From the other side of the desk

Maybe I can't read people as well from the distance that is cyber space, but this marc_1972 came on here from JLR to try and help and offer advice. Lots of negativity both ways.

The problem is we members are frustrated with JLR and therefore appear less welcoming to them.

Having said that there appears to have been two work floor assembly members posting on here, (giving what appears to be very good insight of the factory floor) and I hope they are true assembly staff and not phantoms.

We also have Nick.

I guess the point I am trying to make is that I'd like to trust and accept the posts made by these JLR staff but we don't really know who they are and what they represent.

I would be good to have an official feed into this site that someone high up in JLR authorised, haven't they got a PR dept or some Twitter/Facebook element, not that I use any of those, just think it could be a huge leap forward

Just as well I'm not one of the want it now fraternity as I will have waited 7 months for the car based on the latest delivery date. It's the lack of transparent proactive communications which I do not like. I will likely get banned at some point but in the meantime I will continue my critical appraisal of Land Rover and the dealerships. If I had treated my customers as LR treat theirs, I would have gone out of business.

(18-11-2011 10:47am)mark_n Wrote:  Just as well I'm not one of the want it now fraternity as I will have waited 7 months for the car based on the latest delivery date. It's the lack of transparent proactive communications which I do not like. I will likely get banned at some point but in the meantime I will continue my critical appraisal of Land Rover and the dealerships. If I had treated my customers as LR treat theirs, I would have gone out of business.

I believe criticism is necessary if fair, and lets face it JLR do not appear to be helping themselves in any way at the moment with their communications.

But what worries me more at the moment Mark is your red signature block, I fear the number will go higher, but would love it to turn green. Once again where's the chin up emoticon.

@ Mark_N if you get banned it will be for being rude, obnoxious and making personal insults on occasion not because you have strongly held opinions as to how JLR, their supply chain and dealer network have handled the sale of Range Rover Evoques. There is no affiliation between this forum and JLR, Big Brother is not watching you.

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(18-11-2011 10:39am)Evo-king Wrote:  Maybe I can't read people as well from the distance that is cyber space, but this marc_1972 came on here from JLR to try and help and offer advice.

No he didn't.

He came on as representative from a third party owned dealer.

That may sound picky but it's an important distinction.

In an attempt to assist he was roundly abused by some and has now gone back into cover unsurprisingly. Why would dealers choose to support the boards if this is the reaction they get . We should be careful what we wish for because if this sort of thing continues I could see supporters of the board pulling the plug which isn't going to help anyone.

Mark_n - I understand your frustration with JLR I just felt it was a bit out of order to give someone who has nothing to do with your order a hard time.

rsk21

"No he didn't.

He came on as representative from a third party owned dealer."

Thanks, I didn't realise that.

[quote='Evo-king' pid='23912' dateline='1321609149']


Having said that there appears to have been two work floor assembly members posting on here, (giving what appears to be very good insight of the factory floor) and I hope they are true assembly staff and not phantoms.

We also have Nick.

I guess the point I am trying to make is that I'd like to trust and accept the posts made by these JLR staff but we don't really know who they are and what they represent.

Evo-king How do we know who Mark-n is and what he represents????? Could he be someone who works for another company who only posts negative comments to wind us all up and constantly put LR down?

(18-11-2011 11:22am)rsk21 Wrote:  @ Mark_N if you get banned it will be for being rude, obnoxious and making personal insults on occasion

Blimey. So is that why you will get banned too then, rsk21? I suggest your accusations appear far worse.

Mark has every right to be cheesed off - his order has been badly delayed and his dealer has been hugely lax in communication, while pocketing a tidy commission and without having to offer any back in discount.

Perfectly good use of the forum to sound off and complain about this - who wouldn't?

Sorry Grah you've lost me.

Quite what is my accusation ?

You're right about letting off steam and sounding off, that's everybody's right. Doing so whilst being deliberately rude to fellow forum members however is likely to contravene the rules of the forum. Perhaps you should read a few more of Mark's posts in more detail. I only raised the point because Mark implied he would be banned for speaking out against LR. That's just not true hence the if so it'll be for other reasons point of view.

I come in for some stick here and I am unashamedly trenchant in my criticism of both Land Rover and the dealers (in general, by repute) and my own (from experience).

The fundamental issue is a lack of transparency in the order process. We really do not know how it works and there are people here who have paid their deposit more than a year ago and whose cars have not even been placed on order with the factory yet. All we know is that there is this dark, dank place called the holding pool where orders sit and fester until someone in the dealership gets off their backside and does something useful with their time.

I don't know, for example, whether dealers can prioritise their own orders so that favoured customers (that is, everyone except me) gets priority over those customers who have given them a hard time or pi**ed them off for some reason (that is, me). That may be one reason why my 31 October delivery date turned into 26 January and counting...

Plainly, the assertion in the letter from the now-gone LR MD to placate the Great Unwashed that all orders are handled in sequence is wrong. It seems a complete lottery as to when you get your car - the dealership, when you ordered, what others are ordering, even which cocksure salesman (pathetically limp-wristed in my case) you have the misfortune to deal with. In short, it's a mess and leads to significant dissatisfaction among potential customers. What we all need is a committed delivery date that is met, we can look forward to and plan around and not all this chaotic uncertainty.

People who know me, for example, my employees (now ex- after I sold up and retired) would tell you I am extremely demanding in my reasonable expectations of them but fulsome in my praise and willingness to reward them handsomely for a job well done. So far, Land Rover and the dealer have failed me at every step and I feel more than justified in calling a spade a spade. Placatory remarks such as those by the OP, however well intentioned, simply do not wash.

I have not, and never would criticise the line workers who have every right to be proud of what they do, a revelation compared to the Halewood of the past. They are part of a system which is at fault and over which they have no control.