I would have been hopping mad if a dealership put that kind of mileage on my car.
John, I don't have a hair-trigger temper but I do suffer the slow burn kind.
I found a local garage that does all my work. I would do it all myself, but some jobs aren't worth the back pain.
If I were you I would be having a word with the dealership.
Uncle Willie, one of the reasons I have A/C in the garage is to be able to do my own repairs. The air compressor, tools and welders are also there so I don't have to search for a good mechanic. Good mechanics don't last long in South Florida because the customers drive them away,
Loads of things to reply on Bob.
Dealerships also known as Stealerships. Not good.
Love planting grass, not much of a sod layer, but in the U.K. it’s a way to go.
Yours looks great, will be a lovely change once it all takes.
To me, part of the pleasure will be blending in old and new to an invisible level.
And most importantly, I have realised that so many jobs that used to be a couple of hours, now are much longer and certainly more painful during and free.
Not sure if I am getting older, developing arthritic symptoms or even if the side effects of the meds I started in October are beating me up.
Still, living with restrictions beats the alternative.
Hand Mixing some cement later today
Rian, maybe if I bought cars from Stealerships and traded them in when the warranty ran out I would have a higher opinion of them. Using them as my last resort is probably not the best approach. Perhaps they think I'm another clueless old man who knows nothing about my car.
I too love planting and nurturing grass. Unfortunately St. Augustine grass seed is not available for sale. I have to buy sod. The grass does produce seed heads and I harvested them years ago but never got them to sprout. All I can do is encourage the stuff to send out lots of runners.
At the end of the sod laying I didn't feel horrible but discovered my bicep didn't want to lift my fork all the way to my mouth. I am also having some new Arthur Itis issues. Knuckles are bigger, hurt more and don't bend like they used to. On the plus side I don't have hip or knee problems yet and my aching muscles go back to normal with a night or two of restorative sleep. Feeling better than a 75-year-old should.
Not all dealerships are crooked, but enough that you never want to trust any of them. Finding a good, honest mechanic is tough. I told my ex that if she found a good one, treat them really well. I've never seen sod cut like that. Where I live, the palettes are loaded with rolls of sod.
Kirk, I don't feel all dealerships are crooked but they learn they can take advantage of women and the elderly. We do so little driving the cars don't need a lot of service and most repairs are for age-related problems. Like I said, this part of Florida does not reward good mechanics. If they are honest, way too many customers try to screw them over. Too many "My son can get that part for half that price" and "I refuse to pay you $50 an hour" just because you rent in an expensive city.
Hi Bob, I feel your pain with dealership experience.
Great job on the sod install. You get a ton of work done! And yes it does take US a little longer to get things accomplished these days. Nothing wrong with rest stops to regain the energy.
Y'sguy, I am pleased it only took me one day to get the sod down.
Bob, that's disappointing to hear about the dealership. I would get the General Manager and Service Manager together for a pow-wow.
I refuse to go to larger dealerships at this point in my life. There is a small GM dealership in Holton, KS, that was/is amazing, I haven't been back in some time, but they even gave a repeat customer discount, and were straight dead honest about work that actually needed to be completed.
In my experience over the last decade, I have noticed more and more, that businesses are valuing their customers, less and less. Even in our smaller communities where I'm at, I've been treated like I'm wasting their time. Just blows my mind!
Marc, I feel like we get what we give and today's customers treat workers like **** for no reason. "I'm not leaving a tip because the steak was tough" means the server gets punished for shoddy work in the kitchen. "What do you mean, you haven't carried this item for three years and it looks like I ran it over with my car? I bought it here and I want my money back. The owner is a personal friend so wait until I tell him about you!!!" I was behind a guy at the airport who was yelling at the clerk because he wanted her to have the plane re-open the door. The more he screamed, the more polite the clerk got. Every time I was a little late I asked when the next flight would be and they always had the flight attendant hold the door for me. Word must have gotten around (I was Platinum) because they asked everyone on one flight to stay seated so I could run across the terminal to catch a flight they were holding for me.
Like most places, all the small dealerships around here have gone belly-up so I can choose either Mega Dealership or Group Dealership.
I definitely agree with Marc on the pow-wow. What if one of those 9 year old unsafe tires had blown 90 miles into that "test drive" and injured the mechanic..
This is grounds for a Super Senior Discount!
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Ric, you and Marc are on the right track. On the front page of the invoice there is an all caps note:
"CADILLAC MAY SURVEY YOU FOR FEEDBACK ON THIS SERVICE VISIT. THIS IS HOW CADILLAC EVALUATES OUR SERVICE PROVIDED TO YOU. IT IS OUR REPORT CARD, AND NOT MEANT TO JUDGE CADILLAC OR THE PRODUCT. IF FOR ANY REASON YOU CANNOT ANSWER THE SURVEY "COMPLETELY SATISFIED ", PLEASE CONTACT STEVE XXXXUZZI, SERVICE MANAGER"
I tried calling the manager but it rolled over to voicemail. Read him the quote and asked him to call me back. After two days I called the Service writer and he is going to 'take care of the problem.'
Bob, you're so kind about having so much free time and my garage being messy! My fab table IS still clear a week after putting the carb on the string trimmer! Good enough to sort out some license plates I'm reading with a few fellow GJ'ers
That sod is really going to make that corner look great. Good to hear you took the proper sun-breaks while laying it down...
Watched a crew install several semi-loads of this in the infield of the old Desoto Speedway near Tampa. A week of rain a week after it was laid down and it looks like it's been there forever. I'll bet yours does too in a bit.
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Ric, I know your plate is full to overflowing so I give you a lot of well-deserved slack. It's a daily fight to keep a couple of square inches of space on the workbenches.
Yeah, the older I get, the quicker the sun does me in. I have one of those oscillating sprinklers wetting the sod down every day. Running it for two hours today because an hour yesterday still let it dry out overnight.
That looks like a sodding big job BOB! Hard work paid off as it is looking great. The way things grow in Florida those sods should knit with the lawn very soon.
Sorry to hear about the dealership issues. Extra cost to finish the job in the current situation is something I can normally make peace with. Abusing my trust by using my vehicle without consent or reason is a very different matter. I wonder if they have a facebook page...
Eugene, last sod job was a lot bigger and included almost the whole back yard. I think it was 5 pallets and I paid my lawn service guys extra to put it down. They charged me the same amount as the sod so I saved myself $250 this time. Here's the weed removal process in January 2013:
Note to self: get Bob to lay my sod.
I only laid 12 pieces and was sore. I didn’t realize St. Augustine was a type of centipede. Learn something everyday.
Something sounds very fishy on car repair. I know it’s frustrating to pursue but all types of people would know about the service I had received.
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Stewart, I charge by the hour so you're going to have to pay me while I cool off and take naps.
Wow! They tore out your torque converter racing your car then charged you for it? Bummer.
Sod looks good. I may have to come back for another visit. I really didn't have the stomach to see that bare spot again...
Andy, thanks for stopping by and thanks for making me angrier. They probably revved the engine and then dumped it into Drive!
I hoped you didn't notice that bare spot. I was sure all the other messes distracted you enough that you would overlook it.
Bob
I feel your pain.
I took my Dodge viper to my regular mechanic for getting a smog check. He told me that his machine was down but would be fixed in the morning. 3 days later I get the call that my car was ready only to find just shy of 200 miles extra on the odometer when I questioned him about it I found out that he was driving it home at night.
Having worked in the automotive business I know too well how honest they should be.
Here is another one for you.
I owned a bodyshop business for 21 years. One morning I checked on a nice camaro that was to be delivered to the customer, it was in the detail department finished and ready for delivery. I called the customer and told him it was ready. He showed up right after lunch and he and I walked out to present him his car. I couldn't find it anywhere on the lot. While we were looking for it I got paged to a phone call. It was a police department about 20 miles away asking if I knew a certain person. I said yes he works for me They told me that he was involved in a one car wreck in a nice red camaro.
He rolled it over after running up a telephone pole guide wire.
I bought the car from the owner that day.
It happens
Don, I thought about starting my own business when I was young but I saw how much grief it could bring. I probably have too many control issues because relying on other people for my success was hard enough as an IBM manger. It also occurred to me I was too nice -- a flaw that way too many people point out to me. I probably would have given the Camaro Kid paid time off to recover from the accident.
