2008 Best Ride Contest Winner
Drum roll please…and the winner is..John Ralph and his 1955 Chevy! John was able to rally the troops late in the month to come from behind and take the lead. He only won by 9 votes! Here is his write up.
“My 55 Chevy has been restored to all original condition. It has the original 265 V8 and 2 speed Powerglide transmission. Nothing is on the car that was not there in 55. The color is a fall color for 55 and is somewhat rare for that year, its called Dusk Rose. After a little cleaning, even the original clock in her still ticks on.”
So there you have it! Congratulations John! You will be receiving a $500 Visa Gift Card and a First Place plaque to go with your first place car. Consider it a mini stimulus package.
Don’t forget to submit your classic ride for the 2009 Best Ride Contest!
Why the big 3 are hurting
I would like to start this week’s article by recollecting my first Newsletter. Back on November 2nd, 2007, I told the big 3 to get back to basics and to understand what their customers want. In this article I would like to tell them to use common sense. I must first start with a story that my dad told me a long time ago when my grandfather had to give him the Italian slap on the back of the head. You see my dad assumed that the greeter/host he employed (he owned a restaurant) had the common sense to seat party’s of 2 at a table for 2, and to seat party’s of 4 at a table for 4, in other words, don’t sit a party of 2 at a 4 top. Then the smack came, and my dad yelled “Papa, che e con lo schiaffo?” And my grandfather responded “Perche lei pens ache l’eveybody abbia il buon senso?” In English, “why do you think everybody has common sense?” With that, I start with the confusion I felt when I dropped my Lincoln off for warranty work.
First, I brought the car in because my heated/ac seats never worked (I know I’m spoiled, but hey they should work right?), the speaker housing cracked and the passenger side turn signal lens was cracked. While I was checking the car in at the local dealer, they noticed that my fog lamp was out and would replace that as well. I remember thinking, “huh, wasn’t expecting that.” So, I questioned the rep “the light bulbs are under warranty?” And he replied, “Yes, light bulbs, battery, belts stuff like that.” Battery? I just bought a new battery and had the core original still at home. I asked if I brought it in, would he replace the battery so that I can return the new one I purchased? He said sure!
That afternoon, the dealership called me and informed me that the speaker housing was not under warranty, nor was the lens. I told him, I do not understand. The reason it cracked was simply due to closing the door and the lens cracked because the car was from Minnesota which froze the plastic and then ended up cracking. He was insinuating that there was abuse involved. I assured him that there was no abuse involved and that the warranty should cover it. He was able to get the speaker fixed, but not the lens. The lens cost $44 and a new battery cost me $80.
Let’s recap. The two items that I was fully expecting to pay for (the battery and the fog lamp) were covered. The three items that should be covered (the heated/ac seats, the speaker crack and lens) only one was covered. The battery was $80 and the lamp was $20 for a total of $100…covered. A new speaker grill was $48 and the lens was $44 for a total of $92. Now, I’m not the smartest man in the world, but don’t you think they would be better off fixing the little items and not warranty items that one would consider wear and tear?
Ford, Chrysler, and GM…get back to basics and have some common sense. Otherwise, I’ll send my grandpa to smack you in the back of the head.
