Fifer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 09:25 AM |
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MK Public Relations
Just a quick bitch really, I dont have an MK but whilst at the Staford show and having driven 400 miles to get there !, I spotted MK selling these
black double bubble type wind deflectors that fit in lue of an aero screen.
Asked the guy on the stand how much. (and I quote) "£30 , we just had them laying about and brought them to get rid of them" . I was
reaching into my pocket for the cash when he said (unprompted !) "if you give me ten minutes, I'll see the other guy on the stand when he
comes back and you may get it even cheaper". As a Scotsman and never one to spend money unnecesarily, I went for a wander for ten minutes, came
back, and spoke to a diferent chap than before explaining the conversation ten minutes ago with the other lad.
"£30 quid, you must be jocking was the reply, they are £40, we couldnt make them for £30 !"
The origional guy appears and standing sheepishly, allows me and the wife to walk away muttering ar**h***s
Just glad I dont have to deal with MK to get my car completed.
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Ben_Copeland
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posted on 24/3/04 at 10:05 AM |
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Cant really blame MK.. it was just the muppet on the stand, probably standing in while the other guy was doing something.
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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Fifer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 10:12 AM |
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I dont agree, if the muppet as you say was able to come up with £30 as the price, he / they, should stick by that or at the very least, offer
something off the £40 due to the confusion.
The point is, they both stood like Muppets and couldnt care less.
By the way, on the Luego stand, (and most other stands I visited) they couldnt have been nore helpful and attentive.
Just thought I would share my bitching with everyone !!!!
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Ben_Copeland
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posted on 24/3/04 at 10:19 AM |
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yeh, i suppose they should of said sorry about it. So do have to agree with you a bit.... did you try and argue the fact that he should uphold the
£30 ? Northeners can be a bit rude lmfao
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
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Hellfire
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posted on 24/3/04 at 10:36 AM |
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Hmm...
ALL IMHO OF COURSE
Although this is not an excuse it may 'at least' give a bit more insight.
MK are basically a manufacturing company, they are not a large corporate with mega-resources and the like.
Maybe, the "muppet" you spoke to was one of the guys from the shop floor, maybe not even working for MK, but a helpful hand for the day.
He would have felt like a fish out of water!
With 20/20 hindsight he may now realise he should have kept schtum, but he never he tried to help and verbally dug (what sounds like) quite a hole for
himself. The other guy obviously interjected but the damage was done. Again with hindsight - it's then damage limitation and the other guy
perhaps didn't help also - but let's not loose sight of the fact that initially the guy tried to help.
This is the underlying fact with MK - they genuinely tried to help - from how you speak, it sounds like you have had very little experience with MK
and as such your opinion now has become slightly tarnished. Sometimes mistakes are made and we have to live with that - and perhaps judging any
company based on one brief encounter is the wrong way to judge. Your consequent meetings with other manufacturers obviously went better, but does that
mean they become instantly better companies - I suggest not.
I think a term could be used here to it's best advantage - "Don't judge a book by it's cover"... we aswell as many, many
other's have found MK to be a wealth of information and as far as helpfulness goes the helpful pit seems to be almost bottomless...
I'm sure they are sorry for this incident - but I don't think they will loose sleep over it - and they will no doubt learn (as MK are good
at that) and act differently next time.
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Fifer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 10:38 AM |
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Breifly, but couldnt beleive one of them never said "tell you what, for you, today only, my freind etc etc, £35 quid" or something.
Was caught off gaurd so walked away pi**ed off.
My own fault i guess, should have just handed the first guy 30 quid and buggered off into the crowd
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Fifer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 11:00 AM |
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Thanks for the lecture hellfire, no prizes for guessing your cars badge !
You are right of course about judging books etc .
(Not so sure about tarnishing my opinion status though, a bit personal)
My opinion was, and still is, that the service, on the day, was less than profesional.
When you run a business, it's incidents like this that can do irrepairable damage for one or more prospective future customers, and that can,
and should bother all manufacturers.
My question to you is, where did the first guy get £30 from ? Are you sugesting that a "helper for the day" would just decide on the spot
what to charge for something and make up a story about just wanting rid of them !!
By the way, I wont loose sleep over it either
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A Badger
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posted on 24/3/04 at 11:10 AM |
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It's surprising how many companies can wind you up no matter how slick and professional they look and no matter how much they spend on making
themselves slick and professional.
I for one would rather put up with dealing with a comany who give it to you straight, even if sometimes that means that you have to make an effort as
well.
Just think how much the screen would have been if MK was trying to be different.
Having said that I think you just got to see the human factor, I agree an opps Sorry I gave you the wrong price and maybe a deal would have been in
order, but I don't always say the right thing so I'm sure others are allowed to.
We that's my opinion (Could be total boll*cks though)
Andrew
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Hellfire
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posted on 24/3/04 at 11:24 AM |
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dam you spotted the badge on the front - 10/10 for observation.
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Ant
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posted on 24/3/04 at 12:17 PM |
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Are you not also biased by knowing the founders of MK from your school days?
I, too, found MK to be less than professional at Stafford. Luego get a huge 'thumbs up' from me for spending plenty of time explaining all
the available options, and encouraging my 3 year old daughter to 'have a go' in the drivers seat. The only other company to come close was
Westfield, who gave me an info pack, rather than charging for it. Always nice to get something for free!
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shortie
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posted on 24/3/04 at 12:38 PM |
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Got to say that I have dealt with MK on a few occasions and also visited the workshop.
As Hellfire says by their own admission they are a manufacturing company and not salesmen.
I can only say that they have always been exceptionally helpful to me and as such I have ordered their kit.
Rich.
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Hellfire
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posted on 24/3/04 at 12:39 PM |
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Fortunate........ Yes. Biased?........... maybe so. But the opinion above is unbiased. People make mistakes - its human nature. All IMHO of
course
If you judge a company on first impressions - so be it.
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Staple balls
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posted on 24/3/04 at 12:48 PM |
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ladies. ladies.
so what? they screwed up a bit, it's a well known fact that MK are a little crap at the customer side of things, but then they're a small
company, and in that aren't gonna be working at a loss to please a single customer, if they did that. mk would cease to be and the locost/kitcar
industry would be down a company, allowing the prices to rise for all the competitors. of course, we won't look at the bigger picture,
you're the most important person in the world.
yes i am building an mk, that doesn't make me biased, that just means i've seen Mk in thier natural habitat of sitting around, drinking
tea and making the odd car here and there.
by no means are they a car company, more just engineers making stuff and then selling it.
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Fifer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 01:30 PM |
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Like i said at the start of the post, just having a bitch about something.
No one at home listens to me anymore so thought I'd do it here
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David Jenkins
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posted on 24/3/04 at 01:49 PM |
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quote: Originally posted by Fifer
No one at home listens to me anymore
Er... pardon?
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paulbeyer
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posted on 24/3/04 at 02:12 PM |
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C'mon Fifer you should know better than dare to criticise MK on this forum.
I too am building an Indy but I'll keep my thoughts and feelings to myself, although they have been shared with others offline.
7 out of 10 people suffer with hemorrhoids. Does that mean the other 3 enjoy them?
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dblissett
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posted on 24/3/04 at 08:42 PM |
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mk
i think fifer should be able to say what he thinks on here thats the whole point of the web site IMHO
i have dealt with both leugo and mk both companys were helpfull and there parts were both of good quality it just seems like a bad day on a stand for
a new boy to me
cheers dave
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Peteff
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posted on 24/3/04 at 08:49 PM |
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I've never had a problem with them. I went there today for some oval wishbone tube but I defend everybodies' right to criticise on here.
Anyway fifer sold me some alloys so I'll stick up for him
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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Hellfire
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posted on 25/3/04 at 08:40 AM |
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It's a forum, thats what its for. Moans, groans, laughs, criticism, praise etc etc etc.....
Well..... this section is. It would be a sad world if we weren't allowed to express our opinions
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Fifer
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posted on 25/3/04 at 09:00 AM |
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Best thing about these types of threads is the way they end up swerving around from subject to subject and end up in a discusion about something
completely diferent .
I'ts like the WW1 joke that ends, sorry about that, we thought you said "send three and fourpence were going to a dance" not,
"send reinforcements were going to advance",
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Hellfire
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posted on 26/3/04 at 01:02 AM |
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Not bitchin' though - it's all said with a light heart, nothing personal. We're all on here to help each other so... let the banter
continue... have fun!
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DEAN C.
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posted on 26/3/04 at 08:01 PM |
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Having myself helped MK on the stands in previous years I can vouch for how difficult it is if you are not used to the prices etc,I myself would have
been more cautious in giving prices without being sure.
It sound as if the person on the stand was a well meaning helper.
I have had my own business' and managed others as I now do,and it's not easy dealing with customers if you're not used to it.
If you have'nt done it it's easy to criticise!
I'm not making excuses for anyone,just saying it's hard to please everyone(especially tight scotsmen and southerners)
ONLY JOKING!!!!!!!
It's nice to see this didn't get too serious as we should all try to help each other and not keep bickering as has happened in the
past.And of course everyone should have a right to their opinions
DEAN........trying to be unbiased
Once I've finished a project why do I start another?
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andyps
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posted on 26/3/04 at 10:55 PM |
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quote: Originally posted by DEAN C.
Having myself helped MK on the stands in previous years I can vouch for how difficult it is if you are not used to the prices etc,I myself would have
been more cautious in giving prices without being sure.
It sound as if the person on the stand was a well meaning helper.
I have had my own business' and managed others as I now do,and it's not easy dealing with customers if you're not used to it.
If you have'nt done it it's easy to criticise!
I'm not making excuses for anyone,just saying it's hard to please everyone(especially tight scotsmen and southerners)
ONLY JOKING!!!!!!!
It's nice to see this didn't get too serious as we should all try to help each other and not keep bickering as has happened in the
past.And of course everyone should have a right to their opinions
DEAN........trying to be unbiased
Absolutely - but if you want to give a good impression it is vital that anyone given responsibility for dealing with customers (and potential
customers) should represent the company as it wants to be seen. No excuses - at least on here there are plenty of people who support MK and will
defend them, but what if someone who has no other experience of them had had this happen?
Andy
An expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less
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Peteff
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posted on 27/3/04 at 05:00 PM |
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send three and fourpence were going to a dance" not, "send reinforcements were going to advance",
I was that soldier. Everybody else was wearing full battle gear and I turned up in my tux with a flower in my buttonhole The corporal shouted
"over the top lad" and I said "well it's nicer than what they're wearing but I can get rid of the flower if I
must"
I made that up but what the hell.
yours, Pete
I went into the RSPCA office the other day. It was so small you could hardly swing a cat in there.
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DEAN C.
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posted on 27/3/04 at 07:45 PM |
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WHAT?
I've got a "Snap on" fleece top, does that count?
Think I'll go and lie down for a while!
Once I've finished a project why do I start another?
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