ANAESTHETICS, I can confirm what Chris said. I have had a fairly good run with Melville Mazda. That said, one of their mechanics lightly scuffed the front sill of my car on a low concrete wall outside their workshop which damage I noticed (and I had also taken digital dated and timed photos of before and after service, a regular practice of mine - it doesn't hurt if they see you doing it too) and they fixed it immediately without question. I was more peeved the mechanic hadn't said anything to the service manage about it and had obviously hoped I wouldn't notice. Otherwise they have been good and (so far) supportive. I'll be interested to see how they go post-warranty. BTW I still have my original 2005 clutch. No problems. It's sudden but I like a short sharp clutch anyway, and it has smoothed out hugely over the 45,000+ kms. Some wally might have dumped yours one too many times and given it a hard life.
I wouldn't go back to Parkland. When I was looking at buying an MPS6, I went for a test drive there and was very well dealt with by a young girl sales-person who was bright, enthusiastic and caring. I went back for another test drive with her and while I was out in the Mazda, somebody knocked off the 2 x $200 spotlights from the bullbar of my Landcruiser which I had parked next to their workshop, hard up against the workshop fence so only someone coming out of the shop would have seen the lights - it would have taken a spanner and a set of side-cutters or wire-cutters and was done in full view of the sales yard in mere minutes. It seems very unlikely that it would have been anybody off the street as a casual-passer by and I suspect one of their mechanics for obvious reasons (proximity and tools available). I confronted them about it and their sales manager was plain dismissive and rude, although my approach had been pleasant enough and not accusatory. He could have handled it better.
I notice they didn't keep the girl either. She was gone the next time I went there - pity - she was by far the best of the bunch I met there but at the time I don't think "pleasant" was on their PR advice sheets. It would have been tough for her to work with a rude egotistical manager like the one I dealt with. I had lined up a car to buy through her but didn't proceed after discovering they had axed her, and I didn't want to give any of the other gormless or rude twits the satisfaction of a sale that she had done all the work for. Melville Mazda were completely different and I bought the same year and model in a matter of days at a better price.
Small things in customer relations count for lots, with me at least. I'd rather pay more to buy from someone I like than less from a moron who doesn't deserve to make a sale.
Last edited by Doug_MPS6; 11-05-2010 at 05:39 PM.
CP_e Standback & PNP; CP_e 3" SS Downpipe; Corksport FMIC with Top-mount K&N filter & OEM Ram CAI; Turbosmart BOV; Dashhawk; Prosport Boost Guage; JBR solid shift bushes; DBA 4000 Wiper-Slot front rotors; Hawk Ferro-Carbon HPS Street front brake pads (@ 69,000km); Sumitomo HTRZIII's in 225/45 x 18