Is GM a scam?

[jumpup]

I posted some days ago that I received some defective merchandise and it appears now that I'm going to get stuck with it! 

There were suggestions to contact GM and I did.  However, they have not been helpful at resolving my issue, in fact they were not even responding to my e-mails 

I then corresponded with them via PayPal and then got some replies, but without any real resolution.

I'm screwed guys - I'm out of pocket in excess of $1,100 (with customs and taxes) and have some defective junk to show for it.

On the other hand (according to PayPal) I can spend another $400 in postage etc. to send this junk to Singapore and will then get a refund of $900.  Then I'm out of pocket only $600, but I'll have nothing to show for it.

Grrrr.....

Any advice?

[DirtyGinge]

open an official PayPal dispute.....that should help things along...

it appears the imminent release of mp3 won't change the fundamental issues......

[GM Canada]

Hi Jumpup,

Sorry to hear you are still struggling with this issue. Did you tell GM you would accept the 36V12AH liepo4 battery as a replacement? If so how long ago? There seems to be a new person in taking care of these things at GM China. His name is David wyh@goldenmotor.com. I am not sure if that’s his job or not but he was involved in sending the replacements out in a recent issue. I would suggest pasting all your email conversations into a txt or word document and sending it to him.

I cannot dispute what gingy is saying. When I first started posting in this forum it was full of people with issues. That was over 2 years ago now. After about a year of seeing so many people with issues and no resolve I started asking people for a copy of their receipts and email conversations with GM China. The amount of issues declined rapidly and many of the people I asked the information from were never heard from again. I assume they were just trolls stirring things up and this made it even harder for people to get help when they were sincere. There were so many grateful people that is how I ended up as Super-G with a superman uniform. I think Monkey posted I deserve a cape and 317537 found a picture on a greeting card and uploaded it to the forum. I think there was more to it than that but it is a while back now. I am sure all the recent spam in the forum was just another attempt to disrupt things as I really doubt anyone is dumb enough to follow any links associated with spam.

Anyway I think I am getting off topic here....

Even though there are less issues in the forum then before there still seems to be a problem with response directly from GM China. I don’t understand why but I can't deny it. I would think they would grow a lot faster by putting more effort on customer service then on new product development. Of course they should not give up on improving products, but a better balance between the two would go a long way. When I think about the amount of email I get daily, it must be tenfold for them. If they don't have a person dedicated to answering email then I would think it’s impossible to keep up with it.

They have stated there is an intention on only selling through the dealers. This would certainly improve the customer service issues, but I don’t see it happening as they make more profit on selling directly to the public then through a dealer. Implementing this system would be a challenge as well because most dealers don’t carry a lot of stock. Believe me carrying everything GM sells in stock is a major undertaking and if it is only a small part of a bicycle business or a part time thing with a regular full time job (like me) it is difficult to justify the investment. In my two years as dealer I have made a few dollars of course. But nothing like most people would think. I still work full time and do this evenings and weekends. Any profits I have made I have re-invested in stock and the half dozen or so Bikes I have. (Isn’t it terrible when you don’t actually know how many bikes you have without thinking about it a bit)

Anyway, if your email to David still receives no response, let me know.

Gary
garysalo@goldenmotor.ca

[jumpup]

Thank you for the replies.

All e-mails I have received to date are from David.  He did offer to send a replacement battery, but of lesser capacity than what I had purchased.  He also offered to refund the cost of the battery, if this lesser replacement was not acceptable. 

I then asked about the 48V10Ah, but it turns out that the throttle will then have to be changed.  I also asked about the software, as it appears that I can't connect to the internal controller.

I went for a 36V system because it was the highest capacity battery on offer (576Wh or 36V16Ah) at the time and the replacement on offer (36V12Ah, or 432Wh, or 25% less energy) was not acceptable.  I opted for the refund they offered, hoping to purchase a battery elsewhere.

Everything then went quiet - I heard nothing more from them and decided then to communicate via a PayPal dispute.

I received a reply from GM that my e-mail address must be faulty, as their replies to my e-mails were being bounced back - funny it happened all of a sudden... 

Anyway, I asked for the refund (battery only, no shipping, no tax, no nothing apart from the battery) via PayPal and waited.

The days passed, but nothing happened until I escalated it to a claim.

Now everything is going down the toilet fast - PayPal advised that I must send the merchandise back - I presume they mean all and not just the battery (it is not clear) and then they will refund my purchase.  But this is not what I want...  As stated before, with this option, I shall the be out of pocket $600 with absolutely NOTHING to show.

I have since asked for a replacement battery, but still have receive no reply from GM.

This is a most unfortunate situation.

Gary, you do deserve the Super-G!!  Thank you for your help.  I was considering becoming a supplier in Ireland, as ebikes are now fast becoming more popular.  However, I note your experiences on it and together with my own experience to date, I don't think that remains an option anymore.

[GM Canada]

Hi Jumpup,

Cut and paste all your email into a txt or word doc and send it to me at garysalo@goldenmotor.ca and I will forward it to my contacts at GM China. If you can not do that then forward me every emai you sent them and every reply you received. I would suggest you try to settle for the 36v12ah lifepo4 battery. It may be a few dollars less in value but it is a much better battery. The chances of getting a refund from GM china without sending the product back is unlikely in my opinion.

Gary

[jumpup]

Cheers, Gary!

I shall forward information, as requested...

[jumpup]

With Gary's help I got a replacement battery and all appears to be okay.

GM obviously is not a scam - I eventually got what I paid for, however the customer service in my experience wasn't great.

Maybe if I could speak Chinese, it would have been easier...

My only advice on this matter is to purchase from a dealer and not directly from GM - yes it was a couple of bucks cheaper, but it took months to sort the mess and without Gary's help it probably would have taken much longer.

[Andrew]

Good one Gary.  Again you mop up the mess, you have the patience of a Saint

[GM Canada]

Its a bird! Its a Plane!! No its ........

Gary

Thanks for coming back and letting us know its finally sorted out