to Ben Stroup, the Sales Manager.
· As a note, when I described my problem, he guessed the dealership!
· The saga continues..

9/22/99
· Called back to GM Customer Service Line and talked to Todd McMullins to get phone numbers of the Regional Sales Managers.
· After some struggle with Bobby Layman Chevrolet, Todd was able to get the numbers for me.
· GM regional managers phone number: 800-823-0055.
· I left messages for the following: Tim Lamb, Dave Donahue(x. 8455), and Doug Sedrick(x. 8189).
· Received call back from Tim Lamb. I explained the story and he asked what I was seeking in resolution. Again my reply is $1100. He told me I would be receiving a call from Doug Sedrick.

9/29/99
· Talked to Doug Sedwich from GM and he sided with Bobby Layman stating that he felt that Bobby Layman Chevrolet more than compensated me for my trouble.

10/2699
· Took car to Byers Chevrolet to see why the window was hitting the convertible top. After they looked at the car, Bobby Layman Chevrolet did not adjust the door properly when they had it off painting it.
· Byers Chevrolet also had to look at the seal where they replaced the windshield because they put it on wrong and it cut the seal. They ordered a new seal and would call when it came in.

12/9/99
· Called Byers Chevrolet back to see what the scoop on my seal was. They said it just came in and for me to bring it in on the 13th to have it replaced.

12/13/99
· Took car back to Byers Chevrolet to have the seal replaced that was inproperly put on when the windshield was changed. Because it was put on wrong, the seal had a half inch cut in it.
· Picked car up, the seal was not changed, but hidden under the trip. The dealership blamed it on Guardian Glass.
· Called GM Customer care to see if I could just get out of this mess.

12/14/99
· Called State Farm to make sure the Byers Chevrolet was not billing them for any of this work that. It should have all been covered by the dealership because they put the part on wrong and it tore.
· State Farm was investigating to see if Guardian Glass had actually been called to do the work.
· The Guardian had not been contacted about the glass repair.
· The paperwork for this fix stated that a new seal was to be put on the car, it was not.
· Received a call back from karen at General Motors who asked me to send all my information to:

Chevrolet * PO Box 33170 * Detroit, MI
48232-5170

12/15/99
· Took car back to Byers Chevrolet to have seal replaced a third time.

1/1/2000
· As the saga continues: drivers door does not match rest of car and overspray is on read quarterpanel.
· Case in hands of BBB

This sound bad, real bad. I would see a lawyer quickly. JMO

battend1;
You must have a cast iron stomach! How in the world have you maintained your sanity? I think you should write a letter to the Chairman of the Board of GM. Tell them exactly what you have stated here. Give then a reasonable time to respond. If nothing, run don't walk to your local district attorney or states attorney office and file charges of deceptive business practices. This should get their attention. Then go to small claims court to compensate you for all of your out of pocket expenses, etc. Good luck..You should not have a negative experience such as this. It's unreal for a dealer to completely stiff you.

From everything I have read/seen/heard the only way to buy a C5 is to buy a used one. These dealers are A$$holes. Get a lawyer!

Living close to these dealerships as I do has convienced me not to buy a car from them! Most people would have beat the crap out of someone by now! When the car was locked up for the week-end... or was it? I think an employ had it out over the week-end. At this point, I would'nt make any payments for say 1 or 2 months... Then take the car back and park in their lot. Call a taxie and let them scramble around...

Man I thought my dealer was bad...whew.
Ted

My '99 Vette has visited two dealerships about 4 times to fix a crackling speaker. I'm sure everyone understands how annoying that is when you are driving a Vette. It works for a while then futzes out again within months. It seems like the dealership's GM certified techs just remove/replace components, if at all, without actually figuring out the cause and implement a one-time solution to the problem. Oh well. I'm taking the car into another dealership. I'm covered for the next 3 yrs. I'm going to be running up parts and equipment usage bills at no cost to me. I'll make sure to make good use of courtesy transportation and check the car in to the shop as often as possible. GM and/or the dealerships will figure out it would be just cheaper to do the job properly and/or reimbuse me for the entire cost of sound system options so that I can take it to a pro car audio shop to have it ripped out and replaced by a better aftermarket system! This whole experience was so inconvenient that I went ahead and cancelled my extended warranty and my routine maintainance is done by myself or at local shops who let you watch them work on the car. You can see that they are dong the job correctly. If the dealerships can't fix a radio, I sure as heck aren't gong to trust them with something more important like the engine or suspension. If I have any serious problems not covered by or after the standard warranty (and man it's covers a lot), I'll let Mallet or Rippie "fix" it. https://www.corvetteforum.com/ubb/smile.gif Who knows, maybe the Toyota Supra will be reintroduced to the States? Hehe, just kidding. The situation isn't that bad, yet.

[This message has been edited by Marcus (edited 01-24-2000).]

Damn, I almost lost my lunch reading this. God knows what you spent for the car, and to be treated as if you got it from some dark ally used car lot with a gravel lot is Bull!