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Thinking of Cancelling Order - Audi S-Line


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To say that I am p****D Off in a big way is an understatement. SAUER0421.GIF

In short –

Car Ordered 07 April with delivery “By June”

No Receipt for deposit, no call back (as promised) to confirm delivery, in fact – absolutely nothing at all: No letter from dealership welcoming me as a customer, no written confirmation of order (only have yellow carbon copy of form) and certainly no telephone calls....

Emailed dealers and received mail back saying delivery “By last weekend in May”

With disabled fiancé (Hence DSG is the ONLY option we have) I need to spend a few days with her getting used to the car. Last Saturday I visited again and told ABSOLUTELY this Saturday at the latest as car was “On Ship” but a chance that we would have it Thursday (Yesterday). On that basis I took Wednesday – Friday off work.

Early part of the week and STILL heard nothing so went in on Wednesday and told “Still on course for Saturday, may even be Friday”

Today at 14:30 I went in again to be told “Your car is in the UK and will be with us something next week”

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Blown gasket (me) Brown trousers (salesman) and seriously considering cancelling order (I have serious reservations about dealership as very bad experiences over service with another "Premium" Marque they sell). I am supposed to be getting a call tomorrow to tell me when I can collect, but to be honest, it is now more convenient for me to wait till mid – end June. In that case, and on a point of principle, I COULD cancel as all along they have known “Time was of the Essence” and £1k is nothing compared to the wasted time and frustration of this weekend!

This is the second Audi we have had but the worst customer service I think I have EVER received.

Any ideas who I can complain to? (As I have "Previous" with the dealership group, I think Audi UK is probably my best bet? Any ideas and what would be reasonable to expect by way of "Apology"???

Bloody furious..........!

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Similar thing happened to me a few years back. A letter to the Head of Audi UK (was Kevin Rose at the time but not sure if he is still there) and I got a free service in the end. I doubt they would let you cancel on the basis of a day or so late tbh.

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Its not just a question of "pain" in waiting - My fiance is petrified of driving a new car, especially as she is slightly disabled and is certainly not used to the DSG box. I need a few free days to get her used to it - especially as she will be the main driver (I work in the City).

Also, the order was placed on the basis that delivery would be no later than "...The last weekend in May". - Clear breach and as I made time of the essence enough for me to rescind the contract AND get my deposit back.

Just had a call this morning telling me that they can deliver on Wednesday. Oh yes? Where to? MADRID?? which is where I will be and why I needed the car this weekend all along (a fact they have known about since the order).

I give up. I wonder if Custoemr service at BMW is any better.....

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I can see why you are annoyed but the small print on the order form probably mentions that delivery is estimated and not guarenteed. Unfortunately this is the way with new cars I don't think any of the (many) I have bought over the last 8 years have ever arrived when the dealer said they would when I placed the order.

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Ok. Ask to speak to the sales manager or dealer principle.

But you need to decide what you want. Clearly they cant get the car any sooner, but how about they loan you a DSG of some sort. Explain they have failed to meet the contarctual terms of the deal and if they wont loan you a similar car you will not expect the car and have your deposit back (you are entitled to have it back).

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[ QUOTE ]

I can see why you are annoyed but the small print on the order form probably mentions that delivery is estimated and not guarenteed. Unfortunately this is the way with new cars I don't think any of the (many) I have bought over the last 8 years have ever arrived when the dealer said they would when I placed the order.

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Actually, I am a lawyer the_finger.gif and the order was placed via the telephone on the 4th April and a £1,000 deposit taken. It was during THIS conversation that the delivery dates were agreed. I only received the order form some three days later on the 7th and therefore any terms and conditions were absolutely not included in my verbal contract! smirk.gif

I realise that delivery dates can be approximate, but there is simply no excuse whatsoever for this extremly poor service. I cannot physically take delivery of the car for at least another 2 weeks. For my convenience it would be better to wait till the end of June. If I have to wait that long, then another month or so and a new registration will be to my advantage....Perhaps even with the 2008 spec car in production by then (Although granted, changes are very slight and not worth worrying about).

I have emailed the dealer this morning and am yet again very surprised that they have not responded to my complaint (I know they are in today as I spoke with him this morning and told him an email was being sent as we spoke).

What I REALLY want is the recognition as a valued client I feel the purchase of a £30k car deserves AND the confidence that all my other dealings with this shoddy outfit (Caffyns) will be handled professionally. Compensation, while nice, will not give me the peace of mind I would like.

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[ QUOTE ]

What I REALLY want is the recognition as a valued client I feel the purchase of a £30k car deserves

[/ QUOTE ]

yelrotflmao.gif

Sorry but this comment in relation to Audi dealers is bound to raise at least a smile. To them it'll be a bread and butter order and unfortunately it's more the norm to be treated as such rather than a valued client. crazy.gif

So as a lawyer where do you think you stand? What would make you happy?

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Scotty - I am rather surprised as surely "Bread and Butter" orders are the lifeblood of a dealership and without them they wont survive to be able to sell the top models.

In any event, £30K is a long way off the bottom of the range and if this is indicative of the way "Normal" clients are treated then I shall look to another marque rather quickly as I dont think Audi (or this dealership in particular) will be top dog very long.

If I buy a £1,000 laptop I get better service than this, indeed, if I spend £50 on an order in Comet I get called to let me know when delivery will be and if that is convenient.

Where do I stand? As I said above, the terms and conditions were not incorporated into my contract - My deposit was paid by credit card "Customer Not present" (i.e. on the telephone) on 4 April. That is the date the contract was concluded. The terms and conditions were not given to me until 7th April. They cannot possibly be incorporated and so yes, I have every potential to cancel and recover the deposit.

Do I want to? Not really, but I have said above what will make me happy and yet you seem to think that this is neigh on impossible. If it is then I pity Audi and the hundreds of "Normal" clients that may spend £30k on a car for their missus. (Yes, it is for her, primarily, as I work in London. I only need a car at weekends) Perhaps with a decent bonus I would possibly be interested in a Manual performance car purely for my own use at weekends - something that is my ambition and perhaps the RS4. Is that still a "Bread and Butter" order? Do I get better service with that purchase? If so, why? And in that case, do I want to use a dealership (Or marque) that has no respect for my previous custom??? Where is the line drawn between "Normal bread and Butter" and "Valued client"? Surely the profit margin (in percentage terms) is the same and therefore each sale worth the same in terms of percentage profit???

Unfortunately, I have been left feeling that I have been treated by a company that considers itself above the norms of customer service and they have forgotten I really do have a choice.....

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[ QUOTE ]

In any event, £30K is a long way off the bottom of the range

[/ QUOTE ]

This has f*ck all to do with anything. You should get the same quality of service regardless of whether you are buying a 5k used A2 or a £100k R8.

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First of all "don't shoot the messenger". wink.gif

I 100% agree that ever buyer should be treated with the same level of professionalism.....BUT... just check out the JD Power/Autoexpress/Top Gear surveys etc and you'll see that many people don't get the service we should from Audi. I agree that it's wrong but this is what seems a common experience.

Having said that (and without trying to defend this poor performing dealer), £30k at Audi probably is around the average sale price. I'd expect you'd have to spend at least 50% more for them to raise their eye brows. This is actually why some people aren't ordering the new R8. It maybe a great car but you have to deal with Audi franchises. I'd love Audi to kick them all up the arse and then they could really take the UK by storm but with their sales growing year on year I think they're not having to try too hard. I believe at some point will cause them issues as once you've pissed everyone off then there's no one left to sell to! At the moment unfortunately this is how it seems to be.

I'm fortunate that my dealer is quite good. Unfortunately they wouldn't do the deal I was after despite written quotes from others dealers (either for my TT or S4) but for normal service they seem fine.

You'll see many comments on forums about Audi dealers. They really seem to vary from the very good (rare) to the very poor (more common).

[ QUOTE ]

I have said above what will make me happy and yet you seem to think that this is neigh on impossible.

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It might be possible but I think you will have to rant and rave to get the attention.

I 100% agree with your feelings. It's unfortunately just not what you can normally expect from Audi. This is where Lexus are king.

Good luck with it. I hope you can turn Audi around as it's obviously the car you want. If you can't then it'd be good to here of someone telling them where to shove their car. This sort of feedback can only help them focus on the issues they have. 169144-ok.gif

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How is cancelling the order going to make a point though?

The dealer gets to keep your grand, plus, can flog the car on to someone who isn't willing to wait, hence beaiting the competition! 'tis a win win situation from the dealer if you cancel, and a waste of 1k, which is rather a lot of money for *you* to throw away just because you're not happy with something someone else has done.

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Deposit would be repayed as dealer in breach and T&C's not incorporated into contract (hence, no right of dealer to keep deposit).

As I say, I cant pick up the car for a few weeks now so we will see what transpires.......

Just blooday annoyed at a wasted weekend and time taken off work in expectation that a "technologically advanced" company would know when a car had arrived in the UK

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[ QUOTE ]

Deposit would be repayed as dealer in breach and T&C's not incorporated into contract (hence, no right of dealer to keep deposit).

As I say, I cant pick up the car for a few weeks now so we will see what transpires.......

Just blooday annoyed at a wasted weekend and time taken off work in expectation that a "technologically advanced" company would know when a car had arrived in the UK

[/ QUOTE ]

Is the contract in writing and signed. If not, they will just say the delivery date was an estimate. Sorry for the position you are in, but, if you don't have a signed contract (unless you have a tape of the call stating that it is a term of the deal that the car is delivered....) you're not going to get anywhere.

As for the 30K, yep, I'd agree with others that it's a normal sale to Audi.

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Sorry for any confusion caused by my post about the new A4. At £30k I assummed it was an A4. I've just noticed from an earlier post of your's it's actually an A3 that you've ordered.

It must have a nice spec. What are you having on it?

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In fact forget that as well as I've just noticed this list :

Exclusive leather in Black / Silver and Black styling pack ("Optiks"??), Bose, Cruise, Light & Rain, FCAR, Folding Mirros, Dimming Rear View, Xenons (Adaptive), wheels.

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Yes, it is an A3 S-Line, and I think I pretty much had everything on offer...The only things I didnt spec were the Hill-Hold, Sat Nav (Going for a retro-fit RNS-E), Rear Parking Sensors and I forgot the telephone prep. Otherwise, the car is fully loaded!

If the missus was not disabled and restricted to an Auto I would most certainly have opted for the S3. As it is I kitted this one out the best I could for her.

Her disability is also the reason I am so bloody angry with the dealers - I NEED a couple of days to get her used to it and the DSG box, she will be nervous enough as it is with a new car and I want be sure she is able to get comfortable with it.

This weekend (and the extra three days I took off) would have been ideal and as I am away next week delivery cannot be for a while yet.

Had they been BOTHERED to have called me with an update other arrangements could have been made.

Not too much to ask is it????

Scotty - was not "Shooting the Messenger" but just annoyed that we still have this bias over who spends the most....

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[ QUOTE ]

Is the contract in writing and signed. If not, they will just say the delivery date was an estimate. Sorry for the position you are in, but, if you don't have a signed contract (unless you have a tape of the call stating that it is a term of the deal that the car is delivered....) you're not going to get anywhere.

As for the 30K, yep, I'd agree with others that it's a normal sale to Audi.

[/ QUOTE ]

You certainly dont need a contract in writing and signed for it to be upheld in a UK court - I can assure you of that. And please remember, in the UK we now have a hell of a lot of consumer protection with the courts taking a paticular dislike to the Motor dealers for some strange reason.......... wink.gif

In fact, the order form (contract) gives me far more power as it proves that the terms (including those over delayed delivery) were not incorporated into my contract, it is simply impossible. Contract concluded 04/04 by telephone with deposit charged to my card that day - Order form (with conditions and clause referring to delayed delivery) signed on 07/04. You can't insert clauses retrospectivly as the agreement was already in existence.

Just as icing on the cake, 2 emails from dealer stating that build week was 3rd week in May with delivery by last weekend in May....

Anyway, would like to say thanks for letting me get it off my chest and would just say that I do feel that nobody deserves to be treated any differently to any other customer, regardless of the value of the order.

Cant say it is Audi either, our current A3 was purchased 2nd hand (ex demonstrator) from Lind Group (Crawley Audi) and they gave excellent service. Problem is they are 50 miles away with this mob (Eastbourne Audi) less than 1 mile.

Still, I will know next time......especially if I decide to buy a car that is not "...a normal sale" smirk.gif

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[ QUOTE ]

It wont take that much getting used to IMO - if you leave the box in "D" then it can be driven in the same way as a normal auto 169144-ok.gif

You wouldnt even need to use the paddles 169144-ok.gif

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Not so much the Auto box - We have Tiptronic now, but more a case of her nerves and confidence....as well as a slight increase in BHP and the small matter of a turbo ROLLEY~14.GIF

Her problem is she had a spinal cord tumour going into her brainstem - yes, she is bloody lucky to be alive, let alone up and about driving - and she has been left with a loss of feeling that means she needs to take great care.

The time to get used to the car is simply to build her confidence really, she just wont even consider picking the car up herself and then driving it straight away without "practice" especially as she needs it for work.

BTW - Talking to a relative who has just purchased a Renault - he said the amount of contact from them was excellent, even to the point of being annoying!!!! (I suppose the dealers can never win...)

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well my brother works for BMW and i have been stood in their dealership a lot and have never seen an unhapp customer but. with my brother selling quite a few cars it can be difficult for him to remember who hes contacted but i know of him having one or two customers on his msn friends list so when he comes home he can sit down and talk to anyone this is his personal technique and if i was buying a 30K car i would expect some sort of progress report especially as you had stated the imortance of the date.

good luck mate

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