Horrible Experience with My New S4 - Blind Spot Indicator
03-09-2011, 05:24 PM
#32
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I got the call from AoA today. They would like to proceed with buying the car back. I don't know the full details or what my options really are, but I'll keep you guys posted as I learn more...
03-09-2011, 07:11 PM
#33
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03-09-2011, 07:13 PM
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03-10-2011, 02:56 PM
#36
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Driving your car...
I cannot BELIEVE that guy admitted to driving your car like that. When I test drove an S4 for the first time, it was someone else's that had come in on order. I am sure they did not know I was driving it, so I was very gentle on the test drive. The salesman told me I was being too gentle with it and asked to drive it. He proceeded to scare the crap out of both me and my husband...there are no words to describe what he did with the car. As a result, when I ordered my car, the dealership had EXPLICIT instructions that this bozo was not to be allowed in it under any circumstances. Seems like this is always a factor with these types of cars.
Mine seemed to behave in a similar manner to yours. There is supposed to be a software update that takes care of it, but that obviously doesn't always work...
We're quickly approaching 30 days and my car still isn't back. So far, they have tried a few different modules and have completely replaced the bumper. The story is that they keep getting the wrong part, so they finally asked for "the right one" to be shipped directly from Germany. It was supposed to be in last Friday but the latest info is that it should be here by this Thursday. With a day at the body shop, and another day at the detail shop, it's all but guaranteed to hit the 30 day mark and qualify as a lemon.
I elevated the issue with AoA and will be talking to them tomorrow about options moving forward. We'll see what falls out of that conversation.
Foot Note 1) I test drove an S5 to see if it was worth switching over. Result: Not in this lifetime. It's not even close in performance or practicality.
Foot Note 2) The vehicle porter that delivered my car had been moved up to sales and happened to accompany me on the test drive in the S5. When I commented on the car's lack of performance, I asked him if he had ever driven an S4. He responded, "Yeah, I drove yours and I actually drove it pretty hard." Really guy? Is that not the stupidest thing you could say to the guy that bought the car and was having problems with it?.....That's now on record with AoA too...
We're quickly approaching 30 days and my car still isn't back. So far, they have tried a few different modules and have completely replaced the bumper. The story is that they keep getting the wrong part, so they finally asked for "the right one" to be shipped directly from Germany. It was supposed to be in last Friday but the latest info is that it should be here by this Thursday. With a day at the body shop, and another day at the detail shop, it's all but guaranteed to hit the 30 day mark and qualify as a lemon.
I elevated the issue with AoA and will be talking to them tomorrow about options moving forward. We'll see what falls out of that conversation.
Foot Note 1) I test drove an S5 to see if it was worth switching over. Result: Not in this lifetime. It's not even close in performance or practicality.
Foot Note 2) The vehicle porter that delivered my car had been moved up to sales and happened to accompany me on the test drive in the S5. When I commented on the car's lack of performance, I asked him if he had ever driven an S4. He responded, "Yeah, I drove yours and I actually drove it pretty hard." Really guy? Is that not the stupidest thing you could say to the guy that bought the car and was having problems with it?.....That's now on record with AoA too...
03-11-2011, 12:22 AM
#37
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Seems like this story may have a happy ending, after all. I never mentioned it on this forum, but I had been looking for a specific Porsche Carrera S for six months before making the drastic decision to buy an S4. I spotted one in a parking lot and took a few pictures of it. After 11 days of owning the S4, I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that the car I noticed in the parking lot was for sale on auto trader.
Shortly after, the ad disappeared, and I moved on with my life. As fate would have it, after AoA called me with the buy back offer, I was able to track the Porsche down. So without further adieu, I present to you my S4 replacement (I'm picking it up on Friday or Saturday night).
<a href="http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/kk240/davesoly/?action=view&current=photo4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/kk240/davesoly/photo4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
Shortly after, the ad disappeared, and I moved on with my life. As fate would have it, after AoA called me with the buy back offer, I was able to track the Porsche down. So without further adieu, I present to you my S4 replacement (I'm picking it up on Friday or Saturday night).
<a href="http://s281.photobucket.com/albums/kk240/davesoly/?action=view&current=photo4.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i281.photobucket.com/albums/kk240/davesoly/photo4.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
03-11-2011, 05:00 AM
#38
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Since this started off with a fix for a broken blind spot detection thingy. Everyone should read this NY Times article: http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009...-spots-a-myth/
The article links to a technical paper on how to avoid having a blind spot but here is the quick summary: "The driver leans his head against the driver’s window and sets the mirror so that the side of the vehicle is just visible. Then, the driver leans to the middle of the vehicle (between the front seats) and does the same thing with the passenger-side mirror."
I have been adjusting my mirrors using this technique since I read that article and it really does work.
The article links to a technical paper on how to avoid having a blind spot but here is the quick summary: "The driver leans his head against the driver’s window and sets the mirror so that the side of the vehicle is just visible. Then, the driver leans to the middle of the vehicle (between the front seats) and does the same thing with the passenger-side mirror."
I have been adjusting my mirrors using this technique since I read that article and it really does work.
