gimme ideas on getting even with Costco - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

jsmith · #1 04-30-2002, 01:06 PM

no, i wouldn't have the benz serviced there but i have a set of tires that were purchased there for the van. it comes with lifetime rotate and balance so i had the set rotated for the first time. almost made it all the way through the service except at the last tire the tire tech (?) ran his air wrench so that the supervisor came around to see what the heck he was doing. turns out he had completely stripped the wheel bolt. i told the manager that they better fix it and after some half hearted apologies they pushed a bunch of paperwork on me. the guy claimed he had a hard time taking the nut off but he managed to chew off most of the thread on the bolt! luckily i was able to chase the thread with a die and even managed to torque a new lug nut down to 80 ft lbs. i'm definitely going to have it replaced but it's so much aggravation. those guys just do not have any respect for the cars they service. next time i'm going to demand to watch as they hand spin the lug nuts on. funny thing is they have this big-ass torque wrench that they use to do the final tightening at the end!

i do intend to fill out the paperwork and present them with a bill. i know it's wishful thinking but i wish i were able to bill them for my time too, since they did cost quite a bit of time plus aggravation...

Ashman · #2 04-30-2002, 01:17 PM

Sounds to me like you should document the time you spent and what you had to do to temporarily fix the problem. Include that with your complaint, and Inform them you expect the broken part to be repaired properly by your authorized mercedes mechanic, which they will be liable for.

I would however check any contracts you may have signed when gettign the tires to see if they have any clauses stating they are not responsible for those kinds of damages.

Good luck, if need be, getting an attorney to write a letter can sometimes help the situation, as I find most people tend to want to avoid legal matters, and usually a letter threatening legal action is enough to get results.

Alon

jsmith · #3 04-30-2002, 05:52 PM

uhhh, i guess i wasn't clear, it wasn't the Benz but the family van which i had serviced. still, it is an essential vehicle for us. i was looking into replacing the stud and it looks like a PITA to replace. since it is in a front wheel it actually looks like the hub would have to be pulled out in order to replace it. easily a multiple hour affair one would think. it is galling that they damaged my car and pretty much admitted as much and i have to fill out stupid paperwork to see if they are going to fix the problem. believe it or not, as i watched the workarea, they drive in a C280! oh well...

sixto · #4 04-30-2002, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by moraine
like going to the drugstore for that Rolex battery

I didn't think Rolex ran on batteries. Maybe the new ones do. Kinda like MB going with electric lock solenoids after all these years.

Sixto
91 300SE
87 300SDL
81 300SD

jsmith · #5 04-30-2002, 07:58 PM

here we go off tangent - but Rolex did make Quartz movements dating back to the 70's i think. many expensive watches can get a battery + 30000 mile check for $150 or so. it's the same $2 battery but you get what you pay for in terms of service and "your mileage may vary".

getting back on track, i think i can stay on top of a rotate and balance no matter how moronic the tire techs are, they just caught me flatfooted. won't happen again...

ps. they actually called up the house just now asking about the paperwork!

Ashman · #6 04-30-2002, 07:58 PM

ahh not a benz, I still think that what I have said still applies. Just substitute mercedes mechanic for your van mechanic.

Alon

sixto · #7 04-30-2002, 08:19 PM

Good ol' Costco.

A few months ago a chashier chucked a pack of batteries into my wife's cart without looking to see that our son was in the seat. The pack of batteries hit our son in the head. The cashier looked to see what the crying was about and continued to scanning purchases. My wife brought this to the attention of the manager who ensured that our son was okay and gave my wife a bunch of forms to fill. We got several calls from several Costco departments including a call from the legal office. We couldn't get through their thick corporate skulls that what we wanted was an apology. They made it clear that we weren't going to get anything a judge didn't tell them to give us. I guess that's the price of being able to return opened software.

Sixto
91 300SE
87 300SDL
81 300SD

MikeTangas · #8 04-30-2002, 08:31 PM

AS far as letting Costco mount tires/wheels, no way. My local Costco has a very large "shop" advertisment right at the front of the store. Prominently pictured in this banner ad is a black Mercedes getting the wheels remounted and the tire guy is using what appears to be a rather large impact wrench.

No thank you, I'll keep using Barney's at $10.00 a throw for mounting and balancing, then put them on the car myself.

As far as getting even, no ideas other than boycott.

#9 04-30-2002, 08:42 PM

I will get in touch w/ Judge Judy!

You'll be in TV,and we all gonna
watch.Just kidding,just cheering you up.
I'm no help.

jamesnj · #10 04-30-2002, 08:50 PM

TxBill, I've seen people standing out infront of car dealerships with placards pacing back and forth too, evidentally they weren't satisfied with their cars and had to resort to this after management gave them the run-around.

But still weren't you afraid these people would turn around and threaten or harass you at home or work for protesting in front of their business? There's so many sick people out there.

Frank X. Morris · #11 04-30-2002, 09:40 PM

Howdy Manny,
I'll tell you what I tell everyone else on how to get even. Don't shop there.

jsmith · #12 04-30-2002, 11:00 PM

yeah i know, it's a catch 22. i was just letting off steam. i'm still probably gonna have them rotate and balance the wheels again in another 6000 miles, but i'm going to really hassle them about not using the impact wrench beforehand. after all, the michelin x's i got from them have an alleged 80,000 mile threadlife...

Mercedes Fred · #13 04-30-2002, 11:49 PM

costco: line up to enter, line up to pay, line up to leave. Must have i.d. badges. thats a shopping experience? Its got to be a front for some government agency.

Jim Anderson · #14 05-01-2002, 12:45 AM

Yiu could do what I've seen done at my local Costco, fill a cart with expensive frozen stuff and leave it.

Kuan · #15 05-01-2002, 07:10 AM

They did the same thing to me. I went to the dealer, informed them of the problem, got an estimate, presented it to Costco and their insurance paid for it.

Kuan