Bad experience at Bryan Byrt, Mt Gravatt

[Blue103TDIDSG]

Yes, we got a Yeti 103TDI DSG 4x4
It should have been a happy occasion but it didn't turn out that way

We went to Bryan Byrt Skoda, Mt Gravatt with our son to look at a Fabia RS for his wife. We had seen the Yeti earlier and looked at it while he talked to Paul, the salesman. Ended up going for a test drive in a Yeti TDI DSG and looked at a couple of different coloured cars that were on the lot. We said that we wanted sat/nav and none of the cars had it fitted. The salesman, Michael Van West, said that they could fit sat/nav from another car and it would be "the same as factory fitted".

Returned a week or so later and took a manual TDI for a test drive. We liked the white/black roof of the demo car but it didn't have sat/nav. The same salesman (Michael) said they could fit the sat/nav to it if we were interested, and again he said that it would be "the same as factory fitted". He worked out a price of $35K drive away for the demo car, with sat/nav. He also worked out a price for one of the new cars we had looked at but with sat/nav added plus the extras that were already fitted.

We were quite interested, read "hooked", so that night, my wife and I got onto the internet and found a NEW TDI, DSG with sat/nav and leather seats at Pennant Hills in Sydney for $35K drive away. As it happened I was going to Sydney by car the very next weekend with my son, so it was quite feasible to get it and drive it home. The next morning I contacted the dealer in Sydney and they could do a permit to get it home and reduce the price by the amount of the on road costs. We also contacted Brisbane Prestige Skoda and they rang back and agreed to match the Sydney deal.

At the same time, since they had done all the work, it only seemed fair to ring Michael at Bryan Byrt, Mt Gravatt and advise him of the deals that were on offer. Michael rang back and said that they would match the deal but it would have to be a car from the lot. It was the Lava Blue car he had shown us earlier and we knew it was not fitted with a sat/nav unit but he had said earlier that they would fit one from another car. It already had an off-road button and rear parking sensors so he said that they would "throw these in". As the seats were fabric they would have to be reupholstered with leather and he advised that they would not have heaters as per factory. That would not be a problem here in Queensland.

So we returned, looked at the car and signed the paperwork. It took a couple of weeks to get the seats done. When we went to pick up the car Michael told us that the sat/nav unit was not a factory unit but was "one that is fitted to other VW models". When I told Michael that I was far from happy with the sat/nav he smuggishly said "I told you I would fit a sat/nav unit, I didn't say it would be a factory sat/nav". Outraged, I reminded his of the numerous occasions that he had told us that they would fit one from another car and "it would be the same as factory fitted". He then changed his story and said "well, they wouldn't let me do it" (swap one from another car) turned and walked away.

Had we got the car from Sydney or one from Brisbane Prestige it would have a Columbus sat/nav and factory leather. In passing, the leather seats are great, but as far as the sat/nav is concerned it is a Zenec, which is a cheaper sat/nav unit and it does not have many of the features of the Columbus including voice activation and on board hard disc.

Another issue is the warranty on the sat/nav. Factory unit will be the same as the rest of the car but the Zenec is an aftermarket unit so 12 months ? When I asked Michael the salesman he said it should be the same as the car since they fitted it but it will be my problem if anything does go wrong and my guess it will be the same as he did at the beginning - say anything to get the sale.

I haven't sold my Landcruiser Turbo Diesel that the Yeti was supposed to replace and at the moment I prefer to drive it rather than the Yeti because every time I sit in the drivers seat of the Yeti I have this sat/nav unit staring me in the face reminding me that I have been ripped off. It seems like a great little car but for me it is very disappointing. No-one likes being treated like fool, which for the record I am NOT.

So I guess if you are considering buying a Yeti, or any Skoda for that matter, you need to select your dealer very carefully. I would hate to see anyone else get treated in the same way we have been. I know car salesmen have a certain reputation, but I believe this is even beyond that.

[Tigger]

Very sorry to hear about all of this mate!!

I really feel for you. No one like to be treated in a deceptive manner, and these guys sound like the stereotype car dealers...

I hope you can learn to enjoy your car anyway. It sounds like a great unique car now, with a leather interior that wont be found in any other model.

I would be asking / demanding that they change the head unit over to a columbus though...or RNS510. These can be bought online even through ebay...so make it their problem to correct it. Just check your paperwork first from when you signed the deal...

Good luck...let us know how you go.

Oh, and PS, I guess they are not getting the privelege of servicing your car over the future years!!??

[Tigger]

Oh, forgot to ask...when they fitted leather seats to your car, did they do the door card trims, armrest etc...?

[donweather]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience and I have to admit it appears to be a very sour deal indeed.

But in saying that, I bought my car from Michael at Mt Gravatt and he was a pleasure to deal with and went out of his way IMO to get the car that I wanted. He even got a quote to get the red stitching put onto the leather seats as I had my heart set on this.

Anyway, I just wanted to share that whilst you've had a bad deal, I also had a good deal so it's not all bad news from Michael at Mt Gravatt.

[Hillbilly]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience and I have to admit it appears to be a very sour deal indeed.

But in saying that, I bought my car from Michael at Mt Gravatt and he was a pleasure to deal with and went out of his way IMO to get the car that I wanted. He even got a quote to get the red stitching put onto the leather seats as I had my heart set on this.

Anyway, I just wanted to share that whilst you've had a bad deal, I also had a good deal so it's not all bad news from Michael at Mt Gravatt.

Personally I think you may be better off with a different Satnav as I consider the VW (skoda) RNS510 one an overpriced boat anchor as far as its navigation system goes.

A $300 Tomtom is far superior if not as tidy.

[Blue103TDIDSG]

Very sorry to hear about all of this mate!!

I really feel for you. No one like to be treated in a deceptive manner, and these guys sound like the stereotype car dealers...

I hope you can learn to enjoy your car anyway. It sounds like a great unique car now, with a leather interior that wont be found in any other model.

I would be asking / demanding that they change the head unit over to a columbus though...or RNS510. These can be bought online even through ebay...so make it their problem to correct it. Just check your paperwork first from when you signed the deal...

Good luck...let us know how you go.

Oh, and PS, I guess they are not getting the privelege of servicing your car over the future years!!??

Yes, your are right there - he sure fits the "car salesman" image
He, (Michael) told us that he was a used car saleman from one of the other franchises and was just "filling in" at Mt gravatt.

I have visions of him with an electric drill winding back speedos and stuffing bananas into noisy diffs - LOL
Struth - hope there are none in the Yeti (bananas) - might stuff up the clutches

The paper work says sat/nav and leather seats
This was entered into the order form in a comments field towards the bottom
instead as being shown as an option in the car details at the top of the form
He explained this as the way they had to get these options onto the existing car
since it was being sold as a "demo" to get the extra 2 years warranty
Seemed reasonable but was obviously a ploy to rip us off with the non factory sat/nav
I should have insisted on the words "factory" sat/nav - easy with hind sight

Michael comes across as the pleasant, friendly, mild mannered type - it works to his advantage
Guess we forgot that he was still a "car salesman" and no matter how "nice" they might seem
They cannot be trusted.

The cost of the sat/nav they fitted is about 1/2 that of the Columbus
We are honorable people and I guess stupidly expected that they (Bryan ByrtSkoda) would be the same
Sadly we were wrong and got caught

That's the purpose of this thread - hoping to prevent others from getting burnt as we did

Right on the servicing

Combining posts
With the leather reupholstering
yes, the vertical inserts on the doortrims are leather
as are the inserts on the back of the center section of the centre rear seat that folds down to become an armrest.
The actual armrests on all doortrims remain original as these are colour and texture coded to the door trim.
The doortrims in mine are the same as you would get with factory leather.

I have read on the Briskoda forum that the factory leather uses different quality leather on the seating surface to the sides and other areas. If this is correct, then in reality, the reupholstered seats are much better than factory leather as the same leather is used all over and the rear centre back is all leather where as factory leather has fabric sides. The downside is no heaters but they will not be missed here is Queensland - LOL

I s'pose I will get used to the car once I sell the Landcruiser and have no option but to drive the Yeti
Pity since getting a new car should be an enjoyable experience

[Blue103TDIDSG]

Sorry to hear about your bad experience and I have to admit it appears to be a very sour deal indeed.

But in saying that, I bought my car from Michael at Mt Gravatt and he was a pleasure to deal with and went out of his way IMO to get the car that I wanted. He even got a quote to get the red stitching put onto the leather seats as I had my heart set on this.

Anyway, I just wanted to share that whilst you've had a bad deal, I also had a good deal so it's not all bad news from Michael at Mt Gravatt.

I'm glad hat you were successful in getting what you wanted and presumably paid for - I wasn't so lucky

The "problem" is that there are obviously good and bad outcomes with Michael and Bryan Byrt Skoda
Is it worth the risk if you are about to buy a Skoda ?
The question is, as Clint Eastwood in Dirty Harry said "Are you feeling lucky (punk)"

Why take the risk that you may end up being treated in the same way as we were ?

As I said before, the purpose of this thread is to warn others of the treatment we got at Bryan Byrt Skoda

What they do with it is up to them - I would not feel right if I didn't do something
I believe this sort of dishonest behaviour should be stamped out
Of course, this just MHO

[Blue103TDIDSG]

Personally I think you may be better off with a different Satnav as I consider the VW (skoda) RNS510 one an overpriced boat anchor as far as its navigation system goes.

A $300 Tomtom is far superior if not as tidy.

Thanks Hillbilly

You are probably right

I have a small Nagig8r sat/nav unit that I use in the Landcruiser and our Lancer
Got it about 3 years back during an after Christmas sale for $88- was one of those below cost deals to get you into their store.
It works well, has lifetime free map upgrades and is extremely well supported, both Navig8r themselves and an very active forum
When entering a street name it is has been programmed to be user friendly, for instance
If you enter say Penrith, NSW then look for a particular street that is actually in South Penrith
It lists all the streets in the Penrith area, including South Penrith - so you find it first try
The Zenec and presumably all its stable mates is not as clever
Enter Penrith, NSW and then look for the same street and it only shows the street in Penrith - its not there
So you scratch your head and then try SOUTH Penrith and ahha - there it is
So the litte cheapie actually works better that the unit that is 150 times dearer

I am 65 years young and this will most likely be our last new car - sick - given what happened
So I wanted the sat/nav all nicely fitted into the panel - you get tiresome of the thing stuck to the windshield
with the wires running down to the power socket - yes there is a price penalty but as it is most likely our last new car
thought we would "splash out"

So they rip us off - sigh
I coud have bought it myself and saved $1500

It seems the Zenec they fitted is made by the same company that make the RNS510.
When I spoke to them about a problem with registering for the free map upgrades (model not listed)
the guy said that the one we got has just been released and is a better unit than the RNS510 - whatever that means ?
It works quite well - no gripe with Zenec - quite the opposite
When I had the registration problem they rang me back within a couple of hours following an email request
That IS impressive IMHO

My problem is that I don't like being ripped off and treated like a fool

[dArK5HaD0w]

It works well, has lifetime free map upgrades and is extremely well supported, both Navig8r themselves and an very active forum
When entering a street name it is has been programmed to be user friendly, for instance
If you enter say Penrith, NSW then look for a particular street that is actually in South Penrith
It lists all the streets in the Penrith area, including South Penrith - so you find it first try
The Zenec and presumably all its stable mates is not as clever
Enter Penrith, NSW and then look for the same street and it only shows the street in Penrith - its not there
So you scratch your head and then try SOUTH Penrith and ahha - there it is
So the litte cheapie actually works better that the unit that is 150 times dearer

with my columbus - i search by the street name, and it will list all the suburbs that have that street.
handy for those south, east, west versions!!!

sorry bout ur experience though.
i never trust "dealer fitted" accessories/options, especially with things like the sat nav.
dealer fit bluetooth is another sorry story!
dealer fit parking sensors is also another sorry story!!

not always the case though mind you.

for these reasons, i purposely went for a factory built order & waited 5 months.

[VAG newbie]

I feel sorry for you. I also got my Superb from Bryan Byrt and I must say my experience was completely the opposite. Not only they have honored everything they promised me, they did more than I asked for. But I must say all the salesman and manager I dealt with no longer work there anymore, so I can't make comments on these new salesman that works there.

In your case, obviously it sounds like it was due to one dishonest salesman, not Bryan Byrt as a whole. I would suggest that you write a letter of complaint to their general manager or someone important. If they still ignore your complaint then the fault is with Bryan Byrt. Although if whatever you are complaining wasn't stated clearly on the contract, I would say the salesman still has the upper hand as there is no proof that the salesman "promised" you a factory GPS.

Even though my experience with Bryan Byrt had been positive, that doesn't mean I will trust them fully. Most dealers or salesman are very dishonest, they will try their best to sound like your best friend before the deal, but completely ignore you once you sign the paper. The lesson here is always read the contract carefully and ensure all agreement is put clearly in writing. But even with that, we being the non-expert in car sales, we can easily fall into the traps of those fine prints. Therefore I always use a car broker now. Having a car broker is like having a lawyer in the court. They are the expert in car sales, so not only they will get you the best deal, they will act as a witness for all the promises and agreements that a dealer gave. So in your case, if you had a car broker, and if his/her impression of the Sat nav is suppose to be a factory one, he/she will ensure you get a factory one before the deal goes ahead. If you need to go to court, at least you got a witness.

Many car broker will help you for free now, so there is nothing to lose, other than the joy of haggling a dealer (which a lot of people consider as suffering anyway.)