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DivadElrac

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  1. As the original poster of this thread, I'd be the last person to be standing up for Junction 17 Cars (or any other motor dealer), but the idea of adding what initially seems like a large markup (or 'uplift') to a car seems like standard motor trade practice. The fact that they may buy a car from and/or sell it to a forum member is irrelevant. They buy a car and pay the seller, so they are immediately out of pocket, until the car sells, which can sometimes be months, so there is an interest or financing cost. During that period they have to pay showroom or storage costs, salesperson salaries, possibly a service, probably an MOT, maybe tyres, fuel for test drives for potential buyers and tire-kickers alike. I think it's rare for them to not have to do anything to a car. When they sell the car, the buyer may haggle (I certainly did) and not pay the price listed. In addition a trader has to include a warranty which costs them. Then the sales person will receive commission. Whatever amount is left over is their gross profit (or in some cases it might be a loss). This figure is then reduced further by a contribution to the firm's overheads. I believe in many cases a dealer would be happy to make just a few hundred pounds profit on a deal. Sure, in some cases a company might get a quick sale at a high price, but this is probably offset by the cars that sit in the showroom for months, or are bought at a lower price by a well informed buyer. So, a question to ILU ... How would you respond to people who suggested that your fees were too high? You'd probably explain the investment you'd made in your skill set, your other costs, and ultimately maybe reduce your rate, or suggest that they look elsewhere. It's the same with car dealers. They're not evil, but they are businesses that expect to make a profit. Just out of interest, if a dealer bought a car for say £10,000, what do you feel would be a fair selling price for the car, and what would be a fair profit for them, (allowing for the other costs that I and other posters have mentioned)?
  2. Follow up to my earlier post where I mentioned that the sales manager was going to call me back on 25th March - he didn't. I've had no contact from Junction 17 Cars apart from a generic sales letter offering to sell my car. Err, no thanks. I recently posted a review of the car and buying experience on parkers. If you'd like to read it it's here: http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/owners-reviews/nissan/350z/roadster-2005/review/20150523094052
  3. As a follow up to the post by David Williams, I had a phone call on Monday from the Sales Manager at Junction 17 Cars in Peterborough (Jamie Dyos). He told me that the directors were aware of the article and had asked him to investigate. I gave him a brief summary of events and he said that he would look into it and call me back on Wednesday 25th. (He didn't). I'll keep you updated how things progress from here. I would also like to comment on the emails that David Williams received from the 'Customer Care Team' at Junction 17 Cars. Firstly, to refer to this as a 'malicious forum' is ridiculous and childish. I have not personally seen any posts that could be considered malicious, and my own review is simply a statement of my experiences with this company, and I stand by it 100%. I didn't receive "not so great service" - I received no service at all. Am I really the only person on this forum who bought a car from them and wasn't happy with them? It seems unlikely to me. Notwithstanding that, they should really be addressing the issues I've raised rather than diverting attention to other reviews. If you did buy a car from them and wrote a review here please add a comment so that their statement can be refuted if appropriate. A couple of points in their email ... "We have a complaints procedure too - and deal with everything properly." - Not in my experience. "We prepare our cars to a very high standard both mechanically and cosmetically and as stated before if a discrepancy arises we always go out of our way to resolve them." - Not in my experience. My review in no way bad mouths them. It is just an accurate account of my experiences. As Ekona points out they are doing this to themselves by attacking rather than investigating and resolving. It makes me wonder if they actually read my review with an open mind - "did we screw up here?", or just threw the rattle out of the pram. It's interesting that they're not refuting any of the points in my original review. Finally, for the benefit of the Junction 17 Cars 'Customer Care Team' (and ANY business that deals with customers) here is my guide to Customer Service 101 ... 1. If you make a mistake or screw up (as every business does), this is an opportunity to turn an unhappy customer into a raving fan (and people love to hear of a SNAFU that was amicably resolved). 2. If a customer sends you an email, then reply. 3. If a customer sends you a letter, then reply. 4. If a customer sends you a recorded delivery letter, then this should be a warning that the issues should be addressed, and escalated if not resolved in the near term. It costs extra to use recorded delivery so don't take it lightly. If the customer trusted you then they would have used normal post. 5. If a customer sends you a second recorded delivery letter, and you ignored the previous one, then this absolutely is a call to action. 6. If you promise to call the customer back, then do so. 7. The sooner you respond to a problem, the greater the chance of resolving it before it escalates. 8. Admitting that you were wrong is a much better strategy than attacking anyone who takes the time to point out your failings. 9. Don't assume that all unhappy customers write a review. It takes a lot of work to do so, and most people can't be bothered. 10. A follow up call to customers a few months after purchase would give you accurate information as to whether you've provided good service, and give you a chance to resolve any problems before they become more serious. (Hmmm - this might be an interesting topic for a new thread - "What are the basics of customer service that dealers ignore?")
  4. Thanks to all the posters who added comments and good wishes. I'm sure that many of Junction 17's customers are happy with their purchase and after sales service, but it seems from comments and posts here that I'm not alone in being disappointed with them. I understand that mistakes happen and every business 'drops the ball' from time to time, but for me, the real measure of a company is how they resolve the problems and whether they do what it takes to make a happy customer. At this, unfortunately, they failed miserably. I had originally hoped to write a positive review for Jn 17 (and actually mentioned this to them in correspondence) but it seems they don't care about reviews either! It's not my intention to cost them sales, but I can see that this could happen as more people read critical reviews. For the sake of a few hundred pounds (well covered by their profit, I'm sure) they could have had a happy customer who would have praised their efforts, but sadly that didn't happen. I also posted a shorter review on Google as I suspect that will get seen more than reviews in the forums. I'd encourage others to add Google reviews too (whether good or bad) so that prospective customers know what to expect from a dealer. Oh, and I also posted this review on 911uk dot com, as before the 350Z I was a 911 owner for 4 years. If anyone's interested I could write a comparison of the two at some point.
  5. In June 2014 I bought a Nissan 350Z from Junction 17 Cars in Peterborough. This is my review ... The Good The have an impressive showroom filled with a large variety of very desirable cars, including Porsche, Mercedes, Lotus, and several 350Z's. There was even a Lamborghini. Friendly, professional seeming staff. I was told that the car that I was interested in had just arrived and hadn't yet been prepared for sale, but it would be sold in the same condition as the other cars in the showroom. After a test drive, I went round the car with the salesman, Jamie Lunnis, and pointed out the items that needed attention. These included some marks on the bumper that they agreed to respray, a tear and several marks on the hood, and the seats needing treated. Jamie happily agreed that all of these would be dealt with pre-sale, so on this basis we negotiated a deal, including delivery of the car to my home near Glasgow. With hindsight, their willingness to deal with everything I pointed out should have been a warning sign, but in the excitement of buying a 350Z it's easy to lose sight of this. I should at least have detailed everything on a sheet of paper and asked them to sign it. The Bad Fast forward a week or so, and the car was delivered. On checking it over, I noticed that they hadn't repaired the tear in the roof and had only put a small rubber seal over one of the holes in the roof. The seats had not been treated, and they'd somehow managed to scratch the rear bumper that they'd newly painted. I wasn't happy but the delivery driver called Junction 17 cars and I spoke to Jamie. He stated that if I had the repairs done locally then they would cover the cost. On this basis I paid the balance and took delivery of the car. A few days later the car would not start, so I had to call out the RAC. They quickly diagnosed the problem as being that the battery connections were loose. They tightened the connections and the car started. However, the RAC guy also pointed out that the battery was not secure and that the brackets to hold it were just lying beside it. He mentioned that this would be an MOT failure - which is strange because Junction 17 had sold the car with a brand new MOT. I was also told that it was not the correct battery for the car, which is why it wasn't secured, since the mounting brackets didn't fit. There aren't many places near me that repair roofs, but I did manage to find a local company and took the car to them. Their advice was that due to the labour involved in removing and refitting the roof, it was actually more cost effective to replace the roof rather than repair it. The Ugly At this point I tried to call Jamie but he was never available to take my calls. So, I sent an email but got no reply. So, I sent a recorded delivery letter but got no reply. Then I phoned and asked for the name of the Managing Director. At this point I was put through to the General Manager Neil Tetherton who agreed to look into it and call me back. Neil did call me back, and we had a long discussion - his view was they had only agreed to very minor fixes and denied that they were going to repair the tear in the roof (which was the most severe issue that I'd pointed out pre-sale, and without which I would not have bought the car). We ended the conversation with Neil stating that he would speak to the delivery driver and then call me back. I didn't hear anything back for several months, so eventually sent another recorded delivery letter with a proposed solution to them. Now this may not come as a surprise to you, but they didn't reply! So the outcome is that I've given up all hope of getting any after sales service from Junction 17 cars. In order to take the car to the standard that they'd agreed will probably cost me about £1000 (it would have cost them far far less). In addition it has (and will) cost me several days of my time to arrange the repairs and drop off and collect the car at various repairers. It seems to me that their approach is to agree to anything you ask for and then just make a token effort at actually doing it. I was at a disadvantage because I'm several hundred miles from their showroom - If I'd been local then I would not have accepted the car in the condition they supplied it. I really wish that I'd used my phone to record a video of the pre-sale walk round of the car. I'm also rather shocked at the apparent mechanical incompetence in supplying a car with the wrong battery, unsecured, and with untightened connections. Now you'll understand my comment above about "professional seeming staff". They did seem professional, but sadly this is not the case. It's amazing to me that a company can apparently be successful while providing this level of support and virtually non-existent after sales service. I wish I'd researched the company before I visited them, as I've seen several critical reviews of them on various forums. Hopefully this story will prevent other customers being treated as I was. David Carle
  6. I've used a Sony adaptor in the past and have been quite surprised by the sound quality. It's never going to match CD of course, but it is perfectly usable. I'd advise experimenting with the volume level on the device - it might sound better at 90% volume than 100%. Also avoid the cheapo unbranded adaptors. From memory, the Sony was about £16 on Amazon. You could also consider using a bluetooth to FM transmitter to stream music from your phone and also provide hands free control of your phone. I have the GOgroove FlexSMART X2 (about £48 from Amazon) and would recommend it. Not the cheapest, but you do seem to get what you pay for with these devices (and the cassette adaptors too).
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