What would You do?

[Big Al]

I ordered a trailer hitch from my local Honda dealer. The dealer accepted my Ridgeline and said it would be finished by noon. I paid my ticket and headed out to the Ridgeline to look at the hitch and as I was getting ready to leave I noticed the damage. The parts man had taken my truck to the parts loading dock and loaded the hitch and harness into my truck and hauled it to the bay where he was going to do the work. The best I can figure...he slid the box out of the back of the truck with shipping staples down and scratched the bed of the truck from the back to the front....deep scratches .. not scrapes. The white is showing from the back to the front...including the tailgate! The service personel readily said it was their fault and they were sorry and they offered to replace the tailgate cover, the trunk cover, with new parts but thought the other portion could be "buffed" out. If it can't they said they would trade the bed with a NEW Ridgeline on the lot. (giving an unsuspecting buyer of the new truck...a used bed that is scratched..Is that ethical to do?) My frustration was further enhanced after I discovered that I can not get my trailer lights to work as they incorrectly installed the hitch and wiring harness. So, today the trailer hitch is unsusable (due to taillights not working )and the bed of my truck is scratched from stem to stern. No power is getting through to the plug at the back?

What would you do? Any ideas?

[LadyRidge]

Originally Posted by Big Al

I ordered a trailer hitch from my local Honda dealer. The dealer accepted my Ridgeline and said it would be finished by noon. I paid my ticket and headed out to the Ridgeline to look at the hitch and as I was getting ready to leave I noticed the damage. The parts man had taken my truck to the parts loading dock and loaded the hitch and harness into my truck and hauled it to the bay where he was going to do the work. The best I can figure...he slid the box out of the back of the truck with shipping staples down and scratched the bed of the truck from the back to the front....deep scratches .. not scrapes. The white is showing from the back to the front...including the tailgate! The service personel readily said it was their fault and they were sorry and they offered to replace the tailgate cover, the trunk cover, with new parts but thought the other portion could be "buffed" out. If it can't they said they would trade the bed with a NEW Ridgeline on the lot. (giving an unsuspecting buyer of the new truck...a used bed that is scratched..Is that ethical to do?) My frustration was further enhanced after I discovered that I can not get my trailer lights to work as they incorrectly installed the hitch and wiring harness. So, today the trailer hitch is unsusable (due to taillights not working )and the bed of my truck is scratched from stem to stern. No power is getting through to the plug at the back?

What would you do? Any ideas?

My SUGGESTION!!
Return to the dealer and speak to the service writer you worked with. Tell her/him you would like the bed repaired to YOUR satisfaction and nothing less. There is nothing unethical about asking them to make it right, even if that includes getting new when it wasn't. That's a chance they take and they know that, even though they don't all want to readily admit that fact. Take advantage of their goodwill.
Have them fix the hitch system and test it for you before you leave again. Don't forget to ask them to throw in a few oil changes for your inconvenience. They may snarl....but they do it all the time.

[DoctorJ]

I agree, have them correct it to your satisfaction.

I know how you feel - I had some new wheels and tires put on a Suki Sidekick back in 93' and specifically ask them not to put them into the vehicle that I would do this. They did it anyway and slammed the back door shut putting a dent in the rear door when it hit a tire. You cannot trust these people for anything.

I doubt they were going to swap your scratched bed components to the new truck and sell it. They probably were going to pull them from the new truck due to not having them in stock and order parts to replace parts taken from the truck on the lot. Or at least I would hope so.

Having said that, my bed is scuffed up after a few months of use and if you put shovels and boxes and other stuff in there yours will be too.

Good luck!

[captmiddy]

Honestly, I would try putting the touch up paint on it and if it looked okay I would leave it. I might push for them to replace the tailgate cover but the rest I wouldn't worry about really. In fact I should go take a picture of my bed now and show you that is exactly what I did when Sears messed up my bed, I could have forced them to repair that too but I figure it is a truck.

However, if it was my original dealership I would probably go as far as I could to get them to replace everything. They messed up so much that I am beyond giving them any slack now. So really it depends on your position on the bed. If the gouges really grate at you, get them to fix it, if you can brush it off as the price of owning a truck then try to extract something else out of them instead. Either way your bed isn't in any danger of further damage because of this since it is completely composite it won't rust.

[Clay]

Have it fixed to better than new or do the swap. Better if you do all the scratches yourself.

[25 Year Honda Owner]

Honda still has adds that say the bed is "scratch and dent resistant". This is BS. I have a bed full of scratches and have not hualed anything other than a garbage bags and a plastic gas can. Honda needs to address this situation. So far after 4 months and 4,700 miles this is my only complaint.

[rtboy1961]

If anyone needs the bed of thier truck broke in my wife can do it.My first week of ownership and she hauled 480 lbs. of stepping stones from home-depot.Sliding them from front to back.Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Allso Honda does claim the bed is scratch resistant. I have not seen that yet.Unless they tested this theory with a goose-down jacket salesman, I dont see it.
I did cover up my scratches quite nicely by spraying tire magic in the bed and wiping it down.

[rogerstruck]

Big Al,
This is not the first time that people have had problems with dealer installed options. Ithink that Honda should have installed the majority of these options at the factory. Also the truck bed is anything but dent resistant. But it is normal for a truck bed to get scrapped & dented over time. In regards to your problem with the dealer. Ask them to fix every thing that they screwd up.
Good Luck & hope that things work out fine for you.

[mugen1]

It is very unethical for the dealer to try and pass damaged parts off to another buyer. That would turn me off right away. There's no guarantee that something on your truck doesn't have defective parts. My dealer would never do that and if they did, I would insist they replace it with new parts that are ordered. I would go as far as to report the incident to American Honda.

Now as far as the bed goes, I love it when my truck bed gets scarred. Perhaps then my buddies would stop calling it a girly truck (they're all jealous becuase they drive POS trucks).

Anyway, your dealer caused the damage and they should fix it to your satisfaction. I'm glad I installed all the accessories myself. I've heard so many bad stories about dealer installed options. Wasn't it Honda that used to advertise "Don't Open Your Hood to Strangers"? Hahahahaha..............

Anyone thinking of getting accessories installed, do it yourself. Get lots of help and save money. The money you save can buy lots of beer for you and your buddies. If you get your SO or kids to help you, take 'em out to dinner. Just take your time and enjoy. There's nothing like doing it your self, stepping back and admiring the fine job you've done.

I think I'm getting off topic - again......... damn ADD.