Great Service vs Bad Service
It's not really my story to tell but I am involved.
As you may know, we lost our Honda CR-V to a rear-end collision last December. No one was hurt in the accident but the damage to our vehicle was going to cost more than it was worth.
DW and I had already been discussing our car situation. We both work from home—at least, she does: I was laid off last March and have been semi-retired, since—and we didn't really need two vehicles. We figured that if one car packed it in, we wouldn't replace it.
We didn't expect either vehicles to go this soon. Our Kia is only six years old and the CR-V had been in great condition right up until the collision.
Kid 1 bought her car from Embrun Ford. The salesperson, Robbie Stacey, couldn't have been better for a young woman buying her first car. He was patient, never tried to pressure her, and gave her a good deal on the car.
Through our negotiation with Robbie, we tried to get a deal on a set of winter tires but I was unfamiliar with the brand he was offering. I managed to get a good deal on a set at the Kia dealership on Hunt Club, so we set up an appointment to swap out the summer tires the day after we took delivery of the Forte5.
Before Kid 1 could accept delivery, the service department needed to replace the tires, the brakes, and the turbo charger. We also noticed that the cover for the rear compartment was missing, but Robbie called the previous owners, who had traded in their beloved car because they were expecting a child and wanted a bigger vehicle, and he learned that they still had it, so he picked it up and made sure it was installed before we picked up her car.
That's great service.
On the day after we picked up the Forte5, DW and I were heading out on vacation to Costa Rica. We asked Kid 1 to drop us off at the airport before driving to Kia on Hunt Club to have her winter tires installed. Unfortunately, it was the first blizzard of 2026 and the roads only got worse as she drove DW and me to the airport.
I told Kid 1 to contact us when she made it to the dealership because I was worried about her driving in the snow on summer tires. She texted me about a half-hour later and said it was slow going, but she made it.
Even though her appointment was scheduled for 8:30, she learned that the dealership was already backed up, and they probably wouldn't be able to get to her car until 11. As a promotion, they also offered to store her summer tires for the rest of the season, for free, so she took that offer.
She gave the service people her cell number, to call her when her car was ready, and they drove her home. Meanwhile, they sent me a text message with a PDF attached, containing the bill. I was still at the airport, sitting at the gate.
I could understand them contacting me, as I had been the one who inquired about the deal on the winter tires for the Forte5 and made the appointment, using my phone number but telling them that my daughter would provide her deets when she brought the car in. And she did do that, as they were always calling her about the status of the car.
When I looked at the invoice, I noticed that they had the Niro listed as the car on which they were doing the work. I immediately called them and told them that they were, in fact, swapping tires on the Forte5 that was in their shop, and the person on the other end said that they would make that correction. I also confirmed that they had Kid 1's contact details, as it was her car.
As 11:00 approached, Kia called Kid 1 and said they hadn't yet done the tire swap but that it would be done by the end of the day. Kid 1 told them that she had to get to work, so they sent an Uber to pick her up and take her to work. They would send her an Uber when she was finished work to pick up her car.
I contacted Kid 1 that evening, once DW, our friends, and I arrived at our lodge in Costa Rica, to make sure that everything was all right. That's when she told me about the day she had and her dealing with the Kia service department.
That's not great service.
Two weeks into having her Forte5, Kid 1 was going to take it to Montreal with some friends for a rock concert. She was loving the car, though the antenna cap broke off the roof while she had been sweeping snow. I told her I would fix it as soon as the temperature dropped enough.
A few minutes after saying goodbye and heading out of the house, Kid 1 came back inside and told me her car wouldn't go into reverse gear. I joined her outside, climbed behind the wheel, and moved the lever into reverse. The car started rolling down our driveway but as soon as I had to apply the gas pedal, nothing happened. The reverse gear wasn't engaged.
I was able to put the car into drive and move back up the driveway, but when I tried repeating the reverse action, I had the same result. I also noticed that the R on the dashboard was blinking.
Because Kid 1 was due to pick up her friends, I told her to leave her car with me and to take the Niro. I would look into this issue.
On the Kia Web forum, there were a couple of entries that described this situation. All of them said that I should turn off the car, let it sit for about 10 minutes, and start it again. Doing so resets the computer and solves the issue, and most people who commented on this issue said it never happened again.
By the time I found this info, it had been more than 10 minutes so I went back to the car and started it up. Sure enough, the R had stopped blinking, so I released the brake and let the car roll down the driveway.
Halfway down the driveway, the car came to a temporary stop, as though I had slammed on the brakes. But almost immediately after it jerked to a stop, it started rolling again and I was able to successfully apply the gas and move the car backwards.
Since I had the car on the road, I thought I'd take it around the block and listen to it. The car made a bit of a rattling sound and would sometimes feel like I was applying breaks as I coasted. This didn't sound or feel good to me, so I decided to drive straight to my mechanic's shop, which is about 10 minutes away.
I didn't like the sound or the feel of the car as I pulled into Kevin's Auto Care on Cleopatra, just off Merivale Road. My mechanic, Gilbert, is the best and I've trusted him with four of my cars. He had just finished work on one car and had another customer lined up, but took a few minutes to listen to the Forte5.
After a moment, Gil asked his waiting client if he wouldn't mind waiting an extra five minutes while he put the Forte5 on his hoist. The client was laid back and said he didn't mind at all.
When Gil approached me, a few minutes later, he asked, "Do you want the bad news or the worse news?" As he described it, the transmission sounded like it was full of marbles. It was toast. "You're looking at about seven grand for a replacement," he added as the worse news.
Kid 1 had a $20K limit for her car budget. The Ford store had listed the Forte at $19,500, plus taxes and fees, but we had talked Robbie down to an even $18K, all in. And Kid 1 paid $1,700 for the new winter tires and rims, plus installation.
"Shit," I said. "The kid's only had the car for two weeks."
"Two weeks?" repeated Gil. "Call them right now and tell them that they owe you a transmission or they'll have to buy the car back."
When I called Embrun Ford, Robbie was the one who answered the phone (it's a small town and a small dealership).
"Hey, Robbie," I said, "It's Ross Brown." I didn't say anything else but he remembered me.
"Oh, hi, Ross," he said, "How's [Kid 1] enjoying her Forte?"
"Not very much right now," I said, calmly but with a trace of stress in my voice. "I'm with it at my mechanic's. The transmission is toast and he says the car isn't road-worthy."
"You're kidding!" said Robbie, an obvious surprise coming from him. "Let me talk to my manager and I'll call you right back. In the meantime, call a tow truck. I'll pay for half the cost."
I'm a CAA member so the tow wasn't going to cost either of us anything, I explained, and Robbie thanked me for that. We ended the call and I got online to order a flatbed. Meanwhile, Gilbert was working on his other client's car, while that client sat in the waiting room with me and offered his sympathies.
A few minutes later, Robbie called me back. "I've explained everything to my manager and he agrees that we'll look at the car. Don't you worry: we'll take good care of [Kid 1's] car. This is a terrible thing to happen to your first car."
Gil had finished work on his client's car and said to me, "I just received a call from CAA. They wanted to make sure that you didn't owe me money before they took the car. You don't have to wait: leave me the key and I'll call you as soon as they've loaded it up and are on their way."
Outstanding service.
The client asked me where I lived. He lived in Manotick and said, "Close enough. Let me drive you home. You've had a bad day and shouldn't have it made worse by paying cab fare home."
Robbie called me when the Forte5 arrived. "Our service manager says he can't look at it today but will look at it first thing on Monday (it was Friday afternoon). Do you need a loaner? I can get one to you if you need it."
I told him I didn't but in actual fact, I did. Kid 1 had the Niro for the weekend, in Montreal, and DW and I had no car. We had to cancel that evening's karaoke night and asked my folks to bring us with them when they were shopping for groceries on Saturday.
On Monday, Luc, the service manager at Embrun Ford, called and confirmed that the transmission was finished. He had found a used one that had lower mileage than the original one and could order it in, but it would take about a week to receive, plus a couple of days to install.
"I have an option," he then said. "I could order you a brand new transmission, straight from Kia, but you would have to pay the difference. I could have it in a couple of days and you'd have your car back by the weekend."
"How much is the difference?" I asked. As the manager and I were talking, Kid 1 approached me, knowing I was talking to the Ford folks.
"About $1,900 dollars," he said. "A bit more. Heck, let's just say $1,900, all in." Luc also told me that the used transmission would have a 90-day warranty, whereas a new one would have a two-year warranty.
I relayed the information to Kid 1. "Nineteen hundred and I have a brand new transmission. Do it!"
Done.
I also told Luc that he'd find the antenna cover in the trunk. "How much to glue that back on?"
"Oh, I wouldn't charge you to do that but we'll have to see if the weather warms up." We were in the dead of winter and lows were in the minus 20s to 30s.
Kia was a bit delayed in getting the transmission to Luc so he wasn't able to start work until that Friday. The work took two days so we weren't able to pick up the car until the next Tuesday. "It cost a lot more for the transmission than I first quoted you," said Luc, "but I said $1,900 and I'm a man of my word."
When I asked him how much the transmission cost, he said about nine grand. With all the work they had put into the car to pass a safety and make it like new, and the replacement of the transmission, the Ford dealership must have lost money on the sale.
But I made sure to write several great reviews on various Web sites and on social media. As I put it, the town of Embrun has a gem of a dealership.
Luc was unable to fix the antenna, due to the cold weather, but he told me the best type of epoxy to use, should I want to do it myself. He offered to fix it, himself, when the weather got better, but Embrun is a long way to go for that repair.
I fixed it a couple of weeks later, when the temperature climbed.
This is turning into a long post and as the title states, we've experienced great service and bad service. I haven't talked yet about the bad service. If you're still with me, here we go.
In April, Kid 1 booked an appointment to have her summer tires put back on her car. She made the appointment online, entering her details and the VIN of her Forte5.
A few days later, Kia on Hunt Club called her to ask if she was brining in her summer tires and were they on the rims. Kid 1 explained that they were holding the summer tires in storage, adding that when they swapped the tires, she would be taking the winter ones with her.
The service agent told her that they have no record of her tires and that they had never worked on her car before. Because she was home at the time, she told me this news, the look of shock clearly on her face.
"Give them my phone number," I said. "It sounds like they didn't update the invoice like I had asked them in January."
When Kid 1 provided my number, they found her wheels. She gave them her details, again, and all seemed well.
Until she brought the car in for her appointment. Once again, the Kia folks couldn't find her wheels when she gave her phone number and they said they had never worked on the Forte5. Kid 1 said she let out a frustrated sigh and told them to look under my phone number, where they found the wheels.
But because they hadn't pulled the wheels out of storage, it was going to take a couple of hours to get everything ready for the tire swap. So, again, they had to call an Uber for her and take her to work.
In the afternoon, the service folks called Kid 1 to ask where the the nut key was for the wheel locks. They had looked in the trunk and in the glove box but didn't see it.
Kid 1 didn't even know her car had wheel locks, but said they must have used them before when they swapped the tires in January. The mechanic—apparently looking at his work order—told Kid 1 that they had never worked on the Forte5 before.
She was told that they would either have to reschedule the tire swap or would have to drill into the locks to remove them, and it would cost her $100. Frustrated and not wanting to reschedule, she told them to do what they had to do to get the job done.
When Kid 1 called me, immediately after the conversation, I started to wonder if, when Luc and his team were replacing the transmission, if they had to remove the front wheels. If so, they would have been the last ones to use the wheel lock.
Would they have it?
I quickly texted Luc but they didn't have to remove the wheels. The Kia folks were the last ones to use the wheel locks.
Kid 1 returned home, later that evening, with her tires swapped and feeling mentally exhausted from the stress of things seemingly going wrong with her car. But she was glad she had the summer tires on and the winter tires stored safely at home, and she could use Gilbert for future work.
A couple of weeks ago, Kid 1 opened her glove box to store her driving gloves, which she no longer needed because the weather was warmer. When she opened the glove box, she saw the owners manual and a small, blue bag.
In it were spare lug nuts and the key for the wheel locks.
She came into the house, fuming. "I never looked in the glove box, after getting the car back. In fact, this is my first time using the glove box. They were right there."
She called Kia on Hunt Club and spoke to a service rep. When she gave her phone number, she was told that they had no record of service for the Forte5. They had never seen her car before. Was she somehow calling the wrong Kia dealership.
I could hear her scream from another floor in the house. She provided my number and they found her car and service record. She was told that the service manager would call her back.
The manager never called.
Kid 1 called the next day, and the manager was with another customer. She would call Kid 1 back.
The manager never called.
The weekend went by. The following Monday went by. Finally, on the Tuesday, the manager sent a brief text message to Kid 1 and said they were sending her a cheque.
When the cheque arrived, Kid 1 was relieved that the ordeal was finally over. She tore open the envelope and pulled the slip of paper out.
The cheque was for $35.
My kid works hard for her money, and these folks at Kia are messing with her. Over and over again.
Kia on Hunt Club has lost her as a customer. They've also lost me as a customer. In mid January, I informed them that they had assigned a work order to the wrong vehicle and I was told that they would fix the mess. They didn't.
They told Kid 1 that they looked in the glove box for the wheel lock set. They didn't, and it cost Kid 1 $100, plus tax. When she tried to get them to set things right, the service manager avoided her for nearly a week. And when they said they'd refund her, they only gave her back a third of what she had to pay.
Bad service. Really bad service.
Although Kia on Hunt Club is the closest Kia dealership to us, I won't go to them if I should ever need work that Gilbert is unable to do. We stopped going to the Kia store in Kanata after receiving bad service there (we bought our car in Kanata), and for the most part we received good service (not great service) on Hunt Club.
But I'll go farther if need be. When I see how Gilbert has taken great care with my Niro and past cars, when I see how Embrun Ford looks after customers, even if it means they take a financial hit, Kia on Hunt Club is a big disappointment.
I'll be leaving a poor review on Google and other sites. And if you're considering taking your business to them, I urge you to think again.
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