FOW - experiences over last 4 months

It has been some time since my last visit to FMoW prior to going back ~ a month ago for some work. I had read the various threads about the new owners and like many of us, had some doubts concerning the differences between the "old" environment and what the new owners were apparently doing. I had several phone conversations with Peterson before driving up about the work to be done.
In summary, my visit was a good one. I felt very welcomed by everyone at the dealership, had all my somewhat "anal" questions answered patiently and thoroughly concerning my car, and had the work done quickly and efficiently. The entire dealership was "open" to walk around, and both Glen Marquis and Peterson were very helpful in getting me in and out in a reasonable amount of time. The young man who performed the work on my car knew what he was doing and did it well. All told, a good experience. I still miss the Old Gang, it was good to see Mary again, but I think based on this one time that FMoW is OK.
On a side note, they had a new Lambo 670-4 SV sitting out back getting ready to be shipped to a new owner. I am not a Lambo fan, but this car, in graphite exterior/black interior was one nasty looking car. Much better looking in person.

 

While there may be some people who have had an acceptable experience under the new FoW management, I have not. I had been an active and loyal FoW customer for 6+ years prior to the change in ownership. Since the changeover I have simply had no reason and little incentive to go out there.

The new management has shown that they have no interest either in getting to know me as a customer or in making any efforts to retain my business. During the transition to the new ownership I had on several occasions made an effort to meet the new incoming management to introduce myself along with numerous other established customers, even going so far as to offer to host luncheon or dinner meetings. Despite my repeated efforts, I never received any response from the new team. Not one word.

To be fair, I have not been out to FoW in the past 4 months. Or 6 months. Or is it 8 or 9 months, now ? In any event, it has been a while. On my last visit to FoWhocaresanymore to buy some parts, shortly after the changeover took place, one of the remaining salesmen made the effort to introduce me to Bill Story, Jr. As I introduced myself to Jr., he stood there with a distracted look, looking blankly over my shoulder and past me, uttering only a single disinterested word. After a short while, and while I was speaking in response to a prompt by the salesman, the kid Jr., simply turned his back and walked away, without a word.

It used to be that whenever I would drive by FoW – whether it was mid-week or on Saturday – there were always some recognizable cars of other owners and friends parked in front, and it was worth stopping in for a chat and some enjoyable schmoozing. It was a welcoming place where everybody could join in. It did not matter if you were an established customer or owner, a potential new customer, or someone for whom ownership was just (or even would remain) a dream. Everybody was welcome, united in their passion for the marque and camaraderie as “car guys.” The old management made the effort – and it took effort and care -- to foster and encourage a club-like atmosphere. Now when I drive by I feel no attraction whatsoever, no effort at all at customer outreach. The place has an empty, dark and cold look with no cars in front and seemingly not all the lights on. Now it is just another car dealer, and not a very good one at that, in my experience. Heck, even the Mini Cooper dealer around the corner is much more enthusiastic and welcoming. Whenever we visit we are recognized, and offered a cold drink or coffee…and we have yet to purchase a car !

I am sure that there is a certain minimum level of competence at FoWhybother in order for them to maintain their status as an authorized dealer, as well as a certain minimum level of income to enable them to keep what lights they choose to keep on lit and the doors open. If you are looking to buy a car, and show up with a visible checkbook or a wheelbarrow full of pazoosas, no doubt the new crew at FoW would welcome you warmly. But then again, so would your local Chevy or Chrysler dealer. The bottom line is that you have choices. Richard and Fernando at Competizione are a marvelous resource for previously owned cars, service and PPI’s. If you are looking for a new car, and need an authorized dealer, Algar is a class act with a superb staff who are understanding and supportive of the enthusiast community with a club-like atmosphere and well-planned events and activities.

These cars are works of art, unique in their character and special in the satisfaction and fun they can generate for their owners. There is also a special camaraderie among owners. The purchase and broader ownership experience should likewise be unique and fun. The old FoW team made it so. The new guys do not. To them, it’s “just business,” and, frankly, it’s not enough.

 

As I've posted before: FOW is nothing but an inept bunch of people trying to play car dealer. It's a shame, because they are only about 5 miles from my house, but I refuse to go there anymore.

 

Time will tell if the "new" business model works but I have to admit the sense of belonging is gone. When I was out there last, I just didn't feel the connection and when I talked to the new owner, he kept looking over my shoulder to make sure he wasn't missing something. Clearly not interested in me or my business. It's too bad. When I first moved here, Redding gave me the whole tour of the dealership, introduced me to everyone and made me feel a part of something. Right now, it's just another car dealership. Too bad.

 

This was a good F car dealership under the old owners ...the new owners are inept and are alienating many of the old customers of many years....

 

When I first got my 95 355 back in March I had a choice of places I could go to. I read the various posts about them and clearly there was some negativity about FoW. Still I wanted to try them with the intent of building a long term relationship as I hope to buy a new F car one day.
The earliest appointment (for a simple matter)I could get was a week later (Good to be busy but not so busy). The work was done proficiently and Petersen was pleasant enough though I did not get the sense that he knew the 355 as a service "manager" should. The car was not ready when promised and I only found that out on the day I was going to pick it up when I called them (good thing I did!). It took them 20 minutes to process my payment. Not once was I offered coffee or a soft drink. I just stood there in an empty dealership being ignored by the employees, even though I was looking at the various shirts and accessories in the shop. No one asked me if I needed help. Try that at Nordstroms!
Overall I thought my experience was a mediocre one at best given the $$$ involved and the potential of further business growth. It was just another car dealer.

 

I know the FoW changeover has sparked a lot of personal and emotional responses. But, I suggest giving them a try - especially if you haven't been there for 9 months. Sure, some of your old friends may not be there - make new ones.

I've had my 355 serviced there about 4 times in the last 6 months (I track my cart quite a bit), and the experience has been great each time. Peterson has done a great job, and follows-up often, as needed. And Glenn is always there to help on more technical issues / questions.

Now granted... I suspect the fact that I track my car has allowed me additional access to Glenn (and others). But generally, I've found that everyone there are true car enthusiasts - just strike up a conversation about cars, tracks, F1, other racing, or whatever, and you'll see.

I remain a loyal customer.

 

I can say that after the let Shaun go, so went the last good mechanic at FOW!! I wouldn't trust them to change my air filter let alone a major on a 355/360/430. No way!

Competizione is the only place with "Ferrari" mechanics. You got ask yourself. Why is Competizione already having to EXPAND??? Because they are that GOOD!!

 

Rob,

I am glad that you have found a satisfying experience at the new FoW. Glenn is indeed an interesting guy, and if you can find Arnie hiding out back (is he still there ?) you will enjoy him as well. The Ferrari experience should be one of pleasure and fun, wherever you can find it. Different strokes, etc.

But to your points. Give ‘em yet another chance ? I have already given the new management under the Story’s several chances to meet and chat. All have been ignored. Despite several initiatives, approaches and direct invitations I have not received a single reply. Not one word. From my perspective they are out of chances. They have made it clear what I mean to their business and I choose only to return their sentiment.

A few months ago I posted on this forum some of the reasons for my disappointment and displeasure with the way things were going under the new management at FoW. Again, not one word in reply to my posting. They have my number and e-mail, yet there was no effort made to contact me to try to mend fences and rekindle a relationship with a formerly loyal customer. While there was no reply, there was a RESPONSE, however. They apparently could not muster the energy or guts for a personal call or note. They did, however, expend the time and effort to search their data bases and REMOVE my name from their sister store’s (Ferrari of Newport Beach) e-mail newsletter mailing list. Yep, I think most of us here seek out and even beg for the opportunity to do business with petty and personally vindictive people.

Make new friends ? No need. I hold onto the previous ones, and we continue to see each other and enjoy each other’s company socially and in the course of business. And, yes, new friends are indeed nice, and plenty have been made in the pursuit of my Ferrari and car related, a well as other interests. Just not at FoW. You see, there is a difference between a friend and some suck-up who offers frozen smiles and insipid blather solely as a means to get deeper into your wallet.

As noted before, there are many choices and options available in the pursuit of enjoyment in the Ferrari experience as in any other interest. I can assure you that when I consider my next Ferrari I will heed the sage advice of the many experts here on FChat and take all necessary steps to ensure that I will be buying a no Story’s car.

Mike

 

Hey Mike,
Good thing you know where to find worn out Volvo parts. Dinner at the Irish Inn?
Tom B

 

I'm starting to get the sense that the entirety of the complaints about the "new" FoW is the lack of the "clubhouse" environment?

They act like it's just a business? It *IS* a business, and they have to treat it like a business if they're going to stay in business. The club house is secondary.

The best mechanic I ever dealt with was also one of the most abrupt individuals who never engaged in "hangar stories". He never spent a spare second "shooting the bull" with a customer. But he trained at the Alfa factory, and you could call him, describe the noises the car was making, and he'd not only tell you what the problem was, but could usually tell you how to get it working well enough to drive it 30 miles to the shop.

I'll take skilled over sociable, any day.


The last time I had my car at the "old" FoW (a couple months before the change), I'd asked for a quote for timing belts. They quoted me an entire major service instead. That's the kind of thing that turns me off to a shop.

I asked for a estimate for installing steel brake lines. They quoted six hours labor. *I* could install those lines in six hours. (Okay, asking for non-Ferrari parts at a dealership is a crap-shoot.) At least that warned me, when I asked about the change to the brass injectors ($25 each from Bosch) and they quoted me $1400 for a set of injectors.

They also installed my AC knob bezel upside down, and, while diagnosing a starting issue, missed that the battery was shy one cell. (Granted, I'd missed the issue with the battery, too.)


If people have those kinds of experiences from the new dealership, that's something I'd like to hear.

But if it's just that they don't treat you like old and esteemed friend and a very important person, well, I sympathize, but I don't expect to be spending the kind of long green there that would make me a VIP anyway.

 

FWIW, the FoW mgmt is aware of this thread. Whether that prompts any changes, we'll have to see.

DGS, I agree that a business needs to be run as a business, and the "old" FoW had a LOT of faults and failed. That said, in the immortal words of Sen. Ben Nelson, "change is never easy." I do think much of the grumbling is really FNA/SpA related, about which FoW can do nothing. But, the whole "list" thing angers plenty. And, there's no passion. That's ok, as you point out, if you get competence in its stead. Personally, I'm most interested in seeing FoW get back to hosting track events a couple of times a year. It's important. Not just from a relationship standpoint, but also because it drives service and parts revenues. I can understand that they needed some time to transition, but it's been long enough for them to have their act together in this regard. Of course, the guys that ran the track days and had the relationships at Summit are LONG gone. So, back to square one!

CW

 

DSG,

I hear your point and I do agree with you regarding experience with servicing. You are looking for what kinds of experiences people have had with FOW since the new ownership regarding service. I am sure there are people that will post their experiences regarding service at some point.

Having read all the posts here. I will say that I do sympathize with the people that have posted. The thing we all have to remember is that FNA by restricting where we can purchase a new Ferrari from as dealers can only sell to people that live in their territory. It has created this country club / club house mentality as it is the members that have and keep playing that get the new cars and the dealers are in a position to decide who they want to give new cars to and who has to wait. The dealers that look at it as a business as you say and not as a club have to be equally aware of that. And you are correct that is why for some that have played the game only to suddenly discover that they are no longer valued clients but ones that now have to re-establish themselves that is a hard pill.

The other reality of the situation is in most cases a person calling or visiting a Ferrari dealer wanting to buy a new Ferrari having never owned one and having no previous purchasing history is told sorry back of the line regardless of how much money you have. This shocks many new buyers. And as it has been said many times in many different threads on this site. It is down to allocation / production. Having such small production numbers it becomes increasingly more difficult for the dealer as to who you grant and who you don't grant a new Ferrari to.

Recently the President of Ferrari Spa said that sales of the California are to people that have never previously owned a Ferrari. This I find surprising for him to say as we all know here in the US you have to have an established relationship with the dealer before you are going to be awarded a new Ferrari. So how is it that most of the buyers of the California are new to Ferrari?

Thanks,
Just my few cents.

 

I could care less about the clubhouse atmosphere. I didn't participate in it before and don't really care about it now. All I wanted was my cars fixed/serviced. Had my Ferrari for four months and gave it back with no gas, rearview mirror sitting on the passenger seat and a torn up driver's seat. In their defense, they did fix the mirror and seat, but not the oil leak it was in for. They did find other things to the tune of around $4000. I believe that was with the old owners.

Had my Maserati in for inspection. Airbag light was on. Turned off for around $200. Needed a emergency flasher switch as when the stereo was installed by the previous owner, the switch was removed. Can't fix it, but we can tell you where to go to have it done. $350 for that piece of advice. Soft top not lining up. Need six hours to analyze the problem. Fixed it myself with WD40 in five minutes. That was with the new owners.

Bill Story Jr. did take the time to invite me in to address the problems. We met and he seemed to want to help. The day after, I got the Maserati bill mentioned above.

I mentioned in a previous post that I was hired around a year ago to mystery shop their Lambo, Ferrari and Maserati dealerships. In all fairness, their salesman received excellent marks and really knew their stuff.

They are in business to make a profit and I respect that. When I take my Mercedes to the dealership in Germantown or Tyson's. I'm treated very well and if they can't fix the problem, they let me know up front without adding on a "diagnostic fee".

My Maserati is currently parked until I can make it to Algar's for an oil change and F1 pump service.

FOW almost ruined a poster in the Maserati Life Forum's Spyder over a simple oil change.

I have other stories with both the new and old owner's, but I think you see my point. I've only had one good experience at FOW and that was when they did a clutch replacement several years ago. Even then, it took around two months, but at least they didn't muck anything else up while they had it.

 

A couple of years ago- I stopped into FOW after I picked up my 545i from having service done and was interested in a Mondial convertible they had. Local folks may remember it, it was grossly overpriced in the 50K range, rossa corsa, higher miles car.

At this point, Money wasn't the same issue as it is today- I was basically ignored by everyone in the dealer except the older woman who stood at the podium. She was kind enough to show me around and answer any questions, she talked me out of the Mondial and pointed me to a Fly Yellow 355 vert with FI shifter- At this point I was out of my league.

When I mentioned Ferrari Chat- she took a stance that ( at the time) the dealer didn't think too kindly of the board.

So as my two cents goes, I was not very impressed with how I was treated, Needless to say, I wasn't a buyer that day and maybe they sensed it, but figuring at that point business was VERY good and I didn't roll into the dealer with a sentra- maybe someone other than the receptionist could have at least said hello?

 

I agree that in order to survive and thrive any business must be run as a business. However, I don't think you will find any courses being offered at Wharton that advocate ignoring, insulting and alienating current customers who represent existing and potential sources of revenue. The clubhouse atmosphere encouraged by the previous crew at FoW gave a reason to walk through the door, even when you did not have a "strictly business" reason for doing so. This generated revenue from impromptu sales of caps, shirts and do-dads, and on some occasions, even a car that would catch someone's eye or come up in conversation. It gave an opportunity to speak with the service advisors and mechanics as friends and colleagues, identify real service needs, and feel comfortable about the advice and guidance you were receiving on what services were required. It also built loyalty.

The new guys have given me no reason whatsoever to make a visit. I don't need to be treated like a revered VIP, with choirs of angels heralding my arrival in the parking lot and rose petals sprinkled in front of me as I walk into the showroom. It is, however, common human courtesy and sound business practice to show your customers some respect and appreciation for their willingness to spend money with you, instead of with your competition. The new management has failed to provide the same feeling of appreciation, trust and comfort. They are a business...just another business trying to make a buck...and have done nothing to invite or encourage me to continue to be their customer. There are other businesses out there who are more interested in me as a customer and that is where I choose to spend my time and money. Sure the old clubhouse atmosphere was an unexpected luxury but, speaking for myself, it was an effective business strategy that brought me in to spend money I probably wouldn't have otherwise, and will definitely not spend with the new owners. There are other dealers out there, other sources for parts and service, cars other than Ferrari, and other interests beyond cars.

Oh, and you mentioned your annoyance at the upselling being done by the service department in your last visits to FoW. Have you checked to see if under the new management the service end is being run by the same guys who gave you your quotes ?

 

No, that would be HBS.

CW

 

That service manager was let go even before the change. (About a week after my car was returned.)

 

What you need to remember, Robert, is that everything Shaun knew about Ferrari's, he learned from Glenn. And Glenn's still there. And he's still overseeing the other techs in the shop, so give them a chance. Glenn is a sharp guy who knows his stuff and takes pride in his work. He's not going to let his techs do shoddy work. (I was there when Shaun first arrived on the scene and landed the job as a result of his work with the race team.)

I'm sure I'll get blasted (and I have read the threads), but I think the criticism is too harsh. There's two sides to every story and the only one who knows theirs is them.

When I took a friend's 308 in for work, I got great service - no clue what the problems are with all the posters who are complaining. (Yeah, I know, no responses, no "clubhouse", etc, ad nauseum... As someone else said, it's a *business*.)

Good luck.

gp

 

^

Ok, specific personnel experience. My car goes into the shop for repair to the windshield fluid fill indicator light activated on the dash cluster. The mechanic working on the car, who will be nameless, breaks the attachment tube. Puts everything together and I see the leak from the front bumper. I am like, "what the heck is that??". Now they have to pull the front bumper off again and tell me it will take at least a week to get the replacement part. Don't offer me a ride home and would charge me if I wanted to take my car home and have them fix it later, because they would have to remove the bumper again, added labor. WHAT!!!!!?????????? Now what was supposed to be a 2hr job has become at least a week and a half??? Yea right! Solution, super glue the part and hope it holds. Lesson, never go back again.
Sean did my cam-variator recall and belt service and did wonderful work. He is the only mechanic I trusted there.
That said, Glenn and Brian were always very helpful at the track events and would take time to inspect the car and brakes after every run.

 

What I don't understand is how management of dealers in cars of this type do not understand the long term relationship. I had a wonderful experience with FoW about 2 years ago with my 355. But I would not send it there now, simply based on this type of info. That, and the fact that Sport Auto (closest to me), Competizione, and Algar are excellent dealers. So why would I take my business to an unknown, when I would be diverting business from a dealer I know has worked hard to be a notch above? Sorry, but especially in a tight economy, my money is going to the guys I know deserve it.

 

Actually, the same Service Manager has been in place since 2004

 

Went by the other day, showroom seemed really empty. Walked over to the Lambo dealer and while the door was open there wasn't a single person in the dealership, seemed kind of odd, but it was nice to see the Balboni and a SV.