Relentless ******ion and Unending Harassment by Honeydew Car Service

I hope this message finds you well. My name is Mongi Mthombeni, and I am reaching out to share a distressing ordeal I have been facing with Honeydew Car Service City regarding my Chevrolet Spark.

The journey to a reliable and functioning car has turned into a nightmare spanning several years. I take responsibility for not seeing the signs of incompetence early on, but like most of you, I do not understand the intricacies of car maintenance beyond standard driver procedures. A person must place trust in the integrity of a business and its service professionals. I am inclined to lean toward the trust of professionals. But it is clear now what kind of business Car Service City is. I do not say this lightly and hope the evidence will lead you to the same conclusions.

My Chevrolet Spark, which has never had any problems when previously brought in for service with other service companies has had nothing but problems since engaging with Car Service City. Back in 2017 I took it to Northgate Car Service and was charged a whopping 30,000 rands to ‘fix’ issues. I paid for that, suffered the immense loss, and hoped the car would simply need a service next time.

Of course Covid happened and for 3 years the car was driven on rare occasions such as to the shop and back. Towards the end of 2022, I took to Honeydew Car Service, thinking it would be good to have it checked over and serviced as I was out on the roads more. This began my nightmare with Car Service City generally and with a man named JP Booyens and his specific branch Honeydew Car Service City.

Since entrusting my car to Honeydew Car Service, it has suffered a catastrophic engine failure, leaving me frustrated, out of pocket, and without a working vehicle.

I initially brought my car to Honeydew Car Service for its 150,000 km regular service in October 2022, expecting a routine maintenance job. However, the situation quickly escalated when my car broke down within a week of the service.

The journey is long and painful and it is much easier to share the litany of incompetence and economic ********* by giving you a simple list of events.

Chronicle of Catastrophes:

October 15, 2022: Initial Service Quoted for a routine service at R4,000, I paid R4,739.38. November 9, 2022: First Breakdown occurred within a week of receiving the car. It simply stopped running. I spoke with JP Booyens who seemed surprised about the situation as I was. I trusted he had my best interest at heart and his professional service record. He had the car towed back to his shop. After a prolonged silence from Honeydew Car Service, I was told something about parts needing to be replaced. At the time I could not believe it as the car has always been well maintained and I had previously paid over 30,000 to a branch in Northcliff with no heavy use of the car in the 4 years previous (remember covid) I was now facing a new repair bill of R17,283.98.

December: Engine Oil Leak The car was returned with an engine oil leak. Driving it on my way home huge plumes of white smoke were emitting from the engine of the car. I was staying far out in Muldersdrift, so I coasted the car home at 40 km an hour. I took photos the next morning of huge engine leaks under the car. When I finally spoke with JP Booyens, he told me he fired his entire mechanics staff due to their incompetence. He said he fired the entire team.

April 15: Return from Abroad Upon returning from a trip abroad, the car failed to work again, and the service provider expressed confusion about the issue. The car had been in his care for months at this point and his lack of clarity of what the problem was, had put me in a position of despair. Should I cut my losses and run to another service provider? I wanted to believe him, since I was so in debt over the car. With his new staff he took the car back again and after two weeks, gave me the car claiming there was nothing wrong for sure now.

April 20: Breakdown in Melville I got the car around the 18th of April. The next time I drove it was on the 20th to drop my daughter off with a friend, where the car just stopped working completely for no reason. Desperate, as it was the weekend I had no access to JP Booyens and his ‘Experienced’ staff, with the help of the local gas station, We attempted to jump-start the car down a hill in second gear. This action would prove to JP Booyens way of excusing himself and claiming I broke my car AFTER it had already stopped working.

April 24: Engine Destruction On Monday the 22 of April, JP Booyens again went and picked up the car he had failed to fix. I received a message on the 24th that something extraordinary had happened. JP Booyens claimed the compression valves had warped, something he says is impossible and he had to invoice an additional R21,000 for repairs.

I cannot tell you how angry I was. How could this be? No matter how I questioned him, there was no explanation as to how this happened. But upon hearing that after the car did not start, I had attempted to jump start it, JP Booyens decided that was the issue, I was at fault and this was not his problem.

TO SUMMARISE:

The car has not worked since the initial service. I have paid R27,000 without receiving a functional car. The service provider demands an additional R21,000 and refuses to release the car until paid. The car is held as collateral over new costs incurred. Throughout the process, poor communication from the service provider has been evident. Unending Harassment: I am currently facing relentless ******ion and harassment from Honeydew Car Service. Despite evidence of their poor service, I am being charged storage fees after having paid for the car to be towed. The threats of additional charges persist, and I find myself in an untenable situation.

I have photographic evidence of the car leaking petrol mere hours after being returned, and audio recordings of conversations with JP Booyens, the manager, who continues to blame me for their service failures.

Conclusion: This harrowing experience highlights serious concerns about the quality of service, communication, and ethical practices at Honeydew Car Service. I appeal to your support to bring attention to this matter and ensure a fair and just resolution. Currently he is backdating charges of storage fees. All appeals for him to just release the car to me without any further costs have fallen on deaf ears. I have appealed to the main offices of Car Service City and they are inclined to take his side. Combined with the 30,000 I have paid to a previous branch, this company has cost me over 50,000 rands in service alone, not to mention thousands in Uber payments, putting my family under extreme hardship.