With some mid July and early August travels at hand, we had our first service on the Tribeca two weeks ago. It was easy to schedule the appointment. We had set it up for a drop-off, and had intended to drop the vehicle off the night before. Life interrupted that plan, and instead we dropped it off in the AM on the way to work.
When I walked in the door, the Service Manager, Margaret, instantly remembered me from the June open house. She took the time to thank me for sending a thank you email to the dealership after the open house. The intake process took less than five minutes, and we were on our way.
I got a call from Kyrin about 2pm to say it was done, that he thought we needed it by 4pm. I had to laugh a little, and explain to him that when we were asked when we needed it at intake, I had said that we would ot be able to get back for it until sometime after 4:30, and that the intake writer had stated that most of the routine services are done by 4pm. Somehow, that exchange turned into us needing it back by 4pm. So, in the misunderstanding, they erred to show better service than was required.
When I picked the Tribeca up later that afternoon, I realized I had forgotten the coupon book with the free first service in it. Although it stated expressly that it was to be presented at the time of write-up, the cashier still accepted it.
All around, it was a good experience, and it lived up to the high expectations that Manassas Subaru has set for themselves.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Extended trip weekend to Buffett at Star Lake
This past weekend allowed the putting on of near 900 miles on the Tribeca in the trip from Northern Virginia to the Post-Gazette Pavilion at Star Lake to see the Jimmy Buffett Bama Breeze tour concert on Saturday, June 23, 2007.
We elected to stay at a Days Inn in Washington, PA, some 20 miles south of the Pavilion. This put us coming in from a different direction than those coming in from Pittsburgh, and avoided that lump of traffic. There were essentially 6 legs on the trip: home to Altoona on Friday for 3 hours. Altoona to Washington on Saturday for 2 hrs 15 mins. Washington to the Pavilion (about a half hour), and then the reverse of those three legs on Sunday, albeit the Pavilion to Washington being just after midnight, and the other two beginning just short of noon.
And of course, there was the tailgate itself at the concert, and the two short legs fitting 6 adults into the Tribeca, and all the chairs, coolers and supplies necessary for the tailgate. With a little ingenuity in the passenger arrangement (2 + 3 + 1), that allowed just enough space to fit everything in. The outer legs featured having to fit 3 adults and a 3 year old, plus space enough for a dog cage in the rear cargo area, yet still fit luggage and some of the tailgate supplies. The Tribeca handled it well, though it would be easier on the packer if the dog did not have to be planned for, as the cage eats up about 40% of the rear cargo area.
We elected to stay at a Days Inn in Washington, PA, some 20 miles south of the Pavilion. This put us coming in from a different direction than those coming in from Pittsburgh, and avoided that lump of traffic. There were essentially 6 legs on the trip: home to Altoona on Friday for 3 hours. Altoona to Washington on Saturday for 2 hrs 15 mins. Washington to the Pavilion (about a half hour), and then the reverse of those three legs on Sunday, albeit the Pavilion to Washington being just after midnight, and the other two beginning just short of noon.
And of course, there was the tailgate itself at the concert, and the two short legs fitting 6 adults into the Tribeca, and all the chairs, coolers and supplies necessary for the tailgate. With a little ingenuity in the passenger arrangement (2 + 3 + 1), that allowed just enough space to fit everything in. The outer legs featured having to fit 3 adults and a 3 year old, plus space enough for a dog cage in the rear cargo area, yet still fit luggage and some of the tailgate supplies. The Tribeca handled it well, though it would be easier on the packer if the dog did not have to be planned for, as the cage eats up about 40% of the rear cargo area.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
ROOAAR is in...
Thanks to Manassas Subaru's fast filing with DMV, our custom plates arrived direct from DMV today, 20 calendar days since purchase. It has only been 9 days since I put the random-generated tags on the Tribeca, as the vehicle was out of town when I picked the tags up from the dealer on 6-8. All told, DMV had the tags delivered within two weeks of placing the tag order on June 6.
Pleasant response to a compliment
I was remiss in not following up right away with Subaru of America after we received the 2.0 version of the NAV software, so last night I sent a quick thank you via their contact form referencing the case number on the cover letter.
This morning, I received a reply thanking me for taking the time to say thank you - that they don't often see such things. To me, it was the courtesy of acknowledging receipt, even if it took me near10 days to get to it.
This morning, I received a reply thanking me for taking the time to say thank you - that they don't often see such things. To me, it was the courtesy of acknowledging receipt, even if it took me near10 days to get to it.
Friday, June 15, 2007
Taking the time to say Thank You
Today, we received a thank you card in the mail from Wolf Asser, Assistant Sales Manager of Manassas Subaru, including this snazzy business card.
The card doesn't mention it, but it is worth noting that Mr. Asser is also a professional photographer, and does weddings from time to time. Some of his work can be examined at his office at the dealership.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Service Dept - a class act
Manassas Dodge-Kia-Subaru's service department hosts monthly a welcome seminar for new vehicle owners on the 2nd Tuesday of the month. Aside from handing out free oil-change coupons to the attendees, and providing refreshments as well, they draw a name of an attendee out of a hat for a 75$ gift certificate toward parts or service. (I did not get drawn, but that's ok)
The two hosts (Margaret and Kevin) had arrayed most every model they sold in their service bay entrance, which allowed the visitors the opportunity to examine closely the features under the hood of each. It also allowed the visitors to examine the service bay area, and the layout of the service department. It so happened that tonight's set of visitors were all Subaru owners. They also took the time to explain the hours and procedures, including the ability to pay via phone if one cannot make the 8pm closing time so that the vehicle might still be picked up that night. And perhaps most critical of all - that the entrance off of Commerce Court is a heck of a lot easier coming in than having to continue on 28 to Liberia and then in.
The whole evening continued our positive impressions upon the dealership, and they seem to be ready to serve in a way that Saturn never would.
The two hosts (Margaret and Kevin) had arrayed most every model they sold in their service bay entrance, which allowed the visitors the opportunity to examine closely the features under the hood of each. It also allowed the visitors to examine the service bay area, and the layout of the service department. It so happened that tonight's set of visitors were all Subaru owners. They also took the time to explain the hours and procedures, including the ability to pay via phone if one cannot make the 8pm closing time so that the vehicle might still be picked up that night. And perhaps most critical of all - that the entrance off of Commerce Court is a heck of a lot easier coming in than having to continue on 28 to Liberia and then in.
The whole evening continued our positive impressions upon the dealership, and they seem to be ready to serve in a way that Saturn never would.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Subaru of America follows through on 2.0 NAV DVD
As they had promised early last week, Subaru of America today delivered on it in the form of the updated 2.0 version of their NAV software for the Tribeca. The updated disc arrived via UPS.
The difference in the copyright dates on the two versions is two years - 2004 for 1.1 vs 2006 for 2.0. Just from a quick look, some local streets that were no longer through are corrected. It is very easy to swap out the old disc for the new disc - but one has to make sure the vehicle is at least in the accessory ignition position in order to eject the existing disc from the under the driver seat player. Aside from having to reset the clock and daylight savings time on/off, and the POI selections, all else remained in memory (the home location and preset destinations).
Again, Subaru understands customer service - and even better - they promise and follow through, something that is becoming uncommon in the auto industry these days.
The difference in the copyright dates on the two versions is two years - 2004 for 1.1 vs 2006 for 2.0. Just from a quick look, some local streets that were no longer through are corrected. It is very easy to swap out the old disc for the new disc - but one has to make sure the vehicle is at least in the accessory ignition position in order to eject the existing disc from the under the driver seat player. Aside from having to reset the clock and daylight savings time on/off, and the POI selections, all else remained in memory (the home location and preset destinations).
Again, Subaru understands customer service - and even better - they promise and follow through, something that is becoming uncommon in the auto industry these days.
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