So my CL-S has been in the shop since Monday to get the front bumper repaired after I watched this dumbass back into it at a Arizona Cardinals game. I think that was mistake #1, going to a Cardinals game. So when I bring the car in for an estimate (took it to a collison center on the Acura dealership lot that I bought the car from in July) the manager tells me that the bumper cover needs to be replaced since the damage was to the plastic. Okay, what ever it takes since the guys insurance is going to pay for it.

So I get the call yesterday that my car is done and to come pick it up. On the way into the shop I see my car sitting out front so I take a quick look at it before I go inside. I notice that it's my old bumper, only the scrape is filled in and the bumper painted. Looks nice but still I know it's not a whole new bumper cover and they just filled and painted my old one. I talk to the guy who was handling my repair and he tells me that the manager wrote the estimate up saying to just repair, not replace, the bumper cover, but right after they repaired it he thought to himself maybe they should've replaced the whole thing, but it was too late at that point. WTF? What ever, I just wanted to get the hell out of there and get my car home and forget I ever had to drive a Cobolt around for two days. He apologizes, gives me my paper work, and I head out the door, satisfied that my car is fixed, looks way better than when I brought it in, but I was expecting more, as in a whole new bumper cover, which I was told in the beginning I'd have. But I'm done worrying, I just can't wait to get back into my CL.

I notice when I'm getting into my car to leave the shop that my stuff was moved around on the interior of my car and that they had cleaned my interior. As I go to put my paper work down on my passenger seat I notice two 2cm round holes in the seat, as if someone took a screwdriver and poked it through the leather twice. I was like WTFFFFFF?????!!!! I walk back into the shop and have the guy come take a look. He's all I don't know how this happened since I was the only one to drive your car in to get the bumper fixed and then out to park it here. I was telling him I wasn't nuts, I notice everything on my car and it was definitely not there when I brought the car in. He gets the manager, who BS'd me about the bumper cover, to come take a look at it. I sit in the office and Dumb and Dumber look at my destroyed passenger seat. He comes back into the office and tells me that he suspects that one of the cleaning guys must have done it, but he was surprised because nothing like that has ever happened. He was surprised? I brought my car in to get the bumper fixed and almost left with two holes in my passenger seat. Unreal.

So they're calling their vendor, Auto Spa something-or-other to come out to my work and fix my seat. Now I'm all freaked out that they will replace it with cheap-ass leather that doesn't match or just use that leather repair shit that never looks right. I bring my car to the dealership I bought the car from to ensure I'd get the best service and now I have to deal with this. Do you guys think even though they're fixing it I should contact the BBB on them after it's fixed or is that being a bastard? Has anyone had any experience with having their leather seats repaired for tears or holes? How did it come out? Was it noticable? What should I do if I'm not happy with the repairs? I'm just so fed up with this shit.

 

if i were in your shoes....i would at the end of the day....say i dont want it fixed...i want it replaced....the dealership messed up....and they want to repair it but everyone knows...with leather once its messed up its messed up....theres no going back....you can get close but it'll never be the same.....i say get a whole new chair and bumper...too bad you didnt have the service manager recorded....

other than that...you can stay quiet have your car repaired.....and never go back...

go for plan 1 imho and get a new chair....cuz if they poked holes in it...what about the heating element in it....does it look like it was a deep poke through?

 

Fuck that...

If I were you, I would have them replace the entire lower seat cushion.
If they say no, inform them that you will call Acura's Corporate office to place a complaint about the dealership.

You should contact the insurance company that paid for your damage and ask them for the replaced parts list and find out if the dealership charged for a new bumper cover or just repairs. I would do this before you tell them about the seat cover, so you could use it as leverage.

As you can tell, they get costly for the seat covers...

010 81131-S3M-A71ZB COVER, R. FR. SEAT CUSHION TRIM (LEATHER)
( MILD BEIGE ) 1 2003 Acura CL List Price - 365.12 Cost - 292.10

010 81131-S3M-A71ZA COVER, R. FR. SEAT CUSHION TRIM (LEATHER)
( GRAPHITE BLACK ) 1 2003 Acura CL List Price - 358.56 Cost - 286.85

 

^^ I concur

 

I'd be so pissed dude. I'd make them replace the whole damn cover.

 

Thanks for the suggestion guys. I'm so pissed off it's killing me. Still no call either this morning.

I did check the estimate they gave me and they reported to the guys insurance company and it doesn't say anything about a new bumper cover, so it appears the manager gave me the wrong info and when he put the estimate down on paper it was just for a repair, not a replacement. So unfortunatley I can't use the estimate or bill for repair against them for leverage since it doesn't say anything about a new bumper cover. Freaking reject manager.

As far as replacing the entire seat cover, I'm going to see what this Auto Spa place says. The holes aren't totally through, more like dents where the leather just started giving in and tearing, but not complete holes to where you can see the cushion underneath. It's weird, like the guy realized as what ever it was going through the leather last minute and didn't allow it go completely through. I took some pictures. I'll post them in a minute. I really don't want them to use the leather repair shit on it if it's going to look crappy. I'll definitely hold my ground. I figured maybe there's a way they can just replace that panel and stitch it in??? Not sure. Just hope they call me soon or I'm going to have to chase these mo-fos down.

 

Here's the damage. What do you guys think? Repairable or try to make them replace the whole cover?

 

You can only replace that. Have the dealership quote you to replace the bottome cushion then give it to the body shop. Just have them write you a check.

How much was your estimate on the bumper cover? That should have been your first clue.

 

Who gives a shit if it isn't major!
They're an Acura dealership and they caused the flaw...

Don't ever give in to this kind of shit, they will try and push you and if you let them, you're screwed!!!

Just stand your ground, that is how life works. If you think the dealership really cares about you, you are dead wrong!
They will be nice enough to "just get by" with the customers...

 

such anger....but he's right...i feel that way about my dealership now too....told me i had a pillow ball problem which also kept me from getting an inspection...took a look at it myself and had a mechanic look at it and there was nothing wrong....stupid service ppl

 

Hey Sly, where did you get this info from if you don't mind?

 

The total for the front bumper repair was $445.81.

He told me just the bumper cover alone, if they were to get a new OEM one, would've been $600+ plus labor, paint, etc.

 

That should be repairable. Have a leather guy take a look at it. Ask him before he does anything what his thoughts are first.

 

Actually the repair shop just called me to say they called their vendor and they're going to be in contact with me to come out to my work and look at it and let me know how they plan on fixing it. I'm going to stand my ground though and ensure that if they are not going to replace the whole cover that the repair will hold up and not show, because if it doesn't look like it did before this happened then screw being cooperative, I'm contacting Acura headquarters about this mess and BBB if I have to. I'm still in denial that this could happen from an Acura dealership.

 

Here is a direct link to the page with the seat components (I put in '03 CL-S auto)

www.acuraparts247.com

Here is a direct link for a bumper cover at $186.53

www.oemacuraparts.com

 

Make them repair that, they caused the damage. They should not even hesitate to repair that if they want to keep a good name.

 

I would seriously flip out. They'd call me irate but I could care less if some fucko punched two new holes in the seat.

 

Thanks dude. This is great ammo to have on hand if they try to BS me anymore. I'm surprised to see just how cheap both parts are. Love how they jack it up on customers. Real good business.

 

Some of these Acura Dealerships are jokes I had items stolen from my car while taken in for service and of course they deny everything saying that they have camera's at the dealership and it would be caught on camera. When I got my car back it had 38 more miles on it than when I brought it in to me that means they took it off the lot to steal the items. I say this to say just because its an Acura dealership doesn't mean your guaranteed a good experience.

 

I totally agree with you. I've slowly started changing my mind about only going to Acura dealerships. I guess in the grand scheme of things no matter where you go there's going to be at least one bad egg, but it always seems to happen to the people who actually give two shits about their cars, not the ones who could care less. Maybe it's just because we notice it and someone who doesn't care so much about their car just doesn't even give it a look over or ask questions?

At least there is a ray of hope in my case. Their vendor called me yesterday and is supposed to come out today to look at my car today. I'm definitely going to make my suggestion to them about replacing the whole bottom seat cover. We'll see how it goes. The guy who I've been dealing with from the collision center also called me yesterday to make sure the vendor called me, so at least he's showing some concern. this all works out so I don't have to make it into a huge deal.

 

You do realize those two phrases mean the same thing right?
Someone who "could care less", would be someone who cares some what and has room to actually care less.
Someone who couldN'T care less, would be someone who has no care at all about it...

Maybe it's just the fact that a lot of rich people own newer Acuras and the kids who work at the dealership just figure that they wouldn't miss anything because they are just stuck up rich people...

When I leave my car at the dealership, I put all my personal shit in the trunk or glove compartment (or rear seat compartment) and lock them. I also shut off the trunk release button (with the switch in the glove compartment). Then I leave them with the Valet key so they can't go through them.

I have noticed more miles on my car afterwards as well, but since it was a tranny replacement, I don't bother with it. They'll just say it was the test drive, or the fact that they send it "down the street" to their specialist to replace the transmissions (that's what the told me, go figure)...

Hell, I think that one time I was missing over a 1/4 tank of gas, but wasn't sure if it was from being at idle to make sure the fluid in the tranny was good to go...



Who knows.

 

you take the valet key? that means they can just unlock everything and go through it anyways.

 

No, read the bold below. I leave it (with them). I don't mean that I leave with it.

 

Yeah, I realize I wrote that wrong. I guess I messed it up because I wasn't paying attention because I was upset and trying to explain how it pisses me off when someone who cares about their stuff wants something to be done right and it's not, but people who don't really care much always seem to get the good service. I think you get the idea.

The valet key is a great idea, but it wouldn't have made a difference in my case. Nothing could've prevented them from doing damage to my seat unless I knew that the dude that was going to clean my car had sharp tools in his back pocket and was going to put holes in my seat and I told them ahead of time not to clean my interior. Too bad I can't predict the future.

 

So, what the fuck happened???

 

Jezzus, it's still in "the process" of getting repaired. The Auto Spa guy came out yesterday to my work and checked it out. The first thing he says is "it's all the way through, they told me it wasn't". Un-f*cking-believable! This collision center is driving me crazy. So anyway I tell the guy the story and he says he'll let his office know they can't just use the leather repair crap on it, they're going to either replace that one panel or do the entire bottom seat cover. I told them I don't care how much it costs to make it look right since the collision center is at fault, just make sure it matches and that's that. I called the dude I've been dealing with at the collision center yesterday and left him a message with the news the repair guy told me and he called me back later on and left me a message saying it doesn't matter how they fix it as long as they do it right and I'm happy it's totally repaired, but he still hadn't heard from the Auto Spa office on the results. So it's a waiting game. I'm going to call later today if I don't hear anything. The cool part is the Auto Spa place can come back to my work, take my seat out of my car, bring it to their shop, repair it and bring it back and reinstall it into my car, all while I'm sitting at work biting my nails hoping it's being done right. I'm trying to stay positive about this and hope they can dye the leather to make it match the color/fade of my drivers seat. It's just a shame because my interior was flawless, now there's a chance I'll notice a difference in the tone of the leather, unless they do an amazing job which I'm really for. I'll update this thread when it's done, when ever the hell that'll be.

 

Which collision place did you deal with? If it's from Bell Acura, I'm assuming it was Fat Albert's. If it was through Scottsdale Acura, I'm guessing they sent you to Scottsdale Paint & Body. Not sure who Tempe Acura uses.

Just want to know for future reference.

 

Actually, it's none of those, well, kind of. It is through Acura of Peoria, which is formerly Bell Acura. The collision center is on the dealership lot, all the way in the back. The only reason I took it there was because I bought the car at Acura of Peoria, though Scottsdale Acura is so much closer to where I work.

I just got a call from the guy I've been dealing with and he told me he's not happy with the Auto Spa service and he just decided to ordered a brand new OEM lower seat cover for me. Now all I have to do is wait until Tuesday when it's supposed to get in and set up a time to bring the car to them to have them put the new cover on. At least they're not going to fuck anything up by trying to stitch a panel in. Hopefully by Wednesday this whole ordeal will be over with.

 

Good luck to you on the seat. I've pretty much stopped dealing with that dealership since they kinda screwed me on the clutch without following the right steps in contacting Acura Client Services. I also found out later that the dash they replaced was a crappy job, with a bunch of clips missing and all that.....Scottsdale Acura found their problems and told me it seemed like a rush job and it was incomplete (which is why my A/C clicks really loud when changing certain modes and a couple other annoying rattles behind the center console).

I'm out of warranty now, so I try not to take to a dealer if I don't have to. I've found another mechanic that does a good, honest job.

 

Thanks for the heads up gsr. Once this is over with I'm definitely never going back there. Of course during the whole bumper fix they informed me that my car has had some front end work done previously, which they failed to mention to me when I bought the car, but that's typical. I was actually thinking about trying out Scottsdale Acura in the future since they're so close to where I work. But, if you don't mind me asking, who do you bring your car to now that you trust? I've only had negative experiences with mechanics out here so far and I really would appreciate someone who I can trust to fix/mod my car.

 

Bringing my thread back from the dead because... ANOTHER MOTHER FUCKER BACKED INTO MY FRONT BUMPER!!! WTF...

So my girl and I go to Four Peaks, a brewery/restaurant around the corner from my condo Friday night to get some food and a few drinks before going to the Tempe Improv to see Norm McDonald. All the parking is parallel parking along 8th St, but I find a decent spot with plenty of room close to the place so no worries, right? Yeah right. Come back out to leave and just as I walk in front of my car to get in the drivers seat I notice something on my front bumper. My heart dropped as I knew instantly what it was. There are two chunks taken out of the paint and small stress cracks along the top of the bumper from where some a-hole backed into it. I so wish I had paid more attention to who was parked in front of me, but you just never know when this type of shit will happen. Dude was probably drunk and didn't even feel it since I remember it was a truck in front and behind me when I parked. Un-freaking-believeable.

I felt that I had to go try to be in a happy go lucky mood because we were on our way to see a comedy show. I was god damn though, but I bit my lip and just tried to clear my mind and actually had fun despite knowing what I was going to see when I walked out to my car after the show.

I think the worst part of all is all the bull shit I went through the first time I got my bumper "repaired' doesn't matter now because now it's worse than the previous hit. Oh well, at least it's just a bumper cover and not sheet metal, but it still kills me that people do this shit and then just drive away. At least last time I saw who did it so it was paid for by his insurance, but since I have a huge dedutible to keep my monthy insurance payment low, I'll have to eat it and pay for it to get fixed or just fill that shit in with some touch up paint for the time being and try to find a place to paint it cheap. Sorry for the rant.

 

Wow that sucks.... sorry Clarise
it's really a shame how little respect people have for others' property/cars.

 

i feel u man dont worry. ull be fine and itll all be over soon.

 

Did they replace your seat cover ever to your liking? Maybe now youll get that new bumper cover you wanted in the first place

 

i know EXACTLY how you feel....university of south carolina students will agree...columbia, SC has the worst drivers in the US according to some recent study (cant remember the company)

my car was hit 4 times during my freshman year...one old lady backed into to me...this one stupid bitch my age backed into to me...i was sideswiped by another bitch....and someone hit my car in my friend's apartment complex parking lot and left a HUGE dent in the side....


but all in all....that was with my 2000 accord....and i refused to keep a car with so many repairs done to the body...so i gave it to my sister..

and now i have a CLS...