DiecastXchange Forum banner

CMC Customer Service

5K views 27 replies 9 participants last post by  mosteller 
#1 ·
As some of you know, I recently purchased a CMC SLR Mclaren and noticed one of the exhaust tips was missing, so I emailed CMC about it to see if they can send me that small part.

I got a reply (very quickly) that I should contact my dealer, as he can get the part from his distributor. As I had purchased this from a Toy Show, I didn't remember who the seller is. So I replied as such, and asked if they can send to me directly, and I'd pay the shipping costs.

Well, I got a reply today, and they want 25USD to ship it to me... TWENTY FIVE to ship that piece of tip that's less than 1 cm * 0.3cm*0.3cm in volume. All I can say is, WTF?

The good news (relatively) is that I finally found out who the seller is, and he has agreed to do a refund (no exchange). I'd much prefer to be able to get the part then refund it though.

Now my plea to all of you, do you guys know of anywhere I can get this part (driver side exhaust tip, 2nd one towards the back of the car) for less than that 25USD? If I can't get the part, I'll sadly have to do the refund :help

I can't believe my first encounter with CMC models has left such a bad experience for me :(
 
See less See more
#2 ·
I'm sorry to hear that bad news about CMC. You'd think that as the diecast is more expensive, somehow the customer service (pre & post sales) would increase too. This is one area where many diecast manafacturers could learn a lesson from Autoart.

Good luck Gary in your search for a replacement tip.
 
G
#6 ·
Thats a difficult one to call Gary. Personally i'd get a refund and keep an eye out for another SLR, but you might not be able to secure one in the near future for a good price.

I don't know - its up to you

(Sorry about not being very helpful :giggle )

:cheers
 
#7 ·
Thanks guys!

Felix: Well, I think it was alwasy mentioned on DX that CMC was one of the better customer service companies? Much better than Exoto, etc.

Motorshooter: no, I can't fab it... not only do I not have the skills, it's also metal :(

Jim: No prob, that's exaclty what I'm thinking about. If I can't get any news of a part replacement soon, I'll have to refund and hope to find one later (shouldn't be too hard, there's another Show in Nov hehe). It's just I might not pick up another one if I refund it, as I'm afraid of another little fiasco like this...
 
#10 ·
Louis: ya, I'm gonna give it a few days and see if I can get a replacement part from somewhere else... if not, refund time :(

Winston: weirdly, you're right. Maistos have all their parts :giggle I guess because so many parts go into a CMC, it's easy to miss a part :help
 
#22 · (Edited by Moderator)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}>[/post][/right]
I saw somewhere that the CMC SLR has over 800 parts. No Maisto can make up to that level. It must be hard to lose a part when the model is "almost build in one piece"

If I were you, I would get the refund and buy a new one. At least, now you know what it look like. It would be easier to pay the price when you know how good it looks.

...But hey!...It's just my opinion...and I respect it!!! :wink
 
#11 ·
They have to be visually inspected Gary. When you say they are handmade and cost the earth, the QC should be so much more thorough. I would expect them to go with a fine tooth comb atleast externally when they are supposed to make high quality products. No excuse saying there are so many gazillion parts in there. The customer is paying for that kind of detail.
 
#13 ·
Sorry to hear about the CMC response. I have emailed them about 3 weeks ago about a concern and have not heard back.
I do have a idea for you on your SLR. Return the car and look on ebay. There is a seller from Saskatoon and his ebay ID is "Duncalfem". He has been selling many of the SLR's for less than $200.00 Canadian. He has a item now #6980527131 and i believe it is the same color you have. He is a great seller (I have bought many cars from him) and recommend him highly.
Great seller and a great price on the car you want!

Hope this helps. A missing exhaust and $25.00 US to repair is crazy :scared

DC4ME :cheers
 
#15 ·
Gary, I concour 25 bucks is too much, probably because of the costs of shipiing. Just an idea, but what if some one got the part for you, like someone in Europe? Maybe the S&H would be lower, and then this person sends it to you. Adding things up could be a lot cheaper in the end.
 
#24 ·
thanks guys for the advice!

It's looking more and more likely I'll have to do the return. However, this little fiasco has really put my confidence in CMC, and I'm afraid to buy another one after that. Sure, this time it was something missing externally, where it was (relatively) easy to find. What if it was something inside? And what if next time, I'm not so lucky to be able to refund? That's what's worrying to me.

It's not that I don't want to give CMC another chance, it's just that these "chances" cost a fortune to give... and their "great" customer service doesn't help either.
 
G
#25 ·
CMC agreed to exchange the whole car after my friend's SLR turned up with a number of defects. Even though my friend had to pay for the return airmail, they did send him a brand new one at their own cost. While some would argue that he still was out of pocket somewhat, my friend is just glad that he is not stuck with a subpar model. These things do happen even with the best QC. Maybe the $25 charge is a standard charge? Be it a small part or a whole car. Looks like full refund is the best option here.
 
#26 · (Edited by Moderator)
Gary, if you are going to take the refund, do send an email to CMC and let them know that you are returning the model back to the dealer. Tell them that they have lost your goodwill and trust which you had for them. A company can afford to lose money, but loss of goodwill is a no-no.
Edit: Also tell CMC that there are a lot of guys at DX who have been disappointed by their new lack of customer support since they had heard and seen the better service from them in the past.
 
#27 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey, Gary, sorry to hear about your trouble, but I might be able to help you. I'm not promissing anything, but I'll call a friend of mine tommorow who has a crashed CMC SLR and see if I can find/get the part for you. The thing is that his SLR took a fall from his apartment window at the 4th floor and crashed roof-down on solid concrete (don't ask... :pullhair ) and I don't know how many parts broke off the car or if the one you're missing is still in place. Still, at first glance, the darn thing looked in pretty good shape for such a disaster. So, could you, please, post a pic (if you can find one) with that part so I'll know exactly what to look for?

:cheers
 
#28 ·
I'm sorry to hear of your problem and would have thought that CMC would have much better CS! For what its worth, I have 6 CMC's and they all came with all their parts.

A couple months ago, I posted a thread here of how impressed I was with GMP's CS; I needed a couple repair parts and they went to their "junkyard", got the parts and mailed them to me absolutely free. And these were parts that they were in no way responsible for needing replacement! :nicejob :nicejob

These companies (e.g., Exoto and now CMC) need to be reminded that it costs them a lot of money to attract a customer, but only pennies to loose one! :confused
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top