Regarding BILL HEARD CHEVROLET, TOWN CENTER KENNESAW, GA AND GENERAL MOTORS.

Last year, May 2001, my husband and I were looking to purchase a new car. For various reasons we weren't having much luck, but Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, after I dropped him off at work I saw that across from his office, Bill Heard Chevrolet was having a Memorial Day Weekend Sale. The sign boasted that they could get ANYONE into a car, and no one would be turned down for any reason. The sign stated no-to-low down payments, low percentage rates and low monthly payments/guarantees. With VERY limited resources for a cash down payment and my Ford Tempo as a trade in, I liked what I read. So, with my 2 month old baby & my 9 yr. old daughter, I stopped in to see what they could do for us. They had various games and things to keep my 9 year old occupied so I took care of business.

I was there, all told, from about 10:00 AM to 9:15 PM that day. What I thought would be a good thing has turned into a nightmare. More than that, though, Bill Heard Chevrolet lied to us, ripped us off and forced us into a car and payment that we could not afford, nor that we wanted. Until I spoke with Miss Harris, everyone I talked to told us we had no recourse. She said we have you.

After wandering the sales lot in the hot sun for a few minutes without anyone approaching, I finally went in to look for a salesperson. A guy named Ralph Bullard said he was a salesman and asked me how he could help. He looked at our tax return; my husband’s pay stubs, pulled our credit reports, and then asked me what we wanted. I told them we had $400.00 we could pay and we could trade in my Ford Tempo. They said ok, that would be sufficient. I also told them that we could not afford to make payments over $250.00/monthly. They said that wouldn’t be a problem either. We all went to talk to the finance manager. After discussing our finances, they had me go look at cars in a certain price range. So I stayed to buy a car.

I was there for HOURS. I needed to nurse my baby, but even though I asked, they never once told me they have a lounge in which I could’ve had some privacy. Never once did they offer me anything to eat or drink. Having not been out where the activities were, I had no clue that they had free sodas and food for potential clients. All I KNOW was that I was hungry, tired and that my baby needed to eat. Not living Anywhere near the dealership, I was forced to nurse her out in the open…I live 35 miles from there, so driving back and forth 2-3 more times that day wasn’t a possible option.

I was there all day. I would take a car I was thinking about, drive it across the street to my husband for him to see & test, then go back. We finally settled on a new 2001 Malibu that we were really comfortable in. Slowly as the day progressed, they would say, “well, to get in THAT car, we would need you to put MORE cash money down." Or, “For that vehicle, you would need higher monthly payments." I was sitting right there though while the finance manager called the finance company, AmeriCredit, and I heard him say we were approved for a loan and that we could get a new car. We discussed payments. Finally, the Finance Manager said that we could get the car.

In trying to finish up the paperwork, all of a sudden the Finance manager and Ralph tell me we cannot get that car. I was told that we didn’t have the credit to purchase it, that we would need to get a used car for the amount that we were financed. I was told to go to the Used Car Division of the dealership. He told me that because of our credit, only the Used Car Division could help us. We did NOT want to finance nor pay for a used car, but we really needed a newer/safer car with the new baby with us, so I agreed to talk to them. Ralph walked me over, and then introduced me to that department’s Finance Manager. They had a used 2000 Malibu that looked just like the one we wanted, same style, color, etc.

I brought the used Malibu for my husband to see, and he liked it, so we agreed on that car with the purchase of an extended service contract warranty since it was almost at the end of the manufacturer’s warranty. Somehow, by the time we were through, we ended up going from $250.00/month payments up to $315.68 per month. Also, our deposit kept going up. They asked us if we could borrow money from relatives, etc. I called my dad who said he would loan us money for the down payment. They agreed to take my car, the cash that we had, and had me write 2 post-dated checks for Bill Heard Chevy to cash over the next month to cover the difference in the down payment. After work, I brought my husband Gabe over to sign his part of the paperwork. It was 9:00 PM; I was tired and in tears by the end of the day, and the Used Car Finance Manger promised me that it was all finished and that we would have no more problems.

We left them my Tempo, the title, our cash and post-dated checks. Because it was so late in the day, they didn’t have time to clean it up for “delivery," so they told me to come back anytime in the next month so they could detail it and make sure it was working perfectly. We drove off in the new “used" Malibu and we thought we were done.

A couple of weeks later, on June 14, 2001, I brought the car in for the “Delivery" and to have minor work done on it, I think it was the air conditioner and the brakes were squealing, but honestly I can’t recall what was needed on THAT car anymore. I was inside picking up the key for the rental car and Ralph approached me saying there was a problem.

He walked me back into the Finance manager’s office of the New Car division, who told me that we couldn’t keep the Malibu. He LIED to my face and said he didn’t know that Ralph brought me to Used Cars. I know he lied because HE told me originally that I needed to go there, that the New Cars Department could not help us. But I was standing there in the office when he and Ralph told me again that I couldn’t keep the 2000 Malibu. The Fin. Mgr. said they weren’t authorized by AmeriCredit to sell me a used car, that we could only get a New one. I said I never heard of such a thing. I said a Loan/Financing is for a specific AMOUNT, I never heard of it being for a specific CAR. He said AmeriCredit couldn’t repossess a used car (so what? WE made every one of our payments), that Bill Heard wasn’t authorized to sell me the used car, that we HAD to take a new one. I never heard of such a thing so I said, “fine, give me my Tempo back." They said the Tempo was already gone, that it was sold off the lot.

Right then I found out that they have a lounge I could’ve used for nursing, and had free food/drink the day I was previously there. So I told them I never wanted Ralph near me again, I told them that I despised Ralph, and I did not want him to get credit for selling us ANY cars. So they assigned me a new sales person, a guy named Ted Tilly. They said we had signed loan papers already on a car; that we were past the 72-hour return time on buying a car (since then I found out, in truth, that law doesn’t even exist in this state), so we were obligated to take another car. They told me that we were limited in what we could have because of our limited funds. They said the only thing we could afford was a new 2001 Oldsmobile Alero. They informed us there would be higher monthly payments necessary because it was more expensive and new car, but that we had to take it since we already had a signed finance agreement. NOW we were being Forced to pay $411.52 per month even though we told them previously that we could never afford a payment that high. They said we had no choice.

I didn’t know what to do, so I called my husband. Neither of us had ever bought a new car before, so we had no clue what the reality of it was. I knew someone who sells cars for a dealership, and he said what they did was legitimate, so we re-signed the paperwork for an Alero and left, incredibly upset with what happened.

I drove the car for ONE day. We hated it. It was much too small, uncomfortable and it felt like we were driving a plastic toy. It wasn’t large enough for us to sit in, and it hurt my back. I took it back the very next day. I told them we hated it and that we wanted my Tempo back. I told them outright that we do NOT want that car and they better give me my Tempo back. One again they told me that the Tempo was no longer there and that there was no way I could have it back. So the finance manager tells Ted Tilly to show me three (3) 2001 Malibus. Two of them were horrid, didn’t have air conditioning or even a cassette player, the third one was ‘just like’ the 2000 model we bought. Same color, style, options that we had in the used model. It had over 500 miles on it already, but they told us those were from ‘test-drivers’, that the car was still considered new... and that we could have one of those 3 vehicles. That is ALL they told us and the only option they gave us. They said we could either keep the Alero or get one of those 3 but otherwise we were stuck with those choices.

So, we didn’t see that we had any options. I physically couldn’t drive the Alero... so we were forced to sign the papers on this other 2001 Malibu. Now our monthly payments were forced on us at $411.75.

I was tired and angry. The car needed some minor work upon delivery. We noticed upon driving it that the air conditioner wasn’t blowing cold. There were marks on the paint (from other doors opening into it, we guessed); the paint on its side was coming off. The molding was faded. The passenger seat back wouldn’t stay up all the time, it would recline when it wanted to. We found an “internal service notice" in the glove box, after we had the car 3 days, stating that the air condition had ALREADY needed to be repaired once after another client test-drove it. The panel on the passenger rear door had a small tear in it upon delivery. The car had almost NO pickup (6-cylinder cars should start/accelerate fairly fast). The accelerator was sticking and not working right. It was eating gas faster that my baby could nurse. But worst of all the brakes were squeaking and squealing.

We brought the car in for repairs as soon as I could get there, sometime in the next month. They had to resurface the rotors on the brakes, order new parts for the car and molding. They found the throttle body plate sticking with carbon buildup found on the plate. They had to fix the air conditioner. They had our car from July 19 to 30, and TO THIS DAY they have still not replaced our inner door panel. Since then, I’ve been on the phone with Jerry Williams, Bill Heard Chevrolet’s general manager. I was THERE. I spoke with him several times, as well as with Dick Ludwig, the service manager. Dick’s answer to our problem with gas consumption was to drive it 5 miles up the road with no traffic lights at 50 mph. He concluded that that car’s gas consumption was fine.

Tom Jumper Chevrolet told me that Mike Raines was the Local District Manager for Chevrolet and GM Cars. I left him at least 7 messages; he never once returned any of my calls. We called GM regarding the repairs that still haven’t been fixed right, as well as the fact we felt that we were scammed in the purchase of the vehicle. I spoke with a woman named Virginia, who claimed to be a Customer Relations Manager. She opened a case for us (# 05727014). Virginia said they could not do anything for us. She said GM had NO authority or control over the sales of their car, that what the dealerships did was their own thing. I got really upset over the matter, so my husband Gabe called to speak with her. He asked her to not call me again because of my agitation, to please handle it with him. She called me about 2 days later, whereas I got upset and hung up. She never had the decency to call Gabe back, so when he finally called her 2 weeks later, she informed him that they closed our case because I hung up. Gabe then tried to get someone else to examine our case, but they refused based on Virginia’s notes. To this day GM has done nothing to help us with ANY of the problems we have encountered.

The more people we told about car buying experience, however, the more people told us that what Bill Heard did was illegal. My father is now selling cars, and he told me we should sue. Unfortunately, we are not in the position to afford an attorney at this time.

Up until the week of July 15, 2002, the radio didn’t work properly. It would change stations whenever it felt like it. We’ve had a problem with the windows not wanting to open/close at their normal pace. Every time we bring the car in to any dealership for work, they tell us we’re crazy. The car STILL is not working right. We’ve brought the car in to 3 different dealerships. So far, both Bill Heard Chevy as well as Tom Jumper fixed the brakes. A new car is not supposed to have brake problems or carbon build up on it. Tom Jumper had to replace the rotors and pads. Other problems we brought the car in for, they told us "too bad."

The “new car" had been into the shop several times. Brakes, electrical problems (from the odometer to the radio to lights not working), gas consumption, air conditioner, windows not wanting to move, a tear in the door panel, something wrong with the transmission; (they refuse to look at that at all...our pick-up has slowed down considerably... and our gas is being sucked up again). We have numerous problems with this car. They will only repair the minimum basics, though we had a FULL manufacturer’s warranty when we bought it, still do.

The brakes were STILL scraping from time to time. The tear in our rear door panel was there from the day we got it to the day we returned it. The car still is not running right. We had a hard time with acceleration again. It was slow shifting automatic gears. The air conditioner still doesn’t work properly. The tires (which are supposed to have a warranty) are slipping with bad traction... on dry days). On June 3rd, we brought it into Northpoint Chevrolet. They kept the car for 2 days, then told us there was nothing wrong with it. They said they couldn’t duplicate the problem so we are stuck with it, “as is." I went to pick it up. ON MY WAY home, the radio started acting up as it ALWAYS does. I turned around and went right back. I pulled Mark Fetter, the service manager, out to the car and showed him the problem. HE said “OH, yes I see it, we’ll replace the radio and the panel behind the odometer since that isn’t working right, but we won’t do anything for the brakes, or the lighter" (which also only works when it wants to). The kept the car until Wed. night. All they did was reprogram the radio and switch out the electrical circuit behind the odometer.

One problem, they sent the car home in a worse condition than when they had it. Driving it we had NO gauges to look at, there were NO lights at all behind the front panel and we had NO speedometer. We brought it back the very next day. They had it for a week. Mark told me they were replacing the radio. According to the paperwork, all they did was repair it. As for anything else, they refuse to do anything for it.

It was ONE year at this point that we had this car. We have made ALL our payments, no matter how hard it has been to meet them. We have made all the necessary ‘maintenance’ as instructed in the owner’s manual. The car is a piece of garbage though that continual gives us a problem. It STILL needs brakes that do not scrape. We are STILL waiting for the side panel for our door.

But to make matters worse, all of a sudden about two months ago, Bill Heard Chevrolet (who we no longer contact from exhaustion and anger) started calling us. They informed me they need the title of the Tempo so they could sell or get rid of the car. I reminded them that I signed it over to them the day we bought the used car. Since then, not only has a woman called repeatedly, but Ralph (who I told them I never wanted to speak to again) called me himself to ask for it. Repeatedly my husband and I tell them that THEY have it. They keep calling. It has gotten to where I have warned them that if they do not stop calling I will press charges for harassment. They still keep calling every couple of weeks.

But what bothers me most is that if they couldn’t sell my Tempo or get rid of it because they misplaced the title, that means they LIED TO ME when I ASKED FOR IT BACK! They still have my Tempo. I demanded it and they told me it was no longer there. WHY wouldn’t they give me back our car? Now we were stuck with a car that we hated, that has given us problems from day one; a car that they refuse to repair, though it is still covered by the manufacturer’s warranty. A car that we have had mechanical problems with that we never should have had.

What could we do? In talking to Miss Harris at the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, she told me that it sounds like Bill Heard is guilty of Unfair Business practices, that INDEED it IS against the law to refuse us our car. She said they should have either given us our car back or let us have any car on the lot. She also said it was wrong of them to take the Used car back from the very beginning, that indeed I was correct, a loan is for a specific amount, NOT for a specific car. She told me to send them all this information and she also mailed me a form to claim the car as a lemon, according to Georgia law, to the Better Business Bureau's Autoline in VA. The outcome of the contact with GA's Covernor's Office, however, turned out to be a joke as well. It would seem that the Governor's office on Unfair Business is there to protect the businesses, and not the consumers. I sent them all this information, and they returned a letter to me informing me that Bill Heard did nothing wrong and that I was stuck, that if I wanted to pursue this, I would need to sue Bill Heard.

THANKFULLY, however, the BBB AUTOLINE did not agree. I sent them this information at the same time that I did the GA Governor’s Office. They immediately opened up a case, and the gentleman there was a HUGE help from day one until the end. The process took from July until Nov. but it was very much worth the effort that we put into it. After reviewing our case, they sent me papers to fill out asking for what we wanted (for a new replacement car or for Bill Heard to repurchase the car from us). We told them we wanted to be rid of the car forever. We had to send a letter to GM and Bill Heard (and the BBB) demanding a ‘Final Repair’ on the car. They had only so many days in which to do it. Though they initially called us back within the allotted time, they never arranged for the repair itself since the 3 dealerships they would send us to refused to fix our car… Bill Heard included.

After the Demand for Final Repair, we had to send GM a “Letter to Demand Repurchase or Repayment." Also something that needed to be answered within a certain time limit. Again, they ignored that letter also. After the allotted time was up, the BBB reopened our case and filed on our behalf for arbitration. It’s a lot like going to court, but in an informal setting. GM has the option of showing up in person or to be there over the phone. At arbitration, the unbiased BBB arbitrator inspected the car and took it for a test drive as well; to be sure we didn’t make up the story. GM, through out the entire day, kept saying they had someone to testify and that they were going to send some kind of proof, but in the end, all they did was reiterate their own ignorance and read off ALL the repair bills, only showing how many times the car actually HAD been in for repairs (accrd. To GA lemon law, any new car that is out of service for at least 30 days for major repeat problems {brakes for example} is automatically considered a lemon) and further proving my case. The BBB had 10 days in which to make a decision.

Thankfully they found in our favor based on at least 5 different reasons. GM had 30 days to repurchase the car from us, pay off our loan and to pay us back directly for all the finance charges (minus a “use fee" for the mileage we put on the car). It took until Nov. 13, 2002, but Bill Heard was forced to buy the car back. We brought the car in and got our money back. They were supposed to pay off our loan within the same week. They never bothered. We bought new cars immediately (2 new Kia Optimas from Town Center in Kennesaw where we had NO problems… and our payments on Both cars was just a few dollars more that the ONE lousy Malibu) so we couldn’t afford payments on ALL the cars. Three 3 weeks later the BBB contacted us to make sure that everything was taken care of. When we told them the car payoff had not been taken care of, the BBB stepped in again and ordered GM to pay our loan off or get sued further. Within 3 days of that contact our loan was paid off.

But even since then Bill Heard has tampered with us, and I am about to fight that, too. (Help would be appreciated).

Two (2) days after they took the car back from us, they ran an Illegal (I did NOT authorize it) credit check from the 3 credit reporting agencies. I can guarentee you I would NEVER do business with them again, so there was NO excuse for that.
If they do not remove their inquiries, I WILL sue them for tampering with my credit.

I am telling this story (and I have left several parts out for time) to warn ALL of you to avoid Bill Heard Chevrolet. Whether you’re at their Town Center in Kennesaw, GA (where they lied to us and ripped us off for a year and a half), Union City, GA, Florida, TX or anywhere else they exist, RUN!!!!!!! DO NOT BUY FROM ANY BILL HEARD CHEVROLET! They can, and will, do to you that which they have done to us.

AVOID BILL HERD CHEVROLET!!! AT ALL COSTS! (Especially to save your sanity)!

Thank you for your time,

Rev. Lauren
Roswell, Georgia
U.S.A.

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