RE: Unsatisfactory customer & technical service faulty auto repairs
Dear Walter’s Audi Management,
I am writing this letter because I am extremely upset about the dishonest and fraudulent automotive service I have received at Walter’s Audi.
For the past 2 years my wife has taken our 2005 Audi A4 to the Walter’s Audi Service department for service and routine maintenance. Our vehicle has been in your shop approximately 10 times of which she had complained about noise related to the power steering about 5 times. Upon failing to get the problem resolved after 5 visits, I decided to go with her on the 6th visit. We dropped the vehicle off the evening of January 18th 2010 so that it could be looked at early on January 19th. When we showed up early on the 19th, we were met by a service advisor (Jesus Moya) who told us once again that nothing was wrong with the vehicle and that as a courtesy, they had topped off the power steering fluid. When my wife asked if they would do another diagnostic and give her a loaner vehicle, he replied “no”, she would have to pay for a rental because he couldn’t justify a loaner since there was nothing wrong with the vehicle. I interjected and asked if it was normal to have to routinely add power steering fluid. To this he answered “yes”. I then told him that it seemed to me that routinely having to add fluid may be an indication of a leak, then asked him if anyone had bothered to check for a leak. He didn’t answer my question, but instead asked us to hold on while he talked to the technician. When Jesus came back, he told us that he would be able to authorize a loaner vehicle for one day and that he would have the technician check the power steering system for leaks. A few hours later my wife contacted me and said that Jesus had called and told her that they would need to replace the power steering line as well as the power steering pump. She said he also told her that the price would normally be over $1200, but he would only charge her $575 for the pump and the labor would be free. I immediately called Jesus for further clarification of the problem. Jesus told me that there was a leak in the power steering line which they would replace and that he had recommended replacement of the power steering pump and that my wife had instructed him to change it because she thought it was necessary. I asked him why he had recommended replacing of the power steering pump and he said “because of the age and mileage of the vehicle”. I then asked if the power steering pump was defective or if it was in perfect condition. His response was that “it was currently functioning perfectly, but because of the age and mileage of the vehicle he was recommending replacement”. I told him that I had owned several other vehicles for which I had never had to replace a power steering pump and I did not want them to replace a perfectly good power steering pump.
I picked up the vehicle on Friday, January 24th and in the process asked Jesus why he didn’t add to the service documentation that “the customer had declined the power steering pump recommendation”. He said “it was no big deal”. After driving the vehicle for about 30 minutes, the power steering went out while I was making a right turn and I narrowly avoided hitting another vehicle in oncoming traffic. It was extremely difficult for me to turn the wheel and control the vehicle. (Had my wife been driving I have no doubt that she would have crashed and possibly sustained physical injury). The next day (Saturday), I contacted the manager of the dealership regarding the issue and he sent a tow truck to pick-up and transport my vehicle to the dealership. On Monday morning I was told by the service manager (Bob Juliano) that the power steering pump was bad and they would be replacing it as a courtesy. I told Bob about my experience and he defended his sales advisor saying that it was an honest mistake on the part of the technician and that his advisor was just passing on information. When I asked why Jesus told my wife she needed a power steering pump, but told me it was just a recommendation, he just responded that he would get the vehicle taken care of.
The service I have experienced during my last 3 visits to Walter’s Audi have set the tone for me to question all the repairs, services, recommendations and information we’ve received from the service advisors while doing business there. In speaking with my wife and briefly reviewing our service records, I also found that my wife took the vehicle in for service and asked for the radio to be checked because the radio didn’t work. She was told that there was a problem and it wasn’t covered by the warranty. She declined the $600+ repair and instead went without radio for 15 months until she personally contacted the warranty provider and verified that it actually was covered. She then made another trip to the dealership to get a repair that should have been done 15 months prior. In other instances we found that service advisor Stacey (#333) advised that the driver’s seat motor and malfunctioning airbag were not covered by our warranty, these items were never repaired and we’ve come to now find out that they were in fact covered by the warranty. We also found an inconsistency between the charges & required repairs quoted to us vs. quoted to the warranty company. On another trip she was charged over $175 for a fuel filter replacement in order to fix the humming noise coming from the power steering pump. This is yet another instance of faulty trouble shooting amounting to fraud.
To date I have not been satisfied with the customer or technical service I have received at Walter’s Audi, nor have I been contacted by anyone on their management team in an effort to inquire if there is anything that can be done to salvage my opinion of their staff or my overall perception of their normal business practices. Walter’s still employs the dishonest service advisor(s), who to the best of my knowledge haven’t received any disciplinary action, which indicates that they condone their tactics. I have often heard of mechanics taking advantage of women and mechanically un-savvy consumers. This is the first Audi we’ve owned and the first time we have experienced blatant predatory & fraudulent service. As evident by the time I’ve taken to write this letter, I am truly appalled! Walter’s has turned the purchase of our luxury car into a far from luxurious experience. The service we’ve received is a far cry from the Audi Service Promise of “A premium level of service. Your expectations. Our promise”. For the record, I plan to share my experience with as many people as possible in hopes that they will think twice before purchasing an Audi and being subjected to the unsavory shenanigans that Walter’s Audi seemingly endorses.

Your truly unsatisfied customer,

Eric Satterwhite
(909)8415773
Cc:
Bureau of Automotive Repairs (BAR)
Department of Consumer Affairs
State of California, Department of Justice- Public Inquiry Unit
Federal Trade Commission
Better Business Bureau (BBB)
3 Cents.com
Ripoffreports.com