I bought a 06 4Runner SE V8 4x4 last Thurs. When I took delivery, they lost the valet key and gave me a "we owe you" slip for the valet key and told me that I could stop in anytime with both sets of keys and they would fix me right up. No big deal and I was in no hurry to get the key. Yesterday I called to see if they had a touch-up pen for my galactic grey in stock and they said they did. So I had today off and figured I would run down there, about 40 min away and pick up the pen and get the key taken care of. WRONG! I go to service and give them my "we owe you" slip and they tell me I have to see parts. I go to parts they tell me service has to do it cause it needs programmed. While I am at parts I ask for the touch up pen, he pulls it out and it is the brush-on crap and not the touch up pen. I am getting angrier by the second now. I go back over to service and they send me to a service writer who again tells me I need to see parts. I explain they sent me back over to them. I then proceed to tell the service writer how to do his job and that all the keys need programmed together. He still doubts me and asks another writer who says I am correct. So he tells me to pull it in but I will have to wait because all the techs are at lunch. I also tell him my steering wheel is off centered to the right when driving and he said we'll check it out. About 45 min later I get paged and they tell me they don't have any valet keys and that they'd have to special order one and I'd have to come back. I asked if they took a look at the steering wheel and he forgot so he said they'd look at it. 20 min later it is done. They said the toe was off and they fixed it. Yeah they fixed it alright. Now the steering wheel is off to the left as much as it was to the right when I brought it in. Something is not lined up correctly and I hate driving a car that pulls or is not aligned properly. I didn't expect this type of service or non-sense from Toyota. I guess they are trying to take over GMs spot cause I certainly felt like I was back at a GM dealership. All in all, a waste of a portion of my day off and I guess that all dealerships and companies in the car business are alike. I AM PISSED OFF! Not what I expected on a 36k vehicle or a Toyota.
New 06 SE, pissed off already.
- Thread starter cyclops24
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sharp4runr
New member
Sounds like you need to find yourself a different dealership. You can't put the blame square on Toyota's shoulders as every dealership is ran a different way.
Sorry you've had so much initial problems but they all sound like service issues rather than build quality.
Sorry you've had so much initial problems but they all sound like service issues rather than build quality.
I would talk to your salesperson. Make him take care of these issues. These are not after-the-sale issues, these are issues that should have been done right AT THE TIME OF SALE.
I had a GREAT experience with a dealership down here in Florida - Toyota of Stuart. I dealt with JR and he went wayyyy out of his way to get things done right. Best experience I ever had.
Zachary
I had a GREAT experience with a dealership down here in Florida - Toyota of Stuart. I dealt with JR and he went wayyyy out of his way to get things done right. Best experience I ever had.
Zachary
Not build quality??? Why wasn't it tracking straight in the first place? They put it on an alignment machine and said it was off something slipped through QC when it was being built. And if it is lined up according to the computer then there is something else wrong that is causing the steering wheel to be off centered and the vehicle not track straight. Yes I agree this cannot all be pinned on Toyota. I have dealt with Ford, Pontiac and Mitsubishi in the past. They are all the same. Service writers don't care what your issues are they just want you to go away, techs never fix it right the first time, and parts NEVER has anything in stock. I have to go back for the valet key so I will give them one last chance before changing dealerships for service. I bought a Toyota because of all the good things I read and heard and this made me second guess all of them today. I will see if my sales person is willing to help out.
sharp4runr
New member
Just because you bought the vehicle new doesn't mean it wasn't driven previously. People drove it from the factory to the truck. From the truck to the boat. From the boat to another truck. From the truck to where ever in the dealership. Lots of people have driven that truck and who knows if any of them hit a curb or did this that or the other. Crap happens...
Anyways, I had similar things happen when I bought my truck new. They didn't have the second regular key. All I was given was the 2 key fobs, a regular key and a valet key. Salesman gave me a "We owe" form the day I bought the truck (Saturday). Since the Parts Dept was already close that day I had to come back on Monday. I also said I couldn't find the wireless headphones that came with the truck (On the sticker) or the RSA remote. He gave me another "We Owe" form for them. I went to Parts Dept on Monday and they cut the key and then told me to give the new key to the Service Dept and gave me back the "We Owe" form. I gave them to the Service writer and waited. They gave me back the keys all programmed (I tested while I was at the dealership to make sure they all started the truck. While at the Parts Dept I gave them the "We Owe" form for the RSA Remote and Head Phones. Of course they had to order it. I picked it up a few days later.
I can't blame Toyota for not including all those items with my truck. The dealership "prepped" my truck and didn't include the remote and head phones while some other slack nut probably lost the other key.
You can really start complaining when your wheel falls of (Dodge Durango) or your truck bursts into flames spontaneously (Ford Explorer). For now, I'm happy with my truck. Dealership service will always be lacking so I'm only going to get mad at the Service Manager so I can get something free out of it.
Anyways, I had similar things happen when I bought my truck new. They didn't have the second regular key. All I was given was the 2 key fobs, a regular key and a valet key. Salesman gave me a "We owe" form the day I bought the truck (Saturday). Since the Parts Dept was already close that day I had to come back on Monday. I also said I couldn't find the wireless headphones that came with the truck (On the sticker) or the RSA remote. He gave me another "We Owe" form for them. I went to Parts Dept on Monday and they cut the key and then told me to give the new key to the Service Dept and gave me back the "We Owe" form. I gave them to the Service writer and waited. They gave me back the keys all programmed (I tested while I was at the dealership to make sure they all started the truck. While at the Parts Dept I gave them the "We Owe" form for the RSA Remote and Head Phones. Of course they had to order it. I picked it up a few days later.
I can't blame Toyota for not including all those items with my truck. The dealership "prepped" my truck and didn't include the remote and head phones while some other slack nut probably lost the other key.
You can really start complaining when your wheel falls of (Dodge Durango) or your truck bursts into flames spontaneously (Ford Explorer). For now, I'm happy with my truck. Dealership service will always be lacking so I'm only going to get mad at the Service Manager so I can get something free out of it.
Trust me, I am much happier with this vehicle than my previous, a 04 Pontiac GTO. It got so bad I had to exercise the lemon law and ended up settling out of court. I don't feel like going through all the problems I had with it but I will tell you in the first 10 months of ownership (bought new and serviced at same dealer) I was without my car for 57 calendar days so I know what poor quality is. I just was expecting a better and more organized service experience since this dealer has Toyota, Lexus, Cadillac etc. I work in the IT Support field so I provide service to customers who are employees of my company. I try to give them prompt, good service and even follow ups after I resolve a problem to make sure I did quality work and fixed it. I guess I just expect the same when I request a service, any service at that not just for my vehicle. I will have them look at it again. Could even be the tires. I remember my Eclipse pulled to the right and the shop said it was aligned and that it could be the crown of he road. Well when I got a new set of tires the car ceased to pull so mu guess is one of the tired was out of balance. And yes, I checked the tire pressures already.
It sounds so familiar
car was pulling to the left, dropped it off at dealer they said it is fine, told them stearing wheal is off, they say it is fine, so I take a tech for a test drive with me and he say oh you are right, left the car again at dealer they said it was fixed only to find out no change, dropped it off again, they say it is fine, took tech with me again, says ooh you are right, left the car there again they say fixed the alignment, only to find out that now the car pulls to the right, took it back they say it is fine, took the tech with me for test drive he says you are right, but I don't have time and energy and nerves to go back to f...ing dealership, now I have tires that are worn unevenly well that is toyota. when I get some time will be taking it back to them. I guess once you drive the car off the lot that's it.
car was pulling to the left, dropped it off at dealer they said it is fine, told them stearing wheal is off, they say it is fine, so I take a tech for a test drive with me and he say oh you are right, left the car again at dealer they said it was fixed only to find out no change, dropped it off again, they say it is fine, took tech with me again, says ooh you are right, left the car there again they say fixed the alignment, only to find out that now the car pulls to the right, took it back they say it is fine, took the tech with me for test drive he says you are right, but I don't have time and energy and nerves to go back to f...ing dealership, now I have tires that are worn unevenly well that is toyota. when I get some time will be taking it back to them. I guess once you drive the car off the lot that's it.
Good Times
New member
Don't bother wasting your time w/ the sales person as he doesn't have any leverage to do anything. If you really want to get stuff taken care of, voice your opinion directly to the General Manager. Tell the GM what problems you've experienced and say that you expect better from a Toy dealership. Also inform that you've been so disappointed that you've let friends/family/online buddies know of this situation and will not be doing business with that dealership unless these problems are resolved in a timely manner.
Drop the ball on the GM's court and see what they do to repair the damage done. If the GM does nothing, write a detailed letter to Toy Corp with an official complaint and take your business elsewhere.
Unfortunately each dealership is run independently so you may encounter a few lemons here and there but a good firm kick in the rear to the top usually does the trick to open their eyes.
Good luck
Drop the ball on the GM's court and see what they do to repair the damage done. If the GM does nothing, write a detailed letter to Toy Corp with an official complaint and take your business elsewhere.
Unfortunately each dealership is run independently so you may encounter a few lemons here and there but a good firm kick in the rear to the top usually does the trick to open their eyes.
Good luck
Knowledge is power!!! They don't need both your masters to program a valet key, only one. They program the valet to the master, should be the same codes that are in your other master key. I wouldn't want to surrender both my masters to this dealership, if they lost them you would need a new ECU!!! I agree call and get the GM's email address. List all your concerns and what you want corrected. Tell him where you work and a reach number and that you want them to bring a loaner to your work place and pickup your 4runner and return it when they are done fixing everything. Let him know you wasted half your day off and don't feel like sitting around wasting anymore time. Since he is the GM of both a Toyota and Lexus dealership they are use to picking up cars leaving loaners and taking car of Lexus owners this way. If he doesn't want to do everything you requests ask for the District managers name. Plus at this point tell him they are going to get "F's" on the survey Toyota sends to all new vehicle buyers. I'm sure you will get what you want. I did 
, I also got a free oil/filter change and everytime I came in for service from that point on they jumped through their ass to make me comfortable and very happy.
, I also got a free oil/filter change and everytime I came in for service from that point on they jumped through their ass to make me comfortable and very happy.I am going to give them one more try prior to raising hell. I am going to tell them I will not take the vehicle or sign the paperwork until I am 100% satisfied that the steering problem has been corrected that day. If they can't fix it I will try another dealer then start calling customer service after that. I already am very familiar with exercising the lemon law so if they can't get it resolved in 3 tries, I will bring the heat. I am sure it can be fixed. It just needs someone with more attention to detail working on it and not in a hurry to get it out of his bay.
Yes I do have the Dunlops and I hate that brand of tire. I never liked their dirtbike tires, strretbike tires or car tires. This particular dealership is the number 1 tire seller in the area. They had signs all over their customer lounge and service area so they should be able to check the balance on the tires to rule that out. I guess the tech didn't bother to test drive and check his work out. He just assumed it was fixed.
Yes I do have the Dunlops and I hate that brand of tire. I never liked their dirtbike tires, strretbike tires or car tires. This particular dealership is the number 1 tire seller in the area. They had signs all over their customer lounge and service area so they should be able to check the balance on the tires to rule that out. I guess the tech didn't bother to test drive and check his work out. He just assumed it was fixed.
cyclops24 said:
When I bought my 4runner, at the end of the dealing I told them I wanted the Michelin tires off one of the other 4runner swapped onto my new 4runner (all 5) or I was going to walk. They said fine. The Michelins are 2X's as expensive and are great tires for the 4runner.
Uneek
Super Moderator
Good Times said:
:iagree:
On my 3 month Tacoma, the rear bumper started developing rust. I took it in, the service writer said, can't do anything about it, only a service manager can determine whether or not it'll get replaced. I called and left him messages, tried online appointment scheduling, nothing didn't hear back from them. The following week, I wrote him a letter stating the problem, that I would escalate it to corporate Toyota if there's no resolution along with pictures of the rust. He called me back the same day, which I missed his call and he also emailed me to bring the truck in. I took the truck in, he looked over it (less than a 30 second peek) and said swap the bumper.
I think a little persistency and letting them know that you'll seek a resolution by any means neccessary will definately grab their attention. When I handed my letter to the service writer (different guy than the first visit and a new guy), I told him I'm expecting a response from him in the next couple days and I do not wish contact corporate Toyota. He said, he'll make sure the service manager gets the letter and I'll be contacted. IMO, in your case you may want to let the GM know as Good Times suggested, or the dealership owner, since service and parts keep bouncing you around. I've gotten follow-up calls from their customer relations department on every visit too, sometimes two calls on one visit. They really care about the Toyota survey and hope that you'll give them high marks, at least my dealer does.
Well I will take it back next Saturday and get the key done and hopefully they can resolve the steering. And you do definitely have to be persistant to get anything fixed if it is not to your liking. Fortunately or maybe unfortunately, I have been through this before and know what to do. I did all of the above with GM, talked to the service manager who said he take care of things, talked to the GM of the dealership, talked to Pontiac customer service and even the GM district rep. I filled all the service surveys out as failing in fact I stopped getting them after awhile and I never got any calls to follow up on my visit. GM just plain sucks and I am really hoping Toy is as serous as they say they are about customer satisfaction because it is one of the reasons I came to Toy. I will let you know how I make out.
Koz
New member
Welcome to the 4Runner family, cyclops24. Don't worry about the small stuff; once you get it squared away you will LOVE this vehicle! A little advice, if you want to continue going to this dealer you're going to have to light a fire under their ass by making a big stink to the owner. There is no way they should have given the truck back that way, totally unacceptable. I would suggest a different stealer. The only way to get them to respond quickly is first not take delivery until you had the keys in your hand and alignment was right. After delivery you need to make the owner aware that you are very disappointed and that if this isn't addressed immediately you let Toyota know about your feelings and you will also give a negative customer survey. Believe it or not it does mean allot to the owner and has a big effect with their ratings.
Koz
Koz
I was getting jacked again today as I developed a nasty creaking sound in the right rear passenger side of the vehicle when making right turns and/or the body is twisted like backing out of my driveway. But thanks to this board and the search function, I saw that others had the problem and to try lithium grease on the seat latches and then if that fails to try electrical tape. So here's a positive post from me. Now all I need to do is get my steering squared away and my valet key and I will be golden.
