JSRacer

A couple weeks ago I posted a thread titled "LRP 28 Spec 2 Trash???". The con-rod bearing blew out and basically destroyed my engine. So I sent it into Team Associated hoping it was covered under warranty.

Yesterday I got a phone call from Jason at Team Associated and he told me my warranty is void. He first claimed because I took the backplate off, I voided my warranty. Then he preceeded to tell me that I must have hydrolocked the engine because the settings on the carb were rich. Then he asked me if I cleaned the engine out and I told him I sprayed WD40 into it to spray the metal shavings out of the way so I could see the damage. He told me that was a bad thing to do because now LRP won't be able to find the shavings and broken parts. I'm guessing this is for their R&D department, and I understand to an extent.

After talking/arguing to Jason for about 20 mins, I told him I'd get back to him on the $115 deal he offered me for a new LRP. A few hours later, I called Team Associated back and asked for their warranty department. I got Bill on the phone and asked him if it would be ok if I took my backplate off so I can see the damage in my LRP engine and if so would it void the warranty. He said that was just fine. A little shocked, I repeated my question in full at least 3 times. 'It won't void my warranty Bill?'

I then immediately called Jason back and told him the good news! I'm getting an engine! Jason asked who I talked to and immediately put me on hold. A minute later he came back and said this; "Bill said that he thought you were talking about a different engine". My blood was boiling. I knew he was lying. We argued about the backplate issue for a few minutes and then he ADMITTED to me that taking the backplate off wasn't a big deal but spraying WD40 in it was (now) why the warranty was void. There was nothing I was gonna do or Jason was gonna do for me at that point. Although he did tell me to call back next week on Wednesday and his supervisor Brad would be in and he'd make the final decision

I called back a few hours later, after I calmed down. I talked to Don, the head of customer service, and he told me that Brad would be back Monday (2 days sooner than Wednesday), and I could talk to him about this issue.

After this phone call I called my LHS and Bob the owner said he'd call for me on this issue next week. This is where I stand right now.

CESSPOOL

Sounds liek complete BS to me. I would post the same thing on there forums, if they have any. I would call the BBB also, or threaten to first. It's a single engine which isn't much to them I'm sure. but keeping a customer would be of a lot more value, IMHO. I would call Brad before he has time to talk to the other guy Monday morning.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

you think this is bad, you shoulda seen what I went through to get RECALL work done on my 1:1 Jeep...JEEZ

Usually the customer service reps don't know *** they're talking about, so i wouldn't take anything he says for gospel.

claudacio

My Feedback: (9)

That does in fact sound like a truckload of bull***** to me. That sucks to hear, I had a similar issue with trinity not to long ago (I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER TRINITY PRODUCT..........EVER!!!!!!), and you kinda have to keep your cool for now. When you talk to brad on monday, as soon as you get him on the phone explain to him how "displeased" you are with the way that you were treated by jason and how much he changed the reason for the warranty being voided and how bill told you a different story, and then ask how it could be possible that spraying WD-40 in an engine will void the warranty, they do suggest you use ARO right? Try not to let him get a word in either until you are finished, the more you dont let him speak the more he'll want to throw something at you to just get you out of his hair. But be calm all the way until you see you are getting nowhere, if and when you see its going no where then start throwing the BBB threats and stuff at them.

You can always yell , scream, or beat the chit out of someone at anytime if need be, but try to be civil until you see the situation heading south on you, just take control of it though before the try to fast talk you.

Chronic

Why would you do that? You were good to go, and then you shot yourself in the foot.

I wouldn't get too confrontational at this point, but it sounds like that one guy wants to prove something now.

Chronic

Don't even get me started on factory certified Jeep service departments. Jeeeeesus, those guys could teach the mafia a thing or two about organized crime. I LOVE Jeeps, but I doubt I ever buy another new one...

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

..I never bought a new one (mine's an 02 Liberty-balljoint recall-and yes, it will actually go off road ), and unless they build a TK Wrangler Rubicon 4 door CRD next year with a stick and 33s stock, i'm never buying a new Chrysler for any reason.

But, on the warranty issue...grab your ankles now that you've stirred up the hive

Henry William French

That is a terrible story.[&o] I know how you feel. Look up the XTM XLB 1/7 scale buggy in the "User Reviews" section of RCUNIVERSE to read my story on how I got screwed by Hobby People and their Global Hobby parent company. People like you talked to on the phone depend on you to accept the fact you are getting screwed and shut up. You must tell your story to every rc guy you meet and post it on every message board you find, that is really the only way to get the company back and make them think about their customer relations. Things like this litterally make a person sick.[sm=punching.gif] I hate XTM, Hobby People and Global Hobby with a passion![:@]

SublimeJason

I'm with you on that claudacio,
I've been Trying for a Year and a half to Get my Wheels back from Trinity...
(Snapped 2 rims First tank out..never got close to a jump)

claudacio

My Feedback: (9)

Not to get to far off topic but I have an almost hatred for trinity. They treated me like the biggest A-hole ever, if I was in the same room with these people I honestly would have started punching someone, thats how bad it got with them. I bought a "draked" engine in january (not to mention I paid $270 for the terd) , before I could even get it installed in my LST a screw that holds the cooling head on stripped the hole where it goes into the actual engine case, and with the force it would take to crush a booger none the less. So I got in touch with them and all seemed well, and it got sent in. Ok, a month later I get it back with an explanation of what they did to remedy the problem which was that "when it was assembled a too short of a screw was used, so we installed a longer screw". Ok fine, that wasnt my idea of a permenant fix, but ok. I go to install it (the cooling head is so big and wide you have to remove it to get it on the engine mounts) and the same exact hole stripps. Now I get back in touch with them and they asked that I leave my number and there gonna issue a return authorization# when they call back. They never called back, within a week of not hearing from them I started calling them on a daily basis, getting nowhere with run around please leave a message BS. So I finally got in touch with someone there and it went back and forth for like a week of "well I have to talk to my supervisor, well I have to find the original RA#", which was never found by the way (what an organized, organization they are). They gave me so much BS it was rediculas, finally I called and refused to hang up without talking to some kind of manager or something. When whom ever got on the phone they told me that it was my fault that the screws stripped, and I must have over tightened the screws while the engine was hot or something. Then I told them the engine has yet to be ran, now being 3 months after I bought it, I kinda flipped out at this point on them and they told me to send it in, but they cant promise that they are gonna do anything for me but they'll take a look at it. At this point I was so freakin' pissed (I'm actually getting pissed right now thinking about it) I told them if they cant fix it for me RIGHT that I would like to present the engine to the president of the company as a gift from me to use as a paper wieght because it was a useless POS was not worth the space it takes up in my house.

In the end, I got a brand new engine from them but it took 6 months to get it back, but the sad part is that it runs like ***** and refuses to hold any kind of tune whatsoever, and is sitting at the bottom of my closet collecting dust. What a waist, I could've bought another novarossi and been happy. But no, LOL I had to be different, LOL.

RCtruckRacer

When you talk to them next week, ask them if its worth the $80 or so it will cost them to NOT have a guy that is willing to go on every single RC forum and describe in detail how Associated handles waranty work on LRP engines. Ask them if it's woth saving $80 only to have someone dedicate the next year of their life admonishing people to NEVER buy Associcated or LRP products again. Advise them you are more than willing to go to your local consumer protection angency. Also let them know that you understand about your state's laws regarding implied warranties... and that if worse comes to worse, there is always small claims court.

Do this in the most professional manner that you can, and only after you have absolutely established that they are unwilling to do the right thing. Better yet, do all of that and send it in a certified letter. Also make sure they know that you have documented each conversation in detail. Really put their kahona's in a vice if you can.

Good Luck!

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

On the contrary, they've always been great with me.

mikewoodkozar

I really hate to hear this about Associated/LRP, after buying a couple spec 3's i hope i dont have a problem. But like another said, threatening with the BBB is usually the coup de grace when it comes to getting something done.

I bought a flat panel TV from Sears in December, then it when down in price several times (especially around super bowl). They had a price match gurantee, so i kept going back getting my money back for the difference, well one day they said, "i am sorry but we cant give you any more money back." I was like what? Show me in writing where it says there is a limit to there so called guarantee. They couldnt come up with any written proof, yet still refused to give me any more money back! So i told them i was one click away from completing my complaint with the BBB and the manager called me into the store and slapped some more cash in my hand!

CESSPOOL

Vrddog1130, Don't know how much it would help. If you give me your name and the number you called, I'll call and complain as well. I was thinking about getting 2 of the 18th scale MT for my daughters for Christmas. If I'll have to deal with this kind of service, I'll look at other options. I think we should all call and talk to Brad and tell him none of us will by TA products if this is how they treat customers. We'll see if we can't get them to change their mind. a samll boycot of sorts.. I'll them maybe the Novarossi is worth the extra money also if I can get treated with respect, especially when I get a faulty product.

Word of mouth can be powerful, be it good or bad.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

IMO Brad is not right, but neither is Vrod. Judging from his post, he seems like the kind of person that would get on the phone with a chip on his shoulder, and from my experiance working in the industry, people that call with a problem that he described with that attitude always KNOW they did something wrong (i.e. overrev the engine, thus chucking a rod).

I'm not saying that he DID, in fact, blow the engine up by being stupid, but typically that attitude means you did.

mikewoodkozar

Warranties are so freakin.......complicated, i hope everything works out for you

JSRacer

ThunderbirdJunkie, you don't know me and you're a bad judge of character. I won't psychoanalyze you so please don't bother with me. I've read your posts in the past and many are belittling, negative, and overcritical. The chip is not on my shoulder my friend. And Brad is not involved in this issue quite yet. I think you meant Jason. Hopefully Brad handles things differently.

Cesspool, I think that's a great idea! I've been coming to RC Universe for around 7 months now and I'm not leaving anytime soon. I see some of the same names on this site and I have gotten a feel for some of your interests. I definitely would stand behind any of you if you were treated unfairly. Like I implied, I'm not leaving this hobby anytime soon so I am interested in companies who treat their customers with the utmost respect. We're the little guy when we stand alone but together we could make a difference. Cesspool, if you wanna call and speak your mind I think we may all appreciate that. If any of you wanna call I know I'd appreciate it. If you do, please do it in a kind, professional manner, as ThunderbirdJunkie suggested, a chip on the shoulder gets you no where with customer service. Thanks Cesspool, good idea!

Team Associated--714-850-9320 in California
Brad (Jason's supervisor)--Ext. 126
My name is Josh Sheley.

claudacio

My Feedback: (9)

Vrod, I support you 100%, but I think the phone calls to LRP/associated regaurding your matter should only come from you. I too believe in stregth in numbers ( I really wish we could organize ourselves to the point of being an organization that sheer #'s could influence this type of situation or other situations for that matter, like group purchases from manufacturers), so what I would suggest is get a list of people willing to put there personal information down on some kind of petition style letter stating that we would effectively boycott LRP/associated or something to that affect. If you have a bunch of people calling and harrassing, not saying any of you would harass, but I know how quickly things can go downhill first hand and think you'd be leaving yourself open for defeat with that type of approach.

My opinion, wait till monday before anyone else takes any action what so ever, then if you cant come to some kind of reasonable agreement with the supervisor, then rally the troops. And from there get a forum thread going with the people who are supporting you to list there coments and either print it out and fax it to them or if possible send them an email or even give them the link over the phone. But I think no matter how experienced a person is in dealing with this type of matter, you need either someone in the type of business to represent you, like your buddy from the LHS or something alike. But just random people calling and digging into the matter is going to look good and will make you look like you cant stand up for yourself and you dont want that, trust me. Once they see that then they'll assume they actually have you by the balls and not the other way around.

Seriously, come up with a nice civil approach and if it doesnt go as planned THEN pull the punches and go for it from there. Even go as far as making a list of what you need to say and write it down and have it right there in front of you when you call.

JSRacer

You're right Claudacio, I should wait until I've gone as far as I can go alone. Only problem with next week is that I'm working out of town without a computer. Are there any of you in favor of putting your name on a list (for now) just to show your interest in this situation?

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

You're right, Vrod, I did mean Jason...just the previous reference to Brad screwed me up. I'm specifically talking about the sort of attitude that I saw when viewing this thread's original post. I'm not going to try to generalize your overall character because I don't know you well enough.

Since I do work in the industry and I have to deal with warranty (and non-warranty) issues quite frequently, I do think it's a really REALLY bad move to NOT replace your engine, regardless of whether or not it was a warranted explosion. I might have to call Associated on Monday and let them know that I've been a loyal customer with both their cars and Reedy motors for a decade or so, and while I haven't had a problem with the quality of their parts and never needed to use their customer service, the story HAS made me question whether or not I'll remain a loyal customer.

I'm good at being a ***** like that

big terp 77

reading stuff like this really makes you appreciate the times that companies standup for their products. horizon for instance has always been great, a bit overpriced, but the customer service is worth it.

CESSPOOL

I can't agree with that. losi is great, horizon is a joke. My fuel tank leaked when I first got my truck. I called Horizon and they weanted me to send them the tank and pressure test it or what not to make sure it leaks. Even though fuel would blow out of the side. I called Losi, and they sent one right away, end of story. Guess I'm not very edjumacated...

CESSPOOL

I'll keep my cool. I'll just ask them why I should bye 2 of their trucks if this is the way they treat their customers. If they have made satifactory amends with you by christmas, I'll consider it. I was completely sold before this, now I am 2nd guessing. I don't think it would be a bad idea to let Brad know this from me or anyone else. as long as we call 1 time, keep our cool, and don't harass anyone. I think Brad getting 20 calls from 20 different future customers carries alot of weight. I know if I got 20 complaints from 1 customer's piers, I would listen.

claudacio

My Feedback: (9)

CESSPOOL,

IF and when you do call, and its before Vrodd makes contact with brad, I would recommend not mentioning their issue with vrod or vica versa. Me perosnally, if I was on the end of Assoc./lrp, and I got a phone call from some random person, I would completelty just add some fuel to the fire and point it in Vrods direction. Someone said in a above post that Vrod went in to the situation with a chip on his shoulder, now if you call assoc./LRP and make mention to vrods situation, they are gonna be the ones with the chip on the shoulder and I am willing to bet that it will cause vrod more grief in the end and effectively do nothing for him, they dont like when 3rd parties get involved. We dont want them to have a heads up on the overall goal that we are all thinking of. Let the situation be handled by vrod initially and then see where it goes from there. If he isnt satisfied with the outcome, then we should come up with something to make them think twice about stiffing the "little guy" with no vasoline. Its kinda hard to say that X amount of people will boycott the product, but I'm sure repetitive anyoing, borderline, threatening phone calls to "Brad" AFTER the fact they may think twice. But we're all looking at the situation as that its definitely going to go bad, you never know what they might do, hell they might even send him a new mill free of charge.

One thing that definitely needs to be said when you call them is (if it does start going bad or course) is that how you will not hesitate to spread your story of the situation across EVERY SINGLE RC forum on the web in which you have been documenting word for word. THe best product in the world is useless without the creator/distributors that wont back there product.


Vrodd, if I can be of any assistance please PM or email me and I will do anything I possibly can do to help you out. I've been on you're end of the stick and I know what these people are like to deal with, especially CS. They dont even know about the product half the time, there only concern is the bottom line and there quota, in whatever form that is.

JSRacer

Thanks Claudacio, I appreciate it. Like you said, this may turn out just fine.

I've read over and over my first post and honestly can't see how anyone (ThunderbirdJunkie) could assume I had a chip on my shoulder? Funny how things get started when left to one's imagination/assumptions.

But anyway, I won't be calling TA on Monday, my LHS will. Bob has much more experience dealing with these issues. After he talks to them I'll see what was said and go from there. I'm not sure how I'll be able to contact you guys on here Monday because I'll be in a motel with no computer. [] I come back Wednesday night so maybe it would be best for everyone to wait until then for the verdict. If I do get a new LRP on Monday I'd hate to see them change their mind somehow because of a few phone calls. LOL We'll see.