Community Honda Lafayette

I’ve had 2 recent service dept visits and dealt with Blake Chauvin. The 1st was to get a diagnosis for a clunking metal-on-metal noise coming from the suspension. The estimated cost was $1100 to replace Blake Chauvin. The 1st was to get a diagnosis for a clunking metal-on-metal noise coming from the suspension. The estimated cost was $1100 to replace the rear struts. I brought the car to an independent shop and found that the actual noise was coming from the sway bark links at a cost of $250. The other shop said that one of the struts was indeed bad but could wait. If I had let them replace the struts, it wouldn’t have corrected the clunking noise. Misdiagnosed! I let Blake know about this and he didn’t seem to care a bit. Community had been recommending a front brake job and I was about to take a road trip into northeaster U.S. and knew I’d be driving through mountainous areas so I brought it to them for the job. When I picked the car up, it was making a grinding noise every time I applied the brakes, but I didn’t have to time to leave it with them before the trip. We had to endure the that grinding noise for 4,000 miles on the road trip and when I returned and brought it back to Honda they said that they couldn’t find a problem. I returned to Honda to ride along with Blake to show him the noise I was talking about. He said he really couldn’t hear anything. So, I asked to have the shop foreman ride with me and he heard it immediately. He told me that Blake was telling him that the problem was some kind of clunking noise even though that was not what I brought it in for. They kept the car for 3 more hours and replaced the front brake rotors and that solved the problem. Luckily, they didn’t try to charge me. So, I brought my car in for the original work, then back for another full day just for a brake job which is unacceptable. I can only say that Blake is utterly incompetent at his job and seems to know very little about cars. If you go there for service and get assigned to Blake, ask for another service writer. More

So, let’s start from the beginning. A few weeks ago, I took my vehicle to Community Honda to get repairs done. I had been dealing with them for years, since before, when they were Moss A few weeks ago, I took my vehicle to Community Honda to get repairs done. I had been dealing with them for years, since before, when they were Moss Honda. I always thought I could trust them. But things have changed. Since the pandemic, chip shortage, and lack of sales, the dealership needs to make their money somehow. Even if that means overcharging for services, massive markups, on even the most basic of vehicles, or just ripping people off on interest rates. I am here to talk about being overcharged on Services on my 2019 Honda Accord. This here was an insurance claim through comprehensive. Both the dealership as well as friends who work at different Honda dealerships around the country, they stated that the entire fuel system did not need to be replaced. It would only be to drop the tank, flush the lines and injectors, and change the spark plugs. For that, Community Honda charged me $1,292. In that price was roughly 8 hours of labor and $175 in parts. The rest was fuel, and miscellaneous. I got a text at 1:30 PM that they just started working on my car and told me they would need my car overnight. But, at 4:30 PM I received another text saying that my car was ready to be picked up. That was my first red flag. Being charged for 8 hours of labor and being told they would have my car overnight, and less than 3 hours later, my car is finished. I was surprised, and went to pick up my car and paid the cost of repair. I drove the car home, but on the way, less than 7 miles away, the car died and wouldn’t restart. I was having the same symptoms as I did on Sunday, after having water in my fuel. I open my hood, and notice a couple things. All hoses behind the engine are not clipped into place, and the battery terminal is very loose. So they obviously rushed through a process that should have taken 8 hours by their book. I immediately called the dealership and spoke to Charity, my advisor, and she didn’t even say sorry. She just told me, to just bring it back and they will fix it. I had to get a tow truck for the second time in 3 days. When I got it back that evening, I dropped it off. I showed up the next morning and spoke to the advisor and she stated that the car was taken for a test drive to make sure it was running fine. When I looked at my receipt, the “In” mileage was the exact same as my “Out” mileage. So the car never left the lot, and if it did at that point it maybe went a quarter of a mile. That morning they brought the car in the shop and spent more time trying to figure out what they may have done, than they did the day before fixing the issue. After about 5 hours, they told me I need to change my entire fuel system. I was informed that the Low Pressure fuel pump needed to be replaced, but also the high pressure may be needed. So, another $1400 would have to be paid. When I heard this, I reached out to another shop in town and inquired about the price to do the same thing that Honda charged me for at first. To flush the lines, injectors, drop and clean the tank, and change the plugs, I was quoted $500-550, and was told it was about a 3-3.5 hour job. So, Honda not only charged me for 8 hours when it was not an 8 hour job, but they also charged me $48 per spark plug, which are right about $19 at the dealership. I went to sit down to think about to what to do next, and a few people in the waiting area recognized me fro my post on Facebook and asked me what happened. I told them that Honda had said they fixed my car, but then the car broke down on the way home and some things were not put back together properly. A service advisor overheard me saying that and told the Service Manager Steve Mier. Steve walked out his office and asked if he could speak to me. His first question in his office was “Why are you still here?”, and I told him I will wait for my car. I said you guys fixed it yesterday in less than three hours so it should not take long. He then told me, “I don’t appreciate you telling people that we didn’t put your car together properly”. To which I said had you put it together properly and fixed my car right the first time, I wouldn’t be here potentially about to spend more money. After speaking to the other shop again during a brief call, I decided I no longer wanted to deal with Community Honda. I told my advisor that I would prefer to take my car elsewhere and immediately ordered a wrecker for the third time to fix my car. Honda was going to charge full price on the low pressure fuel pump of $532, and I just ordered it for $175. The other shop I am taking it to heard of the issues I was having and decided to help out. They are going to check all the work that Honda has done while still changing the parts that need to be changed. I spoke to my advisor and asked if I could receive a refund, and she said that the service was completed. I told her it was not because the car broke down less than 15 minutes from the dealership and had to be taken back and she stated that it’s still completed. I reached out to Honda of America to file a corporate complaint, but most times they can't really do much because most dealerships are independently owned or franchise. They still took my complaint, and are filing it because of the fact that not only did they rip me off, by charging me eight hours of labor on a three hour job that only took three hours, but they also overcharged me on parts that I easily could have bought directly from the dealership for less than half. On top of that, the fact that they said my vehicle was fixed, and I was driving home in the car died on me and will not restart, just think what would have happened if I were on the interstate, and my car would've died while driving and I would have been rear-ended. During the last pick up from the dealership to the new shop, one of the technicians walked out to talk to me, and told me what they had figured out, and one of my good friends is a master technician for Honda and Acura, and he told me exactly what needed to be done. I told the technician at Honda and he told me that my friend needs to go back to school. Another technician also told me that they never test drove my vehicle, they just started it and turned it off multiple times. While the car was sitting in the back being tested, another technician also stated to just clear the codes. I guess not necessarily fix the problem, but just clear it until it pops up again. They stated that my low pressure fuel pump which was originally under a recall previously, shorted out. To get my key back from the dealer, the only thing left to pay for was fuel for the second time, which was only $25. They decided not to charge me for the labor of the five hours they were trying to figure out what they did wrong. Which I would not have paid in the first place. Their previous service was not done correctly, therefore this should be part of the first service, but at the same time I was still charged for eight hours, they did eight hours of labor on it trying to figure out what they messed up after the first three hours. Community Honda technicians obviously pushed through this repair, did not take their time, and ended up with a few mistakes, as well as not putting the car together properly once they were complete. While they were testing out the vehicle in the back of the shop, another technician had told me directly while I was standing next to them, that they could smell fuel inside the cabin. They didn't know where it was coming from, so there may be a leak. All of this is something that the next shop is going to have to look into. Community Honda has since not reached out to me other than an automated email asking me to rate the service I received. Honda of America reached out to me and told me that a lot of dealerships are getting a bad rap, because they are overcharging on services and parts, to make up for their lost income due to the current situation. For some people, $1400 might not be a lot, but to me it's a good chunk of change. The fact that community Honda has chosen not to help me out even in the slightest, just so they can make their quota or so the advisor can make their commission, shows that they don't care about the customer and only care about themselves. While in the waiting area, another customer told me that they were charging $600 to change two wheel studs on their car, and they told the customer that they had to change the entire hub, which is not true. The studs are about $4 apiece. Then community Honda is practically charging $600 for about two hours of labor. They are adding extra cost by adding extra parts, then overcharging for those parts. I'm not the only one dealing with this problem. There are shops out there who understand the struggle that people are going through right now, and they choose to care more about the customer, which seems to be pretty rare nowadays. All I want at this point is for Honda to realize that they can’t screw over anyone that they want. Even after being a loyal Honda customer and enthusiast since I was a kid, I vow to never buy another Honda again. I was going to wait, and see if there’s anyway the American Honda would take care of the situation. Last week I heard that they were going to reach out to community Honda, and request that they refund me. But, on Wednesday I got a call stating that they are not going to refund me due to the fact that my repairs were approved. They were approved by the service manager. Even though it wasn’t repaired properly or at all. I actually went back to the dealership to pick up a part that I had ordered back in December, and one of the guys at the dealership came outside to admire my car, and one of the technicians who originally worked on my car in passing yelled out at me, why the xxxx is he here, because we obviously don’t know how to do our jobs. It’s one thing for them to think that way, but don’t chastise me verbally. It will only make things worse. Hence, here I am. Everyone just needs to be aware of the terrible management, service team, and obviously technicians that they have working at community Honda. They made me, a person that absolutely loved the brand, turn into a person that despises it. There is nothing more that American Honda can do at this point. So, if you end up working with them, good luck. More

Let me first say that I wanted to have a truly exceptional experience buying a car with Community Honda Lafayette. I mean, who wants to have an experience that they don’t enjoy when buying a car? exceptional experience buying a car with Community Honda Lafayette. I mean, who wants to have an experience that they don’t enjoy when buying a car? So, I went in with an open mind and wanted to enjoy what was going to take place. I made my appointment and requested to have a black car to view on the day I arrived. Upon arrival at my scheduled time, I was informed that the black car had been sold the previous night. Not really a big deal, I suppose, but it was somewhat bothersome that the vehicle was not available to view. It turned out that the car I was shown appealed to me much more than the black, which was a good thing. Subsequent to this, it all deteriorated and was not a pleasant experience. First Car When viewing and inspecting the car, I noticed a multitude of brake dust and other raised spots (e.g., black, brown, orange) that were seemingly inconsistent with a platinum pearl paint job. The top layer of these spots scratched off, but the color remained and appeared embedded into the clear coat or even deeper and stained the white, which made it look dingy and dirty. I was not told that the car would be cleaned. I had to apprise the sales staff of the condition of the car. They subsequently stated that they would take care of it and clean it. So, it appears that they would have let me drive away from the dealership having not informed me of the state of the car. Full disclosure was definitely not on display from start to finish in the entirety of the process. After being informed that they cleaned it, I noticed two substantial scratches on the back right, lower side panel above the wheel. I was told that it would be fixed; this amounted to touch up paint being applied. I stated that I was not taking it like that, as it was supposed to be a brand new car. Further, a substantial amount of noticeable spots remained after reportedly being cleaned. Sales staff indicated that I would be getting an entire new car. Second Car As soon as I walked up to the car, I noticed something on the bottom of the front bumper. This appeared to possibly be dirt. That was not the case. It was a gouge/deep scratch that looked as if the paint had been pushed away with force and caused an uneven, rough look to that piece of the bumper. I could definitely see underneath the paint and immediately informed the salesperson. Upon further inspection of the car, I noticed a substantial gouge/scratch on the edge of the hood that went beyond the clear coat and other layers of paint to the metal of the car. There were also two other spots where the metal was visible on the hood that I found and sent pictures of to the salesperson. I was informed that this would be fixed. It was discussed that the weather would have to be nice in order for this to be conducted. A day was scheduled for me to drop off the car. I dropped off my car and checked on the status a few times. Once told that my vehicle was ready, I looked it over and was immediately dissatisfied. The bumper scratches appeared to have been minimally attended to or touched as it remained rough/bumpy and a black/dark gray color was still visible beneath the paint. It was definitely not fully platinum pearl white. The main gouge on my hood was “touched up.” However, the blemish and unevenness are still noticeable. One spot on my hood appeared to have touch up paint on it, but the gray metal is still noticeable through the touch up. One of the spots appears to have been neglected altogether as the gray is not covered with anything and is just as visible as when I brought in my car. Overall, I purchased a new vehicle that appeared to have damage/defects that should not be present on a new vehicle. When supposedly fixed, it was definitely not in a new state. A touch up is not the same as a fix in my opinion. I was told that I asked for the touch up. I am sure that I would not agree to that as I did not think it was good enough for the first car that I refused to take that just had touch up paint on the scratches. I was told that a company was being used to fix the scratches and gouges. I wonder about that since all they did was use touch up paint, which is what was done on my first vehicle that never left Community Honda or had a company come in to look at it as far as I know. I expressed my displeasure with the salesperson, and he offered to have his manager explain it. However, I felt that course would be ineffectual as I have had multiple disappointing encounters and explanations that have not been satisfactory. My first main issue is the fact that this is supposed to be a brand new car with no noticeable blemishes in the paint. Honda reportedly conducts their own inspection and should have easily caught these issues as I did with barely a look. A second issue goes to the integrity of the paint. If the gouge is deep enough to see the metal of the hood, I am concerned about rust and further deterioration without the protection of paint and clear coat. Lastly, I truly wonder if any of the staff or sales team at Community Honda Lafayette would have taken my car in that condition when it was labeled as brand new. It appears that they just wanted me to suck it up and be satisfied with a mediocre, substandard touch up that is not equivalent to fixing it as it should be. There is no consistency with the paint in those spots, and it just does not look new. Other Issues When initially discussing payments and pricing for the car, I was told that Honda could not give me an estimate as that is a Honda policy to not provide that information. So, I basically could not get an estimate in writing to research and look over in order to make a fairly important decision. I had to take and accept their word, which did not suffice or hold either. As I left that day, the sales staff essentially promised/strongly suggested the following: I would be at or near my goal of a $300.00 note, my truck would get 4,000 to 4,500 for the trade, I would possibly not have to put any money down, and I would have a 60-month term at 1.9%. Everything stated above was not maintained when the written paperwork was presented to me. The note was substantially higher, the truck trade amounted to 3,000, and my term was 72-months at 2.9%. I don’t understand why that was presented, as I had firmly stated where I wanted to be with regard to a monthly note. I will not be making that mistake again. The sales staff and financial personnel just finagled the numbers to get to that $300.00 and adjusted everything else in a manner that negatively impacted me and positively benefited them. I literally had to fight and struggle and make repeated stances about the 300.00 per month in order to secure that amount. That should not have to be done when buying a car. It appeared that the sales staff just wanted me to be okay and accept what they first offered. My concerns and opinions and stance on my monthly amount seemed to be “heard” but not necessarily valued or considered as priority. Lastly, multiple individuals informed me that I had to rate my experience and salesperson with a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10 or he would fail the evaluation. The fact that this occurred while I was trying to make a major decision and buy a car was very distasteful. I also experienced a blow out on one of my tires at 1,400 miles. When I called and asked about what would be done, it was intimated that I would have to pay for it given I had not purchased the tire hazard warranty. However, Honda’s warranty book indicates that the manufacturer of the tire would replace it if the tire was deemed defective. Well, this occurred, but the service manager initially told me that I would have to call Goodyear and take care of it. I told him the book indicated the dealership calls the tire manufacturer, which he then agreed to take care of. There was also some haggling over how much I would have to pay for the tire, which was ultimately resolved. Just something else that was not an easy experience to rectify. Based on the above information and overall experience, I would not recommend Community Honda Lafayette to any individual in the market for a new vehicle. I also attempted to reach out to my salesperson and have not heard from him in over two weeks. I left two separate email messages on the website at Community Honda Lafayette expressing my concerns. The site indicates that an individual will be in touch, but I have yet to be contacted regarding my experience. I fully expect that this will not result in any resolution for me or for anything to change drastically with the manner in which the sales process proceeds henceforth at Community Honda Lafayette. It is ultimately a business, and the customer is a means to an end. The surface, jovial nature of the sales team works to a point, but that only goes so far in my book. I feel that they did not prove themselves in following up or addressing any of my concerns. I also feel that they disregarded what I saw as unacceptable for a “BRAND NEW” car. It seems they ultimately wrote me off and suggested with their comments and behavior that I should just be good with it and was likely blowing things out of proportion. That doesn’t work for me especially since the car was supposed to be “NEW.” I have a very bad taste in my mouth and DO NOT want to work with or return to this place of business for anything. I will likely take my car to other Honda dealerships for maintenance and any other issues. More

After 3 days of miss information my car was repaired in a short period of time on the 26 of May. Thank you Community Honda short period of time on the 26 of May. Thank you Community Honda More