Never EVER post how reliable your car is. It's just not worth it.

Wile E. Coyote

As the thread title says, never EVER post that your car is reliable. Cars are evil. They listen to everything and just when you think everything is going fine that’s when they strike.

Below is my post on the 14/01 from the ‘What cars have you owned’ thread telling you all that I’ve never had any issues with my car.

2007 Renault Megane Saloon - Went for another renault due to the safety aspect. I know people on here give the Meganes a bit of a hard time but I've stuck 130,000km on the clock since Oct '07 and haven't had any major issues (touch wood).

Needless to say today the Megane is DEAD.:( Hopefully soon to be revived but Renault can’t/won’t look at it till the 08/02.

Now I don’t mind that the car has broken down or that it’s going to cost me €xxx to get fixed. Sh*t happens with cars and this is to be expected at some point but what really pi**es me off is that I drove out, no actually I limped out, at 40km per hr, from Bray to Liffey Valley Renault on Tuesday to see if they’d have a look for me and give me some indication of what was wrong.

When I got there the snot nosed receptionist told me I hadn’t booked in so there was nothing they’d do. There was a mechanic standing beside her so I tried to explain what was going on with the car to him to see if he could give me half an answer as to what the problem might be. Before he got a chance to open his mouth, snotty b*tch turned around and said. ‘Look! It’s €85 + vat to run the diagnostic and we won’t be able to look at it till next Tuesday at the earliest.’ In other words ‘F*** off’.

What ever happened to customer service? I don’t expect the red carpet to be rolled out and a glass of champagne when I walk through the door but why not say ‘we’re very busy at the minute but I’ll see if I can have one of the lads take a look when he gets a chance’? Even if I had to wait 2-3 hours it wouldn’t have bothered me cause I’d at least know they valued my custom. I’ve bought my last two cars from there (both brand new) and was considering changing it again this year for another Renault. Needless to say they won’t be getting my money.

Oh and to top it all off I arrived home yesterday to a letter from them saying ‘As a valued customer blah blah blah’ with a brochure of they’re new range. Talk about adding insult to injury.

run_Forrest_run

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

2007 Renault Megane Saloon

enough said

R.O.R

Now, that sort of service is not on at all. Sometimes receptionists get a bit above themselves, but that's no excuse.

alexmcred

I'd email the dealer principle/manager and tell them that story to see what response you get tbh

Wile E. Coyote

run_Forrest_run wrote: »

enough said

To be fair to the Megane I've stuck 130,000 on the clock in two and a half years so one break down in all that time wasn't too bad compared to some of the horror stories I've heard.

But it was a bit comical that I had to get the car towed FROM their garage because they wouldn't help me.:rolleyes:

Wile E. Coyote

alexmcred wrote: »

I'd email the dealer principle/manager and tell them that story to see what response you get tbh

Thats the plan. If I can get Bill Cullens e-mail I'll CC him in just to say 'Your Fired!'

Guy:Incognito

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

As the thread title says, never EVER post that your car is reliable. Cars are evil. They listen to everything and just when you think everything is going fine that’s when they strike.

Below is my post on the 14/01 from the ‘What cars have you owned’ thread telling you all that I’ve never had any issues with my car.

2007 Renault Megane Saloon - Went for another renault due to the safety aspect. I know people on here give the Meganes a bit of a hard time but I've stuck 130,000km on the clock since Oct '07 and haven't had any major issues (touch wood).

Needless to say today the Megane is DEAD.:( Hopefully soon to be revived but Renault can’t/won’t look at it till the 08/02.

Now I don’t mind that the car has broken down or that it’s going to cost me €xxx to get fixed. Sh*t happens with cars and this is to be expected at some point but what really pi**es me off is that I drove out, no actually I limped out, at 40km per hr, from Bray to Liffey Valley Renault on Tuesday to see if they’d have a look for me and give me some indication of what was wrong.

When I got there the snot nosed receptionist told me I hadn’t booked in so there was nothing they’d do. There was a mechanic standing beside her so I tried to explain what was going on with the car to him to see if he could give me half an answer as to what the problem might be. Before he got a chance to open his mouth, snotty b*tch turned around and said. ‘Look! It’s €85 + vat to run the diagnostic and we won’t be able to look at it till next Tuesday at the earliest.’ In other words ‘F*** off’.

What ever happened to customer service? I don’t expect the red carpet to be rolled out and a glass of champagne when I walk through the door but why not say ‘we’re very busy at the minute but I’ll see if I can have one of the lads take a look when he gets a chance’? Even if I had to wait 2-3 hours it wouldn’t have bothered me cause I’d at least know they valued my custom. I’ve bought my last two cars from there (both brand new) and was considering changing it again this year for another Renault. Needless to say they won’t be getting my money.

Oh and to top it all off I arrived home yesterday to a letter from them saying ‘As a valued customer blah blah blah’ with a brochure of they’re new range. Talk about adding insult to injury.

Your not actually goign to wait till the 8th and go back though are you? Theres plenty of other garages. Blanch is not part of the Bill Cullen group if you want to keep your money away from him altogether.


Personally I've had nothign but good service from Liffey Valley but did end up going to Finn Reddy on the Naas Road for our last car (no particular reason). I have found receptionists a bit objectionable sometimes which I take particular annoyance with seeign as their whole job is being nice to customers.

BTW, what lights and messages are coming up on the dash and whats the car doing / not doing (beside being in limp hom emode I assume)

Honda08

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

As the thread title says, never EVER post that your car is reliable. Cars are evil. They listen to everything and just when you think everything is going fine that’s when they strike.

Below is my post on the 14/01 from the ‘What cars have you owned’ thread telling you all that I’ve never had any issues with my car.

2007 Renault Megane Saloon - Went for another renault due to the safety aspect. I know people on here give the Meganes a bit of a hard time but I've stuck 130,000km on the clock since Oct '07 and haven't had any major issues (touch wood).

Needless to say today the Megane is DEAD.:( Hopefully soon to be revived but Renault can’t/won’t look at it till the 08/02.





Now I don’t mind that the car has broken down or that it’s going to cost me €xxx to get fixed. Sh*t happens with cars and this is to be expected at some point but what really pi**es me off is that I drove out, no actually I limped out, at 40km per hr, from Bray to Liffey Valley Renault on Tuesday to see if they’d have a look for me and give me some indication of what was wrong.

When I got there the snot nosed receptionist told me I hadn’t booked in so there was nothing they’d do. There was a mechanic standing beside her so I tried to explain what was going on with the car to him to see if he could give me half an answer as to what the problem might be. Before he got a chance to open his mouth, snotty b*tch turned around and said. ‘Look! It’s €85 + vat to run the diagnostic and we won’t be able to look at it till next Tuesday at the earliest.’ In other words ‘F*** off’.

What ever happened to customer service? I don’t expect the red carpet to be rolled out and a glass of champagne when I walk through the door but why not say ‘we’re very busy at the minute but I’ll see if I can have one of the lads take a look when he gets a chance’? Even if I had to wait 2-3 hours it wouldn’t have bothered me cause I’d at least know they valued my custom. I’ve bought my last two cars from there (both brand new) and was considering changing it again this year for another Renault. Needless to say they won’t be getting my money.

Oh and to top it all off I arrived home yesterday to a letter from them saying ‘As a valued customer blah blah blah’ with a brochure of they’re new range. Talk about adding insult to injury.

now thats dreadful customer service, unfortunately its becoming all too common lately. see this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055811022 i was told i would have to wait 1 week before dealer could look at my car.

best thing is to ring around and see if any other dealer can look at it;

Stevie Dakota

Old Cullen has set such high standards as to what he expects via the Apprentice that every time a customer gets bad service from one of his staff it actually makes him look like a spoofer and untrustworthy. I'm surprised his staff haven't been told to really up their game as a result.

alexmcred

After seeing the Apprentice this level of customer service from one of Cullen's dealerships does not surprise me.

R.O.R

Honda08 wrote: »

now thats dreadful customer service, unfortunately its becoming all too common lately. see this thread http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055811022 i was told i would have to wait 1 week before dealer could look at my car.

best thing is to ring around and see if any other dealer can look at it;

There is a whole world of difference between phoning to have a minor issue looked at on your car, and turning up at the dealer with a more or less dead car.

Darsad

That is pretty **** service allright and I would copy Bill Cullen with any e mail you intend to send. However it is refreshing that you chose not to condem the whole motor industry in the South of Ireland because you met one snotty B***H who was obviously having a bad day , week or maybe even month !

Honda08

R.O.R wrote: »

There is a whole world of difference between phoning to have a minor issue looked at on your car, and turning up at the dealer with a more or less dead car.

seems like it doesent matter a jot what the fault with the car is, be it a major fault or a minor one, seems like the customer service is the same :eek:

and they went straight in for the kill , quote

"Look! It’s €85 + vat to run the diagnostic"

so be it a minor fault or a dead car, the customer service seems to be the same.

Wile E. Coyote

Stekelly wrote: »

Your not actually goign to wait till the 8th and go back though are you? Theres plenty of other garages. Blanch is not part of the Bill Cullen group if you want to keep your money away from him altogether.


Personally I've had nothign but good service from Liffey Valley but did end up going to Finn Reddy on the Naas Road for our last car (no particular reason). I have found receptionists a bit objectionable sometimes which I take particular annoyance with seeign as their whole job is being nice to customers.

BTW, what lights and messages are coming up on the dash and whats the car doing / not doing (beside being in limp hom emode I assume)

Wasn't planning on waiting till the 08th but don't know if I'll have a choice. Rang Blanch yesterday and they're up to there eyes. I was told I could bring the car over but she had no idea when they could get around to looking at it as the had 3 other breakdowns coming in had three the day before. She said the yard was full at the minute. All the garages I spoke to seem to be in a similar position. a cousin of mine works for Toyota and she was saying that they're booked solid with services/repairs till next Friday.

Is it a case that everyone is fixing rather than replacing cars or just all the snow and ice recently taking their tolls on the cars?

The car takes 4/5 attemps to start. It'll either cut out straight away or the revs will be right up at 4,000 without me touching the pedels. The 'Check Injection' light will generally be on. Sometimes the car would turn on fine, no warning lights no coughing or spluttering but when I go to move there's no power in the accelerator. Had it in a garage yesterday with a guy who used to work for Renault. He ran the diagnostics and thinks the issue is in the trottle body (think thats what he called it. Little black box to the left of the engine) and it needs to be replaced and reprogrammed by Renault.

He tried a couple of other things but nothing worked. Didn't charge me €85 + vat to run the diagnostic either!

Guy:Incognito

Did he not suggest cleaning the throttle body first to see? It's a diy job and takes a few mins. I'd give that a go first. Idle control valve is another simple one to check , not sure where it is on the mgane but the lads on Renault forums could direct you I'm sure. My dad Laguna was revving a bit erratically then stopped starting :-) , I narrowed it to the idle control valve. Got it running again by takign it out and giveing it a clean to loosen it up, albeit with slightly high and erratic revs while I was waiting for the new valve (€35) to be delivered. Car is perfect now.

Camshaft sensor could be another area to look at. Again it a €50 or so part and easily swappable. I'd investigate in the order I went through it. Did the diagnostic not pinpoint the issue? My misus Scenic had the camshaft sensor act up (covered under warranty) and they new straight away once the car was hooked up to diagnistics.

eringobragh

Nothing would suprise me with a megane (2008), me and a mate tried to change a Headlight fuse and it took over 2 hours before we admitted defeat

Mr.David

To be honest, I don't think from the symptoms you've described that the issue is likely to be major. Could be a sensor, MAF, throttle body as mentioned, coil pack etc. None of which is terminal.

Try finding a good indy to have a look at it maybe?

Oh, and Cullen is a total twat make sure you let him know that!

az2wp0sye65487

Darsad wrote: »

That is pretty **** service allright and I would copy Bill Cullen with any e mail you intend to send. However it is refreshing that you chose not to condem the whole motor industry in the South of Ireland because you met one snotty B***H who was obviously having a bad day , week or maybe even month !

Or time of the month perhaps....

Guy:Incognito

eringobragh wrote: »

Nothing would suprise me with a megane (2008), me and a mate tried to change a Headlight fuse and it took over 2 hours before we admitted defeat

Were you looking in the fusebox? That could have cut down your search time dramatically.

no1beemerfan

If I was you I'd put the problem up on www.renaultforums.co.uk as some of the lads know their stuff.

eringobragh

Stekelly wrote: »

Were you looking in the fusebox? That could have cut down your search time dramatically.

Of course! the fusebox was buried under aload of modules that we tried to shift but couldn't move, the manual stated 'contact your dealership' ...try getting at it, it'd nightmare!!!

The year before we did the same job on his previous car (2007 Megane) and it was easily accessible..

bazz26

A work collegue has a 04 Megane and had similar problems where the car went into in limp home mode. Ended up being a coil pack issue, apparently it is a known problem on that model Megane. Don't think Renault covered the cost of a replacement coil pack for him though. Might not be your issue but might be a good place to start troubleshooting.

Regarding the receptionist with PMS, I would start by making contact with the general manager of the dealership with your experience. I don't think they would be too impressed with a member of staff with a customer facing job having that unprofessional attitude.

Raiser

Wouldn't you think that the Receptionist in a Renault Dealership would be an elite Customer Service Guru beyond all parallel?

- Its not like the little Cow hasn't had plenty of opportunity to practice, she should be a Gold Medal Complaints Olympian by now!!!

jimmycrackcorm

we had a problem with the coil pack also 18 months ago whilst on holiday in wexford. We limped the car to the nearest Renault dealer in the town. The receptionist called a mechanic over who took it in and fixed it as we waited. Charged it to renault also. Fantastic service.

Stevie Dakota

OP, is it a petrol or diesel?

neilthefunkeone

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

Is it a case that everyone is fixing rather than replacing cars or just all the snow and ice recently taking their tolls on the cars?

Well i know with renaut is that they have only a few dealerships left in dublin.. Think its just blanch, liffey and airside.. and i hear just to be 2 soon..

Friend works in Liffey valley.. ill pass on your story to him.. he might be able to put a foot up her arse...

Jip

Blanch is not a Bill Cullen place though is it while the other 2 are ?

galwaytt

R.O.R wrote: »

Now, that sort of service is not on at all. Sometimes receptionists get a bit above themselves, but that's no excuse.

Sometimes ?? Seems to be standard training for a lot of them it seems to me............a couple of prizewinners down this way, too.......

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

Thats the plan. If I can get Bill Cullens e-mail I'll CC him in just to say 'Your Fired!'

Excellent idea !

R.O.R wrote: »

There is a whole world of difference between phoning to have a minor issue looked at on your car, and turning up at the dealer with a more or less dead car.

....yes, but jeez, 5 minutes wouldn't have killed the service manager, if nothing else to explain nicely.....

Honda08 wrote: »

" It’s €85 + vat to run the diagnostic

...no it isn't. That's what they're charging for it, which is a different ball of wax completely........

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

He tried a couple of other things but nothing worked. Didn't charge me €85 + vat to run the diagnostic either!

...told ya

eringobragh wrote: »

Nothing would suprise me with a megane (2008), me and a mate tried to change a Headlight fuse and it took over 2 hours before we admitted defeat

I have to 'fess up on this: I spent 20 minutes trying to change a bulb on the 9-3 the other eve, and had to give up. Was seriously contemplating taking off the bumper, tbh.........:eek: Now I see all those one-lighted cars in a new.........er, ....light ? :rolleyes:......maybe they all tried and gave up ?

HungryJoey

I feel for you OP. I was the one who replied straight after saying " Fair Play, you did well do put that much millage on a Megane ".

Hope you get it sorted. Fingers crossed its something as simple as coil packs.

Guy:Incognito

neilthefunkeone wrote: »

Well i know with renaut is that they have only a few dealerships left in dublin.. Think its just blanch, liffey and airside.. and i hear just to be 2 soon..
.

Theres one in Lusk too apparently.

BrianD3

From dealing with that garage before, the people working at the service reception seem to have a "rigid" attitude to booking in cars. I would imagine that it is similar in many other Dublin garages with busy service depts. Also, the bigger the garage the less likely you are to be known to those working there, no matter how many cars you've previously bought from the garage. I'm not making excuses for them just saying that's how things often are.

I have witnessed one or two "sticky" customer service incidents while waiting in the reception of LV Renault. One involved someone turning up to collect their car to be told it wasn't going to be ready or drivable that day and that it was too late in the day to transfer insurance to a replacement car (was past 5 o'clock) even if there was a replacement available which there didn't seem to be.....Now perhaps the garage had tried and failed to contact the customer earlier on - but good customer service is about dealing with situations like these even if some of the fault for the problem lies with the customer.

Going back to the OP, if it were me I would probably have rang first and asked to speak to the service manager before driving from Bray to LV at 40 km/h....

Wile E. Coyote

BrianD3 wrote: »

Going back to the OP, if it were me I would probably have rang first and asked to speak to the service manager before driving from Bray to LV at 40 km/h....

In hindsight thats probably what I should have done but I wasn't really thinking. I originally drove to Sandyford only to find that they were now closed and didn't think there would be a big issue with getting someone to give it a quick once over. I live 80km from where I work so all that was going through my head was 'How am I going to get home' and 'Don't stop till you get to the garage cause you might not get it going again'.

Out of interest, does anyone know where to find an e-mail address for Bill Cullen. Would love to CC him in on this but can't find an e-mail address for him. Obviously if it can't be posted it can be PM'd to me.

Wile E. Coyote

Wile E. Coyote wrote: »

Out of interest, does anyone know where to find an e-mail address for Bill Cullen. Would love to CC him in on this but can't find an e-mail address for him. Obviously if it can't be posted it can be PM'd to me.

totalnumpty@renaultirl.ie

Redjeep!

I once booked my (brandnew) Mondeo in for a service about the time my wife was expecting a baby. I explained that I was prepared to wait a week or two for the service so they could give me the courtesy car. When I finally got there, my wife was still in hospital having had the baby the day before, but there was no courtesy car.

The receptionist told me "it's ok though as we're not contractually obliged to give you one". Unbelievable.

The red mist decended and I ended up driving one of the ford salesmans cars for the day.

dizzydiesel

Would I be right in saying that the dealers are busy selling new cars now? They are probably up to their eyes with customers again (esp with scrappage etc)

I went to look at a new Clio on Monday, gave all the right signals that I'd seal the deal. Dealer said he'd ring me the following day with answers to some of the questions he couldn't answer. It's Thursday, still no call.

Last year, a Skoda dealer hounded me for 2 weeks, calling every day asking me to come back to test drive the car again. Funny how attitudes change when business improves.

Guy:Incognito

dizzydiesel wrote: »

Last year, a Skoda dealer hounded me for 2 weeks, calling every day asking me to come back to test drive the car again. Funny how attitudes change when business improves.

TBH I'd say it's more the individual guy than when it is. A good salesman is always a good salesman.

Wile E. Coyote

The system works! Complaint e-mail sent at 3o'clock yesterday got a call to say car will be ready for 5.30 today. Result .

The throttle body needs to be replaced and re-programmed. It's a €450 kick in the nuts I could do without but I'm just happy I don't have to pay for a rental car till the 08th Feb.

The service manager was very nice and apologised saying they're really busy with services and repairs because of the lack of Renault garages in Dublin now.