Nov 13, 2007 05:13 PM
16297 Views
I purchased a Safari Dicor in the last week of May 2007.
I am an extremely unsatisfied customer, thanks to the inefficient team that
deals with the Service of a Safari Dicor- I was stranded in the middle of a
Highway with my family for over 7 hours.
This was when I was driving back from Tirupati to Bangalore
on 1st November 2007; about
75 minutes after I started from Tirumala –I heard a rattling noise and the
indicator displayed a ‘Check Engine’ message.
Time: 12:15
I tried to check the physically the connections and everything seemed normal. I
tried starting my car- the engine would crank up, but when I tried to
accelerate the vehicle it would not move as the engine would not rev up.
Time: 12:25: I was surprised because I was stuck in the middle of a highway with my family
in a car that was barely 6 months old. I immediately reached out to my hand
phone and called on the ‘24 Hour Help Line’ numbers that were prominently
displayed on my Windscreen.
The Service representatives who attended to my calls – after listening to me
and understanding that I was stranded in the middle of a high way with my
family promptly asked me to call on another number(The other number mentioned
on the windscreen)
The little hopes I had, was shattered when the representative who received my
call asked me to call the first number listed on the windshield.
It took 2 calls to understand that the numbers listed in my windshield were
neither 24-HOUR of support nor had anything to remotely do with HELP, wonder
what got them associated with the term 24-HOUR HELP LINE.
I then reached the owners manual to look for the Helpline numbers hoping they
may finally be of some help.
Time: 12:40: I called TATA Motors-Tirupati and was given the number for Chitoor(MGB
Motors), the representatives manning the 24-HOUR HELP LINE
had apparently gone for Lunch and returned 45minutes later to hear my plight.
Time: 13:30: They agreed to come over and look at the car – provided I was willing to pay a
premium for them having to travel outside their Service
Center. I promptly agreed to pay
their fee and the Mechanics reached in about 40 mins.
Time: 14:15:It was quite surprising that the Authorized Dealers from TATA Motors had not
been trained on the dynamics of the Safari Dicor and needed instructions to be
given by the Mechanics in Bangalore
about what to look for - even for a simple sanity check.
The real surprise to me was when I was given to understand that a laptop was
needed to diagnose the problem and the mechanics from Chitoor didn’t have a
clue about this.
Just when I thought the Mechanics from TATA in Chitoor would fix the Minor
issue and help me reach Bangalore –
did the struggle to locate a Service Center
with a lap top/desktop begin.
Time: 16:15: A series of calls to were made and the most obvious choices were to reach
Chitoor(15kms) away who did not have a Laptop to fix the issue and the other
most obvious choice to reach Tirupati(55kms) also failed as they also
mentioned that they did not have a laptop.
Time: 16:15: My next obvious move was to call the help line numbers of other towns that were
listed on the owner’s manual- I tried calling Vellore(about 55 kms away from
where I was stranded)to realize that the agency listed(VST Motors) did not deal
with TATA anymore…
Time: 16:30: Thankfully a passerby who stopped to attend to nature’s call walked up and
suggested I call the new showroom in Vellore and mentioned that they may be of
help.
Time: 16:45
I called Vijay Motors(Vellore) to explain the unpleasant situation I was stuck
in and mentioned my fear of being stranded in the dark with women in the car. I would affirm agencies like Vijay Motors(Vellore)
are the only saving grace for TATA motors.
Time: 16:55: The team from Vijay Motors(Vellore)
called to check with the mechanics from Chitoor about the issue with the
Safari; and were prompt in reverting to confirm what they thought may be the
cause of breakdown. They agreed to come over to where we were stranded – took
directions and promised to reach at the earliest.
Time: 18:45: The rescue team finally arrived and for the first time that day – I realized
that I was dealing with a set of professionals.
Time: 19:00: We finally start moving – after having been stranded for over 7 hours. One
member of the rescue team began driving the Safari – while we were asked to sit
in the rescue van.
The rescue team from Vellore had
apparently been sensitized to handle these situations.
Time: 21:25: We reached Vijay Motors(Vellore)
and were happy to be a part of civilization after having spent 7 hours in the
middle of a highway. We were informed that it would take approximately 15 days
to get my car moving.
The components that needed to be replaced were: Injectors – 4 nosCommon
RailHigh Pressure HoseCam Sensors
On getting off the rescue vehicle I found the bumper/crash guard/number plate,
etc damaged because of having towed my vehicle. It would be amiss if I do not mention the customer service skills that were
exhibited by the team in Vellore –
if at all anyone needs to be appreciated during this fiasco- I would strongly
recommend Vijay Motors(Vellore).
During my conversations with executives from the various Centers I was time and
again told that several TATA Safari Dicor’s have faced similar situations and
this was not the first car to have gone thru this kind of a breakdown.
When stuck, I obviously did not expect the team from Bangalore
to drive up to where I was stranded – but the least they could have done is to
have escalated the issue to the people concerned who may have had information
about new Service Centers that were close to where I was.
A few questions that remain unanswered and need clarity: Who will bear
the expenses for the failure on the part of TATA motors? The Showroom who sold
the car?TATA Motors?TATA Service Centers that dropped the ball?Who will take
responsibility for the performance of a brand new vehicle that ends up with a
large failure that takes 15 days to repair?Is this vehicle(Safari) made of
sub-standard products? Or was my vehicle one of the vehicles in a certain batch
that did not go thru a comprehensive quality check?How can I be sure that I
will not be stranded in a similar fashion if not worse – because of an issue
that is known to officials in TATA motors(little has been done about the
same).Will the support provided to customers ever be dialed up by sensitizing
the TATA Service Centers and equipping them with adequate tools/support?
I bought a TATA Safari because the advertisements read **“Put the Tata
Safari to the only test that matters**” Little did I know what the team
in TATA motors meant when they spoke of a TEST.
