Dealership messed up on radio
 

Without naming the specific dealership, I purchased my FR-S this past Saturday from a dealership 3 hours away from my home. When I got home, I noticed the installed radio and manual was the "120" model (part number ended in '120'). When I went to the radio setup and tried to select FR-S for the audio equalizer, it wasn't an option. After traveling to my local Toyota/Scion dealership, I found out the correct radio that is supposed to be installed is the "130" model. I believe the two models are correlated by car model year, where the "120" is for 2012 models and the "130" is for 2013 models.

After confirming with the dealership where I purchased my FR-S that the radio installed was in fact the "120," the only option presented to me would be for me to make another 360 mile, 6 hour round trip to swap out the radio to the "130" model at no cost. And I would have to take them up on this option before the end of the month.

Do you all think that the sound equalizer difference is that great when switching between tC, xB, etc.? Do you think I should press corporate Scion about seeing if they can help me out with a dealership that is closer to me? After speaking to the dealership, they were surprised that there was actually a difference between the two radio models. If Scion isn't informing dealerships of the difference between radios especially for the FR-S, it seems possible that there are other people out there in the same boat as me.

UPDATE 1:
I called Scion customer service this morning. After explaining the whole situation and that Scion also might bear some responsibility in not informing dealerships of the difference between the two radio models, the representative informed me that this is a "Sales Issue" implying that it is not a warranty issue. This sales issue would have to be resolved by Toyota/Scion of Knoxville (screw it, I'm not protecting them anymore). They opened a case file for me and told me the customer service manager in Knoxville will be calling me within two business days. Now I have to wait to see if Knoxville is willing to work with a local dealership in Kentucky to swap radios.

Even more infuriating, the rep at the end asked if I'd like to participate in a customer service survey. I said "definitely" as negative reviews are almost always looked over. After 5 seconds of silence, I looked down at my phone, and the call had ended. Did the rep purposefully disconnect my call?

Scion, I am dissapoint.

UPDATE 2:
I received a call from the Dealership customer service manager yesterday afternoon, the same day as I called Scion corporate. He was very apologetic and his proposed solution was exactly what I hoped for. They are going to contact a local dealership of my choice, send them the correct radio, pay a negotiated labor rate to the installer, and then call me with the contact information for the service department at the local dealership for me to set up an appointment to swap the radios. Now, I'm still waiting for all of this to occur, but I am very happy that Scion of Knoxville stepped up. The customer service manager even specifically stated that there is no reason why they couldn't do this for me. Assuming everything goes as stated, this should be the end of my saga. I hope all of this serves as a precaution to all future FR-S buyers, especially those who are traveling to a dealership far away.

Make sure you check your radio settings, because Scion corporate isn't reinforcing the difference between radio models!

You probably can name your dealer here. Some of them monitor the forum and response. Some other member got taken care of after posting here. I would think it is fair if they can pay the gas or offer some free service~

No experience with model 120, so...

Call Scion corporate. It's totally unacceptable for you to have to drive 6 hours for the dealer's mistake. It doesn't matter how big of a difference there is between the two; the dealer screwed-up and they need to make it right without inconveniencing you. If you look here you can see that some are reporting a noticeable improvement in audio quality going from the tC profile to the FR-S profile.

Your local dealer should be able to fix the issue and bill the dealer you bought it from. Talk to Scion directly.

[QUOTE=ayliu;515983]the only option presented to me would be for me to make another 360 mile, 6 hour round trip to swap out the radio to the "130" model at no cost. And I would have to take them up on this option before the end of the month. [QUOTE]

WTF? How is their @#$%up your fault? Secondly for the distance involved how is there less than a 90 day redemption window...if it is even legal to penalize "you" for their @#$%up?

If corporate has any honor they should ask you where you'd like the correct stereo shipped to a nearby dealership of "your choosing."

In the event you must drive a great distance, you sure as hell had better get reimbursed for the fuel to drive out there and back!

This is not unresonable. It's just good business. I wish you the best.
(I soooooo want to fight this one for you!) :mad0259:

Thanks for the advice everyone. I don't really want to throw the dealership under the bus as this was my first new car purchase and was relatively painless. I understand why they would want to replace the radio themselves (because then they will probably sell the radio that is currently installed as "new"). Looks like I'm calling Scion corporate in the morning.

Can't they just ship the radio to the closest Toyota dealership and swap it out there?

I'm with wolfking and FRSowner, why should you have to pay for their mistake. If they really cared about you as a customer, they wouldn't ask you to drive so far to exchange the radio "at no cost". That's ridiculous "at no cost"?, they made the mistake, that should've never come out their mouth.

Made a noticeable improvement for me switching from TC setting to FR-S. Scion dealers really should set this correctly before delivering these cars.

This really seems like a warranty issue almost, which can be done at any dealer.

Could they simply ship it to you and you replace it yourself then send them back the other radio ( or vice-versa) ?

They probably COULD do that, but then you'd be liable for any damages during the swap.

quality still sucks though :mad0259:

Updated top post if anyone is looking down here...