mercurymet

Caymandive,

I've got a 2008 and was wondering if there is a way to pre-emptively check the battery and replace it if necessary so I don't get stuck somewhere if it craps out.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Many auto parts stores will test your battery free of charge and give you a printout of the condition. Advance Auto (not sure if they are local to you in CA) will do it here, as do others.

mercurymet

Dave,

Thanks for the info!

vraa

iTrader: (2)

Oh man what headaches I'm getting with GEICO from this, someone give me some advice please

So far here is a quick recap of the story
No driving for 3 weeks+ = flat battery IS-F
Roadside comes, reverse polarity jumps the car, car starts but is unable to drive safely
Thankfully car is still at garage of apartment, not some ghetto or unknown area
Lexus of Austin tows the car to their facilities, they fix everything tip top shape same day
Cannot pick up car, I don't want to say to Lexus "hey I'm taking the car back, the money will be handled later". I am not going to pay for the repairs and wait for a reimbursement on principal (same reason I told GEICO that I wasn't going to contact the tow company which THEY contract....)
GEICO says (day after the car is ready) that an adjuster will be out there in upto 3 days to examine the situation. Did some arm twisting and got them to call the lexus dealer today and pay for it so Lexus dealer would be PROPERLY compensated for their fast and proper work (and so car can come back into my possession)
At this point, i consider the situation as someone spitting in my face, and offering a towel to clean it up
I am thinking, this is not how customer service works. I have been paying for roadside service for about three or four months, not too long. I would find it fair if they refunded me my money and/or compensated me for a years worth of roadside service (like ~200$ or something, money isn't the matter, it's clearly principal and goodwill right now)
Multiple people I talked to say they can't do either, and they consider the situation resolved
I went ahead and canceled my roadside service and rental car reimbursement
I am thinking about getting consel and just having them draft something on their letterhead after I call some CxO office and talk to their admin asst for which department to sent it to.... but I don't want to get anything legal involved. Leaving it as is right now just means I'm leaving GEICO, after so many years it seems so silly that GEICO could very easily resolve this - but I'm sure I'm crazy -- thoughts?

L3XOTIC

Wow, seriously Geico needs to get there **** straight. There rates aren't even that cheap to begin with and now they can't even Jump start a car the right way? They better compensate you something, imagine it wouldve caused the ECU to get ruined.

Juanca

iTrader: (5)

The way I see it is that they fixed the problem, now you have your car back and paid nothing other than your regular Geico monthly payments. The whole roadside assistance process was messed up by an inexperienced guy, and Geico's customer service didn't work as you expected, so the best you can do is to send a formal complain letter to the customer service manager with copy to probably the CEO, but I hardly doubt any executive will get involved in this issue. They may contact you, offer an apology, and who knows, "maybe" give you a month free of charge for their roadside assistance.

vraa

iTrader: (2)

I also paid for roadside service for the last few months, it's not much, less than 8$/per car per month I think, but I like I said it's not he money it's the principal and good will, IMO just saying sorry doesn't mean anything, that's for fourth graders. Corporations are not people, sorry means nothing. I am not looking for an exec to get involved, I just want to know who to send a proper complaint and letter too -- if I hadn't paid for GEICO roadside service to begin with my sister would've never called and the next morning Lexus of Austin would've properly jumped the car. I dunno, I just feel gipped, I'll call again later in the afternoon when I'm calmed down and see where else I can file a complaint. I'm trying to give GEICO a chance to keep our business, or am I looking at it from the wrong perspective?

UCrazyKid

Personally I think your situation sucks and that GEICO handled it poorly. The reality is that nothing will come of your complaints to GEICO and if you cancel your policy with them, they wont care. I, like you, stand on principal too and these things really get under my skin too, but with that said, the best thing you can do is let it go and come to the realization that I have and that is "There is no such thing as Customer Service" anymore. America has changed, and not in a good way. Have a (insert adult beverage or your liking here) and move on.

vraa

iTrader: (2)

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/24/us...urrents24.html

God damnit I won't let that happen
I just became an uncle and I think we have the duty to make the world a better place for the next generation, I'm not going to take this idly

What if my sister had this situation in a worse location, dudes little car couldn't even tow her....

I emailed tnicely@geico.com, ctasher@geico.com so we'll see what happens lol

ming15237

iTrader: (3)

Hate to tell you this bu if you cancel your Geico insurance tonight, you won't so much as receive a telephone call asking i there is anything they could do to earn back your business.... It's unfortunate but that's just the way these large companies are. This is the exact reason I have an independent agent, not one employed by a specific company, he has a vested interests in MY happiness. I highly recommend that you stop giving your hard earned money too a company whom did not handle your situation in a manor you deemed satisfactory.

buis02

iTrader: (5)

The gripes you have with Geico are almost like the gripes I'm having with Lexus rite now trying to get them to warranty my dash which they won't only to find out that the person that had the car before me hacked up the harness to do the nav hack on my '08 ISF. So this car that I've had for a little over 2 months has for the most part been stuck at Lexus the whole time. The good news is it popped a check engine light and they ended up giving me a new catalytic converter, o2 sensor, and intake manifold. When I got the car back Friday after speaking with a replacement Service Manager since the original one got shipped off to another dealership they basically told me to take it up with the dealership that sold me the car which was a BMW. Upon taking receipt of my car I find they scratched the rear bumper and then find out the headlight has moisture/condensation in it. More to deal with... Hope this pans out for you but do you have AAA out there?

09ISFMike

^^^^^
Agree

DCoolBeans

I was reading the manual and I found this interesting. Maybe the guy jumped your car right(for most cars), but not the way Lexus wants you to.Step 5.
Do you think this is what caused the damage???

tenspeed

iTrader: (1)

That's the way that you're supposed to jump all cars. They don't want the last connection near the battery. Connections makes sparks and might ignite any hydrogen near the battery.

Juanca

iTrader: (5)

^^^ True, that's the way I've been doing it for over a decade.