Can you say Stealership?

8

85Chief

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Central, Illinois
I went to the local stealership today to look at a replacement Drivers side seat belt b/c mine is out of commision. The guy asked for the year/ color/ everything else, and came back witha price quote of $153+shipping!!!!!! I walked out of there laughing.
 
Sure thats not for a complete belt system? *(as in you asked him this exact question)
 
so, because the price was more than you think it should be, the dealership is stealing from you. :doh:
I have a friend who lives out of state, he drives a caravan he took his minivan to an "independant" i won't use names. they tried to sell him $2k worth of transmission repairs. he called me, a dealer tech, to ask my opinion. i suggested that he might have it looked at by a dealer locally because their diag. sounded iffy to me. after complaining that the dealer is too expensive, and some general other misconceptions he decided to heed my advice. :shocked:
$187 later his transmission shifted and drove again. the "stealership" saved him in excess of $1800. :angel:
some months later he called me up again. he was having a problem with his wiper system. he had the nerve to ask me if i thought he should take it to the dealer. did they treat you well? yes. did they save you money? yes. did they fix the problem the first time and do it correctly? yes. what do you think you should do? um... :confused:
the dealer is not satan incarnate, just because you don't want to pay for a new part doesn't mean thier stealing from you or anyone else. our labor rates are competitive, our parts prices are reasonable for what your getting o.e. parts are designed to outlast a longer warranty than 12/12, (aftermkt warr).
:soapbox: i'll stop ranting now.but only because i can't change public perception on my own.
no matter how wrong it is.
 
Last edited:
Sorry if I offended you a-mechanic. I just was hit with sticker shock. I just thought it was a little out there, when I can get new seat belts for around $100. Thats all.
 
I'm going to guess that you're looking for the short center section, with the female side of the latch. If so, keep in mind that the driver's side belt has the wiring for the seat belt interlock. When mine broke several years ago I wasn't willing to pay the going price for a new one, but the passenger side was considerably less expensive, and identical except for no wiring. So I clipped the wires from the old one and soldered them together, making a permanent jumper, then installed the new passenger side belt.

Works fine, and it's not a safety issue for me because I always wear the seat belt, even if I'm crossing a large parking lot. So the fact that I can start the engine without latching the belt is a plus, not a minus, when it comes to working on the vehicle.
 
The female end broke in the YJ I have for a DD. Went to the dealer only to be told the part was $17.00, but it had been discontinued and the new replacement was $170. I parked the YJ and went back to the XJ. Then the Fawkin seatbelt latch on the XJ decided not to hold well. Went back to Jeep. Was told, "Sorry that part has been discontinued" then they suggested a salvage yard. Damn good customer service if you ask me :wow:

Hello eBay. Picked up a complete front set for the YJ and the female ends for the XJ for about $60.

Bones :skull1:
 
a-mechanic said:
so, because the price was more than you think it should be, the dealership is stealing from you. :doh:
I have a friend who lives out of state, he drives a caravan he took his minivan to an "independant" i won't use names. they tried to sell him $2k worth of transmission repairs. he called me, a dealer tech, to ask my opinion. i suggested that he might have it looked at by a dealer locally because their diag. sounded iffy to me. after complaining that the dealer is too expensive, and some general other misconceptions he decided to heed my advice. :shocked:
$187 later his transmission shifted and drove again. the "stealership" saved him in excess of $1800. :angel:
some months later he called me up again. he was having a problem with his wiper system. he had the nerve to ask me if i thought he should take it to the dealer. did they treat you well? yes. did they save you money? yes. did they fix the problem the first time and do it correctly? yes. what do you think you should do? um... :confused:
the dealer is not satan incarnate, just because you don't want to pay for a new part doesn't mean thier stealing from you or anyone else. our labor rates are competitive, our parts prices are reasonable for what your getting o.e. parts are designed to outlast a longer warranty than 12/12, (aftermkt warr).
:soapbox: i'll stop ranting now.but only because i can't change public perception on my own.
no matter how wrong it is.
Click to expand...
depends on the dealership. you havn't been unheard, and i think that standing up for the quality of work you do and the price you charge for it is a good thing. my experience with boardwalk jeep here was super unpleasent...they tried to stick me in the a hole with a smile...i will never go back. its one of those things where you get a 50/50 based on perseption and then experience. the complaints exist for a reason, as do the praises i have heard for other dealerships around the country...i think richp was talking about it on another thread somewhere...hmmm.... anyways just my 2 cents, and not worth much more than that.
 
Bones,
DMC can't be expected to offer support parts forever, The last CJ was built in 1986, that was 18 years ago...not many things are supported that long, the YJ was last produced 9 years ago...the market for dealer only parts dries up.

Biscuit,
Try Albera in San Francisco, they have good mechs and so does Lehmers in the east bay. Falore & Boardwalk not so good. Never been to the one in Burlingame (Les Vogel?).

Tom
 
85Chief said:
Eagle....the spring broke that retracts the belt, and thats the part that im needing. Thanks for your imput
Click to expand...

Rats! I had a 50/50 chance and I still got it wrong. :doh:
 
Boatwrench said:
they have good mechs and so does Lehmers in the east bay.

Tom
Click to expand...

Thanks for the plug Tom. I do know a really good tech who works there. :angel: :spam:

I do agree that some MOPAR part prices are outrageous and the dealer usually marks them up 100%. Seat belts are one of the overpriced items. Basically there are so many regulations surrounding their manufacture that the per unit cost to produce it is expensive, let alone sell at a competitive price.

Dealership service departments are touch and go, like biscuit said. Just like any other type of business, it just depends on who you deal with. Large dealerships have multiple service writers and techs whose skill level and customer service can vary greatly. I would say to try a few different writers and techs that work at the most convienient dealer near you. If you like the service you get, don't hesitate to request that same person to do the work next time. I do know that our dealership is a 5star dealer with the highest or in the top 5 in our zone for customer service index and fixed first visit scores. These scores are calculated by customer responses from people just like you. We go out of our way to make our customers happy, which some dealers do not. A local dealership, Dublin Dodge, just had their franchise taken away because of consistently bad CSI scores and inability to repair vehicles on a regular basis.

Perception is the biggest problem we have as far as getting customers in the door. Dealerships have a touchy reputation mostly due to customers who are under the impression that everything is covered by their warranty or those who do nothing to maintain their vehicle and get sticker shock once we tell them what is wrong with their cars and how much to repair it.

Recently I was dispatched a 88 XJ 4.0l that had been inspected by a local AAA insurance office. AAA gives discounted safety inspection to their members as one of their insurance service perks. Their mechanic stated that the vehicle needed a valve adjustment due to slight tick noise when it was running. Once I checked it out, I found low compression in the #5 cylinder and a definate lower end rod knock. So we give the customer an estimate for a new engine and the needed related parts like a radiator, water pump, clutch and so forth. The customer blew up at our advisor and accused us of selling him something he didn't really need. And since AAA said all that was needed was a valve adjustment, that was all he was inclined to pay for. When we informed him the the valves weren't adjustable, the customer again accused us of lying and immediately came and picked up his Jeep. Again, perception is huge, whether it is based in reality or not.

Sorry to get on my :soapbox: and ramble on, but I do tire of people calling dealers "Stealerships." Just remember, you get what you pay for, discount parts and lowball services performed by poorly trained service techs really aren't that good of a deal.


Bryan :greensmok
 
I buy alot of my parts from dealers, once I found out the local down the street Dodge dealer can order the parts for my jeeps as long as I have the VIN with me, it saved me almost 2 hours of having to run down to near Easton Pa to a jeep dealer. Like I have said in the past the OEM parts mostly always fit provided you ordered the right part :D
Here the two dealers Dodge and Chevy both give nice discounts, 20-30% on parts but then they have to compete with no less than 6 auto parts stores almost within hollering distance so they are very competetive and quick. Now that I have been telling other local jeepers they can get parts there he might be starting to keep stuff in stock.
As for the seat belts, I said above that alot of places, boneyards, won't even sell them, if you install them wrong and get killed in a car accident because the belts they sold you failed they can end up in court in some states.
 
I have had great differences in service from dealers near me. The one which I am very happy with only sells Jeep, they have been around for thirty years, and their techs are outstanding.

I have never had to wait beyond the estimated time to complete the work, the quote is always higher than the actual price I end up paying, and the work is quality work.

At times there is some truth to the syaing "you get what you pay for." It is also true at times that dealerships are stealerships. Those places don't stay in business very long.

For those of you in the North Suburban Chiago area, Extreme Jeep in McHenry is the place to go hands down.
 
Talk about stealerships, when's the last time you bought something at a department store? How about a decent men's clothing store or woman's dress shop. When was the last time you picked up your wife's dry cleaning? Or bought a box of name brand dry cereal? How much mark up do you think there is in a six pack of beer that's not on sale? I could go on and on.......

I buy a lot of parts at the local Jeep dealership, so much so that I'm on a first name basis with all the parts counter guys. Of course, 10 years ago I was the general manager there, which happens to be when I got back into 4 wheeling and bought two XJ's. :)
 
i realize that some dealers are less than stellar, as are some independants.i appreciate that there is some support out there. generalizations are just wrong and it irks me. (though i've been guilty of it to). anyway, i may have been slightly offended but no harm done. just use a good seatbelt because safety is very important , at least to me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
Down to a few electrical issues.
Replies
3
Views
453
Jay Ratliff
J
N
2001 XJ interior lights and turn signal LEDs
2
Replies
23
Views
1K
N8N_99xj
N
Jeepedo129
XJ Build, again.
2 3 4
Replies
60
Views
4K
Jeepedo129
Jeepedo129
N
  • Locked
Uninstalling the OEM Anti-lock Braking System
Replies
0
Views
865
NAXJA_Archives
N
X
XR3Z's vs 19 XF2E's (2001 XJ) and so much more
Replies
5
Views
3K
xcm
xcm
Back
Top