Hi guys:

I just had an Infinity Basslink installed in my 03-CLS-6 Acura @ Bestbuy in Northern Virginia. They did a miserable hatch job. After 9 hours, with two 17-year old high school guys, who had only been working for 1-2 weeks, they completed the work. However, I now have several problems:

Cigarette lighter does not work
SRS light is on
Badly scratched panels by shifter including one that goes up to stereo and the one that goes back to cup holder.
Broke the console compartment.
Broke back seats, they won't stay in place.
Seat belts are backwards
Basslink is not mounted, but sitting on the floor of trunk horizontally, not vertically.
I found 4 extra black screws.
They blew 3 fuses...
Sound is kinda murky, muddy

Best Buy is setting up a claim w/their insurance company.

Does anyone have ideas, suggestions, or ways they would handle this?

I should have stayed with my stock radio (non-nav)

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Chazz

 

hi chazz,

i am very sorry to hear about that hack job that you have received... i know that it may not sound fair to those "GOOD" Circuit City/BB installers but i will NEVER EVER take my car to get install work done there... if they were really good installers, i think they would be working at a more reputable Audio location (Car Toys/Zippos/Tweeter, etc) over

but if i were you, i would take it to a car audio store, have them fix it and then let BB foot the bill.. but i would make sure i speak with the manager of Best Buy first and show him the kind of work you received from his store... even though a good audio shop can't fix the other broken items in your car (seat backs, center console) i would go get a new one and have BB pay for it.. there is no reason you should get the short end of the stick on this one...

as for your cig lighter/fuse problem, it looks like those guys may have created a short or even fried you cig outlet... try disconnecting the main power and ground on everything that they installed and change any fuses that may have blown... see if this corrects your cig problem... your SRS light you can either take to Acura if you are still under warranty, they will reset it for you... otherwise search the CL boards and there are directions how to reset the light with a paper clip...

good luck and keep us posted with how everything goes...

 

Sorry to hear about the shoddy job you got done.

I will also soon be getting a stereo installed in my new TSX (or either I'll do it myself). Just for future reference, when getting a stereo installed, you may have to spend a few extra bucks to get a quality job. God knows how many broken plastic clips/missing screws are nicely hidden and will never be discovered if you opt to go to Best Buy, Circuit City, or Jim Bob's A/V & used vacuum repair. Previously, when choosing my install shop, I asked for them to give me a tour of the install floor, and they happily obliged. I asked them a few basic questions.

1) How many years have you been in business?
2) How many years experience do people on your team have?
3) Why is it $xxx more here than the guy down the street?
4) etc. etc.

Granted, before hand, I'd already heard that this was the best shop in town, but the guy was real honest with me. He said I know Jim Bob down the street does a good job, but we're all about quality of service during the install and after the install. After taking into account that more $$$ doesn't necessarily mean better service... I decided in this case it actually did.

Everyone on their install team had at least 5 years experience (the average being 15+ yrs).
They were all older men (in their thirties/fourties)
They took the time to happily answer any/all of my questions before the install which concluded that they'd probably help me out after the install if I had any problems.
Most importantly, I watched their guys on the install floor take a few panels off of a car, and they didn't simply pop in a flathead and pull.

 

Man, that sucks. If I were you here's what I would do: Tell the BB store GM or his District MGR or his Regional MGR that you are taking your car to the nearest Acura dealership to have everything removed and returned back to its original condition, and that they are going to pay for every cent of it in addition to refunding all of the labor and materials you purchased from BB. Make sure that they know they will be providing you with a rental vehicle from the Acura dealership for the durration of the repairs. They are self insured in the sense that the insurance co. does the dealing with you and then sends the store the bill who ends up paying for it out of pocket. If it were something minor I would be more understanding cuz stuff breaks sometimes and there is nothing that can be done about it but fix it and move on. But- this would have to classify as a case of intense negligence and distregard for a customer's property on the part of the store, so I wouldn't even think to let them touch the vehicle again. Whatever you do, as hard as it is, stay as cool headed as possible cuz you dont want to get in a pissing match w/ some moron low level sales manager- very unproductive. Also, Stay persistent and dont budge or comprimise. I mean if I were you I would go so far as to have the trunk liner replaced becuase they screwed holes into it in the process of their shitty install. Insist that an acura technician go through and take everything out - looking along the way for broken things that you wouldn't notice and they wouldn't tell you about.

 

I got my amp/sub installed at Cartoys and was real happy with the work.

 

thanks for your support guys!

 

Not trying to be funny, but thats exactly why I avoided bestbuy for my install. I refused to allow some pimply faced high schoolers tear into my TL.

 

I'd get a lawer & sue BB

 

chazz any update?

 

hi guys

i apologize for taking awhile to get back to you.
the reason being, the saga continues to unfold.

i had acura try to repair the damaged interior and electrical systems.
the car may never be the same as i find empty holes, extra screws and parts.
but at least the airbags, lighter etc. work and the damaged panels have been replaced. i feel now as one does after a rape; my car has been violated!

and here is the rest.
they never mounted the sub in my trunk; in fact they refused to do so.
so it is has been free floating and moving around my trunk.

i chose to mount it w/its legs to both the floor and the upper back wall of the trunk since Bestbuy would not.

one month later, this past weekend to be exact, the sub has died!

i have 3 ideas why it died:

1) defective sub/amp
2) sub received excess wear and tear as a result of not being mounted down in my trunk and bouncing around.
3) the bestbuy guys wired it incorrectly.

here's the detail on that for you techies: apparently the (2) 17 years olds who were never trained nor MECP certified ran the line output converter from the head unit through the car to the sub.

they hould have run it from the bose factory amp or from the two back speakers which are post amp which is not only easier but also the correct way.

i have requested my money back for the install as i now have to replace the sub and have the sub rewired correctly. I am still not sure if i should just leave the line input converter the way it is.

today, i met with the store mgr who rudely refused to do anything and said that i installed it and i damaged my own car!!!!

i have reported them to the BBB and of course called Bestbuy customer relations.

In short, don't use Bestbuy for your audio installation needs.
If you feel you must, I only hope you have better trained techs and a better experience than I

I will let you know if there are further developments.

I would like to hear back from you guys about the line output converter running from the head unit not the factory amp or rear speakers.
Which way do you think is best?

 

Damn dude! That really sucks. I'm sorry. A basslink is so easy to install too. Don't even need a LOC. It includes pre wired cables to splice into the rear speakers. Then all you need is power & ground. Set the basslink to auto on/off & then just adjust it.

 

Out of curiosity, which Best Buy in NoVa?

 

Manassas