Ride tech ride tech ride tech...

[Vicinity]

Donny... I agree with you but sometimes when you do searches they may not yield the results your looking for. Yes sometimes you can miss things in the directions as well, and sometimes places are not open when you need an answer at that time. This site has always been a wealth of information to learn how to fix and do things in general. So I can see where you are comming from

If you read my original post, Eric had it spot on. It was out of frustration and I was not attacking anyone.....it happens to alot of people. I take aggravation from my customers too but they are my CUSTOMERS and they pay me well so I listen. I did not come out and ATTACK Bret or INSULT him in my ORIGINAL post the way he did ME in his response. Yes I didnt take the high road in MY RESPONSE to him but screw him!, Im not gonna take that from ANYONE especially someone I paid money to for product...

Was my post an attack? I dont think so... was it written with a bit of frustration? Absolutely.

I think you probably could have worded that better. It looks like a call out.

Well I have yet another Ride Tech question that Tech support has left me hanging on... I called because I had a question on the upper arm bars in the rear... Called Tech support at 5:30 and asked what I thought was a simple question.. I have the upper arms that have a spherical end on ONE END.. The tech told me that the end with the spherical end on it (also where the adjustment nut is) should be connected to the tabs on the AXLE BUT when I looked at the 48 hour CAMARO build on youtube, it clearly shows it going into the CRADLE portion with a couple of aluminum bushings beside them.... OK so I was told to go online and look at the directions... told the tech they do no show it in the directions with Spherical ends they show it with the same hard BUSHING ends even checked the camaro installation pages with and without double heim joints the pictures and directions are the same...... So the tech tells me that he will have to go out back and CHECK them out to see and that he will call me right back... Hey guys, I know it was 5:30 and I didn't know you close at 6:00 BUT when you tell someone your gonna call them back, if you don't plan on doing it until the next day then you should at least give them the courtesy to say "hey I may not be able to get back to you today cause we close at 6pm but Ill get back to you tommorrow"... instead of just blowing it off all together and potentially have someone sitting in their shop waiting for you to call them back (like I did!!!). Just pisses me off that I had to call back after an hour to find out that everyone had gone home for the day...

BRET has been great in the past but I know that when you own your own business you are going to care more than anyone else and BRET obviously does due to the fact that I have seen him comment on here before WAAY after hours. He is the man for sure but this has been frustrating to me cause its the SECOND time during this build that this has happened to me with TECH SUPPORT..... ANYWAYS, can someone steer me in the right direction on how these arms go in? Is the "48 hour camaro" video ON YOUTUBE right having the spherical rod end go into the CRADLE with the adjustment nut OR does that spherical end and adjustment nut go into the axle tabs? BTW I have a MOSER axle with the tabs already installed so that is gonna be a big help. Oh and if you answer back BRET please know I am not trying to trash your company. As an owner of a business myself I would want to know if someone or something needed to be addressed in my operation.

Thanks in advance

Mark
TOOFUN

[new 1968]

great job brett ,,as a shop owner myself that (we will bend over backwards and not bend over forward)will have printed up an put in my office wall in plain view,if anybody else wants one contact me ,,(if brett doesnt mind me steeling it)
[email protected] and soon i will be chatting with ride tech for my wifes build,1968 camaro lsi rs for some parts

[barraza]

tech support promised a return call, but failed to do so

The real issue is going on a forum an bitching after giving tech support 30min to find the answer. Even after going to the manufacturers website and seeing how they were installed on their OWN CAR IN THEIR OWN SHOP. Any poking around would show that ridetech has a pretty good reputation for solving customer problems. Give them the chance.

[Vegas69]

---Eric

By the way, I think this might be a more pertinent quote:
"The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer" (Peter Drucker's, not mine)

In a perfect world, that makes sense. In the real world, their are certain people that you don't care to keep as clients. As I always say, you can't be everything to everybody.

[toofun]

The real issue is going on a forum an bitching after giving tech support 30min to find the answer. Even after going to the manufacturers website and seeing how they were installed on their OWN CAR IN THEIR OWN SHOP. Any poking around would show that ridetech has a pretty good reputation for solving customer problems. Give them the chance.

Another person that missed the point completely or at least didnt read the entire original post........oh and although that is a funny quote, I dont thing ANY OF YOU would be in business very long if you told all of your customers to essentially go fvck themselves...Mentality like that is why alot of people drop in and out of this business and very few survive. Half of you shops commenting probably wont be around 10 years from now with that attitude..

[chevelletiger]

I think bret should not had been so blunt,but in your post you did write his name in capitals which i hope was not to bash him.i do like more respect when im craping that much cash on parts.as for brets workers having to go home to wifes,kidsetc. Ive had to stay over countless times to machine or weld something because some bottlers line went down,you have to keep the guys happy and deal with there problem thats how it is.mind you bret is a cool guy,i think i would be angry too when we are in an economy like this we do spend when other cant on items we really dont need but like to have as hobbies.im not taking bret or your side just my .002 .maybe next time if any of us have a problem with a vendor we should pm them direct so it doesnt get ugly like this next time.phil

[zombiekiller]

I had to respond just to say,


Bret - I hope you'll also be at good guys nashville. I fully appreciate your stance and response and would like to shake your hand.

[killer69]

Pass the popcorn please..................

I know that with some customers it doesn't matter if you fly them to the moon, either the damage is done or there is no pleasing them. I am not saying that to you "toofun" just saying it, and the bend over/forward saying is not in my opinion saying Go F urself it is just putting it out there that there is a line in the sand that is all, and it's FUNNY!!
we take tech calls everyday, and I am going to go out on a limb and say "most" calls we get the answer is in the instructions. now I also understand that reading instructions and comprehening them can be confusing. I can't tell you how many times I see post where people are questioning products LONG before they actually pick up the phone and call the manufacturer............ ???? I don't get that. what is it with picking up the phone? you on the other hand DID call first. The fact that the guy who answered the phone didn't know the answer instantly, not surprizing given the fact that he is a sales guy and probably not the designer or installer.

Either way this is a ANOTHER mess i bet it the internet didn't exist you would still be a happy customer.

[barraza]

Another person that missed the point completely ........oh and although that is a funny quote, I dont thing ANY OF YOU would be in business very long if you told all of your customers to essentially go fvck themselves...Mentality like that is why alot of people drop in and out of this business and very few survive. Half of you shops commenting probably wont be around 10 years from now with that attitude.

Ok Mr Brilliant, how about telling the story with proper sentence structure, punctuation, and in English so us simpletons understand. It sure reads like you are bitching about ridetech after giving the tech 30 minutes to get you an answer. Did you really think someone was going to stay late to get you the answer instead of getting back to you during business hours? For all anyone knows, the tech headed back to the shop to get answers for several questions that had been asked that day. Was it worth going to a forum to vent so quickly? I obviously can't speak for ridetech, but it is tiresome seeing the forum bitch sessions for things that a vendor hasn't had a reasonable chance to fix. Not to mention that your complaints will exist forever out on the web.

BTW, my business has been going strong for 20 years.

[keithq69]

Add Content

[Rod]

it is tiresome seeing the forum bitch sessions for things that a vendor hasn't had a reasonable chance to fix. Not to mention that your complaints will exist forever out on the web.

I agree, nobody learns from that

I would like to be the first to ask for this thread to be closed
Thanks

[ace_xp2]

... So what did you do now? Lost 1 customer for life for sure and burned a bridge in my community cause anyone who sees my car is gonna get a copy of my so called "attack" with your response with it. Already showed it to a few shops this morning and they all couldnt believe that kind of response from a supposedly PRESIDENT of a company.

TOM... What you just saw BRET do was not leadership... it was a statement from someone with no CHARACTER but plenty of ARROGANCE!!! There is a difference. When you deal with customers that are paying alot of money for a product and they have problems with customer service, you should deal with it in a manner that not only cost you a customer, but in a way that doesnt cost you POTENTIAL customers that person may be involved with.. He may look like a big man in your eyes, but that was not a smart business decision.... NUFF SAID.

Win some lose some, as you can see he won a lot more respect (thus business) here than he has lost.
A man who'll not kowtow because someone can type all caps and make sidelong accusations (thirty minutes? this isn't a pizza) earns a lot of respect in my, and clearly others, books.

[keithq69]

Not sure what happened with my last post, iPad app.

I think it's unfortunate that things have progressed the way they have.
I understand how frustrated he was. He wanted to get something done and he was sitting by the phone waiting.
I've learned to take a deep breath. work on something else and come back to it the next day.
I think that's what Brett did.
If he was looking for an answer then I think that should have been the end of the post, he could have called Brett the next day and talked to him about his customer service concerns.

I'm all for good customer service and I think if you say you're going to call, then call but I'm not so rigid that I don't understand things happen sometimes.
My .02

Keith.

[68TTT]

wow... In looking for suspension ideas I ran across this thread. I work in the custom electronic business and I understand the value of both the needed time to clear my head and the need for customer service. My customers will call me on my cell at all hours of the night if something doesn't work! I have listened to peolpe yell about something not working and after they are long and out of breath I then tell them to change the batteries in the remote, or to press the power button sometimes for a fix. And because a soft answer will turn away wrath, I will continue to have return customers. Sometimes staying 15 minutes late will save you from hours or days worth of frustration. Some days you stay late, some days you go home early. Doesn't it balance out for most of you guys? And when it comes down to a sales guy not knowing a technical question, I understand it from both sides but I don't think it right. My sales guys don't know the products or solutions nearly as well as I think they should and the tech guys don't have the customer service skills to keep anyone happy over the phone, they are hands on guys. And when it comes down to calling someone for help on a project, I tell my customers to always call me FIRST, and I tell my programmers that can't figure something out to call the manufacture for help. I don't want my customers to think of anything bad when they are using something they got from me, it should be all smiles and warm feelings when the dust settles. And I don't want to pay my guys the higher than average rate to surf the internet to find an answer, thats why we buy highend gear for them to install. If it isn't in the instructions or even if it is we all need help with our projects sometimes. We all do this because we love what we do, whether it is a hobby or a job or a career. Now as of the posting something on the internet about a company, I think there never would have been a post if he got a call back, but I don't agree with venting it on the net unless it is something that someone has done to intentionally screw someone. We are all human and everyone knows that near the end of the day when your cleaning up and trying to organize things so you do loose something when the cleaning crew comes through, you may forget to call that person, or to get milk on the way home, or to place that stop payment on your child support check (jk, i never wrote the check to begin with, cause im not divorced, yet, my car build has just started and she hasn't seen the sacrifices that will be made to pay for this).

...the end

[toofun]

Well said 68TTT. I think this thread will actually be a great resource and learning experience for customers and businesses alike...... Heres why.

1. Potential customers should look at all the responses here and take note of the shops, companies, and vendors that responded. Look at the way they handled themselves, how they answered, some took the side of the customers, others took the side of the vendor, the smart ones took an objective view of both sides and responded in a very professional way expressing their opinion while not offending anyone I guess at the end of the day when you look at these vendors, shops and companies you need to ask yourself "is this the way I want a person Im gonna buy parts, service, or projects from to treat me?" and "is this the way they are going to handle a problem that comes up?"

2. Businesses could definately use this thread as a training tool to aid in customer service calls they receive. Take note of the frustration the customer felt and look at how it was handled. In the beginning the responses were professional but in my case the President and Owner of the company came out an attacked me personally!! I know in my business I would want my customer service, sales and anyone who would be talking on a phone or email to treat customers with respect and although some customers can be unbearable they still are the ones that make paydays possible. But for them to do that, I have to be willing to do that myself. That is leadership by example..

I know I have learned a great deal on this thread. I applaud the ones that took the high road in this discussion. You may or may not agree with me, but you didn't have to...You have not only gained my respect and future business, but also have gained it from potential customers as well who have stumbled across this thread with open eyes and dropped jaws....

[2gofaster]

I've learned over the years of being in business and calling on businesses that if you call after 5pm local time, you probably won't get a response until the next day. That includes if a customer of mine calls me that late. Be glad your'e not in the communications business. Our tech support calls to Avaya take weeks sometimes. Imagine trying to tell a customer who spent $1 million dollars on a new phone system that you can't fix their issue because the manufacturer hasn't given you a resolution in 2-3 weeks. Not fun. Could the gent you talked to at ridetech have called you back to say he wouldn't have an answer until the next day? Sure. But stuff happens. Happens to me all the time. I mean to call someone back and then someone else calls or someone else emails and I get sidetracked. That's life when you wear a bunch of different hats.

Knowing that Bret is on here after hours all the time(which you state in your post), you could have easily sent him a private message to let him know what was going on. Instead you flamed them openly, whether you want to call it that or not. What's the old saying? You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Seems to be applicable here. In this case, you caught the vinegar.

[Ron.in.SoCal]

Hmmm...Mark not sure I agree w you on this one. First off, Todd answered your quesstion in 12 minutes after you posted. Second, the install question/answer seemed to make (common) sense to me as I've asked myself the same and came up w the same conclusion. Third, I've dealt w all these guys - Brett, Blake, Donnie - and they're all great guys. Take the time to get to know them and I'm sure you'll agree w me.

A recent experience comes to mind that happened to me the day before you started this post. I'm working w a guy, small shop, on a fairly new product and never put into production in my application but has done so in similar ways. I called him and left a message. Got a call back and had a great converation but he was interrupted by the UPS guy and said he'd call back. I tried him twice later in the day and never got him. So be it. I called him in the morning again (this is me dialing him four times now), finished our conversation and made a new friend in the industry. I realize you were in the middle of the install and did not know what to do, but this is not life or death. No one is going to come out of anethstesia brain dead, right? Just sayin' Mark. Good luck finishing your install!

[68TTT]

To add one more thing... I've been looking for a good street friendly, hard cornering suspension for my '68 and I hear good things about the performance of the ride tech setup. Can anyone comment on the street manners of their system? I've been looking really hard at the BMR setup and I want to get away from leaf springs. The DSE setup is a bit too much money and modification for me. From what I read ride tech must be doing something right to have such a loyal following.

[Cole]

Too Fun, Did ridetech walk with your money, spending it on back orders, giving you the run around or to make the rent with no intention of sending you your product? Didn't think so..

I feel your post was to degrade the company that Bret has built and put them on defense. All the while knowing the way you worded it would be insulting to ridetech and co.

Having some knowledge on what it takes to build a company. i.e. all the hours, stress, and sacrifice to budget your time for the customer, the shop, and the family isn't a task that any of us have mastered. You will NOT please them all. I can appreciate Bret standing his ground on behalf of his employees. "You are only as good as your best employee" as I like to look at it. We are a team.

Its like this, put yourself in their shoes. You don't know what may have happened to the Guy or Gal on the other end. And to think and live like that makes a difference.

I spoke to Darren today as my builder did not see my spindles. He called both of us and then called later to confirm everything was on the up and up.

Two thumbs up!

-Cole


68TTT go for it. Great products with great customer service.

Well said 68TTT. I think this thread will actually be a great resource and learning experience for customers and businesses alike...... Heres why.

1. Potential customers should look at all the responses here and take note of the shops, companies, and vendors that responded. Look at the way they handled themselves, how they answered, some took the side of the customers, others took the side of the vendor, the smart ones took an objective view of both sides and responded in a very professional way expressing their opinion while not offending anyone I guess at the end of the day when you look at these vendors, shops and companies you need to ask yourself "is this the way I want a person Im gonna buy parts, service, or projects from to treat me?" and "is this the way they are going to handle a problem that comes up?"

2. Businesses could definately use this thread as a training tool to aid in customer service calls they receive. Take note of the frustration the customer felt and look at how it was handled. In the beginning the responses were professional but in my case the President and Owner of the company came out an attacked me personally!! I know in my business I would want my customer service, sales and anyone who would be talking on a phone or email to treat customers with respect and although some customers can be unbearable they still are the ones that make paydays possible. But for them to do that, I have to be willing to do that myself. That is leadership by example..

I know I have learned a great deal on this thread. I applaud the ones that took the high road in this discussion. You may or may not agree with me, but you didn't have to...You have not only gained my respect and future business, but also have gained it from potential customers as well who have stumbled across this thread with open eyes and dropped jaws....

[scherp69]

I agree, nobody learns from that

I would like to be the first to ask for this thread to be closed
Thanks

I second it. This will just keep going back and forth if not closed.