Is this unreasonable, or am I just being whiny?

[devilsfan]

Here's the background: dropped my truck off on May 31st to have some work done at a local off road shop. The shop said it would take 8-10 days. Today, July 2 - STILL not done.

Work requested: 12" suspension lift, upgrade on gears and brakes, new exhaust, reservoir shocks, wheels and tires, side steps. For $12K.

The lift kit was supposed to arrive the Wednesday I dropped it off. It didn't, nor did it arrive the following Wednesday. I had to badger the owner to call the company and see what the deal was the following week. Oh, the company was backlogged and they hadn't even shipped it yet. Probably Friday. Owner said if they shipped on Friday, it would be at the shop the following Wednesday. The shop said they'd go ahead and get everything else done on the truck that didn't require them to tear it down. That was fine.

Another week goes by. No lift.

I call 2 weeks after the supposed ship date. It JUST came in the previous night. So they're working on it.

Get a call 2 days later. Turns out the lift needs some stock parts my truck didn't have (I already had a 6" lift on it). They need to order it. Ok.

Another week goes by. No update.

Talked to the owner this morning. Parts came in late last week. He's out of town, but "the shop schedule seems pretty light this week so we'll see if we can fit your truck in somewhere."

After a full MONTH after the promised due date, shouldn't my truck be #1 priority? Especially since I'm paying $12K for this work?

Granted, this isn't a HUGE burden (the shop is paying for a loaner, so I'm not out transportation), but I'm getting a little ticked with the delays. They're not entirely the fault of the shop, and I definitely don't want a rush job. I'm also not being a pest - I call once a week to get an update, not daily. But I chose this shop because it has a solid reputation for quality work. 6 weeks seems a little long for the work that's being done, I know it took 4 days for my 6" lift, exhaust and tires (different shop).

So....am I being whiny here, or is the shop taking an unreasonable amount of time on this?

[Humdingah]

Which lift did you order if I may ask? Was the lift kit incomplete or did it not just have all of the 'options' you had requested?

[devilsfan]

It was a 12" Bulletproof. It was complete, but it needed the original steering components, which were removed when the 6" Fabtech was installed 7 years ago.

[Humdingah]

What non-stock components did you have on the front end that needed to be returned to original?

[devilsfan]

It had a Fabtech steering upgrade. I don't know exactly what parts the shop needed that were OEM.

[guruerror]

I don't think you sound whiny...just frustrated, and that's understandable. It prolly felt good just to vent...

I hope it all works out for you.

[pdxrealtor]

I'd be a little pissed. However I'd of been firm from the get go. Not sure how you've handled it up to now.... In any event ya.... Your truck should be priority number 1 as in overtime full time until done.

[HummerJim]

You're more patient than I am. I would have raised holy hell by now. There's always a negative letter to the BBB and even with just the threat most shops will go out of their way to make you #1.

[Stellar]

I'd be pissed as hell. That's really ridiculous. Gears and brakes should take a day. Lift kit and shocks 2-3 days tops. Wheels and tires, side steps, and exhaust should be about an hour each. If it were me I'd take my parts and business somewhere else, no updates at certain points is poor customer service, you're paying a ****load of money for upgrades, they can at least keep you informed.

[guruerror]

In a previous post/thread I thought you mentioned that the shop you chose was primarily a Jeep shop...if that's the case, they prolly lost a good week's worth of tool time just staring at your rig admiring the sheer awesomeness of its brutish stylings; then they prolly called all their friends and family to come over and take pictures with it, sit in the drivers seat, blow the horn, etc.

Since then, they've no doubt been working day and night to reverse engineer its superior, manly, off-roady stylings and underpinnings for later application on some poser's JK Wrangler.

[devilsfan]

Originally Posted by guruerror

In a previous post/thread I thought you mentioned that the shop you chose was primarily a Jeep shop...if that's the case, they prolly lost a good week's worth of tool time just staring at your rig admiring the sheer awesomeness of its brutish stylings; then they prolly called all their friends and family to come over and take pictures with it, sit in the drivers seat, blow the horn, etc.

They work on FJs as well, so you are most likely 100% correct. For some reason, people don't mess with their H2s down here. 99% I've seen are stock. One other shop in town has done a few H2s, but they also wanted $6K more for the same work, and I've heard complaints about sloppy work on some of their show trucks. So I thought I was doing good by going with the shop with the quality reputation.

Owner gets back into town on Thursday, I will start making a pest of myself then. I don't want to be a doormat, but I also don't want a rush job where parts are forgotten because they're trying to get it out the door under threat of a lawsuit. Or pee on my bumper because I'm being a b*tch.

[H2Much]

Take it somewhere else man, that is BS. You need to think past the job you are having them do now and think about the warranties on the work. If it is taking this long now and the service sucks that bad, just think if anything has to be adjusted after the fact or anything they need to end up warrantying on their work. Just saying, it is not uncommon for mechs to F--- up on Hummers and their work since they never work on them, guaranteed something won't be right when they give it back to you.

Just my two bits and my experience

[VegasGuy]

I am curious just what you guys expect the shop to do when the lift mfr failed to ship the lift? Cuss at the lift mfr on the phone, threaten bodily injury, make the lift and parts themselves?

Frankly, I would have told the shop to call me when the lift arrived and they had all the parts to do the job so we could schedule a time to bring it in. I call it planning ahead.

I give the shop credit for providing a loner vehicle the whole time.

[devilsfan]

Originally Posted by VegasGuy

Frankly, I would have told the shop to call me when the lift arrived and they had all the parts to do the job so we could schedule a time to bring it in. I call it planning ahead.

I give the shop credit for providing a loner vehicle the whole time.

We were out of town on vacation the first week it was in the shop. That's why I dropped it off when I did, put my money down when I did, he got the order in when he did (ie, planning ahead) - I dropped it off on our way down the shore, and it was to be finished when we returned to town. The lift was supposed to be there the day I dropped it off. When I called on our way home, that's the first time I had heard that the kit wasn't even IN yet, the shop owner told me he'd check on tracking. If it wasn't shipped, he'd have no tracking number yet, so I don't know where that was coming from. It sounded, to me, like the box was in transit and was supposed to arrive any day now, so I let it go. At the time, it was a week behind schedule and wasn't a huge deal. I do agree tho - the major delay wasn't his fault. And he did offer to let me come pick the truck up in the meantime, but this was on that Friday and the lift was supposedly coming in the following Wednesday. Not worth it to me to drag 2 little kids out, interrupt hubby's work to find a meetup time at the loaner car place, and a 2 hour round trip just to do it all again a few days later. Of course, it didn't turn out to be "a few days later." Couldn't exactly predict that.

I am extremely grateful for the loaner, but it's not exactly "free" yet. It's through Enterprise, and I'm getting a $200 charge out of my checking account every 2 weeks. It WILL be taken off my final bill for my truck, but in the meantime, I'm still paying.

[VegasGuy]

I completely understand why you dropped it off with a certain degree of expectation of the job going as expected. All I am saying is my frustration would be directed at the mfr, not the shop. Sounds like the shop stepped up to the plate and attempted to make a reasonable effort to resolve the issue.

[devilsfan]

Did get another update today (the owner is at his ILs house, still on vacation but is essentially running the shop from afar). Turns out he has never put a lift on a truck that has already been lifted, and it seems to be one of the reasons we're hitting so many snags. Fabtech cuts into the front diff during installation, Bulletproof doesn't and the modified diff interferes with steering on the new lift. Of course. So now work is stalled until he can find a new front diff, which is on backorder with Hummer, so he has a list of 10-15 dealers to call, but they might not want to sell since it's a backorder part. Ay yi yi.

Actually worked out this time, since my schedule this week and next are crappy and I couldn't get out to the shop to pick up the truck anyway.

[twinmill28]

Send Zach a PM and see if he can help locate the diff (he's on this forum). He's kinda resourceful and might be able to pull a rabbit out of the hat.
Good luck with this---but what in the world would make you want to lift the deuce that tall? Other than the obvious that it's really cool, it's pretty impractical, but don't let me slow you down!

[devilsfan]

Why lift it? Because I can and I want to.

I originally wanted a 12" lift when I first got the truck, I have always loved lifted trucks and wanted one big-ass monster truck. Hubby said no way, can't get a baby in a carseat in and out of a lift that big. So I compromised with a 6". But every time I was stopped at a light and the truck next to me was bigger, I regretted only getting the 6" lift. And I'm in Texas, so it actually happens quite often.

Kids are 4 and 7 now and know how to climb. So I'm getting a bigger lift. I'm not going to be some 80 yr old woman who regrets never having gone for her dream truck when she had the chance. You only live once, I have the funds, so I'm going to make this one heck of a truck.

[HummerJim]

Originally Posted by devilsfan

Why lift it? Because I can and I want to.

Kids are 4 and 7 now and know how to climb. So I'm getting a bigger lift. I'm not going to be some 80 yr old woman who regrets never having gone for her dream truck when she had the chance. You only live once, I have the funds, so I'm going to make this one heck of a truck.

Well said!!!! 'Im in my mid 70s and the closer your lifetime gas gauge gets towards the E mark, the more you realize the he** with what others think. If you want it go for it. I think the same way about my H2, I love driving it offroad and in the snow and mud. I drive a manual shift German car for my daily driver and track my Z06 now and then. Life is short and I'm seeing more and more of my friends regret not doing stuff in life that they physically can't do now. I've thought about lifting my H2 many times too as I'm sure most enthusiasts have. GO FOR IT!

[orlasttoy]

1st-world problems