You sir are one patient and tolerant individual. I applaudI finally have an update.
Throughout this process they replaced, the lift (twice), all shocks individually, dampener shock, alignments (five times), steering gear, sensors, miscellaneous items. So many visits to the dealer for a full day without a rental. Every single visit the service department told me that they felt it was fixed. It wasn't.
The outcome of the last appointment with the dealer's service department was a good one for the situation, however. After the test drive and when I learned that the last part replacement didn't fix the issue. I asked to speak directly with the mechanic that had worked on the Wrangler every time. He was the first person that gave me hope that the nightmare might come to an end. We talked walking around the Wrangler for 45 minutes. He listed everything that was done, and it was a long list. When he was done, I asked him what he thought it was. His answer was honest and what I needed to move forward. He said that the steering gear was bad from the factory originally and after we replaced that it showed there was another issue that was bad. He said, we could return it to stock, we could take the tires off, we could take the axles off, it wouldn't matter. He said we would take all that off and set it on the ground and it would diamond. He said he was one hundred percent sure it was a bent frame and that the vehicle needed to be replaced. This was such a relief but started another set of battles with FCA.
Working with FCA was an absolute nightmare throughout the entire process but the ammo from the mechanic gave me what I needed to move forward. After finally getting in touch with the case manager they took what the mechanic said and ran with it. It took some time going through all the channels but it finally got to the state where they said there was a problem and something needed to be done. This is where FCA policies need to change. They chose to buy the vehicle back instead of doing a collateral swap. This meant that I would have to pay for mileage use up to the point when I reported the issue plus some other costs. All said and done it cost me around $1500 out of my pocket for the nightmare I endured from 1/27/2021 - 9/30/2021. The buyback process took months.
Since all I wanted was a Wrangler built the way I ordered it that drove like it was supposed to I asked FCA what they could do for me since I went through so much. Initially they told me they couldn't do anything. They were very cold and seemed numb to what I had been through. Finally after being kind, patient, and had enough, I spoke with the case worker in a little more harsh of a tone and listing everything I'd been through she told me that the most she could do was give me an employee discount for the new vehicle. At least this was something. It's a good amount off but does nothing for the fact that I had to pay for the use, headache, days without vehicle.
At this point I talked with the original dealer since the warranty was through the dealer and would have to be refunded or transferred to the new vehicle. The dealer general manager was kind and said to come in and talk. We sat down and priced out the new vehicle specd exactly the same as the previous one, aside from the color. I wanted to put that vehicle so far behind me, so I wanted a different color. We priced it all out and then she came across a restriction that was put on the Wranglers. I had to buy the XTreme Recon $4000 package in addition to what I already specd. She talked with contacts inside FCA to see if they would cover the difference, she talked with the factory, nothing. Nothing could be done, and I would just have to eat the additional $4000 if I wanted to buy again. This was another blow to this already bad situation. For the warranty she said she would slide the warranty over to the new vehicle when it comes in. The warranty would start from the new vehicle's purchase date, not the original and that there would be no additional cost. This was one bit of good news.
Since there was nothing that could be done about price and the XTreme Recon package was required I ordered the new vehicle using the original dealer because of the tie to the warranty and the general manager's commitment to making it right. We ordered the new JLU on 7/20/2021. The general manager said she put it on the hot ticket. It came in on 9/27. I guess the hot ticket takes two months.
I showed up at the dealer a couple days later after it was cleaned and ready. It was gorgeous. The first thing I did was take it for a very, very long test drive down the several roads I tested the original JLU on. It drove perfect. It drove like the original was supposed to but at this point I was still not convinced I was driving this vehicle home. We still didn't have final numbers and I was not going to be put in a situation where I could not afford this vehicle because of the additional package and other costs. I sat down with the salesperson and he kept signing me up for Mopar, SiriusXM, etc. before I even saw any numbers. I asked if the general manager was working on numbers because I haven't even seen them. He said oh yeah, they are working on that. This could have been a better situation. After about forty-five minutes he brought over some numbers and said my payment would fall within a range. The range was within my budget and close enough to the original payment that I felt it was good to move forward. This was the first moment I felt like I was actually exiting this nightmare and would leave with the vehicle sitting in the service bay.
When I sat down with the finance person the monthly payment actually ended up being two dollars less a month than the original. I went through all the numbers the week prior to sitting down at the dealer and I got nowhere near these numbers. I don't know how they did it but I am sure the general manager worked some kind of magic to make the numbers work. I don't think my math skills are that far off but I don't know how she did it. I know the employee discount brought it down a lot but then there was an additional $4000 required package on top of the original cost. Then there is the upgraded paint color since the original was white and had no cost. Plus, there was $2000 worked in the deal for the Mopar lift to be installed at a later date. So, it all added up and somehow, they made it work for me. That was great.
I left with the vehicle I wanted just with a different color and bigger tires.
My headache through all of this was with the service department and FCA case managers. The dealer has said they didn't like how all the service stuff went down with how I was treated, no cars or rides offered, etc. I hope they fix this for future customers. The dealer is Williams Brothers in Dundee Michigan. I think aside from the service issues which they can fix, their hands were tied. They can't just give me money off because the factory sent me a broken vehicle. I also really appreciate the general manager doing what she could do to make it work. Would I buy there again, probably but I would just make sure that if I had a service issue I would talk to the general manager or owner right away. I have a service appointment on October 28th to have the lift installed so we will see how they treat me then.
BTW, why am I getting a lift installed when it came with the XTreme Recon package? Because the XTreme Recon package isn't a real lift and this is more like an Overlander/Crawler. I have a Rhino Rack, Aftermarket Bumper, Roof Top Tent, Fridge, etc. Basically, more weight. I want the better shocks and springs so won't really get a ton more height, but I will be able to carry more and have more room between the tire and the fender.
It has been a hell of a year, but I can finally enjoy owning a Jeep Wrangler.
Expensive? Have you seen the prices on new Wranglers?? That's expensive!Having something like the above would help rebuild the brand but it would also be ridiculously expensive - how could it be sustainable?
There is a 30-day return period??Right here is the point where you should have been done. This should have been within the 30-day return period so you should have just said "ok i'm done with this" and tossed them the keys, then headed to the next CDJR dealer to order again.
very nice looking! Hope this one works out better. It is unbelievable that the quality control is so lax that they let a bent frame go by. You have a lot of patience.I finally have an update.
Throughout this process they replaced, the lift (twice), all shocks individually, dampener shock, alignments (five times), steering gear, sensors, miscellaneous items. So many visits to the dealer for a full day without a rental. Every single visit the service department told me that they felt it was fixed. It wasn't.
The outcome of the last appointment with the dealer's service department was a good one for the situation, however. After the test drive and when I learned that the last part replacement didn't fix the issue. I asked to speak directly with the mechanic that had worked on the Wrangler every time. He was the first person that gave me hope that the nightmare might come to an end. We talked walking around the Wrangler for 45 minutes. He listed everything that was done, and it was a long list. When he was done, I asked him what he thought it was. His answer was honest and what I needed to move forward. He said that the steering gear was bad from the factory originally and after we replaced that it showed there was another issue that was bad. He said, we could return it to stock, we could take the tires off, we could take the axles off, it wouldn't matter. He said we would take all that off and set it on the ground and it would diamond. He said he was one hundred percent sure it was a bent frame and that the vehicle needed to be replaced. This was such a relief but started another set of battles with FCA.
Working with FCA was an absolute nightmare throughout the entire process but the ammo from the mechanic gave me what I needed to move forward. After finally getting in touch with the case manager they took what the mechanic said and ran with it. It took some time going through all the channels but it finally got to the state where they said there was a problem and something needed to be done. This is where FCA policies need to change. They chose to buy the vehicle back instead of doing a collateral swap. This meant that I would have to pay for mileage use up to the point when I reported the issue plus some other costs. All said and done it cost me around $1500 out of my pocket for the nightmare I endured from 1/27/2021 - 9/30/2021. The buyback process took months.
Since all I wanted was a Wrangler built the way I ordered it that drove like it was supposed to I asked FCA what they could do for me since I went through so much. Initially they told me they couldn't do anything. They were very cold and seemed numb to what I had been through. Finally after being kind, patient, and had enough, I spoke with the case worker in a little more harsh of a tone and listing everything I'd been through she told me that the most she could do was give me an employee discount for the new vehicle. At least this was something. It's a good amount off but does nothing for the fact that I had to pay for the use, headache, days without vehicle.
At this point I talked with the original dealer since the warranty was through the dealer and would have to be refunded or transferred to the new vehicle. The dealer general manager was kind and said to come in and talk. We sat down and priced out the new vehicle specd exactly the same as the previous one, aside from the color. I wanted to put that vehicle so far behind me, so I wanted a different color. We priced it all out and then she came across a restriction that was put on the Wranglers. I had to buy the XTreme Recon $4000 package in addition to what I already specd. She talked with contacts inside FCA to see if they would cover the difference, she talked with the factory, nothing. Nothing could be done, and I would just have to eat the additional $4000 if I wanted to buy again. This was another blow to this already bad situation. For the warranty she said she would slide the warranty over to the new vehicle when it comes in. The warranty would start from the new vehicle's purchase date, not the original and that there would be no additional cost. This was one bit of good news.
Since there was nothing that could be done about price and the XTreme Recon package was required I ordered the new vehicle using the original dealer because of the tie to the warranty and the general manager's commitment to making it right. We ordered the new JLU on 7/20/2021. The general manager said she put it on the hot ticket. It came in on 9/27. I guess the hot ticket takes two months.
I showed up at the dealer a couple days later after it was cleaned and ready. It was gorgeous. The first thing I did was take it for a very, very long test drive down the several roads I tested the original JLU on. It drove perfect. It drove like the original was supposed to but at this point I was still not convinced I was driving this vehicle home. We still didn't have final numbers and I was not going to be put in a situation where I could not afford this vehicle because of the additional package and other costs. I sat down with the salesperson and he kept signing me up for Mopar, SiriusXM, etc. before I even saw any numbers. I asked if the general manager was working on numbers because I haven't even seen them. He said oh yeah, they are working on that. This could have been a better situation. After about forty-five minutes he brought over some numbers and said my payment would fall within a range. The range was within my budget and close enough to the original payment that I felt it was good to move forward. This was the first moment I felt like I was actually exiting this nightmare and would leave with the vehicle sitting in the service bay.
When I sat down with the finance person the monthly payment actually ended up being two dollars less a month than the original. I went through all the numbers the week prior to sitting down at the dealer and I got nowhere near these numbers. I don't know how they did it but I am sure the general manager worked some kind of magic to make the numbers work. I don't think my math skills are that far off but I don't know how she did it. I know the employee discount brought it down a lot but then there was an additional $4000 required package on top of the original cost. Then there is the upgraded paint color since the original was white and had no cost. Plus, there was $2000 worked in the deal for the Mopar lift to be installed at a later date. So, it all added up and somehow, they made it work for me. That was great.
I left with the vehicle I wanted just with a different color and bigger tires.
My headache through all of this was with the service department and FCA case managers. The dealer has said they didn't like how all the service stuff went down with how I was treated, no cars or rides offered, etc. I hope they fix this for future customers. The dealer is Williams Brothers in Dundee Michigan. I think aside from the service issues which they can fix, their hands were tied. They can't just give me money off because the factory sent me a broken vehicle. I also really appreciate the general manager doing what she could do to make it work. Would I buy there again, probably but I would just make sure that if I had a service issue I would talk to the general manager or owner right away. I have a service appointment on October 28th to have the lift installed so we will see how they treat me then.
BTW, why am I getting a lift installed when it came with the XTreme Recon package? Because the XTreme Recon package isn't a real lift and this is more like an Overlander/Crawler. I have a Rhino Rack, Aftermarket Bumper, Roof Top Tent, Fridge, etc. Basically, more weight. I want the better shocks and springs so won't really get a ton more height, but I will be able to carry more and have more room between the tire and the fender.
It has been a hell of a year, but I can finally enjoy owning a Jeep Wrangler.
That part may be true, but working for a dealer I think will be a nightmare. There is a reason they have high turnover. I've heard a couple stories, but makes sure you do research on the job.It'd be a dream job to SELL Jeeps.
I finally have an update.
Throughout this process they replaced, the lift (twice), all shocks individually, dampener shock, alignments (five times), steering gear, sensors, miscellaneous items. So many visits to the dealer for a full day without a rental. Every single visit the service department told me that they felt it was fixed. It wasn't.
The outcome of the last appointment with the dealer's service department was a good one for the situation, however. After the test drive and when I learned that the last part replacement didn't fix the issue. I asked to speak directly with the mechanic that had worked on the Wrangler every time. He was the first person that gave me hope that the nightmare might come to an end. We talked walking around the Wrangler for 45 minutes. He listed everything that was done, and it was a long list. When he was done, I asked him what he thought it was. His answer was honest and what I needed to move forward. He said that the steering gear was bad from the factory originally and after we replaced that it showed there was another issue that was bad. He said, we could return it to stock, we could take the tires off, we could take the axles off, it wouldn't matter. He said we would take all that off and set it on the ground and it would diamond. He said he was one hundred percent sure it was a bent frame and that the vehicle needed to be replaced. This was such a relief but started another set of battles with FCA.
Working with FCA was an absolute nightmare throughout the entire process but the ammo from the mechanic gave me what I needed to move forward. After finally getting in touch with the case manager they took what the mechanic said and ran with it. It took some time going through all the channels but it finally got to the state where they said there was a problem and something needed to be done. This is where FCA policies need to change. They chose to buy the vehicle back instead of doing a collateral swap. This meant that I would have to pay for mileage use up to the point when I reported the issue plus some other costs. All said and done it cost me around $1500 out of my pocket for the nightmare I endured from 1/27/2021 - 9/30/2021. The buyback process took months.
Since all I wanted was a Wrangler built the way I ordered it that drove like it was supposed to I asked FCA what they could do for me since I went through so much. Initially they told me they couldn't do anything. They were very cold and seemed numb to what I had been through. Finally after being kind, patient, and had enough, I spoke with the case worker in a little more harsh of a tone and listing everything I'd been through she told me that the most she could do was give me an employee discount for the new vehicle. At least this was something. It's a good amount off but does nothing for the fact that I had to pay for the use, headache, days without vehicle.
At this point I talked with the original dealer since the warranty was through the dealer and would have to be refunded or transferred to the new vehicle. The dealer general manager was kind and said to come in and talk. We sat down and priced out the new vehicle specd exactly the same as the previous one, aside from the color. I wanted to put that vehicle so far behind me, so I wanted a different color. We priced it all out and then she came across a restriction that was put on the Wranglers. I had to buy the XTreme Recon $4000 package in addition to what I already specd. She talked with contacts inside FCA to see if they would cover the difference, she talked with the factory, nothing. Nothing could be done, and I would just have to eat the additional $4000 if I wanted to buy again. This was another blow to this already bad situation. For the warranty she said she would slide the warranty over to the new vehicle when it comes in. The warranty would start from the new vehicle's purchase date, not the original and that there would be no additional cost. This was one bit of good news.
Since there was nothing that could be done about price and the XTreme Recon package was required I ordered the new vehicle using the original dealer because of the tie to the warranty and the general manager's commitment to making it right. We ordered the new JLU on 7/20/2021. The general manager said she put it on the hot ticket. It came in on 9/27. I guess the hot ticket takes two months.
I showed up at the dealer a couple days later after it was cleaned and ready. It was gorgeous. The first thing I did was take it for a very, very long test drive down the several roads I tested the original JLU on. It drove perfect. It drove like the original was supposed to but at this point I was still not convinced I was driving this vehicle home. We still didn't have final numbers and I was not going to be put in a situation where I could not afford this vehicle because of the additional package and other costs. I sat down with the salesperson and he kept signing me up for Mopar, SiriusXM, etc. before I even saw any numbers. I asked if the general manager was working on numbers because I haven't even seen them. He said oh yeah, they are working on that. This could have been a better situation. After about forty-five minutes he brought over some numbers and said my payment would fall within a range. The range was within my budget and close enough to the original payment that I felt it was good to move forward. This was the first moment I felt like I was actually exiting this nightmare and would leave with the vehicle sitting in the service bay.
When I sat down with the finance person the monthly payment actually ended up being two dollars less a month than the original. I went through all the numbers the week prior to sitting down at the dealer and I got nowhere near these numbers. I don't know how they did it but I am sure the general manager worked some kind of magic to make the numbers work. I don't think my math skills are that far off but I don't know how she did it. I know the employee discount brought it down a lot but then there was an additional $4000 required package on top of the original cost. Then there is the upgraded paint color since the original was white and had no cost. Plus, there was $2000 worked in the deal for the Mopar lift to be installed at a later date. So, it all added up and somehow, they made it work for me. That was great.
I left with the vehicle I wanted just with a different color and bigger tires.
My headache through all of this was with the service department and FCA case managers. The dealer has said they didn't like how all the service stuff went down with how I was treated, no cars or rides offered, etc. I hope they fix this for future customers. The dealer is Williams Brothers in Dundee Michigan. I think aside from the service issues which they can fix, their hands were tied. They can't just give me money off because the factory sent me a broken vehicle. I also really appreciate the general manager doing what she could do to make it work. Would I buy there again, probably but I would just make sure that if I had a service issue I would talk to the general manager or owner right away. I have a service appointment on October 28th to have the lift installed so we will see how they treat me then.
BTW, why am I getting a lift installed when it came with the XTreme Recon package? Because the XTreme Recon package isn't a real lift and this is more like an Overlander/Crawler. I have a Rhino Rack, Aftermarket Bumper, Roof Top Tent, Fridge, etc. Basically, more weight. I want the better shocks and springs so won't really get a ton more height, but I will be able to carry more and have more room between the tire and the fender.
It has been a hell of a year, but I can finally enjoy owning a Jeep Wrangler.
I don't have a name yet. I have been thinking Praetorian but I am not sure yet.Don't mix work a d something you love because that love won't last long lol. You're patience is one of an Angel. I am glad it worked out for you in the end and hope you and your son enjoy Jeeping together! She kickass looking man. What did you name her?
As in Guard? If so that's pretty dope. Different.I don't have a name yet. I have been thinking Praetorian but I am not sure yet.
Do it. Who cares if people don't get it lol. You do! Can get these heads on Etsy for like 12 bucks with different color backgrounds.Yes, exactly. I was hoping it would come across correctly. My only reluctance was people not getting it.