David Chevrolet Buick

The following is a (very long) letter I have sent to the The following is a (very long) letter I have sent to the BBB regarding this company. DO NOT use this company! Go to any other dealership! To Who The following is a (very long) letter I have sent to the BBB regarding this company. DO NOT use this company! Go to any other dealership! To Whom It May Concern, I recently filed a complaint with your service regarding David Chevrolet in Niagara Falls. There was not enough space on the form to write out the entire issue. I have had more than one issue with this company and I am currently at my wits end with them. I purchased a 2007 Pontiac G6 in February of 2007. The following summer, I recommended to my cousin that she replace her Saturn, which we felt was unsafe at the time for her to travel with her children, with a Chevrolet Cobalt. I co-signed for this vehicle through GMAC financing, and the Pontiac G6 was financed through my credit union. Since I purchased the car, I have had three major issues occur. The first was when my wheels were making this terrible noise. My father suggested that it may be the wheel bearings on the vehicle and to call the dealership to have them look at it, since the wheel bearings were covered under the 5 year, 100,000 mile warranty. They suggested that my tires were the issue and that there was nothing wrong with the wheel bearings. They did not charge us for the diagnostic testing (around $90.00) because they could not find out what was wrong with the vehicle. So, we replaced the tires, which were starting to wear down, but were not completely at the point which they needed to be replaced. The noise did not stop. We checked the brakes, they were fine. I brought the car to my mechanic, Dan Lum, and he took the wheels off and had a look. It was the wheel bearings! One was completely worn out. There goes the cost of tires, (around $200.00) and $584.00 for the wheel bearings and the labor. Which should have been covered. I brought the wheel bearings back to the dealership and had a conversation with a gentleman whose name fails me at the moment, and showed him. He said that they should not have done that. No offer to make it right. No apology. Last year, I was driving the vehicle down Ward Road, which is a very busy street in Wheatfield/ Sanborn. The car stopped. It would start, but not go. I finally got it to go and pulled into my parents driveway, which is on a street off of Ward Road. We bring the car to the dealership and it is the Catalytic Converter. Which was covered under the warranty. Apparantly this was an ongoing problem with this kind of vehicle and they have been replacing them all over the place. The converter is located too close to the exhaust system on the vehicle and essentially gets "cooked". This past Saturday, I am leaving my home and I cannot turn the wheel of my vehicle. Then the power steering indicator comes on. I turn the vehicle off, run into the house and tell my boyfriend. He comes back out and the vehicle starts and runs just fine. I look like a raving lunatic at this point. The vehicle continued to do this and today we got it fixed. Ken Medeiros from David Chevrolet contacted General Motors regarding the issue, and they authorized him to give me the part for free. But I would have to pay for the labor. $236.52. The service manager took off the diagnostic fee. (Diagnoses involves hooking a machine up to the cars computer and it tells them what is wrong with the vehicle) I ask if they can give me the steering column so that I could bring it to my mechanic, and they reply no. Why? No answer. If I had used my preferred mechanic, It would have cost more than $60.00 less, had they just given me the part. I commented on the wheel bearing issue, and they had no record of it in their system. Not that I had been there, not that the diagnostic fee was waived, nothing. How is this possible? So, now I am requesting that the fee be refunded to me of $236.52 because I ended up having to pay for parts and service that should have been covered under the warranty originally for the wheel bearings. Really, I should be asking for $584.00 back because that was what should have been covered, but that money is long gone. I called the General Motors Customer Service line and they advised that they would look into it and have an answer for me this Friday. My complaint number is 71-935416479 through them. They advised me that because I had no service record through the dealership that they would not offer any other "Goodwill" assistance. I do not have a service record through the dealership for things that I paid for because I no longer take my vehicle to them after the wheel bearing issue. Evidently, free services performed do not count towards my service record, even though they were three major issues, two of which put my life in jeopardy. They explained that I could not take the part to my normal mechanic because then the work would not be warrantied. I asked if I could decline the warranty. The ladies who I spoke with, Van, and then Dawn said no. I must really trust my mechanic if I do not expect a warranty from him on the work he does. Maybe this is because he does not add a hundred dollars to the price of his parts or charge 30% more for his labor. Or charge me for the time it takes to check the oil and windshield fluid. Paying $16,918 dollars for a car and co-signing for another $15,000+ loan and referring many other people to use this business count nothing towards the issue that I am having, save a free part from General Motors that supposedly costs $359.00 (You can buy it from General Motors direct for $208.72). I may add, that the $236 includes a vehicle inspection, which I did not ask for. So 2.4 hours in labor includes some frivolity of filling oil and windshield washer fluid, and checking brake fluid, coolant, fuel, engine issues, shocks and struts etc. I would assume that the inspection takes about an hour. Thats a little over $90.00 plus tax that I did not have to spend. I do not have a service record through this dealership because I am perfectly capable of changing oil and oil filters, rotating tires, changing brakes, and filling fluids on my own. Tire mounting is done through my mechanic, because he is much, much cheaper hourly than the dealership. They have a few other complaints listed online, 7 through your company and a few others through Edmund's, including overcharging and price gouging, putting people's lives in danger etc. One patron's car even caught fire because they did not do a thorough job when fixing their vehicle. When I wished to ask about these other issues when I returned to retrieve my vehicle, Mr. Medeiros had gone home for the day. I also would really like to know why there is no record for the diagnostic procedure that was done on my vehicle for the wheel bearing issue. Was it because it was supposed to be covered under warranty? Was it deleted so that they could say that I never brought it to their attention and paid for it out of pocket, even though I should not have? I apologize for the email being so long, following are bulleted points for easier review. * Car purchased in 2007. Along with another vehicle, totalling almost $32,000 * Wheel bearing issue in 2008 Supposed to be covered under warranty, was not, no record in dealership's system. * Paid almost $600.00 to have wheel bearings fixed. * Catalytic converter issue. Covered under warranty. * Power steering issue. Steering column replaced. Parts free, labor $236.52. Labor including hour long inspection (not requested) charged. * No further compensation given because no record of service in system. * Case # with General Motors 71-935-416-479. * Power steering column priced $359.00 from dealership. Found online through General Motors for $208.72. Was free, but they still added over $100.00 to their price to show the "deal" I was getting. * Column requested to be given to my mechanic for work, denied. Costing at least $60.00 more in labor. * No answer for why wheel bearings were not covered and not "discovered" to be in non-working order. * Ken Medeiros left property before I was able to pick up my vehicle. I still have questions for him. Thank you so very much for your time, Sincerely, Kristina M Baird More

Went in to have lighter installed. Checked on $ of oil change. They were cheaper than my mech. While car was in they added washer fluid and air to tires; no charge. Went to buy part and compare $ of labor change. They were cheaper than my mech. While car was in they added washer fluid and air to tires; no charge. Went to buy part and compare $ of labor to my mech. Car had gone out of warranty on time but not miles. They offered to do the job @ no charge! Job is labor intensive, and I was a walk in, yet they agreed to do it today. I'm sold. They have earned my loyal business, and the right to be visited by anyone who is within a 50 mi radius. It's people like this which give car dealers an honorable reputation, instead of just being "Huge" More