leather seat crack?

[MannyC]

i have a 2010 laramie with the air cooled seats. the front left side of the driver seat has developed cracks in the perforated section. the flexing of the leather from use has caused the leather to split and crack along the holes in a straight line. my soon to be ex servicing dealer said the seat was obviously cut and therefore not covered. i will be taking the issue up the chain as my interior is in brand new condition. anyone else have a problem with the leather?

 

[rrl989]

Main reason to buy local, have Dave Smith send you a new leather cover #@$%!

Hopefully you'll get the help you need, I'd be pretty ticked.

 

[Grizzly]

If the dealer doesn't make it right, submit a claim with the Better Business Bureau. I have alway got results by doing so.



george

 

[mpaulson]

So the new ones are doing this too! That sucks! My 07 did it at about 60k, right after the warranty was up of course. My friends 08 has done it and his is still on warranty and he is in a fight with one of the local dealers. Why do they cheap out and use vinyl? The leather being only in the middle where the heat is, cheap!

 

[MannyC]

rrl998

if you found a good dodge dealer on long island, I'll take your word for it but haven't found one worth their salt. I bought the truck from dave smith after being disappointed by the long island dealers i visited. it wasn't a matter of price although i got an awesome deal. i printed out build sheets and the dealers couldn't or wouldn't build what i wanted. their computers wouldn't allow them to duplicate what i wanted. my frustration made me look out of state. i couldnt be happier with the truck or the dealership experience @ dave smith. they literally had my truck built from the ground and made good suggestions as to items that worked together. i am sure that dave smith will step in and remedy the problem that the local dealer bagged on yesterday. when i first arrived at the long island dealer for its first service, the sales rep came outside to look. i showed him the truck that he couldnt / wouldnt build.



im sure i could get dave smith to send me a new cover and have it installed locally.



the leather in the center section is what failed.

 

[rrl989]

I hear you Manny, hope you can get it resolved. I don't think I want the leather. No doubt we could all get a better deal over the internet, but when it comes to Dodge ownership part II, we need a good local willing to fight for you.

 

[MannyC]

rrl989

if you cant find a local dealer to help you with ownership part #1 - which is buying the vehicle the exact way you want it because they are stubborn, ill equipped to process an order, or just plain stupid, it doesn't really portend well that ownership part #2 - which is servicing your vehicle will be any better. i gave the local dealer at least 2 shots at building my truck and the next furthest one away 1 shot at earning my business. we never got to money - the process stopped at the build. i bought at dave smith for the quality sales rep i spoke to. i did the entire deal on the phone, so i am unsure what the internet had to do with it. pricing @ dave smith - absolutely was better but was not the only motivating factor. BTW, I speak to my sales associate at dave smith at least twice a month. he calls to check on the purchase and I call to refer friends and associates to them. one call to ed west, who was my rep, put me into contact with the service manager who diagnosed my power sunroof leak. they knew all about the kinked drain hose issue - my local dealer wanted to remove and reseal my entire unit! im sure when i call about the leather, they will have the solution... .



i am still of the belief that there are no good dodge diesel truck dealerships on long island - if you know the name of a good one, by all means let me know.



lots of people bought their dodges locally based on the promise of local dealers being somehow more interested in helping truck buyers who bought their trucks at their dealer. many of those local dealers have closed or failed, so what was the benefit? does goodwill transfer to the guy down the road? when you buy a dodge, no matter where you buy it, the dealer MUST service it. id rather have dave smith as my go to resource than a local guy that likes me based on the fact that i suffered through a bad deal. i will get the leather fixed - whether i pay for it or if it gets warranty coverage. the local dealer loses my biz.

 

[rrl989]

"i did the entire deal on the phone, so i am unsure what the internet had to do with it. pricing @ dave smith ... "



Had it not been for the internet, it would be "Dave Smith - Who ?" I think it's easy to call around for the best price, and you got the deal you wanted. For service, if you really think a local LI Dodge dealer owns you something, forget it. Perhaps it costs more to do business here ? If you don't support them, they won't be here for long selling their Rams at near cost. If you need help, I'm sure my dealer will honor your warranty issue, probably can get you in sometime before April. That's the way I see it around here. Not slamming you for saving some dough.

 

[MannyC]

no offense, but i don't think you understand my point

i stated several times that i COULD NOT get a local long island, ny, ct or NJ dealership to take my dodge website generated build sheet and enter it into their computers and build the truck i wanted - where did i mention that i was price shopping? where did i mention that i internet shopped? after striking out locally, I called the dodge fleet sales division and requested contact information for the highest volume truck sales dealer in the country once I was informed i couldn't buy direct from the factory or force an order from the factory to a local dealer.


i had a specific set of options that i wanted - - basically a 3500 bulletproof drivetrain - with every comfort creature inside + the paint and interior trim that i wanted. each dealer that i visited with the dodge printed order gave me some push back on what i wanted. according to those i spoke with, either the factory wasn't offering some combo of what i wanted or that the mega cab was not available with a sunroof and rear dvd with sirius tv or i had to take clearance lights on the roof -- whatever. add to that, there were specific aftermarket items i wanted - all were easily available at DS, not so at the local dealer. i received my truck finished at DS, not delivered to the dealer and then sent out to a local outfitter for bedliner and undercover cap.

I finally gave up on trying to buy local and sought out the highest volume / best known dealer in the country. i was happy with the purchase and ability to get what i wanted. Yes, I saved money. i likely gave back all of the savings x3 by flying out west & picking it up and taking my family on a two week cross country drive vacation. if i could have gotten EXACTLY what I wanted, i would have paid sticker locally.

As far as supporting the local guy, the handwriting is on the wall. they will fail. their sales team sucks, their service sucks, their customer service sucks. if i bought my truck at the local dealer, would that have given them the knowledge or experience that my leaking sunroof was a problem known to dave smith and other large dealers? Would my purchase have translated into them educating their service techs to think & contact factory before attempting to remove and reseal my sunroof when removing the a pillar and un-kinking the drain tube was all that was required? had i not called dave smith's service department first, they would have ripped my truck apart. i don't think the local dealer owes me anything. i do believe however that their service department is a for profit concern. they take my truck in, service it, and get paid. they do nothing for free. the service manager and tech get regular tips because i work in a service business too. warranty service & recalls? they get paid for those last time i checked. judging by the fact that they do not play the where did you buy it vs the far out service appt game, they need the business.


i will get the truck to a better dealer and not look back even if that means sending the truck out of state. if i have to eat the seat cover, so be it...

 

[rrl989]

OK, I get it. I do remember your "Thumbs Up for DS" post, figured pricing was a big factor, you're saying it was not, my bad. No dispute with you on local ordering knowlege, but backing you up on a simple replacement seat cover is a no brainer, I can't speak on leak problems locally as it hasn't happened to me. But cosmetic stuff, fit/finish, they just ordered and replaced, no questions - 3/36K. I was a local customer and they made it right, my local dealer, my experience. I'll go back to them first for my next order, and I'll pay more than elsewhere which is the topic of many, but obviously not yours. My point was I would'nt expect anyone local would go to bat for you on a questionable warranty issue, just the way it is. I expect Dave Smith should, what does DS say about the defect/tear?