ComplaintsforSears Imported Autos, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  03/04/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I brought my 2001 ******** CLK 430 in for diagnostic on 11/3/23 to identify a parasitic draw on my battery that caused the car to not start. On 11/15, their service technician expert, concluded that the source of the draw was from a passenger side seat control module. They said that there was a .06 milliamperes draw and disconnected the unit. They kept the vehicle for more than a week to test and see if it would start without being charged and claimed it did after sitting a day or 2. They recommended that I replace the unit which would have cost $1,900 for the part. I declined and picked up the vehicle on 11/23, 3 weeks later and paid them nearly $500. I had my vehicle for about a week and the vehicle would not start after sitting a few days. I called Sears Imports back and left a message for the service manager, **** about the problem but he never returned my call. Throughout the time they had the vehicle I instructed them to listen to persistent ticking sound in the dash which I believed was the source of the problem but they did not. I took the car to another repair shop a month later that determined the ticking sound was the source of the draw was from the climate control unit which was causing a 1.1 milliamperes draw that would not allow the vehicle to start more than a day. They were able to property diagnose and fix the problem. I then went back to Sears on 2/19/24 and ask to speak to ****. I made the point that they did not properly diagnose the problem but he was indignant and unwilling to admit that they were at fault. I expressed my dissatisfaction with their service and said I paid them $500 for basically nothing. He was unapologetic and offered no concession except $50 off any subsequent service. He said he would have tried to fix the problem if I would have brought it back but would not guarantee no additional charges for the work even within the the 30 day repair warranty. They lost my trust and will never go back nor refer anyone to them.

  

  Business response

  03/11/2024

  I spoke with ******* about our diagnosis of his parasitic draw. I explained all the steps we took to ensure the correct issue was repaired.  There was a parasitic draw and began isolating the issue through testing and monitoring the voltage being drawn from his vehicle when the vehicle was turned off and locked. The passenger seat module was the source of the draw. After removing that electrical load from the vehicle, the parasitic draw had completely gone away. The vehicle sat for several days to ensure no more draws returned. We gave ******* a quote to replace the seat control module, as there is an internal failure causing the module to continually consume voltage when turned off. He declined and asked that it remained unplugged so it would not drain his battery. He informed me that after a week or 2 his vehicle battery died again. He reached asked us to look into it. His service advisor informed him that we would. But he would need to approve a diagnosis charge. He felt he shouldnt have to pay because he was in for this issue before. We explained that we need to verify the issue and if it was from the previous repair he would not be charged. He took it to another repair shop. They diagnosed that his **** control unit was causing the draw and replaced it. This corrected that parasitic draw concern.  He felt we did not fix his vehicle correctly. I explained due to the age of the vehicle and the nature of parasitic draw, testing multiple draws were possible. When we had the vehicle there was only one issue which we corrected. The **** control unit was not a factor at that time. The vehicle was fine and operated correctly for 1-2 weeks after our repairs, it appeared to me that the **** control unit was more intermittent and there would have been no signs when we performed diagnosis. I explained we did everything correctly and the unfortunate result was that he had multiple issues.  *********************, Service Director 

  Customer response

  03/18/2024

   I am rejecting this response because:
  ******** is standing by his technician who was flat out wrong and misdiagnosed the problem in the first place! The draw came from the climate control module and they did not find it! I dont care that they kept the car in the shop and let it sit a few days and it started in their controlled environment. How do I know that they are even telling me the truth in the first place. They have not earned my trust! It only matters when I picked up the car and the fact that the car did not start basically less than a week I had it, confirms my distrust in them! If I would have accepted their recommendation, I would have paid almost $2k for a part that had no effect on the car starting and would have also paid them labor fees. I did the right thing, in taking it to ************** who properly diagnosed the problem. Their response is unacceptable!
  
  

  

  Business response

  03/19/2024

                  I spoke with ****************** and pointed out all of the thorough diagnosis we performed. We found his passenger seat control module to be the source of the parasitic draw. After unplugging the passenger seat control unit, our electrical testing that we carried out for multiple days, indicated that there was no longer a parasitic draw. We provided him with a quote to repair his vehicle and he declined to repair the vehicle. He agreed to leave the passenger control unit unplugged so it would not cause another parasitic draw and drain his battery. After several days he said the vehicle died again. I informed his advisor to reach out to him and explain we can take a look at it, but more than likely there was another failed component. He did not want to pay diagnosis and took his vehicle elsewhere. I explained to him when we spoke, that sometimes there can be electrical control units that intermittently act up. We performed the correct diagnosis, but the issue was that he had one currently failed component, and one intermittently failing component. The intermittent component was not failing and causing a draw when it was here, if it was we would have found it and provided an estimate for that to be replaced as well.
  
  *********************
  Service Director 

• Initial Complaint

  05/31/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Monday May 22, I dropped my Dodge Sprinter RV to be diagnosed for an electrical malfunction. I talked to ******* who promised me that one of his best technicians will run a preliminary diagnostics then I can have some suggested course of action and there will be a hourly charge of $212/hour. I was also promised a status phone call for Wednesday May 24. I did not get a phone call at a suggested date. Drove in on Tuesday May 30 (more than a week later), to get an update. ******* was very irritated on my request, repeated the "got my best technician on it" phrase. He got more irritated when I mentioned the promised Wednesday call at one point he just flat out asked me "so you want to pick up your vehicle". I did pick up the vehicle. I also have seen multiple RV's in the parking lot, one of them just arrived and serviced while I was waiting for ******* to get back from lunch. I would like to know why was I refused service to my Sprinter from a Sprinter dealership ? On a serious note, I wan never ever treated as a cattle in my life.

  

  Business response

  06/08/2023

  On May 23^rd, 2023, ******************* had an appointment for us to diagnose his vehicles electrical issues. From the information I have gathered, the service advisor, ******************, and ************** had a discussion about what was going on with the vehicle the afternoon of May 22^nd. The Vehicle ************** brought in appears to have a very complex electrical issue. from my understanding he has multiple brake lights, out and bulb replacement has not fixed the issue. He has had the vehicle at multiple other repair facilities, and they have not been able to figure out the cause. Due to the complexity of the issue, ******* told ************** that he would like to have a specific technician look into and diagnose it, one that he felt would be the best technician for the job. He also told ************** that it would be several days before they would be able to look at it, since the issue appears to be electrical and very complex, we wanted to make sure there would be ample time to figure it out properly. ************** seemed to be understanding and appreciative of ******* giving him the information and being upfront about the time line. Unfortunately we were unable to get his vehicle in by the 25^th, and the assigned technician did not work on that Friday. The following week ************** came in and wanted a status update on his vehicle. When ******* informed him it had not been started yet, he was upset. ******* gave the customer the option to take his vehicle if he needed it and could not wait for the diagnosis to be done. The customer then took their keys and left. I spoke with ******* about following up with the customer and he explained that he was under the impression from their in person conversation that ************** understood it was going to take some time. ******* told me he could not remember if he told ************** if he would reach out to him by that Wednesday or not. It appears there was some misunderstanding between my advisor and **************. I will be reaching out to ************** to try and set up a time that we can look at his vehicle and make a more clear understanding of the time line that we may face in trying to isolate a complex electrical issue with his vehicle.

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