A big heartyy Fuck you to Pontiac

The BBQ Pit
#1

In 2008 my beloved Pontiac Aztek was killed by a woman in a Toyota Matrix who ran a stop sign . I was in the market for a car and with the inducement of 4k towards a GM car from my mother I narrowed my options down to a Torrent SUV and a Vibe.

The pros for the torrent were

  1. Large amount of space
  2. Reminded me of the Aztek
  3. Loved the name

The cons were

  1. Not the best gas mileage
  2. To get it at a price I could afford I would have to give up features
  3. Did I as a single person need a SUV

The pros for the Vibe were

  1. I could get everything I wanted for a good price
  2. Better gas mileage
  3. It’s really a Toyota!

The cons for the Vibe were

  1. Smaller car
  2. Going from a SUV to a “compact”
    In the end I went with the Vibe and was happy until I heard about Toyota’s recall on the Matrix and I then heard that Pontiac had a recall on the Vibe.

So here I am the sole driver of a car that was purchased jointly by me and my mother taking the car in for the recall.

Cut to less than 30 minutes later arguing with the people at the dealer I was at that the repair was never performed and I didn’t give a fucking care about what their computer said (did not use that language). I plead tried to use common sense that if it was fixed before I would not be wasting their time and mine insisting that it was never fixed. I offered to pay the labor to gain access to the gas pedal to prove the fix was not applied, but like a led zeppelin that did not fly.

On Monday I called Pontiac and spoke to someone who took my information including where I live(NJ) and promised someone would call me back.

Indeed someone did. Her name was Cynthia and she didn’t sound like a Cynthia I knew. Her voice sounded like someone in an overseas call center and the words she used sounded like a script. She told me that she checked their system and the repair was doneIN NORMAN OKLAHOMA and this was verified by the dealer I was at on Saturday.

Upon hearing that I nearly shat a penguin! I knew the dealer did not verity anything for if they had they would have noticed the fucking shim was not there. I called her back and naturally received her voice mail. I explained that the dealership **DID NOT CHECK ANYTHING AND I HAVE NEVER BEEN TO OKLAHOMA. **

One would think after this was brought up she would realize an error was made and for safety reasons they would authorize the repair to be made ASAP. Of course that was not the case. If it was I wouldn’t be here bitching in the Pit and hoping a recalled car accelerates and pins her to a barrier for hours (but doesn’t kill her) I was informed that until they can correct the information in their system they will not repair my car.

So now i HAVE TO WAIT WHILE THEY TRACK DOWN THE PERSON WHO’S CAR WAS FIXED SO PONTIAC CAN GET THE VIN OF THE CORRECT CAR WHILE I DRIVE A CAR THAT AT ANY SECOND (well any second it’s in drive) SUDDENLY ACCELERATE CAUSING ME TO HAVE TO TAKE ACTION

I can’t say I will never buy another Pontiac Car again because well this is really a Toyota problem and Pontiac is no more. I could say I will never buy a GM car again because it is their service that is so fucked up.

My girlfriend suggested I contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Agency which I did to lodge a complaint against Pontiac and the dealer and the person there suggested I contact the FTC which I did. filing two complaints as well.

#2

I can see how “it’s really a Toyota!” would be a pro, seeing as how it’s making you sweat like this.

Now, then, settle down. It sounds like a simple clerical error that they have to get straightened out. Administrative difficulties are not at all unusual, and in this case it could have been something as simple as an erroneous VIN entry into the log. It will resolve itself soon. In the meantime, worry about knowing how to put your car into neutral and/or turning it off. Think of this as a good opportunity to learn how your car works.

#3

Oh I know how to slap it into N if I do get the pedal problem. I just shove the shifter up. I don’t have to worry about it going into reverse because that is up and to the right. I’m sure it is something simple and will be resolved but the question is when? My job as overtime every weekday and up until today every weekend. I lost three hours of OT overall dealing with the dealer. I can’t take it back during the week without having to use vacation time which I won’t use for this.

I still say the dealer should have listened to the owner and checked the repair. When they saw it was not done, they should have documented it. done it then worried about getting paid.

When Pontiac contacted the dealer it was allegedly done at why didn’t they ask for the License Plate of the car the work was done on. That would show it is not mine.

#4

:rolleyes:

And how do you know the car was never fixed in Oklahoma? Did you see the car come off the boat and follow it as it was being delivered? Do you think the car might have come into port in, say, Texas, and maybe got a stopover on the way? Do you think they actually give a shit about license plates? The VIN number is the real ID, not what you mistakenly registered at the local courthouse.

Second, given your car buying pros and cons list, I’m not sure you’re even qualified to know which pedal is which, let alone if a repair has been done on it.

I am really glad, though, that you have taken the time to avail yourself of both the FTC and the NHTSA. Both of those organizations have set up processes for you to vent your frustrations in the mistaken belief that anyone actually gives a shit. It is a beautiful expenditure of our tax dollars in that it costs very little and accomplishes a lot (at least in the public perception).
Also, you live with your mom and drove an SUV. Awesome.

#5

ivn1188:rolleyes: If you READ my OP you would see that back in 2008 was when I bought The Vibe. This is 2010. There was no recall when I bought the car.

This is SOLEY a Pontiac Fuckup and again IT SHOULD HAVE HAVE BEEN FIXED ON SATURDAY

and yes in the past I drove a SUV an live with my parents. My grandmother who had a stroke over 20 years ago lived with us and it was convenient to always have someone around. My parents are old, some would say elderly and they enjoy having me around to help.

#6

I read your OP. I just don’t think you have any actual point vis a vis your car’s history or recall.

#7

The Pontiac Vibe was recalled in late January; the repair procedure is to install an accelerator pedal shim designed by Toyota as a response to the recent “unintended acceleration” problem.

The OP’s car could not have been fixed before January of this year because the shim installed in the accelerator assembly hadn’t yet been designed or manufactured. I presume the OP is reasonably certain his car hasn’t been fixed in 2010 because it’s never been out of his possession long enough to be spirited to Oklahoma and back.

That’s how he knows.

#8

Zut correct. My car has never left the East Coast. I’ve drive from New Jersey to NY, PA, MD, and DE but no where else with this car.

Driving non stop at 75 mph it would take 20 hours to get to OK from NJ. I would know if I was without my car for two days.

The dealer would rather believe an incorrect data entry than do physical work to verify what I am telling them.

#9

It was a mercy killing. Some cars are just too ugly to live.

#10

Call the police. It sounds like an interstate scam to em. Actually, no that woudl be the FBI’s jurisdiction.

The dealership will straighten up quick when the FBI comes around to ask questions! :wink:

#11

Dude, if you manage to get ivn188 and Rand Rover to disagree with you in the same thread, you know you’re in the right.

Plus, you should win some sort of prize.

#12

… a double date with both of them?

#13

Perhaps, Dante, but Rand Rover was absolutely correct about this:

The Pontiac Aztec was designed by Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, and NY Governor David Patterson.

#14

The Aztek is only run-of-the-mill ugly. Have you seen the Nissan Cube? An ugly car with a stupid name. But it does give me the chance to practice my Mr. Burns impression every time I see it.

#15

Wow. A real life Aztek owner? I thought Pontiac just had employees drive those things around so we could appreciate the beauty of the things all around us.

#16

Umm…And that’s a bad thing why?

#17

Agreed that the cube is ugly, but at least it was designed with a consistent idea. The Aztek looks like an accident, like the product of an unholy union between a Subaru, a Honda CRX, a RAV4, and all of the remaining female contestants on American Idol (some of them can sing, but woof, it’s an ugly year).

#18

Even assuming, arguendo, that this is an utterly new thing that wouldn’t get done by other means (Pontiac had a recall a while back of their ignition cylinders, and some of those were replaced/fixed previous to the recall by corrected parts), then we still have a problem.

First, the OP can’t, apparently, get enough information either to or from the phone person to get the “clerical error” straightened out.

Second, OP can’t figure out that * any* Pontiac dealership can and will do the work. And it seems like the company is actually checking out the issue, though it’s hard to tell.

Third, this uncontrolled acceleration thing is extremely rare, and frankly seems to be highly attributable to driver failure (and for Christ’s sake, it was supposedly prone to this problem before the recall; what’s changed other than “Oh teh noes!!”?). It is not as if the OP can’t drive, or is at terrible risk. And furthermore, I’m not sure there have been any reports about the Vibe, and it’s certainly within the realm of possibility that this is more a fix for the customer than the car.

Fourth, the reaction (and also the spelling and extreme use of these tags) of the OP is a lot silly. He’s calling in the government troops, refusing to ever buy a GM again, and then ranting about it instead of taking the sane and easy steps that can correct the issue, if indeed there is an issue.

#19

Presumably the OP knows whether or not the car’s been to Oklahoma, seeing how he’s owned the car since it was new.

On the other hand, the OP also owned (and loved!) a Pontiac Aztek, a car so ugly even other crossovers wouldn’t fuck it- so maybe he doesn’t know shit.

#20

Yes, I agree that he has never driven it to/in Oklahoma. However, that doesn’t mean the car has never been there. I guarantee his car has been in California, and either got shipped by boat to Texas or driven across the states by truck or train. Plus, cars get moved around between dealerships as well.