DuffyDuc has a problem with his Rover 75 with the heating system switching itself on as it pleases. The dealer couldn’t find the fault until DuffyDuc consults a chat room on the Internet.
On the special owners site www.r75.info DuffyDuc gets a reply from Keks007nix who was confronted with the same problem but found out how the cables had to be readjusted so that everything could work perfectly.
Another member of the chat room Zinki replies sardonically: ”And again the customer has to deal with the problem himself”.
Almost all car owners can find an Internet site specialised to their make of car. These private chat rooms have given consumers many more possibilities.
No longer can a dealer claim that the problem is completely untypical and has ”never happened before” therefore not falling under the guarantee.
In the chat rooms the owner can research if other owners have had similar problems and if need be claim the repair costs. And there are plenty of problems even among top luxury cars if recent recall actions by the manufacturers are anything to go by.
It is no surprise that manufacturers regard the forums with mixed feelings. In general there are enthusiastic fans who potentially could be bound to a specific model. On the other hand there is a critical exchange of opinion in the chat rooms that sometimes ridicule the official websites of the manufacturers.
An MG Rover spokeswoman in Germany, Barbara Schuermann-Arends, says there is contact to the clubs ”but we don’t interfere. Those who have a problem generally turn to customer relations”.
BMW in Munich uses the chat rooms as a barometer to test a mood and if necessary to react to questions, says spokeswoman Martina Wimmer. ”We only react if there is a truly inaccurate assertion.” So far only the French manufacturer Peugeot engaged actively in an Internet forum offering a one-hour live chat when a heated debate erupted over the cabriolet 206 CC. A spokesman said however
that such a step was an exception and that the manufacturer preferred direct contact between customer and dealer.
”Not everything in the chat rooms can be taken seriously. We would be ill-advised to get involved too intensively,” says spokesman Gordian Hinrichs. ”The Internet is a rumour mill. The contributors to the chat rooms work themselves up, especially with emotional models like the 206 CC where sensibilities are high.” Not all the customers let off steam in the Internet forums.
Several automobile magazines and newspapers offer space for their readers who have a problem. Germany’s largest auto newspaper Auto Bild counted last year 8 000 cases.
The motorist is invited to state his or her case with a copy of the service book and vehicle registration document. The newspaper hands the case to the manufacturer but says editor Stefan Szych, ”there is little hope that something will be done if the car is older than three years”.
Szych says the newspaper is sometimes bombarded with mail from the Internet forums and when a problem occurs frequently ”an article can emerge out of it”.
According to his impression the manufacturers are beginning to take the chat rooms more seriously. ”They would be stupid if they didn’t,” he adds. — Sapa