JohnP2

I hate to "rant" like this, but I think it's important for folks to know about the different manufacturers and the type of service they provide. I'm typically quicker to post my positive experiences with manufacturers, but this one is pretty ridiculous.

The short story is a $4.00 part broke on my D8T after its first jump, but it is an important part (front suspension shaft). I called Hot Bodies this afternoon, and after waiting on hold for 20 minutes finally spoke to someone. I was very polite to the young gentleman and explained I simply want the defective part replaced by Saturday. He was quick to replace it, but said "I have to charge you for priority mail". I explained he did not have to charge me for it, and if anything simply forward me to his boss so I can get it worked out, which he would not. His name was Chris, he works in Hot Bodies customer service, and his extension is 111.

This is no problem as I assure you I will be speaking with someone a bit higher-up tomorrow. I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume I just spoke with some kid who simply needs to be re-trained, but if they are willing to loose a customer over a $5.00, shipping, you all need to be aware of it.

nitrosportsandrunner

Im not too surprised they wanted to charge you for faster shipping....

but not letting you speak to a higher-up when you asked to is not cool.

The 20min wait is unforgivable as well. If their call volume is that high then need more people!

JohnP2

The guy would not even give me his employee ID or anything. He was simply a bitter, smart-***** who did not represent HB well.

He wised up when I told him I understand how call-centers work and when I call back I can easily help whomever manages the call-center track our call based on the ANI, and date/time stamp (this is when it helps to be a software architect). Ha!.

The thing that ticked me off is I was very cool with him. Toldit was my first experience withHB, andIwantto tell everyone I know howkiller their customer service is. I told him how I want to be a raving fan.

I was like "Sir, are you telling me your system won't let you compensate priority mail, or you just aren't going to do it?" He said "I'm just not going to do it?"

It's really no big deal. Ijust want a chance to explain to those atHB who have a vested interest....they can eitherpay an extra few bucks for priority mail,or lose me as a custmer. It's not like I run some big scam where I go company to company trying to get$4.00 parts shipped priority for free.

Again, I'm not trying to be unreasonable. It will cost them maybeTHREEdollars. For you business owners out there, you can typically tell those trying to take advantage of you vs those who are genuine and really want to be a customer for life, as I do with HB. This is simply their one chance.

I will spend my morning contacting their CEO tomorrow. I know people who know people, etc., so I can reach him. Not trying to sound pompus, but this is the fact. Worst case scenario I get a VP who resolves it for me. I'm confident their execs are about keeping customers happy (especially when it comes to a matter of a few dollars), and if their brass is not....you will all know about it. I once had a someone similar issue with AMain hobbies, and had a chance to have a few conversations with their CEO, and he fixed it in an instance.

Sometimes you have one person who does not represent your company as you expect, so essentially I'm giving Hot Bodies a second chance here.The way I see it, I'm trying a breadth of manufatcurers here (which is whyI have so many "brands"). I can assure you, after I've gone "around the world", I am going to stick with the top 1-2 and will be spending a LOT of money on their products. Thus customer service is an extremely important part of the equation.

Thanks again for letting me vent. I really hate to sound negative (not my nature).

nitrosportsandrunner

dang!
Ive only had to call 2 companies...
traxxas and redcat
With traxxas I had someone to talk to within 2 minutes who was kind and helpful.
With redcat, well they are smaller. 9 times out of ten I get the same person!

Last time I got customer service like yours, It was Dish Network. Had to call 5 times, get 5 different people, get pissed more and more with each call and then Finally, someone gave me to a supervisor who quickly solved the situation as should have been done by the 1st person. I no longer have dish...LOL.

At least they didnt give you any issue as far as replacing the part itself.

nitroexpress

Without pictures we'll never know if it was user error or a warranty issue. But based on your past history, I lean away from warranty.From what you posted, youarebeing unreasonable.
Expectingpriority mail on top of a free replacement? Calling the CEO? What leads you to believe that you were completely blameless?

mr quint

My Feedback: (2)

I agree with Nitroexpress. You are taking things a little too far. You are getting a part replaced for FREE.. You should be happy they are replacing the part at all. IS that part even covered under warranty.

Foxy

Indeed, John. I'm sorry to say but you need to adjust your expectations. There are a few companies (HPI, Traxxas, and a couple of others but not many), which have a policy of replacing stuff free and without fuss. This is NOT the case for the majority of the hobby, nor is it reasonable to expect it to always be the case.

Hot Bodies knows that their shock shafts don't break without a certain amount of user error (I bet you have too much droop on the shock that broke), just to replace it free of charge, even if they do charge you postage, is a pretty good deal.

If Hpt Bodies were to offer the same level of service and support as Traxxas and HPI, their models would be priced appropriately (at least a 25% premium on top of a 'fair' price for the materials employed), which would cause the cost of a hot bodies to go from $335 to $400. Personally, I'd rather pay the lower initial cost and bear my own minor repairs, rather than pay a premium for additional support I don't want or need.

The level of customer service you expect is simply not going to be available for the price you paid for the Hot Bodies, and in fact, I would give them good customer service reviews, for agreeing to replace the part free of charge, regardless who pays the postage. Do not expect this from other companies.

Xray for example, you'll pay $500 for a chassis, if you break it, good luck getting them to care. Does that make them any less good cars? Or any less good as a racing RC company? No, of course not, people who buy Xray know what they are doing and know what to expect (no support). It's a whole different ethos when you get out of the 'consumer' RC brands and into the 'serious' ones.

mattster1971

I think I would be happy with the replacement part free of charge and just be Andrews pit crew this coming weekend. I understand your frustration with not having the part in time for the weekend but expecting the part to be sent so quickly at their cost may be expecting a little too much. In addition, it may be that the jump, and not just a weak shaft, led to this problem. As you said before, you are an aggressive driver and you expect the world from this vehicle. Keep your chin up, these are the trials that build you up, not pull you down. Go RC Nerds!

JohnP2

I hold companies to a high-standard, and in the end we are talking about a FEW dollars, so it is a bit of the principal for me at this point. As over-priced as this stuff is.....it's not going to put a company out of business to spend a few extra dollars to keep a serious customer happy. Just my thoughts anyway. As I noted, my angst came from the fact I tried to be professional and amenable, yet the CSR wanted to get into a pissing match with me. Really? This is Hot Bodies??

NitroExpress, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt regarding your "based on your history...." comment and not take it as it sounded. Iwill say this, however....at least I am man enough to step out and discussmy learning curve.This, instead ofnever doing, and just stting back throwing darts at other people during their learning curve.NOTE: I'm certainly not saying you do that...but I am an easy target and hope you agree how a comment like that can come across as "uncool". ;-) As noted, I am giving you the benefit of the doubt on this one as you seem like a stand-up guy. p.s. There is a pic of this in a different post

Foxy: Certainly as the moderator you don't want to make blanket statements like "Good luck getting them [Xray] to care [about a broken chassis]". I'm providing factsregarding a specifc transaction, and am sure that many, many folks have had wonderful service experience with both HB, and Xray. Besides, Xray's HQ is about 15 minutes from my house and I would be at their corporate office in person in the event something like that happened to me - know that. Ha! Your point about the pricing matrix makes sense, and I agree with you on it. As I noted, these professionals who are put on the front lineshould be able to weed out those trying to take advantage vs those serious hobbyist who want to be taken care of.Additionally, I am ALWAYS the first to admit when something goes wrong and how it was my mistake. If there is one person who does not take myself seriously on here, that's me (you all know that).BUT I don'tbelieve thisto be a build error.I personallyfeelIdid not plant the landing well and it bent.Thus I'm actually worried about the integrity of all the parts now, but we'll soon find out;-)

mrquint: My expectation is that any and all parts to a new rc kit are under warranty. I understand and respect your opinon on how Ishould be happy with what was offered, but still don't think Iwas being unreasonable (again it is a matter of a few dollars). We'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

Matt: Througout all of this, the Losi 8ight 2.0 has stood above the HB D8T, at least in my experience. Trust me, I wish it were the other way around. In the end, I'm just blessed that I can partake in this wonderful hobby.

Anyways, thanks forya'lls feedback. I'm normally not pompus....trust me. I represent the common man. ;-) I do have a high-standard for business transactions, however. All of your comments rang true, and I hearthat alot. My friends joke with me and call me"customer-service John" when I go into this mode....but as with everything....I pick my battles. The ones I do choose, however, I go in guns-a-blazin'. ;-)I've learned that as long as you are reasonable and properly negotiate your case.....things work out well in the end.

And my part will be here tomorrow....THANKSTO VICTORIA at Hot Bodies!!!I'm still a big fan of them!

supertib

what bent the front end ?

did you plant a jump badly and that bent the front end ? or are you saying that is not what happened ? I am just curious is all

SyCo_VeNoM

in his other thread he said the shock shaft bent 1st jump I'm guessing that is what he in referring to in this thread
EDIT: take that back think it was the front a-arm pin as he states it kept knocking the dogbone out of the cup

Foxy

What if I told you I've never returned anything to any RC company ever, in nearly 30 years. I just do not think we are entitled to expect every little thing to be perfect out of the box in this hobby. If I bent a shock shaft, it wouldn't even enter my mind to try to return it for a warranty replacement.

You will not find the level of service you expect in this hobby. As for RC America (Xray), again I say; good luck. If you break an Xray, it was your fault. Period. The only warranty replacements I've ever known Xray to make are recalls. I remember the Xray XB8R diffs were made of chocolate when they first came out, turns out the whole initial batch had missed the steel hardenening process. Xray offered a replacement set to any purchaser. Aside from that sort of thing, do not expect Jack.

Jeckler

My Feedback: (2)

I'm with Foxy. I honestly can't remember if I've ever tried to warranty a part. Only if it's DOA would I attempt it. Even when my daughters XXX-SCT had the motor go up in smoke, I just replaced it with something else because it lasted more than 1 race. I've read where people went back to Losi for replacements 2 and 3 times.

I think it's the RTR mentality, TBH.

Just yesterday i bought a new TC. I was on the fence between the TC4 and S1. I went with the S1 because it's a kit and I get to build it myself. Even though I'll be using mail order for any parts.

nitroexpress

JohnP2
I hold companies to a high-standard, and in the end we are talking about a FEW dollars, so it is a bit of the principal for me at this point. As over-priced as this stuff is.....it's not going to put a company out of business to spend a few extra dollars to keep a serious customer happy. Just my thoughts anyway. As I noted, my angst came from the fact I tried to be professional and amenable, yet the CSR wanted to get into a pissing match with me. Really? This is Hot Bodies??
I think that you are still missing the point. If everyone thought they could yell "Warranty" and get free parts, even if theywere at fault,don't you think those few dollars would turn into a flood? Mugen people have been living with weak arms for years. And they are not flooding Mugen CSR with warranty requests.You have not offered any information that would indicate that you had a defective part.Why would HB be obligated to replace a part that was not defective and on top of that send it priority mail?

And my part will be here tomorrow....THANKS TO VICTORIA at Hot Bodies!!! I'm still a big fan of them!

NitroExpress, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt regarding your "based on your history...." comment and not take it as it sounded. I will say this, however....at least I am man enough to step out and discuss my learning curve. This, instead of never doing, and just stting back throwing darts at other people during their learning curve. NOTE: I'm certainly not saying you do that...but I am an easy target and hope you agree how a comment like that can come across as "uncool". ;-) As noted, I am giving you the benefit of the doubt on this one as you seem like a stand-up guy. p.s. There is a pic of this in a different post
I’ll spell it out for you so there will be no doubt. You were ready to jump on the warranty wagon with several items. In the end, it seems it was user error. Does a carburetor and engine ring any bells? Alearning curve includes identifying the reason for a failure. You say that you take responsiblity for errors, but are you comfortable with identifying problems. Are you confident with not just replacing a broken part, but identifying the reason for the failure?Identifying the causeis sometimes not easy, but it is part of the learning curve.
Foxy: Certainly as the moderator you don't want to make blanket statements like "Good luck getting them [Xray] to care [about a broken chassis]". I'm providing facts regarding a specifc transaction, and am sure that many, many folks have had wonderful service experience with both HB, and Xray. Besides, Xray's HQ is about 15 minutes from my house and I would be at their corporate office in person in the event something like that happened to me - know that. Ha! Your point about the pricing matrix makes sense, and I agree with you on it. As I noted, these professionals who are put on the front line should be able to weed out those trying to take advantage vs those serious hobbyist who want to be taken care of. Additionally, I am ALWAYS the first to admit when something goes wrong and how it was my mistake. If there is one person who does not take myself seriously on here, that's me (you all know that). BUT I don't believe this to be a build error. I personally feel I did not plant the landing well and it bent. Thus I'm actually worried about the integrity of all the parts now, but we'll soon find out ;-)
Your picture of a bent hinge pin is just that, a picture of a bent hinge pin.The short response is that you need to check your build and setup and make sure it matchesrecommendations. Didn't you once have a problem installing the rear hinge pins. Hummm.If you replace the hinge pin and it is seated properly with locktited retainer screws and their washersand the same failure occurs,I believe the hinge pin could bethe symptom and not the cause. But that's another story.
mrquint: My expectation is that any and all parts to a new rc kit are under warranty.I understand and respect your opinon on how I should be happy with what was offered, but still don't think I was being unreasonable (again it is a matter of a few dollars). We'll have to agree to disagree on this one.
Again, what leads you to believe in a defective part? A bent hinge pin would have to be improperly tempered in order to bend in a non-collision.You have not exhausted all the possibilities of user error.
Matt: Througout all of this, the Losi 8ight 2.0 has stood above the HB D8T, at least in my experience. Trust me, I wish it were the other way around. In the end, I'm just blessed that I can partake in this wonderful hobby.
One hinge pin is enough to elevate the Losi? Interesting.

Anyways, thanks for ya'lls feedback. I'm normally not pompus....trust me. I represent the common man. ;-) I do have a high-standard for business transactions, however. All of your comments rang true, and I hear that a lot. My friends joke with me and call me "customer-service John" when I go into this mode....but as with everything....I pick my battles. The ones I do choose, however, I go in guns-a-blazin'. ;-) I've learned that as long as you are reasonable and properly negotiate your case.....things work out well in the end.

You really believe that you, as Mr. Common Man, were reasonable in brow beating a CSR with an unreasonable request?

So you’re saying -

It broke and it should not have, I did nothing wrong, I want a new part. I can’t prove it was defective, I can’t prove I did nothing wrong, but I want a free part shipped extra fast. And don’t refuse my request because then I will go on a forum and badmouth you and never buy HB again. BTW, I really like Losi better.

Sorry, for being "uncool", but this subject really rings my bell. I think I'm finished with this subject.

OvalRacer99

I am going to agree with the majority. DEMANDING a part be replaced and shipped by a certain time is expecting to much. Hot bodies does not have to do anything for you and if you leave as a customer, I am sure they will not go out of business. It's one thing to expect good customer service, it's another to make unreasonable demands and expect them to meet those demands.

jamie

My Feedback: (2)

is this guy for real. get a job!



I hold companies to a high-standard, and in the end we are talking about a FEW dollars, so it is a bit of the principal for me at this point. As over-priced as this stuff is.....it's not going to put a company out of business to spend a few extra dollars to keep a serious customer happy. Just my thoughts anyway. As I noted, my angst came from the fact I tried to be professional and amenable, yet the CSR wanted to get into a pissing match with me. Really? This is Hot Bodies??

NitroExpress, I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt regarding your ''based on your history....'' comment and not take it as it sounded. I will say this, however....at least I am man enough to step out and discuss my learning curve. This, instead of never doing, and just stting back throwing darts at other people during their learning curve. NOTE: I'm certainly not saying you do that...but I am an easy target and hope you agree how a comment like that can come across as ''uncool''. ;-) As noted, I am giving you the benefit of the doubt on this one as you seem like a stand-up guy. p.s. There is a pic of this in a different post

Foxy: Certainly as the moderator you don't want to make blanket statements like ''Good luck getting them [Xray] to care [about a broken chassis]''. I'm providing facts regarding a specifc transaction, and am sure that many, many folks have had wonderful service experience with both HB, and Xray. Besides, Xray's HQ is about 15 minutes from my house and I would be at their corporate office in person in the event something like that happened to me - know that. Ha! Your point about the pricing matrix makes sense, and I agree with you on it. As I noted, these professionals who are put on the front line should be able to weed out those trying to take advantage vs those serious hobbyist who want to be taken care of. Additionally, I am ALWAYS the first to admit when something goes wrong and how it was my mistake. If there is one person who does not take myself seriously on here, that's me (you all know that). BUT I don't believe this to be a build error. I personally feel I did not plant the landing well and it bent. Thus I'm actually worried about the integrity of all the parts now, but we'll soon find out ;-)

mrquint: My expectation is that any and all parts to a new rc kit are under warranty. I understand and respect your opinon on how I should be happy with what was offered, but still don't think I was being unreasonable (again it is a matter of a few dollars). We'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

Matt: Througout all of this, the Losi 8ight 2.0 has stood above the HB D8T, at least in my experience. Trust me, I wish it were the other way around. In the end, I'm just blessed that I can partake in this wonderful hobby.

Anyways, thanks for ya'lls feedback. I'm normally not pompus....trust me. I represent the common man. ;-) I do have a high-standard for business transactions, however. All of your comments rang true, and I hear that a lot. My friends joke with me and call me ''customer-service John'' when I go into this mode....but as with everything....I pick my battles. The ones I do choose, however, I go in guns-a-blazin'. ;-) I've learned that as long as you are reasonable and properly negotiate your case.....things work out well in the end.

And my part will be here tomorrow....THANKS TO VICTORIA at Hot Bodies!!! I'm still a big fan of them!

[/quote]

jamie

My Feedback: (2)

JohnP2

Thanks for your responses, guys. Trust me, I do understand what you are saying, and hope you try to understand my point as well.

NitroExpress - (You went all red font on me, so I''ll go peaceful purple). ; -) Ibelieve I've requested to be comp'd for three parts out of close to 40 broken parts I've experienced, so there is no shame in that as far as I'm concerned. Yes, I remember the carb. I never touched it and it came loose. I tightened it by hand and it would not thread. How in the world is that possibly a user error? I may be a newbie, but I do know how to screw something in without cross-threading it. It's easy for you to sit on the sidelines andtout "you always claim warranty!" whenas notedI pick my battles and thinkI've been more than accountable for mistakes on my part - as I've made a lot of them (unlike you, and I mean that in sincerity as don't recall the last time you've had to ask a question on this forum). But, like you - I agree, let's not get into a pissing match over it - it's not good for the forum (and not worth either of our efforts, I'm sure). Peace?

Neal -Yea, I think it was from a bad landing. That is the only thing I can come up with. The shaft went in straight (and everything was tight on it), and after it's first jump (or landing)- it bent.

Foxy - I see your point, butI actually find the customer service in "the hobby" to be top-notch.In fact, this episode withHB was really the one of the one or twounpleasant experiences I've have in dealing with manufactuers/vendors. I do like to tout my experiences on this forum so folks can be aware and agree/disagree....and the negative experiences seem to be the ones that fuel people's emotions. Go figure. ;-) I hope you can appreciate that above all - I am stating facts (and getting lampooned in the meanwhile - but still stating facts).

Jeckler -"RTR mentality". This makes sense and you could be on to something. This IS my first kit....so we'll see.Of course I hope the customer service is thesame for kit/roller/rtr...asmynext3-5 vehicles will most likely be kits (had so much fun with my first one, I'm hooked).

Ovalracer - We'll just have to agree to disagree. If I truly felt itwas something on my end that caused it, I would chock it up to another learning experience as I have dozens and dozens of times with other parts....but I really do not feel that is the case with this one instance.

Jamie - C'mon man. That's a little too harsh just because you disagree.You canbring something better to the table than that, can't you?

mattster1971

Um, I don't think I said that printed above, you might mean another Matt, if so sorry.

t-max97

My Feedback: (9)

I think john knows enough to realize if it was his fault or not and man enough to admit it, I dont expect tons from a company but I would be a little angry if this happened to me, besides what john was asking it sounds like the csr was being a smart *** and no body likes those.