Ever since Tata motors purchased Jaguar and Land Rover I see the customer service plummet.
I have an extended Jaguar warranty and it's a joke. My first Jag, under Ford ownership, had the same warranty and they took care of their customers! Now when you go into the dealership you no longer get another Jag as a loaner, you get a rental non-Jag car. Cheap.
And the dealer nickel and dimes you for everything. There never was a diagnostic charge before, there is one now!
How can Jag remove items that were previously covered off? I go in and issues like shrinking engine heat shield, trim, etc no longer covered.
I took my STR in and the A/C compressor was making a loud noise, they replaced it. Within a month it started again, maybe they didn't replace it I never saw the part, and this time louder. Took it in and they said well we think its working fine so Jag warranty won't replace since this is just a LOUD noise.
I called the 800 warranty line, no one ever answers, and they haven't returned my call.
fyi: I have been calling customer service for over a year in attempt to get new warranty cards, etc. 4 times I've been promised "they're in the mail". NEVER got them, and it's been a year!

 

I don't know if your problem is a Tata Motors problem or if you have a communication problem with the dealership personnel. You didn't say who your dealer is, but I've not seen problems noted on this website about Nalley Jaguar in Alpharetta.

As far as a loaner goes, dealers just pad the service bill for the cost of loaners. At my Lexus dealership, they have an Enterprise employee handling all their service loaners--and that's not free.

All luxury car dealers pad the bills for anything they can get you for. I was charged $22 the other day for "supplies", which means nothing. I don't like it, but it's how it is. By the way, a Chevy dealer does the same thing. That's why so many forum members avoid dealership service dept.s like the plague.

If you have a problem with past service work, don't complain. Talk to the service manager, and if need be the General Manager of the dealership. Communication is the best way. These dealerships want to have satisfied customers, or they're out of business.

Good luck!

 

The dealerships are independently owned and service quality can vary quite a bit....as can policies regarding diagnostic charges and such. I really doubt that Tata, as the parent company, is involved with policies related to the day-to-day running of each dealership.

Cheers
DD

 

The first issue is with the dealer and not Jaguar corporate. I would maybe look to take it to another dealer for a "second opinion". The dealer service manager has more gravity on what is warrantied then people realize. Be nice and non-confrontational and they usually help. As for the loaners... That too is a dealer thing. They chose what to spend and how. The dealer I did business with when I had my S Type Select Edition did and still does have their own loaner fleet. When I first got my car they had a couple S Types and a bunch of X Types. Now they have two XF's and a bunch of Land Rover LR2's (I still like those!). Others here have stated that some dealers use rental companies for their loaners.

Now about customer contact, that is a corporate thing and I really haven't heard before that they were unresponsive...

 

I also agree that your dealer is the one responsible for most of the problems you listed. I always get an awesome loaner from my dealer. It is always an XJ or an XF as a loaner. When I had problems with the gear selector on our XF they gave me a supercharged XF for 5 weeks.

 

I will also agree that not all dealers are the same. My only experiance so far has been over the phone with the two locals. The people at Bobby Rahaul have been very polite and helpful. A&L is actualy a lot closer but all I get is automated phone menu and peoples voice mailboxes. The one time I got through to the parts dept about a spare key, they didn't sound much interested.

 

Rahal is excellent. They did do away with X-Types as loaners (through Enterprise) once the X went out of production. Now you get a car from one of the other dealerships usually - a Toyota or Honda in some cases, although I've still managed to get a Jag out of them here or there.

Each dealer has their own setup for stuff like that.

Your warranty is likely serviced by a 3rd party and the dealer would contact that company to get authorization for repair. Jaguar extended warranties were the same as Primus Care warranties (they do business under many names), and they also serviced Ford warranties.

I have not noticed any difference in service from Rahal for either my Rover or Jag since Tata took over.

 

I echo the advice to try a different dealership if you have another one within close proximity. Our local dealership charges double for parts and service compared to the next-closest dealership 70 miles away. It is worth it for me to make the drive when I need dealer parts, although I haven't required any dealer parts in more than a year now....

I concur with your assessment of Jaguar USA's customer assistance function in Wayne, NJ. I have noticed a significant degradation in their quality of customer care in my dealings with them (by phone) during the past year or so. Don't know if it is purely a Tata issue or a cost-cutting issue or perhaps a combination of both....

 

I'll have to agree and disagree on few of the good points.
The mfg company does dictate policy. I've seen a big shift in customer service, etc since Tata purchased Jag. If you think that the dealer is the issue I'd have to suggest looking at the program. Warranty programs are good cash cows for dealerships, selling the car typically means nothing to them money wise. Service, parts, etc is where it is at. Stats come into play, the mfg knows that they will be paying X amount on each vehicle for service claims. The dealers do everything typcially to get every repair covered, thus they get reimbuirsed by the mfg, the owner is happy, and they might have an upsell oppurtunity.
On the other side of the coin, dealers do have new mgmt and owners too on occasion. I'm not sure if Nalley changed over but I know that they were looking to sell to another giant here in Atlanta not too long ago. And yes, I love my new advisor Gino (I really think he is trying to do the right thing), but Nalley is terrible. With the existing advisors, I equate them to the old stereo-typical "used car" salesman (i.e. Pete). So I might start going back to Hennessey in Buckhead.
As an automotive engineer, I used to go around to Mfg parts centers and the warranty centers reviewing claims and doing analysis to see when someone (a dealer) was abusing the system. Parts and service is where the money is.
But I can't help thinking that all these terrible changes occured when Tata purchased Jag....
And don't try calling customer service, they could care less.
I haven't had a blown tire, etc and hope that I don't have to call roadside service....
Jag deserves more, it's about image and substance, and they just don't seem to care now.

 

Perhaps the same warranty in name but different underwriters and/or different claims administration? Or....different self-authorization levels from dealership to dealership depending on that dealers' claim history.

I don't know for a fact but I suspect that Jaguar of America probably decides who underwrites and administrates their "Jaguar" extended warranties and service contracts.

Quote:

Now when you go into the dealership you no longer get another Jag as a loaner, you get a rental non-Jag car. Cheap.

That's probably a dealer decision. Most manufacturers have buy/sell programs to encourage dealers to buy cars for rental/loaner purposes. Depending on the details of the program some dealers opt out.








That's probably a dealer decision. Times are tough. They don't wanna leave any money on the table. Eliminating "no charge" diagnostics in one way to increase revenue.







Again, if we're talking about a service contract/extended warranty they might've changed underwriters who are holding a tighter line on claims expenses and reducing coverages.

If we're talking about the original new car warranty it might be that they're instructing dealers to take a harder stand on cosmetic issues like shrunken heat shields to reduce warranty claims expense. That *would* be a corporate thing.

As for the loud compressor the dealer was probably worried about getting paid for multiple replacements of the same part. If they can't justify the replacement the claim would probably be rejected.







That's rotten service. Some manufacturers contract out their "Customer assistance" stuff and that can create some problems. Not sure if Jaguar does.


Cheers
DD

 

I'm sorry that every dealership service experience is not good. I'm glad that you've had work experience in retail car dealerships, as you can probably handle yourself better than most people in this situation.

There may have been some changes to Jaguar since Ford "dumped" the cash eating Jaguar on the Indians. On one side, Jags have finally improved to the top of R.L. Polk's initial problem list--it only took 15 years of engineering changes to correct the "plastic" parts from Ford/Jag. On the other side, Indians are known to be, shall I say, thrifty people by their general nature. Why do you think so many phone call centers are out of India--cheap labor?

Really, the only input that auto manufacturers have is money--and what repairs they'll pay for. Otherwise, dealerships are autonomous self guided businesses.

When it comes to air conditioner compressors, there are just a few manufacturers in the world. Air conditioning is not rocket science. Note: You'll see the the old GM rotary compressor on Cadillacs, Peterbilt's and Caterpillar crawlers/road graders.

If your air conditioner is still making noises and Nalley Jag won't fix it, call over to Nalley's management company:

87 W Paces Ferry Rd., Atlanta, GA 30305-1310, United States
(404)261-3130, (404)261-8742 fax

I worked closely with a dealer group three times the size of Nalley, and their owners would freak out every time a retail customer called the management company. (Most customers were calling about paint runs out of their body shop.)

Best of luck to you.

 

I personal think its because number one Tata paid way to much for jag in there purchase and number two more then a few people in the auto industry have said they would bet a steak dinner Jag is not around anymore in three years.

If your bleeding funds you cut everywhere, just saying. The parent company doesn't allow certain things to be paid anymore. If you want great service due to your location I say get a Mercedes next time. Atlanta classic cars the Mercedes dealer in Gwinette GA has by far the best service and gives away more work then any dealer I have ever seen!!! I had benz's for the last ten years and my wife still has one and ACC is the best dealer ever! I know that doesn't help now but if you jump ship check them out.

 

Thanx, I'll do that.

The Indian business model is don't pay for anything.
They haven't learned about repeat long term business as a US model. In India, there isn't much competition, let alone customers that can afford to complain.

It just gets so tiring and draining.

It was nice there for a while being treated well as Jag owner.

 

Is your car out of the mfg warranty? If so, all your complaints are either dealer or warranty co.

Yes, Tata (Jag) should police dealers better (far better) but that's true for many car makers.

 

No, the fault is in the "leveraged buyout business model" where cost cutting to the bone is required to pay for the initial purchase out of the purchased company itself. Invented and honed to perfection domestically on Wall Street. Think about the decline of Fram Filters as an example.

 

I've had no problems with the local (35 miles away) dealer ..Rusnak in Pasadena, CA. Their service dept. has always treated me good. When my gas gauge went bonkers, I called and went there at the appointed time and they already had a rental car waiting for me. I signed in and drove off.
They have an Enterprise rental on site...they also have Bentley's, Rolls, Porsche's, and a few others there, so it's a built in clientele.
Last time, late Jan, when the battery gave out, I called and they told me to bring it in. Had it towed under the extended warranty. I did get an XF from Enterprise, but paid an additional $20 per day since the warranty only covered $30 per day.
The service dept took care of all of the paperwork with Easy Care warranty co.
Guess it all depends on the dealer....

 

JD Power counts defects per vehicle and that tells a completely different story, number one during Ford ownership now near the bottom (the bottom being Land Rover, the other Tata English acquisition). If I catch attitude from any more service managers I'm getting rid of this car. I realize this is not a problem caused by Tata, but these kind of threads push me closer to dumping it and giving up on the brand altogether.

2010 U.S. Initial Quality Study | JDPower.com

 

Is that the 2010 for new vehicles (as it appears to be)? If so, not really relevant for the S-Type which was last sold in 2008.......

(What an awful presentation, too, is that the best JDP can do?!)

(BTW, Jaguar just ranked 3rd overall for customer satisfaction here. No idea how it was measured, though.)

 

jagV8, maybe I missed the point of this thread which I thought was regarding how things have changed since Tata took over. You are correct, none of this is really S-Type related as they were pretty much done by the time Tata took over. Somebody started going down the "Ford sucks" route and I jumped in on that because I do not agree.

The point I was trying to make was that if the already poor customer service at the dealers gets even worse due to Tata management they are going to have a really hard time holding me as a customer. Also, I never put a lot of stock in these JDP and RL Polk type surveys.

 

OK, but the point is that Tata have almost zero input into what customer service is like at the dealers because the dealers are franchises i.e. not owned by Tata.

If service goes down hill in these tough times it's likely just a dealer cutting corners and I'd react by finding one that still thinks customer service should mean something worthwhile