Avoid Honda Sandton

T

TheShadow

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Location
Midrand, Johannesburg
i recently took my car in for its 45000kms service and I was totally stunned at the horrid service i received.

i didn't get a call to say the car was ready.
then when i went to pick it up i found it had not been washed.
i had requested for a wheel alignment to be done, only to find no trace of the report in the car.

when i contacted Honda SA abut this, they didn't bother to reply.
only when I phoned them did they do anything and get the dealer to contact me.
i was fed with the usual excuses and lies.

i'm so tired of dealing with Honda SA. at my previous service I asked Honda Midrand to check out a rattle that had developed. rather amazingly i was told that i would have to pay for the labour if the fault is found to be mine... how on earth do you prove a rattle emanating from the front right of the car to be driver error. i opted not to use their uber-awesome detective skills and instead called them some bad things and left.

the only saving grace for the local thieves that run Honda SA is that they have an awesome product in their cars. i don't see it lasting much longer if they continue like this.
 
Any body know of a good Honda dealership? How about Honda Menlyn - has anybody had any experience there?
 
Sorry for thread necro. As I have recenlty relocated, which stealership should I take my 2009 Honda Accord idtec to?
 
thechamp said:
Yes, save your money for parts, they are expensive.
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I keep hearing that but I have driven honda's for years and have not really experienced that. That being said my cars have been very reliable and hence the only parts I have bought are things like brake pads etc.

I use'd Honda west rand for my services until it was out of service plan and then I switched to using a private mechanic.
 
Cius said:
I keep hearing that but I have driven honda's for years and have not really experienced that. That being said my cars have been very reliable and hence the only parts I have bought are things like brake pads etc.

I use'd Honda west rand for my services until it was out of service plan and then I switched to using a private mechanic.
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Yes, they are very reliable, as soon as something goes wrong you will see what everyone is talking about, it woukd be like you are being punished for all the trouble free years you enjoyed.
 
thechamp said:
Yes, they are very reliable, as soon as something goes wrong you will see what everyone is talking about, it woukd be like you are being punished for all the trouble free years you enjoyed.
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Again, I'll disagree. The Kinsey report mostly puts Honda in the middle, not as cheap as Toyota, but a lot cheaper than say Renault:
http://www.kinseyreport.co.za/2017_kinsey_report.htm#Family Favourites

Also, if you actually look at the various parts basket the most common parts you are likely to personally pay for are in baskets A and B, where Basket C is more panel beating stuff and there your insurance pay's, not you. The body work parts of Honda are expensive as none is manufactured locally and they come from far, especially if you compare to Toyota where those parts are manufactured locally.

Looking at Basket B Honda is one of the cheapest, and while Basket A looks expensive the numbers are dealer only. Brake pads are quoted at 2K. I just got brake pads for the same chassy car for R600, so not sure I believe all those prices. Few actually service a car at a dealer out of service plan. Honda's biggest problem right now is the dealers and the pricing. Also for some reason Honda is not priced competatively in SA. This article explains it beautifully with some numbers: https://www.cars.co.za/motoring_news/what-has-happened-to-honda-in-sa/44673/

Also the reliability is a big factor. Fact is with Honda I almost never have to replace parts. My first Balade never had a major engine problem right up until I sold it on 360 000 km. They guy I sold it to put another 100K on it before writing it off in an accident. The biggest repair I ever did was a part on the alternator. I know so many people who had French cars, or VW or Opel who over time paid far more than I ever did due to unreliable cars. Toyota is the main competition for me on the reliability front, but there cars are expensive. When I last shopped around for the same amount of money the equivalent Toyota had so few features compared to the Balade it was not even funny. Similar with Kia and Hyndai, who are the other up and coming reliable brand.

Hence I fully plan on sticking to Honda as a brand for the foreseeable future. I never could figure out why it does not do better in SA. I think most people have just never experienced it and as such just don't know better. However I have converted a few guys to Honda and they have never looked back, including a guy who bough BMW exclusively and now wishes he had saved his cash and gone with Honda instead the whole time.
 
Honda never does not do well in SA because they just don't have the models to match the demand of the consumers in SA, look at the hatch market in SA, Honda does not have anything to match the Polo VIvo, Polo, Yaris, Etios and other small to middle hatches, it's like they are out of touch with the market in SA, a Honda Jazz as good as it is is a granny's car, I was so surprised when they brought out the Jazz sport, why are they not bringing back the Civic hatch? their model line up is the problem. Sedans are not selling generally in SA, the money is in the SUV and hatch segment, they are fully covered with their comprehensive SUV line up but so much lacking where it matters most, hence VW and Toyota are running amok.
 
To be honest, if I had to buy an SUV, it wouldn't be a Honda. And I'm saying this as a past and present Civic owner. I too have stopped servicing my car at the dealership- used to go to Honda Zambezi for years, after a spat at Honda Hatfield, where I bought my first Civic. Now that has changed too. Can't say I trust them any longer to not try and rob me blind. Honda's vehicles are awesome though.
 
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