Ahhh... Wendle... how do I love thee?

Post by **bio** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 4:21 pm

You may remember how I did a rant on Wendle Ford in Spokane a while ago.

They're the dealer that I purchased my car from (and who subsequently, fucked my car all up). Well... that car wasn't my first purchase from them.

In 2000, my wife desperately needed a new vehicle, so I convinced her to go car shopping... "just to look". We came home in a '99 Durango. It was used, but in exceptional condition. Leather everything, monster engine, all the extras... spiffy!

Of course, I purchased the extended warranty, as the Durango already had a few miles on it, and the manufacturers warranty wasn't far from done.

We added 60,000 miles and 5 years to the warranty to cover... well.. everything that could go wrong (the extended warranty wasn't cheap).

Today, my wife took it down to the Dodge dealer because we've noticed a few problems. The dealer found the problems and it's no big deal, because it's covered by the warranty.

No it's not.

Apparently, the yahoo who filled out my warranty at Wendle checked the "new" box instead of the "used" box, and now my warranty is expired (because of the mileage).

I called the warranty company, and they'll authorize the repairs only if Wendle calls them and admits to screwing up. Getting a hold of anyone at Wendle to fix this is apparently impossible.

This is so typical of my Wendle experience. Trust me... if you live in this area and want to purchase a vehicle... there's a lot of dealerships... pick a different one.

Post by **eddiecanuck** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 4:36 pm

Might I suggest Appleway Volkeswagen? I hear their service department is top notch.

Post by **bio** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 5:19 pm

Yeah... right!

Anyway... the saga continues:

I've since been called back from Patty at Wendle's warranty contract department.

She claims that since the vehicle was still under warranty from the manufacturer (it had 4,000 miles left), that qualifies it as "new" and therefore I only had 60,000 miles total on my extended warranty, not mileage at time of sale + 60,000 as explained to me when I purchased it.

I can not understate how pissed off this makes me.

We'll be spending the evening going over our paperwork, trying to find anything that states what we were told when we purchased the vehicle, but I have this sinking feeling in my gut that we're screwed.

If that's the case, and Wendle won't back what they sold us, I have little recourse. I'll file a complaint with the Spokane Better Business Bureau, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Ford Motor Companyâ€¦ but there's not much anyone can probably do. I'll have to eat the cost of the repairs myself.

Thank you, Wendle, for making my Christmas dreams come true!

Rocketdork · Post by **Rocketdork** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 6:12 pm

don't forget to call a lawyer...it doesn't make any sense that they would sell you a warranty for 4000 miles, even the "lady" on the phone knows that...you should try some more...They can't call a used vehicle new...its against the law.

Post by **bio** » Wed Dec 24, 2003 10:26 am

I've got the contract with me today.

It's obvious that they just made a typo because it states the Contract Term as 60/60000 (months/miles). With the typo end mileage, that only gives me 27,199 miles of warranty.

I spoke to an underwriter (he said his name was Bob) at the insurance company and he stated that the end mileage was incorrect for the contract I purchased.

The guy I need to talk to, Don Webster, will be in at 10 am PST today. Either he'll fix it or he'll transfer me to someone who will. If no one there will fix this, I'll call Fox news and see if they want it.

It's a human interest story... on Christmas eve we find out we were ripped off by the car dealer and had to return all the presents for our children to pay for repairs *sniff*

I think they'll run it!

Post by **bio** » Wed Dec 24, 2003 12:24 pm

Not that anyone really cares... but it's over.

I'm fucked and that's all there is to it.

Merry Christmas.

Moxie · Post by **Moxie** » Wed Dec 24, 2003 12:50 pm

(Sing to the tune of "Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer")

Wendle, the shady car-man,
Has an enterprise that grows!
And if you ever went there,
you surely would agree it blows!

All of the other dealers,
Cluck their tongues and say, "For shame!"
For soiling their reputations,
They always know just who to blame!

Then one wintry Spokane day,
Bio needed help.
But when he got that big fat "NO",
he began to yelp!

All of the other dealers,
They were overjoyed & shocked,
Bio had slayed the monster,
Crimes against us all he'd blocked!

Crimes against us alllll heeeee'd blooooocked!

HolySwissCheese · Post by **HolySwissCheese** » Wed Dec 24, 2003 3:13 pm

At least you have a car that you can kill Don Webster with.

Post by **bio** » Fri Dec 26, 2003 2:56 pm

Heh..

It's all good.

Mr. Webster called me today around noon to tell me that there was nothing at all they will do. So... we're gonna get it repaired and call it good.

Lesson learned, a little wiser, and all that stuffs.

AsaJay · Post by **AsaJay** » Mon Dec 29, 2003 10:20 am

I personally know the GM at Wendle, but I doubt it would do any good for me to talk to him, it all boils down to what's in the contract, -usually-. And just because I -know- him, doesn't necessary mean I'm good -buds- with him. bottom line is, I don't think he'd budge. Your best bet is to file a complaint with that guy in the Spokane paper that does consumer advocate stuff.

I also know someone who purchased a -new- late '80's Mustang from Wendle. Later, when it was being serviced (or rather -not- serviced) for some cosmetic paint stuff, he finds out the car was -USED-, and sold as -new-.

To make the long story short, he basically hired a lawyer for advice, took everything to Ford Corporate, documents, photos, contracts, etc. and Ford reimbursed him the cost of the car when they realized the dealer f**ked up and sold the -factory refurbished vehicle- as a -new- car. Then he also got a killer deal on a brand new truck.

Note: it's not uncommon for a -new- vehicle to have a thousand or so miles on it. It's also not uncommon to have a very low mileage car be -factory refurbished- as the original owner decided they didn't want the car after all. In most states there is a 72-hour -get out of contract free- clause. I've used it myself on occassion to piss off pushy salesmen.

It took several months of certified mail, arguments, etc. And I don't think he'll ever buy at Wendle anymore either.

I actually got my last -dealer- used vehicle at Dishman Dodge. Same deal on the warranty though, it had 53K miles on it, and the warranty expired at 60K. So, I drove it up until about 59,990 and then took it in with a huge list of fix-its. And they fixed them all, for free, under warranty. After that, I kept my eyes open for -Recalls-, which provided a -lot- of free fixes as well.

HINT: Anytime, and I mean ANYTIME you take a vehicle in to a dealer for service, ask for a -printout- of all applicable RECALLS on your vehicle. You might be very surprised at what comes up, and what you don't have to pay for, -if you know-. And a lot of times, it's the little crap, like. . . tie-rod ends.

FWIW