₦airaland Forum

speedfreak:
Flown with them once and their customer relations is piss poor, if it isn’t arik, I’m better off driving. Thank you tho

Lol.

Has Arik improved? Last time I used them their time-wasting was something else. Anyways since it is not for business (with tight time-lines) I guess Arik is fine.

Safe trip either way.

First time driving such distance and with your fiance? I would advise against it. I have driving inter-state several times and my first was a trip to Oraifite in Anambra state. The farthest I have driving is to Enugu. My first time out, I went with a friend who can also drive just to be on the safe side.

A number of things can happen on the road, trust me when I say at those moments you would rather have someone who would end up being an asset than a liability. In my sojourn, I have had flat tires at ungodly hours and slept in a police station at some point etc and my friend proved very useful at those times.

If you must go on the trip I would advise that you do so with a friend who can drive and is street smart instead of your fiance. Though I plan to make a road trip myself, I would strongly urge you to take a flight. A return trip for you and your lady should be about N115,000 which I want to believe you can afford.

radautoworks:
oh! It's down Ajah right?

Yes, it is.

radautoworks:
What's LBS...? We are currently a case study at international industry conferences I'm proud to say

There are two or three american franchises that already tried and failed in Nigeria so they use as a case study along
with them. Even Fox news got in on it.

The great thing for us is Nigeria is EXACTLY where the USA was with auto care in the 70s. Most of the same market conditions so there is a road map already there to follow and funnily enough, that's why we chose our parent company. They followed the same road map to get to where they are today so if it ain't broke..

https://www.google.com/search?q=adelu+moran&oq=adelu+moran&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i13j0i8i13i30.3916j0j4&client=ms-android-google&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8

Fantastic.

The Lagos Business School (LBS). Used the inverted commas so we do not mistake the acronym to mean London Business School.

radautoworks:
From what I understood Glen spoke to you and was supposed to call you today.

As far as growing too fast, believe me the expansion was greatly thought out. This is not my first company and I do have an MBA

Even before we started I informed the parent company that there would be a 2-3 year lag before we would even consider franchising a new location. The investment put into Lekki is not a small amout. I'm not going to put how much I spent here. Not the parent company, me. Franchises are paid for by the owner not the parent company as is the norm with any franchise.

There are a few things you may not be aware of.

1) We are area developers not franchisees. As such, WE are the parent company in Africa with equivalent powers to Chicago. Our warehouse will also service the Cameron locations when they open as well as the whole of West Africa. I should mention they started their project two years before we did and they are not online yet. Further expansion is in the works down the line and we will be moving to the Lekki Trade Zone when the time comes.

2) The Lekki location is the west african HQ, training center and distribution center. It is not a shop. Shops are a fraction of the size and cost and can be as small as 2 bays. I've put pictures of typical shops compared to the Lekki location below. The Lekki location is 12 bays and over 33,000 sqft. A typical shop may not even be a tenth of that.

3) The Lekki location's primary function is franchise support. Most of the people who you see there actually have been trained for just that purpose- to go help open and train/run new shops on how to run efficiently and maximize profit while maintaining the brand's quality. They are actually not doing their primary jobs yet until other locations open.

4) Despite that, we are running an HQ on the proceeds from a shop and STILL running at a profit. A typical shop in the Mr Transmission-Milex group should have 3-6 employees. We have 27. And yet the income our shop provides (which is about the same or less than other shops will make depending on location) pays for all 27

5) We are being inundated by repairs from around the country causing longer waits. When customers are paying 200k or more to third parties just to tow cars to you, there is a gaping hole in their home markets that need to be filled. These are not just online comments saying "come to xyz". These are actual vehicles coming in on a regular basis. Some have been trying to pay for Glen to go to their states for repairs for months but we are too busy at our location.

6) why don't we just open the next one ourselves you ask? One of the biggest successes of the Mr Transmission-Milex model is all locations are run by their owners. This is non-negotiable. Where you see one person owning multiple locations, husband runs one, wife, adult children and in a couple of very special cases brother/sister run the others. This is because NOONE will ever care for your customers the way you do because you are the one with the investment. There are other reasons that are covered during our 5 week owner/management training.

7)One of the biggest perks of doing repairs with us is not even online yet and that is our nationwide warranties. If you get a repair in Lekki and have a problem in Ibadan, the Ibadan location will honor your warranty at no cost to you. That is why we made sure to handle the logistics end so all stores would have the same access to parts we do as that is the greatest challenge with car repair in Nigeria. Until more locations are open, customers are missing out on that.

I can tell you that the revenue in places like Abuja, Port Harcourt and Ibadan is insane and that's just from the ones towed to shop- and we are running a low margin high volume model. So you be the judges on whether an expansion is prudent or not.

Below are pictures of variety of our shops. The Lekki location is last for comparison. As you can see there is even a three bay shop run out of someone's home! It can be run out of a couple of carports! What matters to our brand is quality of service.

All the best. If all goes well, I hope you would consider a case study with 'LBS'. Your story sounds interesting. Others may learn from it.

PS: Yeah, Glen called and I am hopeful.

radautoworks:
it's on our list but we need someone who can open a franchise.

Pardon me but I could not help but notice this conversation. Expansion at this time? I am not a financial guru/analyst but I know enough to get by. Was privileged to share a moment with Glen and he talked about his passion for the business and the experience he has amassed over the years. This prompted me (not my business I know) to do a little digging to see how the business has faired since you guys started. I was unable to get info on how well the business is doing in Lagos vis-a-vis the investments put in at start-up (i.e regarding the Lagos arm).

I was, however, fortunate to see a video of the construction works that went on and I couldn't help but notice how happy you and Glen seemed. It was a beautiful thing to see and I was happy for both of you. Like I mentioned to Glen, having a business is wonderful, especially when the business was borne out of passion and becomes successful (these I did not share with him). Though a good thing to expand when the business is thriving but I was thinking (though naively considering that there is a parent company who I believe got your back) that there may be a need to step back and assess the journey so far before making the huge leap of expansion.

Unless I am mistaking, I saw that the business in Nigeria is barely 3 years old. If this is true then the rate of growth has been phenomenal. Goes to show your extraordinary sense for business. Though great but it got me a little worried (I shouldn't be because it is none of my business) and it got me thinking about how sustainable that rate of growth is. It is possible to grow a business too fast but to be sure I thought an assessment needs to be done before going ahead with.....

Sorry, I want to stop there because my conscience is beating me up. It is none of my business. I wish you well.

PS: I am yet to get word from your tech guys about the vehicle. I hope I hear from them soon. Thank you.

radautoworks:
Thank you Kettlecorn and adanny01. My issue is with being incorrectly told repeatedly about the engine needing to be replaced by someone who has not seen the vehicle in person. I did acknowledge from my first post that there was no reason for op to have left without being able to have a discussion with our lead tech especially when there were still unresolved issues. The ball was definitely dropped and I appreciate the constructive criticism. If he didn't tell me, I wouldn't have known to improve further on processes.

While you are right and I don't owe anyone except op an explanation, I do believe in transparency and no one is perfect.

Thanks to op for taking advantage of his warranty and bringing the car back in today. I don't know what he is going to say but this is the status when it was brought back. I will update with status once the car is leaving again. I will also update with findings about the repairs that were done, the second diagnosis/remedies done by our lead tech and any errors or omissions if there were any.

STATUS AT VEHICLE RETURN

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOPSS6uclMA


ORIGINAL STATUS at first visit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3qGlUmJrr4

Hmmmm...

Kettlecorn:
@Crocif; I have been in your shoes in the past and know how you feel. I think what you need right now are just some basic tips to help you understand what is going on with your car. @Kelvin30286063 does have some good points about having some basic knowledge of what is going on so let me help you address the main issue; blue smoke on startup. This is an indication of oil leaking past valve guide seals if only on startup, but it may be that you do not notice it when car is running. Here is a simple test you can do along with your wife to narrow down the potential cause. Have your wife stand behind the car and watch the exhaust. Put car in neutral and rev up to 3.5-4k rpm for a few seconds then back off the throttle. If you get blue smoke only when you back off the throttle, your valve guide seals are potentially leaking. If you get blue smoke continuously as you rev the engine, your rings are potentially leaking. The reason for this distinction is that when you back off the throttle, you create a high vacuum on the intake side and it sucks oil past the guides. Another simple thing to check is your PCV valve. If it is stuck closed, crankcase pressure builds up and the results are often smoking. There is a simple cheap DIY tool you can use to look through your sparkplug hole. Its called a wifi enabled endoscope. I have used it in the past to see if oil or moisture is pooled up on top the cylinder and asses their condition.
The cost to remedy each of these causes is on a wide spectrum with replacing the PCV valve being the cheapest, followed by valve guide seals and finally rings at the top. This is why I said in another post that this should be the primary thing that should have asked to be diagnosed, estimated and repaired before anything else.
One more thing which I mentioned before. The crankshaft rear seal leak is a big important job. A catastrophic failure here will lead to rapid oil loss and complete damage to your engine. This may be why you are getting a low oil level light if its leaking rapidly.

Thanks a lot. All your points are noted. I already changed the PCV valve.

The Lead tech at radautoworks confirmed that the smoke is caused by worn valve seals.

Will comment later when the work is completed.

Thanks again.

radautoworks:
Thank you!

I've sent screenshot to Blessing. She'll reach out to confirm.

Okay.

I will see her tomorrow.

Thank you.

Kelvin30286063:
You were billed 250k without replacing engine when the complete engine that comes with almost all the parts you bought separately sells for about 350k or so.
How stupid is that to you bro? Maybe you have to much money to throw around I don't know. I drive an acura TL and that so called kazeem repairs my car day in day out. I have a personal scanner. I just scan my car, research on the error I get on Google and YouTube and tell my kazeem exactly what to do.
You bought spark plugs for 28k! Bro, I buy original spark plugs for 2k each and they fire fine.

Now you will eventually end up buying that same engine you spent so much trying to fix.
Personally I think you should have waited for GAZZUZZ. He's not cheap too but he doesn't charge 250k and let you leave with a smoking engine and a bad steering rack!

I think I understand how it may look stupid but if I was a betting man I can wager that you won't get a first-grade 2007/2008 Acura MDX engine for about N350k. I am not an expert but I am thinking it may be about $1,000 (@N480/$) if not more.

Even with that, I can still understand why you may think it's stupid, but the thing here is that I believe professionals should be trusted (my opinion) in the same way I trust my doctor. If I can trust my life to a mere mortal simply because of the expert knowledge he/she possesses then I don't see why I shouldn't have trusted radautoworks' team of experts with an ordinary vehicle (just comparing it with human life).

Their professional opinion was that the engine is fine and needs a simple tune-up. If this is the case, buying an engine at that point can be compared to someone using a sledgehammer to kill an ant. Anyways, as I mentioned before: water under the bridge. What I need now are workable solutions. I would prefer to learn from the past while looking forward.

nymphomaniac:
When matured people thrash out issues, it is always a delight to read. We look forward to the end of this transaction.

Crocif, I'd appreciate if this thread isn't shut down when all has been resolved. It will serve as a lesson on maturity for Nairalanders.

Mummy radutoworks, well done.

I thought about taking the thread down (if possible) because of a very negative comment I saw against radautoworks. Maybe I will report it instead so the comment is hidden.

radautoworks:
I just realized you said 27th not 17th. If the car is still leaking I would highly recommend bringing it in sooner rather than later.

Hi,

We have been able to adjust our schedule. We will make out time on Wednesday (day after tomorrow) to bring the vehicle.

I hope the timing is okay?

radautoworks:
I just realized you said 27th not 17th. If the car is still leaking I would highly recommend bringing it in sooner rather than later.

Good day.

This week and the next are very tight. I will let you know if we can come this Saturday.

grafixdon:
I understand that the op have every right to be upset, considering the amount of money he has spent on the said vehicle, the stress and time consumed, but I still think the thrend is too early. Give them the benefit of doubt, take the car back, I'm sure you'll fix it to your taste this time.

Op. So sorry for your predicament, but pls take advantage of the warranty. Peace

Okay, but I don't think the thread was opened prematurely. If everything had gone well and I opened a thread praising the organization would you still say it was opened prematurely?

radautoworks:
sounds good. Please give us a time window when we get closer.

Okay. I Will let you know some days before the agreed date.

Thank you.

shortgun:
OP I feel your pain, I know what you are going through right now.
I must say that I am disappointed with the services you got and the explaination given by Radauto and some few people on this thread.

A motor vehicle today is one of the easiest machinery to troubleshoot and fix, this is why people without any form of education can do it by the road side without any complex tools.
I see a post where someone was trying to justify the poor service you got as the norm in engineering.

This is not true and I don't agree..if engineering is based on trial by error then airplanes will be falling from the sky every minute,cars will be falling apart every second and ships will be sinking every day.

I expect everyone involved in your bad experience to accept their flaws, apologize to you and make improvements for the future.

Also, I want you to have it at the back of your mind that expensive bills most times doesn't translate to a better service.
Like someone said before, the day you decide to buy a car is the day you become a mechanic, know things about your vehicle, Research about your dream vehicle..... even before you buy it, learn from other people's experiences.....e.t.c

@Bold...you are right. It is my fault I know practically nothing about cars. I just found my new year resolution.

AlhajiBitcoin:
Nigerian mechanics and scam.

Using big English to confuse customers.

Sir, if the smoke coming from your engine early in the morning is small, then it's normal. There is no worry about that. If the engine still drops liquid while steaming early in the morning, there is no problem with your engine.

Once you don't have issues with power and acceleration. Once the exhaust doesn't smoke while you are driving.

@Bold...that is quite a leap. I don't think I was scammed. Matter of fact, I know I was not scammed. Other things maybe but definitely not a scam.

radautoworks:
sir, we can't tell you that because that would be untrue. There are a couple of cars we have rejected before so I won't say it's unheard of. You have a warranty. Please use it. Please bring it back to complete whatever is still the problem.

Just had a conversation with my wife and we agreed to bring it back on March 27 (a Saturday). It's the earliest time we will be available by our schedule. I hope this works?

nurey:
Bro you have really changed oooo, I know you didn't know you and I were school mates stubborn boy, I am certain your car can be fixed just take it back other things would fall in place

I guess I am growing up. Lol.

rationalmind:
You see, that's the point. Sometimes you follow the process and procedure and you still don't get the desired result. That is why new vehicles despite the amount of research that goes into their production still end up being recalled.

I understand you are aggrieved but you should give them a chance to right the wrong. It's the right thing to do.

Noted.

radautoworks:
sir, we can't tell you that because that would be untrue. There are a couple of cars we have rejected before so I won't say it's unheard of. You have a warranty. Please use it. Please bring it back to complete whatever is still the problem.

Noted.

nurey:
I don't see anybody crucifying your establishment, you have done the needful by asking the customer to make use of his labour warranty.

Engineering work are like that reason most gurus on nairaLand avoid some old brand of vehicles cause no matter how good you are, they just don't follow repair procedure

I believe it would help for them to tell the customer they cannot work on it rather than make promises. I have seen experts who will tell you vehicles they cannot touch and I respect that. I do not think any less of them for doing that.

rationalmind:
Maybe this is going to sound insensitive but it is what it is.

Anytime I read posts like this, the first thing that comes to my mind is the poster does not practice as an Engineer nor in any profession that remotely requires you to troubleshoot an issue and to use tools to resolve it.

Maybe you work in a bank where there's a laid down procedure to everything and what you just do is follow the process to achieve results.

Anyone who practises as an Engineer or a Technician knows that these things are bound to happen. You see an issue you have resolved one way a hundred times and you apply the same resolution only to realise the problem is still unresolved.

This is why good shops offer warranty on repairs and labour. They know things will never always go as planned. It is not from lack of competence, It's just the nature of the job. Even in the US, many vehicles stay with the dealership for weeks and upon return to the customer, they realise the problem is still there.

The major difference between a well trained Engineer/ technician and a quack is, while issues like this are an exception for the former, its the norm for the later. It is never because the well trained Engineer always gets it right.

This thread in my opinion is a little too early. The shop has done the good thing by offering you a warranty and you should have taken it.

If they fail to resolve your issues after you return the vehicle, then you are well within your rights to open as many threads as you want.

Your post is reasonable but I do not agree with some of the things you said.

It does not take a professional to know that the "low oil level light" still pings or that the steering is stiff and still had the noise etc. The least they could have done was to come out to explain why that is but no one thought it necessary to do that.

Also, note that the due date for collecting the vehicle was shifted 3 times and there was ample time to find out what the problem was.

I do not need to be an engineer to understand simple courtesy. Especially one that is being paid for.

PS: I would be surprised if procedures and processes do not apply in technical fields like engineering (as you make it sound) because the backbone of engineering (Mathematics) is filled with procedures, processes, and rules. I know because I studied this for God knows how long.

radautoworks:
Hello,

I'm confused a little bit as we had multiple interactions here in Nairaland prior to the repair found here https://www.nairaland.com/4672565/how-much-should-expect-pay/14#99625776

From my conversation with my staff , when you picked up the only issue was they told you your power steering pump needed to be replaced. You asked why it wasn't diagnosed before and you were told it couldn't have been diagnosed until another faulty part had been replaced. You then left. I asked my staff if you spoke to Glen before you left and I was told no, which made me absolutely livid. There was no reason in my mind for a customer to leave with an additional diagnosis without discussing with our lead tech.

As to the issue of all the problems being there still, my staff and I were all aware you would be posting review on Nairaland because you said so on the other thread. In fact, I requested the feedback. Why would we, knowing that, do a sloppy job? That being said, one of the perks of having work done with us is that you have a 90 day warranty on labor and one year or up on parts depending on the part. you provided your own parts so the parts warranty doesn't apply but you do have a 90 day labor warranty. The only time your labor warranty doesn't hold is if it is discovered the part you provided is faulty. Then we charge again for the labor to redo the job.

I am sorry you feel the service you got was not with it and request that you take advantage of your warranty and return the car to the shop so this can be cleared up. Our lead tech Glen will be expecting you.

As I always say, it's not that things never go wrong, it's how you react when they do.
Thank you.

I requested to speak with someone in management yesterday and they introduced me to someone (sorry I did not catch his name). I told him you seem to be a very decent person from my interactions with you online who try hard to run a legit business but as I mentioned earlier to you and him, I look forward to getting the vehicle in the condition promised. This is not the case.

I am trying hard not to respond to the story your staff told you about the steering pump because I do not want this to degenerate into a he/she/they said argument. I will only say it is half the truth of what happened. Attached is the (aftermarket) power steering pump I purchased for the replacement but it was not used because I was told it was not needed.

On why this happened even after I gave a heads-up on this review...that I cannot answer.

PS: This thread is really not about the warranty. I am not sure if the team can handle this. If Glenn is the same person (Dele big dude with an accent) I met with last week then I did not see him before I left.

MedicH:
I don't understand why people cast so much trust on Nigerian people such that when the sky comes falling down, they have nothing to hold unto but a free fall into total confusion.

I don't know how ur car drove for 4 months and became a nightmare but all of these would have been avoided if you had your obd scanner.

it's not enough to say your car did this and did that when you've not even understand how the car behaves first. Talking about spark plugs which u bought for 40k, how exactly did you decide or know you were due for plugs change.

pls did you actually buy 6 iridium spark plugs for 40k Mr? I remember when my car pulled out codes for misfire on cyl 1, 4, and a code for random misfire, I gave my mech guy 2k for 6 toks iridium spark plugs which run like a jet on my Lexus even after 4 months.

pls what manner of repair bill did they tell you is 1.3m and which narrowed down to #250k and ur engine was not even replaced?

I have a couple of advice man, to save your time, money and energy, take your time to learn about that car so you can followup with the repairs like I do on my Lexus.

secondly, do a little research on the best hands in acura repairs in ur area because from the look of things, the professionalism u highlighted in ur post didn't matter anymore as ur problems persisted after so much money and time invested.

there are competent hands without a front desk officer that can follow up with obd and time up your car saving you time energy and money. if they tell you to change your engine, you'll be sure what you're getting into.

find them

Thanks for your response.

On the first point in bold: I doubt very much because I am not exactly what you would call "tech-savvy". Anyways, it probably would have helped to take someone who knows these things along. Water under the bridge though it's my fault.

On the point in italics: I believe that's why I pay for the service. Is it not appropriate to pay for a skill I lack? Anyways, I will devote more time to studying. Thanks.

On the second in bold: Well I am not particularly concerned about the price I paid for the plugs because, as I mentioned, water under the bridge. I only used that to illustrate why I decided to get my own parts.

On the third in bold: Well I am not sure if I am supposed to disclose that information. Without showing the invoice (which I have by the way) the repairs are for:

1) Engine tune-up: a combination of services
2) Remove and replace steering rack, pinion assembly and tie rod
3) Remove and replace control arms (both)
4) Remove and replace rear axle
5) Remove and replace front CV axle
6) Remove and replace oil sump
7) Materials required

I think that's all. Please note that I am not complaining about the bill. I am just upset that I did not get the service I paid for after going through the stress. It is still my opinion that they tried everything in their power. I am thinking the job is a bit too technical for the team who worked on it.

After what I felt was an expert diagnosis of the problems and the accompanying prognosis, we moved to the next phase: drawing up an estimate of the cost of repairs. The first cost estimate they came up with was approximately N1.37m. I did a quick analysis of the estimates to see if it was fair. I focused my analysis on the cost of parts because it was approximately N1.2m out of the N1.37m representing about 87.6% of the total cost. I decided to use the cost of an item I already purchased from radautorworks i.e. spark plugs.

The lowest cost of spark plugs (6x) @ radautoworks = N40,291.20
Cost on Amazon ($57.86 @ N480/$) = N27,772.80 (Includes cost of shipping)
Difference = N12,518.40

Considering the significant difference in cost I decided to opt for the option of providing my own parts. Thence, I requested for a revised cost estimate which quickly went from N201,028.78 to the final bill of N254,306.84 (most of this represents the cost of labour). Though there were some back and forth on this (which I have decided to leave out of my posts) I felt this was a small price to pay for the level of quality I expect from them. So they promised that my vehicle would be ready for pick-up in a condition I would be happy with.

I was now faced with the problem of providing good parts for the job. I did not want to risk ordering them from Amazon for two reasons:

1) I would not be able to tell which parts were genuine even if they came from Acura themselves.
2) I was not willing to wait another two weeks to get the parts to Nigeria.

So I buzzed GAZZUZZ to help out with this difficulty. I know it would cost a premium price because of the added professional services I would get from them. So the parts I ordered were inspected by the owner of GAZZUZZ autos before they came. I must say here that they came in timely without any issues and they were inspected by the technician assigned to my job before they were used. The only part (Something called Bushing) I had problems with (not supplied by GAZZUZZ) the technician helped to purchase and I paid for those separate from what was billed me. I believe I paid an extra 12k for those, to include some steering fluids.

To cut the very long story short, I, my wife and my son went yesterday to get the vehicle and we received a shocker. Some of the problems with the vehicle engine were very much with the vehicle. The engine oil light was still pinging as though no work was done. The steering seemed stiffer than when it came in, there were lights all over the dashboard area (to include the check engine light) amongst other issues. To make matters worse, no one was on hand to explain what happened. They simply handed the key and left us to our fate at the reception. My wife was so upset that she called the attention of the front desk officer and the technician who scanned the vehicle at the beginning. They took a look and concluded that we would have to come back some other time to get those things checked and fixed at no cost to us. To avoid making a scene I asked my wife to go with the vehicle while I follow her in our other car. We got home very disappointed and I decided to tell my story.

PS: I noticed smoke from the exhaust when we started the vehicle yesterday after the vehicle cooled off and we restarted it. I felt very bad about this but decided to check again this morning before I post something because I was upset. I did this morning and behold the smoke (heavy blue smoke) came up again from the exhaust. It is not noticeable when I drive. It only comes up when the engine is cool and at start-up. It made me a bit nervous going back to radautoworks, even when they offered to check for free. If the technicians could not notice something I found out within an hour after having the vehicle for over a week would it be logical to go back to them? This is what I struggle with currently.

Thank you.

When I got to radautoworks the ambience that greeted me told me two things:

1) The organization is serious and ready for business.
2) This is not the typical low-cost organization.

Combining those two gave me a bit of comfort because I thought spending in a serious organization should get my problems resolved. With the benefit of hindsight, I think this was where my problems with radautoworks began. My expectations of them were through the roof. If I am to pay top-Naira (from the standpoint of an average middle class Nigerian) then I should expect nothing but top-quality (or at least something better than what my previous technician was able to give me). I got in and noticed that their staff to a large extent (though I had issues which were communicated yesterday so I will leave those out) were very cordial and respectful. I got the sense that they would give an arm and a leg to get you the desired service you require. At least that was the impression I had when I first got in. My one year old (would be two in a few months) loved the place. He immediately started running around and got himself acquainted with the staff. I was happy seeing this so I made a mental note that the environment was family-friendly.

I approached the front desk officer who quickly asked a bit of detail about me and the vehicle, went out to take the vehicle VIN and mileage (about 118k miles currently) and later assigned me to one of their technicians who took the vehicle into the premises and ran a full scan, this was after I told them about some of the challenges I was having with the vehicle. Though I informed them of my primary concern (the engine) I also requested that they check other parts too so I have the full picture of what the vehicle needs to get back in shape. The scan was done and other inspections carried out. I must say that they took their time to get to the heart of the problem and explained every bit of the problem to me, even though this was a lost cause because I only understand how to drive the ‘damn’ thing and nothing else. I am sure the technician could tell I was struggling to understand what he was talking about. In order not to make him feel discouraged I asked one question:

Is my engine okay or do I need to replace it?

He assured me that the engine was in good health and I only needed an engine tune-up. He quickly informed me that there is something wrong with the ABS which they cannot fix but that it was a minor fix and would not affect the drive quality. He told me that the lights I have on the dashboard and the “low oil level” light pinging and the smoke from my exhaust would be a thing of the past after the tune-up. I was glad at their level of professionalism thus far and they seem to know exactly what they were saying (I am a novice so I wouldn’t know any better) and they sounded intelligent when it came to diagnosing the problems. At this point, they briefed me about the oil leaks under the vehicle and the other items I needed to change e.g. the vehicle control arms etc.

Getting rather long will try and conclude in the next post.

Yesterday was not a good time to continue with my little story. I just collected the vehicle and I don’t want the disappointment I felt cloud my judgement and in the process taint someone’s legitimate business which, for all I may know, they put in all they can to ensure their business fulfils its mission and vision, even when things can go horribly wrong sometimes. In this light, I will not share some of the feedback I shared yesterday with some of the staff (both junior and senior) before I left with my vehicle.

Back to the story…

When I parted ways with my personal technician I decided to ask GAZZUZZ to help look at the vehicle so I can get a proper assessment of the vehicle’s health in order to help me make an informed decision on the next steps I should take. The level of assessment for me then was two-fold: an assessment on the health of the engine and what changes I need to make to get other mechanical parts (to include body works) to good working conditions. The engine assessment was very key for me. It would tell me whether I need to get another engine or not. After the first contact with GAZZUZZ online I sent him a series of messages on whatsapp to an extent that I felt that I may now be encroaching on his right to private life. Despite, I continued because I just want to get this done with so I can move beyond the problem(s).

GAZZUZZ tried all within reason to answer my questions and requested for additional information where needed. This I provided and I thought the online communication was not working satisfactorily so I went a step further to ask if I can come with the vehicle so he inspects physically considering that I am not a technical person and a lot of the information I provide may be skewed because of my lack of technical abilities. He informed me that he wouldn’t be able to meet me because he had a lot of inspections lined up and he was not able to schedule me in the current period. I understood and felt his response was fair enough considering that he needed to give his customers everything or nothing (my opinion). I would not want him to take on the job when he cannot assure me of his personal touch.

I then decided to approach radautorworks (Mrtransmission-Milex) since they come highly recommended in the car section of nairaland and the parent company has been in operation for over a decade if not over a century and their works seems to be trusted. Kindly note that my first contact with radautoworks was in January 2021 when I came back from my road trip to the East. The first impression I got was less than ideal. I was sent an email informing me of a scheduled appointment but got there to realize that the front desk officer had no clue of my visit. I had to wait for some time and left without seeing anyone. This experience was not enough to get me upset because I believe things like this happen and it should not be the basis to assess the quality of their work. So I went back again (after communicating with someone I believed to be the CEO of radautoworks on nairaland) to see if the second try would be better…this is where my experience with radautoworks (her organization) started.

To be continued and concluded today...

Hi everyone,

I want to believe my story is no different from that of countless Nigerians who work hard to make the much they can with the hope of getting at least the minimum comfort life has to offer. In this case, a functional vehicle one can use to commute while facing the harsh socio-economic environment we face in this part of the world. Before I continue, I feel obligated to tell you that the title is a bit misleading…this story did not start with GAZZUZZ (I only hope it can end with him). It started with my personal ‘auto technician’. I believe you may readily know him as a “Kazeem” a term I will try not to use because I find it demeaning, especially when directed at one whose only fault is not having the right education and arguably the right technical know-how but does all he/she can to help customers resolve whatever challenge they face with their vehicles at a ridiculously low fee.

So, when we purchased the vehicle, a Nigerian used 2007 Acura MDX made for the 2008 model year, we took it to my personal technician to help diagnose what was wrong with it. After purchase, we noticed that it shifts to the side whenever we go past a pothole and the front tires seem to touch the roof of the front wheelbase (not sure what it is called). He diagnosed that the vehicle has a loose bolt around the engine bay area and that the shock absorbers needed change. I quickly had these fixed and the vehicle drove like a dream for about 3 to 4 months until I was ready for an oil change. The oil was changed alongside other services but since then the vehicle has never been the same. From a smoking exhaust at start-up to low oil level pings, to a bad starter motor, to a disturbing steering noise that comes with a stiff steering wheel, to a bad ignition key, everything seemed to be coming apart at the same time.

My technician helped get a new key (which I am still having problems with), linked me up with an electrician who was supposed to help with my starter motor but only made matters worse and he (my personal technician) attempted to solve the other problems but despite his best efforts, the problems persisted until I had an episode when I traveled to the East (the story here: https://www.nairaland.com/1788778/maintenance-tips-cars/257#97456422 ) and I knew it was time to change my technician. I thought it was time to move on because it seems the issues with the vehicle has gone beyond his technical know-how so I needed someone with the right sets of skills to help resolve my issues. This is where GAZZUZZ came into the picture.

(To be continued…).

radautoworks:
How about we chalk this up to a less than ideal first impression with changes being made that will make the next one better

Also, I'll look into the additional supplies. I'm curious. Thank you again for the constructive feedback.

No wahala.

radautoworks:
Hello,
Thank you for the additional feedback.
You are not required to required to buy items from us for the 10% discount. Many a customer brings their own part and receives the discount. The issue here is that discounts are not stackable. From what I understand they mentioned but didn't go into detail because they gave you a discounted rate lowering your bill that is not usually given.

As you mentioned above, the bill will be reverted to the full rates and the 10% discount applied for the additional N508. They have also been instructed to be clearer to customers when they apply discounts for them. Is that satisfactory?

I am satisfied with the bold but not your comment overall.

In order not to get into a 'he said, she said or they said' argument I will stop this dialogue here.

Your team promised that my vehicle would be ready today. I look forward to this.

Have a lovely day.

PS: I was informed some additional supplies were needed for the vehicle yesterday. I am still waiting for the revised invoice so I can make payment before coming to pick the vehicle.