Disgusted to put it mildly

Your comments on the following fiasco will be eagerly awaited.

Car ordered 19^th July Octavia vRS, diesel, automatic, candy white and various options taking the cost up to the dizzy heights approaching 30K. At this stage I was so excited…….

For your information Dealer used:-

DMKeith York Ltd, Dealer number *******.

Skoda Order number *********. (Delivery date mid November)

I am currently driving a Mk2 Superb Elegance 170 DSG which I am very pleased with but asked the dealer to contact me when the new facelift was available which he did but I was a little underwhelmed given that it didn’t really give me anything extra.

On the hand what did capture my fancy was the above mentioned vRS which I promptly ordered. Awaiting further instructions from the dealer received a phone call which disappointed me stating that the order had been set back to next year and if I would consider withdrawing the panoramic sunroof as this was causing the delay after a lot of thought I decided to do without the sunroof which is a great same as I really think it enhances the look and feel of the car and it was one of my first options. So reconfigured the order I decided on the adaptive  cruise control as a replacement and various other options to take it up to about the same price, this done and the order re submitted still with delivery expected before Christmas.

Dealer contacted me today to say there had been serious delays regarding cars being fitted with radars and the bad news is that the new build date had been put back yet again to 7^th February 2014 and expect delivery end of March.

Another thing to note here is a typo in the brochure which states that the vRS come with cornering fog lights which as you know in the UK that is not correct and if it were to be an option it would be at a cost and this hasn’t been reflected on the OTR price, looking at the elegance this would be around £100. Having pointed this out to the dealer THEY deducted this amount which I would have thought Skoda should have done. Enough said.

At the start of this journey I was so excited about the whole procedure of ordering and spec’ing it and the thought of soon I would be the proud owner of such an exciting new car. Also to note this will be my fifth consecutive Skoda.

Can you please explain to me how I can keep any enthusiasm and belief in your brand? The launch of this vRS has been a complete sham especially if you elect to have any extras fitted, even the TV commercial shows off the saloon which will not be available for quite a while yet I presume.

Just saw a brand new vRS saloon/hatch today with all the plastic on not sure if it was petrol or diesel but it sure was a brand new one and not an estate.

With respect to the rest it is very awkward, my father in law had waited over 6 months for his new car and it should be delivered next week (not a Skoda).

I know exactly how you feel, a few years ago I ordered a Vrs in race blue and the delays I suffered was painful to out it lightly. I recently changed to a fabia Vrs with all the whistles and the white patterned seats, SIX!! months later when the car finally arrived it had the red seats :-( . I think tue whole skoda ordering/factory is a mess

Marty

Disgusted to put it mildly

Your comments on the following fiasco will be eagerly awaited.

Car ordered 19^th July Octavia vRS, diesel, automatic, candy white and various options taking the cost up to the dizzy heights approaching 30K. At this stage I was so excited…….

For your information Dealer used:-

DMKeith York Ltd, Dealer number *******.

Skoda Order number *********. (Delivery date mid November)

I am currently driving a Mk2 Superb Elegance 170 DSG which I am very pleased with but asked the dealer to contact me when the new facelift was available which he did but I was a little underwhelmed given that it didn’t really give me anything extra.

On the hand what did capture my fancy was the above mentioned vRS which I promptly ordered. Awaiting further instructions from the dealer received a phone call which disappointed me stating that the order had been set back to next year and if I would consider withdrawing the panoramic sunroof as this was causing the delay after a lot of thought I decided to do without the sunroof which is a great same as I really think it enhances the look and feel of the car and it was one of my first options. So reconfigured the order I decided on the adaptive  cruise control as a replacement and various other options to take it up to about the same price, this done and the order re submitted still with delivery expected before Christmas.

Dealer contacted me today to say there had been serious delays regarding cars being fitted with radars and the bad news is that the new build date had been put back yet again to 7^th February 2014 and expect delivery end of March.

Another thing to note here is a typo in the brochure which states that the vRS come with cornering fog lights which as you know in the UK that is not correct and if it were to be an option it would be at a cost and this hasn’t been reflected on the OTR price, looking at the elegance this would be around £100. Having pointed this out to the dealer THEY deducted this amount which I would have thought Skoda should have done. Enough said.

At the start of this journey I was so excited about the whole procedure of ordering and spec’ing it and the thought of soon I would be the proud owner of such an exciting new car. Also to note this will be my fifth consecutive Skoda.

Can you please explain to me how I can keep any enthusiasm and belief in your brand? The launch of this vRS has been a complete sham especially if you elect to have any extras fitted, even the TV commercial shows off the saloon which will not be available for quite a while yet I presume.

 

I sympathise with you as I got a call the other week saying that 'heated seats are not on your build' I've got a 1.4 Elegance on order with numerous options so was not happy, especially as I live in Germany and the winters can get pretty savage over here.

 

I hope things get sorted out with your order soon.

 

Regards

 

Richie

Should have stuck with the Superb but gone for the L&K!

 

I was ready to jump on the band wagon with regard to DM Keith in York as I have had several bad experiences with them but it sounds like your issue goes further up the chain.

 

At least now you can re-add the panoramic sunroof?

 

9 months is a long time to wait for any car let alone a Skoda, and then a £30K Skoda, wow.

 

Another sign that the brand favoured by me is now no longer the great value it once was.

Should have stuck with the Superb but gone for the L&K!

 

I was ready to jump on the band wagon with regard to DM Keith in York as I have had several bad experiences with them but it sounds like your issue goes further up the chain.

 

At least now you can re-add the panoramic sunroof?

 

9 months is a long time to wait for any car let alone a Skoda, and then a £30K Skoda, wow.

 

Another sign that the brand favoured by me is now no longer the great value it once was.

I was kind of hoping they would add it for me or should i be content with a spare wheel.....

If you don't ask you don't get.

 

Let's face it your order couldn't get much longer. Threaten to cancel the order completely unless they throw in the panoramic roof...

Don't make threats, it doesn't work.

 

Use a bit of tact, diplomacy & negotiation. I might suggest say a complete set of winter wheels & tyres for example (around £800) in lieu, they're just as useful as a sunroof for at least 5 months of the year.

Don't make threats, it doesn't work.

 

Use a bit of tact, diplomacy & negotiation. I might suggest say a complete set of winter wheels & tyres for example (around £800) in lieu, they're just as useful as a sunroof for at least 5 months of the year.

 

Did for me

 

It very much depends on how you do it. Go in like a bull in a china shop and you are only to get the dealers back up. Be firm but fair and anything is possible, they are in the business of selling cars after all.

 

If it goes wrong there are plenty of other dealers to choose from, its not as if you are close to delivery!

Edited 5 October, 201312 yr by silver1011

Exactly you were firm but fair, for me that would mean the choice of having a Columbus fitted or a set of Winter Wheels of my choice off them. I feel that would be reasonable compensation. 

Skoda are useless but so are VW but VW at least tell me stuff

Ordered my 2.0 Tdi dsg elegance estate on 6th April still No build week but it's the dealer and communication or lack of it

Also ordered a golf gti manual pp that also is delayed but VW dealer seems able to keep me informed unlike skoda

I should have paid more and bought a bmw 320d tourer and a 135i would have had both by now !

Having been lurking around this forum ever since placing my lease car order, Estate Elegance 2.0tdi, I'm now coming to understand why our fleet managers tried to dissuade me from the Skoda route!

 

Clearly the "be with you within ten weeks from order" that was touted as the delivery leadtime for a standard no extras car wasn't based on anything but guesswork by SUK who I spoke to in an attempt to try and convince myself the "you'll wait ages and the ETA will slip again and again" comment from the fleet manager was just pessimism.

 

If Skoda really want to compete in the business sector they must start acting like a supplier that can be relied upon.

Lease car users don't always have the flexibility to just 'keep' the existing car for a few more weeks or months and whilst at present I am still hoping the Octy arrives soon when we have had long delays in the past staff have been forced into alternatives. 

 

And that's without opening the debate around changing spec and why items have mixed availability across the different VAG empire brands! 

New cars often have long lead times and initial teething troubles with new options either not working properly or struggling with supply.

I seem to remember when the Yeti came out and Jeremy Clarkson raved about it on Top Gear (causing the SUK website to crash moments later) early adopters were waiting nearly a year for their cars due to demand; think they also had issues supplying the panoramic roofs on those too.

I think in all honesty it depends how much you actually want the vRS. If it were me id probably expect a further discount on the car to compensate or id want my money back to go and buy something else.

Edited 5 October, 201312 yr by pipsyp

I am certain that you won't be waiting until March. I'd say late December.

The more people that cancel, the quicker anyone holding their nerve will get theirs with ACC, panoramic roof, Columbus or whatever this weeks delay is.

Remember the 6 month DSG delays which ended up no where near that?

Working in a dealer, it's the worst phone call we have to make when an option is removed or restricted. Working for between £8000-£12000 basic salary depending where you live and company, and working 6 days a week, that one order that is now in jeopardy is the difference between paying the electric or not. All I'm saying is, going into the showroom demanding things doesn't always work, it's not the sales persons fault that this has happened, there's still only the same margin in the car etc.....trust me, if we could go and build it for you sometimes we would.....us lowly sales don't get paid until you have your car.....a cancellation through nothing you can do is a horrible feeling and all the effort we put in with test drives, going through all the specifications on umpteen cars etc has all been in vain. Until the car is at the dealership, it's completely out of our control and these alterations in specification and delays is just as frustrating for us as they are for you. Just wanted to give you a different perspective. Ta

...I should have paid more and bought a bmw 320d tourer and a 135i would have had both by now !...

Maybe.

A neighbour has just taken delivery of a BMW 320d Touring. It was a factory order and he was originally quoted 'within 12 weeks'. It took 21 weeks.

Yeah, but as with most BMW's they're crap in bad weather, especially snow & ice, because of their RWD.

Whilst some dealers rely on every sale its a shame to say that these small, friendly and family run Skoda dealers that are willing/able to make a few hundred pounds on each sale are fast becoming a thing of the past.

 

Skoda in their race to shed their old and fusty image are placing higher demands on their franchised dealer network by forcing them to invest in nice new shiny glass houses. To pay for these expensive overheads their margins have to improve too and as in any business model it is the customer who ends up footing the bill.

 

This together with Skoda's increasing brand perception is pushing up the costs of UK Skoda cars. Now some will prefer this, fast servicing, courtesy cars, free coffee, wi-fi, plenty of stock for immediate delivery. I however preferred the days when Skoda's were cars built from the VAG parts bin without all the expensive peripherals. The famous Skoda stigma helped keep prices down. A true Golf (wolf) in Skoda (sheeps) clothing - with a price to match.

 

If enough customers complained and enough orders were cancelled any pain felt by the dealers would for sure be passed on to Skoda UK.

 

Production delays are inevitable, it's how you deal with them that counts. Providing the customer isn't making unreasonable demands then a dealer should be prepared to take a hit on their margins to appease a customer, even if a portion of the goodwill has to come from Skoda UK.

 

Throw in the sunroof, or split it three ways, the customer pays a third, the dealer pays a third and Skoda UK pay a third. The customer is happy and the dealer gets his order. The dealer then of course enjoys his rebate at the end of the year when he hits his quota. 

 

Good dealers then share this with their staff, those that aren't so good incentivise their staff in ways that aren't so good, for example very basic salaries topped up with bonuses from each car sold (which in my experience results in a very hard and often unpleasant sell).

Edited 5 October, 201312 yr by silver1011

I don't see that making the dealer pay for SUK HQ's incompetence will achieve anything, it's SUK HQ that should be paying compensation to the customer for the inconvenience that all of this upheaval & stress which they are causing to their customers.

True, but it is the dealer that sold the car, not Skoda UK. The contract is therefore with the dealer.

 

The dealer has to make good on his promise. The fallout from this should go unseen by the customer and be conducted behind closed doors for the dealer and Skoda UK to thrash out.

Coming from a small family run dealer, we are already doing deals with little or no profit in them, trying to compete with the super dealers like Arnold Clark.

 

Sometimes, the money just isn't there and it's actually more beneficial to the dealer to just let you cancel your order than take a loss on a car.  No profit is better than losing money.

Edited 5 October, 201312 yr by NellyK84

I read this thread with interest and understand the frustration, been there got the tee shirt.

I drafted 2 letters, 1 to the Skoda CEO and there other to Auto Express , but never sent them due to my main issue being addressed by SUK, the lack of information. Delays are not good, but I can live with them if they are explained.

After a polite phone rant to SUK, saying this is not good customer service from a company wanting to be highly regarded by the public and media. SUK have phoned me every week been, and answered my questions.

I do think you should consider rewording your letter, but it's your decision. I hope you are happy with the outcome however you decide to proceed.

Coming from a small family run dealer, we are already doing deals with little or no profit in them, trying to compete with the super dealers like Arnold Clark.

 

Sometimes, the money just isn't there and it's actually more beneficial to the dealer to just let you cancel your order than take a loss on a car.  No profit is better than losing money.

 

Then you have my sympathies, as with every other great family run firm your days are numbered.

 

This is Skoda's choice, it's how they want it.

 

Arnold Clark are a perfect example, they are 100% profit orientated, any concept of customer service comes a distant second.

 

They can and will make a loss on a car to ensure they meet the manufacturers quota's and get their far more generous annual rebate from Skoda UK.

 

Remember these?

 

 

I'd never dream of asking for a free sunroof.

 

These guys however...

 

Edited 5 October, 201312 yr by silver1011

We're like the top one.....we had a lake in the showroom the other week with the heavy rain, with a mechanic trying to make some make shift water catcher lol

You'd get my business any day of the week, it's a shame you aren't closer.

 

These outfits need supporting and preserving. The rest can stick their modern art decor and free wi-fi.

 

Give me a mechanic that can fix things (instead of simply fitting new parts), a salesman that has sold Skoda's for years (and know's them inside out) any day of the week.

 

I'd much rather muck-in and help fix the leak in the roof than sit in a £500 chair playing with my iPhone drinking machine coffee.

 

Good luck mate!