Big Wyoming Buick, Pontiac, Cadillac, GMC Broken Transmission two days before the first payment. Dictating and strongarming on the repair. Ripoff Casper Wyoming

Look, you may agree that this is getting old....and it is. I NEVER SAID that the "technician" said that the drain plug was ruined, in fact it was a lady in the parts department that conveyed this information to me as she seemed to know of the situation. Secondly; I NEVER SAID that I've never been in your shop, I DID SAY: "never with Clay Hawthorne" which is THE TRUTH. Apparently, you have no idea who I am because if you saw someone "with your own eyes" in that shop with Mr. Hawthorne IT WASN'T ME....get it? The FACT is this: I HAVE been in your shop with a gal from your department named Dawn that was very accomodating in trying to help me locate said drain plug. That is the ONLY TIME I have EVER set foot in that shop...PERIOD. I was assured by Dawn that a new plug would be ordered from Greiner and would be "delivered" to me. After two weeks had elapsed with no sign of the drain plug, I returned to Mr. Hawthornes desk and inquired about the plug. He picked up the phone, asked (someone) of it's whereabouts, then hung up the phone and SMILED AT ME and said "It was returned to Ford". I said "Was it now??" and his response with a smile was "Yes it was"....I left the building. As far as my "wisking" away of the truck is concerned, you've again been misinformed through a lack of communication. I called the sales department (whom had offered me the 50/50 repair cost) and declined the offer, requesting that the truck be returned to my residence. After more than 24 HOURS had passed with no sign of the vehicle in front of my house, I called BACK and asked of it's whereabouts to be assured it would be returned THAT day, and it was returned around 4p.m. as I was contacted by my wife while it was being unloaded on the curb. So you see, between the time I requested its return to its ACTUAL return, more than a full day had passed, and YOUR department was not notified by sales that the truck was leaving...not my fault. You will keep in mind that I would never libel myself with this "misinformation" you speak of. Don't kid yourself about the fact that everything I have said in regards to this issue is true, as it happened. Lastly; My statement about "mechanics" has been misread and/or misunderstood by you. Yes, it DID come out a bit sarcastic, BUT the root of the statement meant that as a helicopter mechanic, I'm not one of "the millions that claim to be some sort of mechanic" and am fully capable of reading a manual to rebuild a transmission and DO HAVE (at least) a basic understanding of these things. The "shot" was merely returned, and am not knocking your skills. As a fellow mechanic, I understand FULLY the effort put forth on your behalf in honing the skills required. Lastly, you seem to be taking quite personally that is beyond your control. I understand that you're defending your dealership, but this issue is something that has transpired at the hands of others in your facility...not you yours. You are responding to this with what seems to me to be limited information as obviously you've not heard the WHOLE story....now you have.

Mr. Mill,

With all due respect, your recollections of the events are inaccurate. The technician never told anyone the drain plug was damaged, in fact it was in the bed of the truck when you whisked it off the lot without the technician's knowledge it was leaving the facility.

Now, I know you want to just keep this thing going to drag the company's name through the mud, and I am fully aware that you will do anything to do that and that's fine. It does not bother me in the least.

What DOES bother me is you dragging the technician through the mud in the process. Had the technician been informed you were declining to have the vehicle repaired at our facility, he would have had the chance to put the vehicle back to its original condition. He never had that chance. You never gave him that chance.

After you took your truck off the lot without his knowledge, you returned. And yes, Mr. Hawthorne came back into the shop as well. You walked right into his bay and I saw it with my own eyes. The technician who worked on your truck was not there at the time, but I WAS! So don't you dare say you did not come into the shop, that is a lie and you know it.

As to your snide remarks regarding my profession, that's your style. You think you are better than everyone else and that's okay. I have worked with former aircraft mechanics before and they had that air about them as well. They had the same attitude of "plugs, shocks, belts.....how hard can it be?". It's a funny thing because they moved on to this line of work in search of work thinking they could just drop in and blow everyone away with their brilliance. And they happened to fail miserably at accomplishing what it is I do on a daily basis. Few of them stay in the business because the learning curve is steep and they starve as a result.

I invite you to come work next to me any day of the week. Multiplexing, network rings, electronics diagnostics, software debugging, option coding resolution, utilizing dozens of sources of information to isolate root causes of customer's concerns, operating on new vehicles without complete information, etc.... all the while getting paid on how productive you are. While you take a dim view of what I do for a living, I take it seriously. And I doubt you could "hang" out of the gate. If you could, I would be VERY VERY surprised.

I don't claim to be able to do your career, please do not claim to be able to do mine....unless you are willing to go the extra mile and prove it.

To sum this up: You hate the company and have a bone with Mr. Hawthorne. That's between you and him. Don't post lies regarding the technician and his abilities. Don't sweeten up your story at his expense with misinformation, because I will inform others of the misinformation.

Thanks for your time.

To the technician: You'll need to first verify your facts before speaking because you are mistaken about a great many things...all of them to be precise. You see Mr. Tech, Mr. Hawthorne never, EVER accompanied me into your service facility. Mr. Hawthorne has never left the comfort of his front counter in my presence....EVER, so you are either lying, misinformed, or accidentally have me mistaken for someone else, as that imaginary event NEVER transpired in my presence...period.

As for the drain plug; Look, it didn't fall out of the box during it's towing or any of that other garbage...it was never returned to me, with or without the truck. You'll understand that I was inadvertantly told by a gal in that facility that it got ruined in removal and would be replaced. I was told this before my truck ever left your facility...so save it.

And finally, regarding your little quip about my claim to be a mechanic "like the millions of others that claim to be a mechanic of some sorts"; I understand that changing spark plugs, shock absorbers, and belts is something you've worked years to perfect, but you'll (try to) understand that as a 25 year federally licensed airframe and powerplant helicopter mechanic I'll manage, thanks very much. There is no more you can say in the defence of your company. Big Wyoming painfully dropped the ball, and didn't stand behind their $25,000 product, but I'm NOT the consumer that goes away quietly, and I'm not the guy that signs a $25,000 car loan and willingly bends over without a kiss.

However, I AM THE GUY that will drag your facility THROUGH THE MUD until I feel redeemed, and the 3 new car sales that I have directed away from your dealership to Greiner is a small personal reward. And lastly; Even as I am today STILL quite angry about my shaft job, I have always very accurately portrayed my experience with your dealership...try to do the same.

To Robert:

I am fully aware of the laws, sir. The dealer was and is well within the law, and Mr. Mill knows full-well that fact.

To Mr. Mill:

I am not the service manager at the dealer. I am an employee who works there with the tech who looked at your truck.

Mr. Hawhthorne did not refuse to provide you with the drain plug, in fact he came back to the shop along with you, I know I was there when you came into his bay, to find out where the drain plug was and it was not in the technician's area. The reason it was not in his area is because, along with other items, it was in the bed of your truck when you towed it off. It likely got lost during the tow off of the property when you got it. This could have been avoided if the tech had been told you were going to tow the truck away, but that did not happen unfortunately.

I am sure you are a fine mechanic, as are all of the millions of other people who tell others they are a mechanic of some sort with multiple years of experience. I am sure that transmission is in great shape with the aftermarket parts upgrades that you have installed into it and hope you enjoy your truck. Of course it's going to be cheaper to do the repairs yourself if you have the ability to complete the repairs properly. It only makes sense, as you are not also paying a for-profit business for the labor and associated parts markups.

As far as your badmouthing our facility, that's your perogative.

I just wanted some facts to be presented here.

Take care.

In regards to the service managers response, I never got the drain plug back as Clay Hawthorne refused to provide it (IT'S TRUE!). As a career (See:22 years) aircraft mechanic, I rebuilt the transmission myself with an extreme duty towing kit and converter for less than what you wanted to charge me for HALF of the repair. I spent $24,000.00 on a truck from your lot and wasn't about to give your dealership or Bill Nolan another dime because it failed before the first payment. I have, and will continue to steer potential car buyers away from Big Wyoming for the rest of my life. In fact, you can thank me for half a dozen new cars bought from Greiner Ford. As far as your "Extended Warranty" is concerned, let's not B.S. each other about the effectiveness of this money wasting item. Save yourselves some paper, and remove me from your mailing list. End of discussion.

You should check your state laws to see how your state has implemented the UCC implied warranty of merchantability.

There are protections for folks purchasing used cars from a DEALER (not a private person.) Many State, as NY, have adopted the implied warranty of merchantiblility and it cannot by waived - no "as is" from a dealer.

Check with your State AG office.

PS, for the employee - better check the laws pal.

There is a federal requlation that deals with anyone who sells more than 6 autos per year and a "minimum" implied warranty of merchantibility. The states are of course free to make the time period of the implied warranty LONGER if the State so chooses.

I am an employee at this dealer that is mentioned here, and work in the service department. After reading the complaint filed by the gentleman, I felt it necessary to clear up a few things regarding his comments.

1. The technician doing the work on the truck was not only trained in doing the repair for the truck, he also instructed others on rebuilding transmissions and is very good at his job. He has all the right tools for the job and I would trust him to rebuild the transmission over any other shop or tech that I have been in contact with here locally.

2. The technician gave an estimate for the repairs, the total of which was close to the same the "other shop" that the gentleman reported for a "worst case" estimate. In fact, the dollar amount the gentleman used is the exact same dollar amount that this tech estimated here.

3. This truck was tying up the tech's bay for several days before the tech decided to push the truck outside so other work could be completed, believing that the situation would be resolved and a decision would be made on way or the other.

4. The customer came and towed the truck away without the technician even knowing that the customer was coming to get the vehicle. Yes, the drain plug was out of the truck's transmission pan, but the tech never had a chance to put the truck back to its original condition before the gentleman came to pick up the truck.

5. The failure that occured in this transmission is a common failure with that particular transmission and they can occur without warning. There is no way for a selling dealer to know that it was about ready to fail. The planetary failure that occurs is well documented and known in the repair community, but not all trucks will exhibit the failure. There is usually no warning before the vehicle experiences the failure and there is no way to "hide" the failed part for reasons of deception to the customer.

6. In all the years that I have purchased and owned vehicles, nobody has ever come to my rescue when MY vehicle breaks. If I purchase without a warranty, I am the person who has always been responsible for the total amount of repairs. In my eyes the offer made by the Sales Manager was above and beyond what any reasonable person could ask for. This gentleman's total bill would be less than half of what he was quoted at the other shop if he had taken the offer. This doesn't mean that I think either party was right or wrong here, just going with what I have experienced and how I would view it if I were in the same position (and I was once, as I had purchased a fairly new used vehicle that experienced a transmission failure).

Yesterday my office phone rang, and when I answered it there was a vaguely familiar voice on the other end asking for the General Manager. When I confirmed that I was "he", the caller hung up. I then hung up and dialed *69, confirming that the caller was the Sales Manager from Big Wyoming Buick Pontiac Cadillac GMC....wanting to talk to MY BOSS!! After a call to my corporate headquarters in another state, it was confirmed that the Sales Manager of the above mentioned car lot had indeed called my supervisor, leaving a message stating that I was giving them some bad press and wanted it stopped! Why didn't he just call my mommy?? At any rate, the only thing that he has accomplished is to give me even more drive in spreading the documented story of my experience...only NOW, I want them to pay for the WHOLE transmission rebuild...period. You just don't involve a fellows employer in a personal dispute, because then...it's personal!