Vauxhall Customer Service - Saying Hello to CAG!

[Guest VX_Max Vauxhall Company Rep]

Hi Everyone

 

 

We just wanted to introduce ourselves; we are the Social Media Team for Vauxhall UK.

 

A few of you have probably noticed that we launched our Twitter page in June and have tweeted daily and messaged on here as well.

 

What we’re here to do is conveniently - through Twitter, Facebook and forums – answer all of your Vauxhall related questions. If you’re looking to buy a new Vauxhall, or you’re a Vauxhall owner and you need some assistance, that’s exactly what we’re here for!

 

We think that this is a great forum because everyone can share their experiences – good and bad – you can discuss repairs, car modifications, good and bad experiences. We are not here to take away from that at all. We just want everyone to know that if forums and the internet is the way you like to communicate, we’re listening!

 

 

We can help with technical enquiries too, and try our best to find you the correct information, just bear in mind that there will be certain things that we can’t recommend or assist with over the internet, such as aftermarket mods and carrying out repairs yourself, but we will always try and if we can share any advice on a subject, we will.

 

 

(Edit)

 

If you've already read this on one of the other forums, apologies, we just want to let as many people know as we can!

 

 

Speak to you soon

 

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

Edited July 24, 2010 by maroondevo52
Removed contact info

[heliosuk]

OK Max, lets see how proactive you are then.

 

1. What are you going to do about the obvious engineering and or manufacturing faults with regards to the excessive amounts of complaints experienced by posters on this forum on Vectra suspension springs breaking.

 

2. Please explain how a bankrupt company can afford to buy out a profitable finance company, a profitable transmission company in Europe which fears closure if you do, and then ignore the fact that you have on going quality issues, such as above, which Vauxhall/GM choose to ignore.

[letsdothis]

OK Max, lets see how proactive you are then.

 

1. What are you going to do about the obvious engineering and or manufacturing faults with regards to the excessive amounts of complaints experienced by posters on this forum on Vectra suspension springs breaking.

 

2. Please explain how a bankrupt company can afford to buy out a profitable finance company, a profitable transmission company in Europe which fears closure if you do, and then ignore the fact that you have on going quality issues, such as above, which Vauxhall/GM choose to ignore.

 

I bet Max is sorry he posted now, that took the wind out of his sails.

[lasertung]

Vh are not the only ones "at it". Other manufacturers give a warranty to get people to buy their cars, then when faults develope, they just don't want to know.

What about the large numbers of Renault Scenic window winder motors that go faulty, yet Renault does nothing to rectify this ongoing fault.

Renault and Citroen to name but two, tell customers who raise complaints that there is nothing wrong with your car. Mazda is as bad if not worse.

The OFT won't help individuals, and to get anything done in this country a body has to try and get the media involved, as in Watchdog.

A Bl---y disgrace.

[Conniff]

I would also like to see a response to post #2 para 1 please.

[Somebody Told Me]

Hey Max,

 

I'm after some information about work carried out on my car some years ago which was as a result of a joint investigation between Vauxhall and my local dealership.

 

If I PM you the reg number and others details can you help?

 

Cheers,

 

STM

Edited July 23, 2010 by Somebody Told Me
Typo

[heliosuk]

Hi Everyone

 

 

We just wanted to introduce ourselves; we are the Social Media Team for Vauxhall UK.

 

A few of you have probably noticed that we launched our Twitter page in June and have tweeted daily and messaged on here as well.

 

What we’re here to do is conveniently - through Twitter, Facebook and forums – answer all of your Vauxhall related questions. If you’re looking to buy a new Vauxhall, or you’re a Vauxhall owner and you need some assistance, that’s exactly what we’re here for!

 

We think that this is a great forum because everyone can share their experiences – good and bad – you can discuss repairs, car modifications, good and bad experiences. We are not here to take away from that at all. We just want everyone to know that if forums and the internet is the way you like to communicate, we’re listening!

 

 

We can help with technical enquiries too, and try our best to find you the correct information, just bear in mind that there will be certain things that we can’t recommend or assist with over the internet, such as aftermarket mods and carrying out repairs yourself, but we will always try and if we can share any advice on a subject, we will.

 

 

(Edit)

 

If you've already read this on one of the other forums, apologies, we just want to let as many people know as we can!

 

 

Speak to you soon

 

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

 

I would also like to see a response to post #2 para 1 please.

 

You going to the same betting shop as me tomorrow Connif???

Edited July 24, 2010 by maroondevo52
Removed contact info

[Somebody Told Me]

Needless to say that I'll be keeping an eye out for further activity come Monday.

 

Don't let us down Max!

[Conniff]

You going to the same betting shop as me tomorrow Connif???

 

As a front runner. Lets see if it's just spam after he has had the weekend off.

[maroondevo52]

Hello and Welcome, VX_MAX.

 

 

You are welcome here in an official capacity but please contact admin before continuing to post.

 

I have sent you a Private Message.

 

Regards.

 

Scott.

[Guest VX_Max Vauxhall Company Rep]

Hello All!

 

Firstly, thank you I didn't expect such a great response! In response to letsdoit, I'm glad we've had this kind of response.

 

It would be unrealistic to enter the world of forums and social media and not expect to receive negative feedback as well as positive; we welcome it all!

 

In response to the first question posed by heliosuk, we treat every customer case individually, if you feel as a customer that you would like us to investigate and look into a particular failure on your vehicle further; that is what we're here to do. To quote heliosuk "with regards to the excessive amounts of complaints experienced by posters on this forum" that is exactly why we have embraced the social media network, so we can handle the feedback we receive on our products first hand, as they emerge online, and offer customer assistance and support as quickly, efficiently and fairly as we possibly can.

 

 

STM please feel free to PM me so I can look into this further for you.

 

Again, thank you for all the feedback, we are here to expand, improve and build upon our customer service, and make it the best it’s ever been! We can’t do this without your feedback, be it good or bad.

 

Thanks!

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

[MARTIN3030]

Thank you Max.

Not really interested in Twitter or Facebook-but look forward to your input on the Consumer Action Group.

[Conniff]

It would be unrealistic to enter the world of forums and social media and not expect to receive negative feedback as well as positive; we welcome it all!

 

It's nice to see that you have an understanding of how it all works. The only thing that gets someones back up is a response such as (to put it in modern language), 'whatever', when a question has been ligitimately asked and to be fobbed off.

 

If there is a logical reason why the problems outlined by Heliosuk can't be addressed, then an explanation of why VX are takeing the action they are will go a million miles in earning them respect. To be told 'nothing we can do' is not a great response without an explanation of why.

 

We know that not all claims hold water or can be processed to the customers satisfaction, so lets hope that is explained to them. Good luck.

[Guest VX_Max Vauxhall Company Rep]

Thank you Conniff. That's what it's all about, we're here to help as many people we can, there may some cases unfortunately, where we cannot assist and it's our job to make clear and advise of the reasons why we cannot in that particular case.

 

We want to be fair and understanding in our assistance, and we genuinely hope that using forums such as CAG will allow us to help the people that may of otherwise not called or e-mailed, but chose to use forums instead, we want to be right here for those people!

 

Thanks Again

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

[MARTIN3030]

By the way Max-we dont appear to have rec your email to admin.

This will enable your presence here to be officially recognised,by enhanced detailing of your user name (In big green letters).

Please send to [email protected]

 

Thanks

 

Look;

 

VX MAX Vauxhall Company Rep

Edited July 27, 2010 by MARTIN3030

[letsdothis]

Well I think it's a great move, as long as it gets results.

 

The problem isn't just with Vauxhall though Max.

 

I have had brand new Fords and brand new Vauxhalls in the past, and we currently have a second hand Vauxhall at the moment.

 

For both the above manufacturers, I have had problems. Both manufacturers tbh were both unhelpful or not interested once the cars had been bought when things went wrong. The end result was that after heated exchanges things were sort of resolved although it left a bad taste in our mouths.

 

People turn to the internet and forums like these, because:

 

1) They get help and genuine concern from others in the same boat

2) A way at getting back at the 'shoddy' excuses from the manufacturers

3) They can vent their spleens telling people about their bad experiences

 

No manufacturer / company is perfect, that's fact. It's how they go about resolving issues that is the measure that us customers judge them by.

 

From my experience, people are turning the tables now, it has gone on for too long. This is why yourself and other companies are having to react and come into the 21st Century by using forums, Twitter and Facebook etc

 

At the end of the day, it's all about one of the simplest things in life, that companies get so wrong. Communication.

 

Glad you made it here though.

[heliosuk]

In response to the first question posed by heliosuk, we treat every customer case individually, if you feel as a customer that you would like us to investigate and look into a particular failure on your vehicle further; that is what we're here to do. To quote heliosuk "with regards to the excessive amounts of complaints experienced by posters on this forum" that is exactly why we have embraced the social media network, so we can handle the feedback we receive on our products first hand, as they emerge online, and offer customer assistance and support as quickly, efficiently and fairly as we possibly can.

 

It's not me having the failures Max.........it's the company you represent.

So I'll give you a clue and you can then proudly shout "we listened and did something about it"

 

Nearly all manufactuers damper assemblies or struts should have a design life equal to the equivalent of 10 years or 150,000 miles. That is generally a world wide industry standard for cars in developed countries. It's also recognised that it is an item that should not require service or maintenance.

 

Now it seems that there is an emerging problem with the springs you have designed, predominantly manifesting itself on Vectras, breaking well within the generally accepted design life but also outside the normal warranty period. Posts to date indicate that when VX have been approached about this they have been rebuked.

 

One of the big problems is that in some cases the failure mode has been that serious that in certain circumstances I would alledge that VX have been exceptionally lucky not to have been in front of a Beak.

 

I'll give a bit of leeway that VX are not aware of the problem as it is accepted after 3 years cars move out of the network and that VOSA records from MOT's are unreliable as there is no problem at the time of inspection. So the access to data might not alert VX.

 

However, just from this forum alone, there is sufficient information for me to ask for an investigation if I was an engineer with VX, something manufactuers Customer Helplines tend to reject as they don't know what they are talking about and most of all the significance of the complaint.

 

On a lighter note, what do these new Insignias run on as I can't catch them and am up to change my starship. My worry is should I buy one as if the springs are carry over from the Vectra then I'll go and buy a Passat CC.

[Guest VX_Max Vauxhall Company Rep]

Very well said letsdothis! It's the beauty of being able to pose your questions and concerns at your convenience.

 

If any of you have seen the recent Corsa advert, the girl featured in that advert was a social media competition winner! It's this level of communication we want we our customers now!

 

And again, a massive thank you to all who have taken the time to come onto CAG and comment on this thread, and I'm already in regular contact with some of you on here!

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

[Somebody Told Me]

 

STM please feel free to PM me so I can look into this further for you.

 

Thanks!

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

 

Cheers Max - I've just PM'd you with the details of my car.

[heliosuk]

Thank you for the PM Max though it's not me who needs the PM.

 

So to help you along a bit further have a look at the 47 posts in this link.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/garage-services/126001-vauxhall-vectra-suspension-failiure.html

 

It's the people who have posted here who need the PM's.

 

After reading these posts I'd like to think you would be straight on the phone to GM Europes PD centre with the words "we got a major problem, what you going to to about it"

[scaniaman]

Why all the fuss about Vectra suspensions now? VX have made poor suspensions since the MK1 Victor, then the Velux and so on.

This is on top of thin unfinished body panels (rust). Followed by faulty camshafts on the Astras etc.

In fact, has VX ever made a decent car since 1948?

PS. not so long ago since Ford Mondeo's had the same problem---frequently cured by fitting non Ford springs.

[heliosuk]

It's not necessarily the fact that the springs fail scania. At some point this will happen. The big issue is the way they fail. Fortunately in most cases it has been low speed it seems. The problem is that when they do, they collapse but are not contained within it's operating envelope and penetrate the tyre. The DFMEA that should have been carried out at the design stage should have highlighted this so it couldn't happen. Further, if you look at the posts there is a common factor in the failures. This should have rung alarm bells at VX customer services.

[Paulco62]

Max

 

My 57 plate Astra has developed a major fault with its gearbox. I have contacted Customer services but because the car as done 65000 miles it is out of warranty?? Surely the gearbox must have a better life expectancy than this??

They have informed me that they will not offer any goodwill gesture or honour any warranty because of the mileage and the fact i have used UNIpart garages for my servicing? The customer service representative did not want to hear or even consider any argument i tried to put forward or offer any further advice? I tried to explain that I am not some"boyracer" as she implied but a regular vauxhall customer with a few models under my "belt"

I hope you can provide some help with this matter?

 

Regards

PaulCo62

[Guest VX_Max Vauxhall Company Rep]

Max

 

My 57 plate Astra has developed a major fault with its gearbox. I have contacted Customer services but because the car as done 65000 miles it is out of warranty?? Surely the gearbox must have a better life expectancy than this??

They have informed me that they will not offer any goodwill gesture or honour any warranty because of the mileage and the fact i have used UNIpart garages for my servicing? The customer service representative did not want to hear or even consider any argument i tried to put forward or offer any further advice? I tried to explain that I am not some"boyracer" as she implied but a regular vauxhall customer with a few models under my "belt"

I hope you can provide some help with this matter?

 

Regards

PaulCo62

 

Hi Paul

 

I'll gladly look into the case you've previously had with us if you could private message me your vehicle registration.

 

Firstly apologies for the bad experience you've had, what I'll do moving forward is make sure that we have discussed the cause of failure with the dealership and that all areas have been investigated.

 

Unfortunately, I can't guarantee a gesture of goodwill towards these repairs but I'll look into this for you once you've messaged me your reg.

 

Thanks Paul

 

Max

Social Media Agent, Vauxhall UK

[aradam]

Hello Max,

 

Hopefully my Renault scenic nightmare will be finished in the near future, and I'm now trying to decide what car I will buy next, I'm looking at a reviews off several cars, I would like a family car again, and I was thinking about Vauxhall because it is in general known for its reliability and the last thing I want, is another car nightmare.

It seems that the Signum is quite reliable, I loved driving a diesel for the costs, but I am slightly worried because all trouble with the modern day diesels, for example egr valves and turbo's.

Can anybody advice me about this?

My first choice was a zafira and a meriva, but a zafira seems to eat EGR valves and the Meriva seems to have a power steering problem, so I am specifically looking at a signum now I like the looks but my number 1 issue is reliability.

Does anbody on this forum experience with one?