The eighth in a continuing series on my experiences with my
TR-8....
You may have noticed that I have been rather inactive lately in
my contributions to the net. The main reason for this is that I have
not had my LBC around to work on and write about, due to an extended
stay in the body shop. The bulk of the work started last April,
where my TR-8 went in for some cosmetic surgery to repair some sheet
metal damage caused by some tire chains and a high back bumper on
another vehicle (I'm speculating--the damage had already been done
when I got the car). In addition to all of the miscellaneous parts
that I sent along (decals, door waist seals, front spoiler), I had
supplied the body shop with a series of pictures of my 8 as well as a
few detail shots taken from another 8 that I found running around
town (Rockford, IL). These pictures were marked up with measurements
to show them where to place the decals and pinstriping, as well as
how the front header panel (between the headlights) should appear
once the grilles and bumper were put back together. Did they look at
them? Not a chance! Every decal was applied in a position different
than original. The pinstriping on the hood was applied to the top of
the outer bulge, instead of being on the sloping surface that the
washer jets are attached to. The gap between the grilles and bumper
was not uniform from edge to edge--you could put your finger between
the grille and bumper at the corners of the bumper, but you'd have a
very hard time trying to do the same at the center of the bumper
because the grilles were below the surface of the bumper. In
addition, there were a number of paint defects (pits in the
clearcoat, as well as two spots were the clearcoat had flaked off as
they removed the masking tape from the rubber seals below the front
quarter windows). It was pointed out that I shouldn't drive the 8
for at least a week in order to let the paint harden, and that I
should come back around June 1 to get the paint defects taken care
of. We took the car home, and started making a list of all the
things that we didn't like.
Skip forward in time to June 4, when we brought the 8 back for
repairs. In the meantime, the guy who had done the original service
estimate had left the body shop for another shop, so we had to
explain everything all over again to their new service writer. He
seemed very cooperative, and we left the 8 with him, expecting to
have it back the following week.
The following week, a tornado is spotted in the area near the
body shop, during a severe thunderstorm with winds up to 75 mph.
Many businesses in the area lost parts of their roofs, and the body
shop was one of them. None of the cars were damaged--just the office
area which had to be completely gutted and rebuilt due to water
damage. Obviously, there would be a delay in getting the car done
since the office had been moved out to a corner of the shop, leaving
less room to do body work in. (Can you imagine trying to do office
work with grinders, welders, air tools, hammers, etc. in the same
room with you? No wonder every one there looked a bit frazzled!)
The following week, I check back in with them. I let them know
that I wanted the car back by June 29, as I want to take it to a
British Car Field Day in Milwaukee on July 1, and was told that I
would certainly have the 8 back by then.
The next week, they tell me that they have found a problem with
the paint where certain areas are appearing to be losing the shine
prematurely. They are not sure whether it is a manufacturing
defect or an application defect, so they have contacted
Sherwin-Williams to send a representative out to make a decision. If
it is a manufacturing defect, Sherwin-Williams will pay to have the
car stripped and repainted. If not, only the specific areas with the
defects will get repainted. In any case, the decision rests with the
S-W rep, who is scheduled to arrive between June 25 and 28. The 8
remains in the back room under a cover...
It is now June 29. The Sherwin-Williams rep has still not
arrived--the 8 is still in the back room under a cover--it looks like
we'll be going to the Milwaukee British Car Field Day in the T-Bird,
instead. The service writer says that they will be done "next week".
Another week goes by. When we arrive on July 6, the 8 is in the
paint booth. The S-W rep finally arrived that day and told them that
the problem was due to too much solvent in the paint. Once again, it
will be done "next week".
July 13--"We had a hard time getting the bumper to line up
properly, and I know that you are very picky about this car, so I
took a lot of time to get everything to look like the pictures that
you gave us. By the way, we had to repaint the entire hood, since I
didn't like the way it looked before. Stop in next Monday and you
can pick it up."
July 16--They finally broke my spirit. I wanted the 8 back. I
didn't care that the list that I gave them was only half done--this
shop would not be doing any more work on my car. We picked up the 8
and left.
July 18--while cleaning the car out, I find that the battery is
almost dead. It appears that when the trunk lid was removed for
repainting, the trunk light switch had gotten bent and caused the
light to burn continuously. Looks like Quality wasn't Job 1. Looks
like I'll never be going back to them for anything on any of my cars.
I read somewhere that it takes about 10 years for the average
customer to forget about a bad experience that they have had with a
product or service. The article was quoting a upper management-type
person for one of the American auto manufacturers who was commenting
on the loss of market share that the domestic car makers had
experienced due to poor perceived quality and poor dealer service.
It's too bad that his comments hadn't filtered down to the owners of
the body shop that I used to patronize. I already know of one person
who had considered going there for some work on his Corvette until I
told him my story--he went somewhere else instead.
Sorry to depress you--I hope your body shop experiences are
better than mine.
Tim Buja Cherry Valley, IL
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