Perhaps dumb, but a serious question.

[Old Car Guy]

We....

Can you tell if someone has used Track Apps? Or line lock, or any other related racing-type things I know nothing about? (It is just my DD)
Dropped my car off for stereo component install over the weekend and, by calculation of the odometer (kept track of it), it was taken on a little joyride (40 miles used). I called the installer out on the miles used (by text) and am awaiting a reply.

And I am not feeling up to providing further details at this time as I am a bit perturbed and upset right now, sorry. Hope you understand. Thank you.

We are waiting on the out come of your bad ordeal, and I do hope it has turned out well for you.......... John

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[Texican1911]

Google and FB reviews are big in the industry, and the recipient can't edit/delete them.

 

[Texican1911]

Get one of these and leave in in your glove box. You can see every where they took your car and even the MPH they traveled. You can buy the cheaper kid one and it still works just as good.


http://m.pocketfinder.com/

That's a fantastic idea for people with older parents instead of relying on Silver Alerts when they go missing. Cheap insurance.

 

[MSMStannyl]

I actually finally got around to playing with the MyKey feature yesterday evening. Next Wednesday I will be dropping my GT off for several days at the body shop to repair the damage from a woman rear ending me with her Volvo SUV last weekend (once I cleaned the scuffs, it's not that noticeable but it's still a $1500 initial estimate with, I'm sure, more added on with a supplement).

I set up a MyKey with all the limits set as low as possible. Definitely glad that Track Mode is disabled (along with all of the Track Apps) but I'm not sure why Sport + mode is allowed.

Also, I would love to see a rev limiter function. While having all of these limits set is great on the Auto's, with a manual, you could still get some A-hole you burns the hell out of the clutch, etc.

Anyway, we'll see what happens but I guess this is the best I can do. Just have to hope that people won't abuse your car...

 

[MagneticEB]

reminds me of this.

https://www.yahoo.com/autos/taco-bell-drive-thru-worker-serves-mechanics-123744602412.html

 

[Schu]

OP... what did you think was going to happen?
:lol:

FYI: you could have set up the second key set for restricted performance...

 

[klumpikat]

It did turn out to be OK, but I was def a little shook up there. The car had been taken to another shop where the wood sub housing was built. The installer does not personally own the specialty tools involved, and the town where the wood shop is located takes about 25 minutes to get there, or maybe 18-ish(?) miles. (If he takes a lot of cars out there it seems a bit risky if you ask me, but no damage was found on the car body anywhere.)

Also, the procedure was not exactly cut and dry. The original plan was to build a box for the spare tire well; but he said that after building a "test" one, decided the floor cover plus the mat I added was not going to work as well as he'd hoped (I was skeptical anyway). Plan B worked. The new sub is sitting in a really nicely-customized box fitted snugly inside that hole, and perfectly accommodating the cutout in the rubber mat. (I put photos up in the thread "What did you do to your 2015 Mustang today?".) Maybe I am gullible, but to me, it sounded logical that taking the car to the wood shop would be required here, esp if a job calls for construction of a test box. It didn't sound like a matter of taking measurements, fully knowing the outcome ahead of time and carrying the finished product back to town for install. Important to note: Mine was the first S550 the installer has ever worked on.

The dash cam was installed and the other stereo components (amp and interface) were bolted inside the spare tire well and may have been installed at either the local install shop or at his home (I could not tell if he had an area at his home to work on it. Either way, he lives only a few miles from the shop. His home was our point of pick-up and drop-off).

So...the miles added up. I believe it was a good old-fashioned communication breakdown. Either the installer did indeed tell us he would have to travel a bit to build the housing and we did not catch it, or he failed to tell us; though to be fair, I do remember a mention about his having to use specific tools he does not own to get the job done. I don't know for sure, and at this point it doesn't matter. I know I am beyond glad I was non-confrontational in my texts, and his responses in kind were not defensive, were to the point, not drawn out, and felt legit. I began with compliments on the work, then noted the odometer readings and asked if he would explain, and he answered. Simple.

At day's end I met up with a good friend for a coupla beers. Before parting, he checked a fender for any tire residue, lol. No "cover-up" there; the car was just as dirty at pick-up as it was at drop-off.

I ended up texting the installer yesterday about the sub grille constantly popping off (apparently this is rare) and offered to swing by his location to get it fixed. Instead, he kindly came to the house after he got off work and reapplied it with silicone. If the grille comes off again he said he will order a new one. He is coming back in a couple weeks to make sure everything is working as it should, and make adjustments to the amp if necessary.

Whew!

I do want to thank you guys for the moral support and some excellent advice. I already do the Yelp thing and hate nothing more than recording negative experiences. This guy is supposedly one of the best around, with lots of experience with high-end cars (we are talking Ferrari and Bentley caliber) and I am really glad he did not harm his stellar reputation. We are really happy with the results; the sub housing looks (not to mention, sounds) 100 times better than factory. The installer is working on his second S550.

 

[MSMStannyl]

It did turn out to be OK, but I was def a little shook up there. The car had been taken to another shop where the wood sub housing was built. The installer does not personally own the specialty tools involved, and the town where the wood shop is located takes about 25 minutes to get there, or maybe 18-ish(?) miles. (If he takes a lot of cars out there it seems a bit risky if you ask me, but no damage was found on the car body anywhere.)

Also, the procedure was not exactly cut and dry. The original plan was to build a box for the spare tire well; but he said that after building a "test" one, decided the floor cover plus the mat I added was not going to work as well as he'd hoped (I was skeptical anyway). Plan B worked. The new sub is sitting in a really nicely-customized box fitted snugly inside that hole, and perfectly accommodating the cutout in the rubber mat. (I put photos up in the thread "What did you do to your 2015 Mustang today?".) Maybe I am gullible, but to me, it sounded logical that taking the car to the wood shop would be required here, esp if a job calls for construction of a test box. It didn't sound like a matter of taking measurements, fully knowing the outcome ahead of time and carrying the finished product back to town for install. Important to note: Mine was the first S550 the installer has ever worked on.

The dash cam was installed and the other stereo components (amp and interface) were bolted inside the spare tire well and may have been installed at either the local install shop or at his home (I could not tell if he had an area at his home to work on it. Either way, he lives only a few miles from the shop. His home was our point of pick-up and drop-off).

So...the miles added up. I believe it was a good old-fashioned communication breakdown. Either the installer did indeed tell us he would have to travel a bit to build the housing and we did not catch it, or he failed to tell us; though to be fair, I do remember a mention about his having to use specific tools he does not own to get the job done. I don't know for sure, and at this point it doesn't matter. I know I am beyond glad I was non-confrontational in my texts, and his responses in kind were not defensive, were to the point, not drawn out, and felt legit. I began with compliments on the work, then noted the odometer readings and asked if he would explain, and he answered. Simple.

At day's end I met up with a good friend for a coupla beers. Before parting, he checked a fender for any tire residue, lol. No "cover-up" there; the car was just as dirty at pick-up as it was at drop-off.

I ended up texting the installer yesterday about the sub grille constantly popping off (apparently this is rare) and offered to swing by his location to get it fixed. Instead, he kindly came to the house after he got off work and reapplied it with silicone. If the grille comes off again he said he will order a new one. He is coming back in a couple weeks to make sure everything is working as it should, and make adjustments to the amp if necessary.

Whew!

I do want to thank you guys for the moral support and some excellent advice. I already do the Yelp thing and hate nothing more than recording negative experiences. This guy is supposedly one of the best around, with lots of experience with high-end cars (we are talking Ferrari and Bentley caliber) and I am really glad he did not harm his stellar reputation. We are really happy with the results; the sub housing looks (not to mention, sounds) 100 times better than factory. The installer is working on his second S550.

Definitely good to hear it was all a misunderstanding. That being said, if this is his business and is something he does somewhat regularly, he should definitely inform every customer that their vehicle will be traveling 40 miles round-trip during the install. Not a single person would expect that kind of mileage when dropping their car off for an extended period of time.

At the end of the day though, as long as everything is in working order, no harm done. Hopefully he wasn't going crazy while driving those 40 miles (sorry for putting that thought into your head!).

I still like the idea of being up front with the dealership/shop/technician and letting them know that I am keeping an eye on things. Hopefully that acts as a deterrent to them acting stupidly in my car...hopefully!

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