By this time we should have been on our way back to Club Mahindra Kensville… but we are still at the Toyota service station getting our car serviced.
Folks have a lunch break and it will be nearly 2.30 pm when we get the car back.
Anyone having doubts about our economy should visit a car showroom – it’s full of people ! New cars are being bought, existing cars are being serviced and decisions about buying are being made every single minute.
We left from Club Mahindra Kensville at 7 am because it’s 48 kms from the Toyota service station. We reached by 8 am. The service advisor took down the details by 8.40 am. Two other customers came after us and they both spoke Gujarati … had to tell them that we were in first ! Not a great start.
The service advisor took down all the details and we were told that the car would be ready by 12.30. We were happy and went out in search for food.
Found a fantastic restaurant at YMCA called “9, world cuisine”. They had a decent breakfast buffet and we relished the first meal of the day.
We walked back to the Toyota service station and saw that the car had been moved to the service floor. Went to the customer lounge …. Aah, a big mistake ! The TV was blaring and two people were sitting with their feet up on the sofa watching a Govinda movie. Didn’t realise how crass the dialogues were till I watched a short segment.
Krishnan and I walked out of the lounge to go downstairs again. That’s when we were told that the car will be ready only by 3 pm !!!!! I wish the service advisor had informed us that their wheel alignment machine was not working. :(:(. All thoughts of a great siesta went out of the window.
We are back in the lounge. I found the volume button on the TV and have reduced it finally. Small victories. It’s some inane Telugu movie dubbed in Hindi 🙄.
Note – have blocked out certain portions in the pics above as they show some PII.
Yayyy our car has been moved ! So folks are fixing something or perhaps they have taken it for a wash.
Hopefully we get the car soon and can go back to Club Mahindra for the siesta 😊.
Some positives about getting the car serviced in Ahmedabad –
1. People are sweet, non-aggressive
2. The WiFi is excellent in the owners lounge
3. Service staff are polite and responsive
4. Location of the service centre is very convenient compared to Gurgaon
5. The service station is totally clean.
6. Excellent snacks (Balaji namkeen)
2.20 pm – Krishnan paid the bill….
2.32 pm – waiting still for the car to be given to us
The frenzied energy that we experienced in the morning has reduced. Fewer new cars are being driven away and it’s mostly the cars that have come in for service.
2.34 pm – leaving now.
3.04 pm – Refuelled at a Jio fuel station.
Did they align your wheels, after all? I’m facing the ordeal of getting my car serviced, too, and may need a wheel alignment. It’s a 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid, with 110,000 miles, but the so-called “drop-off service” is no longer available. Few know how to work on these hybrid cars, and even fewer know how to drive a standard shift automobile.
Happy driving.
Yes they got it all done and washed the car as well. Actually if we were at home, Toyota picks up the car from home, services it and then brings it back. Ofcourse for a small fee and prior appointment. We got it serviced here in Ahmedabad because it’s reached 20000 kms and we will add another 1000 odd kms driving back to Gurgaon.
In India too we have several hybrids and all electric vehicles. Not sure how good the service is. Actually Toyota has had the hybrid Camry for the longest time long before it became popular 😊.
I like the hybrid, and I’m used to it. I also like standard transmission, which I’m told isn’t even being made much anymore, like cassette tape decks, which I also had to bargain for, in 2003.
I guess I’m a very odd duck.
Not odd at all – just different 🤣. I was very fond of standard manual transmission but have shifted totally to automatic. The city traffic is crazy in India.
My sister and her husband have two Toyota Priuses, as well as an EV–a Leaf–plus an SUV, which they rarely drive. As with all modern “conveniences,” all that stuff requires lots of maintenance. They are do-it-yourselfers, and fortunately Slade likes fixing things, but he says he doesn’t. He was a big help when that tree fell on my house at the end of August, but we are all getting older, and I’m trying to reduce my responsibilities, to maintain as much independence as possible.
Btw we have stand alone service shops that offer wheel balancing and alignment. Not sure if you have those in the states. Don’t remember seeing them during my visits but then I had no reason to look for them 😊.
Thanks, but I’ve had no reason to stray too far from the dealer who sold me my car, new. If I have to leave it, they do have a shuttle service, but I live in an area where a car and driving is a necessity, unfortunately. I can’t part with it for long.