Tvs Motor Company — Faulty Scooter: Bought a scooter in Dec 2018 TVS Jupiter

Address:

TVS Motor Company Jayalakshmi Estates 5, Floor 8, Haddows Road Chennai Chennai District Tamil Nadu India - 600006

Sir / Ma'am,

I Bought A TVS Jupiter BS IV In Dec. 2018 Registered In My Son's Name. Previously, I Have Owned A Bajaj, Honda Activa For 12 And 14 Years Respectively. The Ownership And Service Experience With These Scooters Had Been Excellent In The Initial 10 Years. This Indicates That I Am A Long Term User And Maintain My Vehicle In Pristine Condition.
The Ownership And Service Of The TVS Jupiter Which Is Only Two And A Half Old Has Been Horrible. Since The Purchase Of This Scooter, I Have Faced START Problems, Spare Part Failure And Replacement, Frequent Breakdowns. Although, There Is A 5 Year Warranty, I Have Born The Expenses. The Scooter Has Been Regularly Serviced At A Company Authorized Service Center (ASC) And I Also Have An AMC With Them. This Has Resulted In Physical Agony, Mental Stress And Financial Duress.

I Have Listed A Series Of Incidents Which Makes It Evident That I Have Been Delivered A Faulty / Defective Scooter. Repeated Email Feedback, Complaints, Escalations To TVS Motor Co. Have Yielded No Results.

Year 2019:
I Noticed That The Fuel Filler Cap Was Ill Fitted. As It's Fitted In The Rear, It's Noticeable Only From A Side Angle. Secondly, The Spark Plug Spanner Was Missing In The Tool Kit. In The First Service, Which Was Done In The First Month, I Brought These To The Notice Of The Service Advisor At The ASC. He Replied That The Fitting Of The Fuel Cap Is Normal. In Some Other Scooter's It's Worse Than This. TVS Had Stopped Giving The Spark Plug Spanner In The Tool Kit. His Replies Were Quite Alarming. How Could A Reputed Brand Sell A Product With Poor Fit And Finish And Omit A Vital Tool?
Towards The End Of 2019, The Scooter Developed 'START' Problems. It Is Recommended To KICK START The Scooter To Prolong Battery Life. Me And My Son, Religiously Follow This Habit. KICK START Would Rarely Work So We Were Forced To Self Start The Scooter. After Service The START Problem Would Abate But Recur Within A Month Or So. The Indicator Switch Failed And Was Replaced At My Cost. Since It Was A Minor Part, I Did Check The Warranty Criteria.

Year 2020:
My Last Free Service Was Done In Jan. 2020. The Existing 'START' Problem Gave The ASC An Oppurtunity To Fleece Me. They Included Unnecessary Work In The Free Service And Gave Me An Inflated Bill. After An Arguement, The Bill Was Settled With Normal Charges. To Avoid Future Hassles Like This, I Took An AMC With Them. They Also Appointed A Service Advisor For Future Service Which Was The Only Positive Thing.

Year 2021:
This Year Has Been A Nightmare. In Jan '21, The Scooter Wouldn't Start. After Using All Options, The Kick Start, Choke, Self Start, The Scooter Refused To Budge. Being An Experienced Scooter User, I Diagnosed The Fault To Be A Clogged Or Faulty Spark Plug. I Tried To Access The Spark Plug But The Spanner Absent In The Tool Kit Did Not Permit Me. I Raised A Complaint With TVS Cust Care Who Were Prompt To Send A Mechanic. The Mechanic Tried His Best, But He Was Not Authorised To Repair The Scooter. So It Was Useless. I Called The ASC Who Promised To Send A Mechanic. I Was Given False Promises For 3 Days, No Mechanic Attended The Complaint. On The 4th Day, I Went To The ASC Which Is 10 Minutes Away From My Home. I Demanded For A Mechanic And Told Him To Carry A Spark Plug. He Accompanied Me And Found The Spark Plug To Be Faulty. Although Under AMC I Was Charged For The Plug. I Sent A Feedback Email Of The Experience.

In Feb '21, The Brake Lock Was Jammed And The Fuel Guage Stopped Functioning. After Refuelling It Showed An Empty Fuel Tank. With The Existing START Problem And New Issues, I Took The Scooter For Service On 10/02/21. While Taking Delivery, My Son Noticed That The Ignition Assembly Was Displaced.I Brought These To The Notice Of The Advisor Who Walked Off Giving No Reply. Then I Noticed Yellow Oil Paint Spots On The Front Fascia As It Was Parked Outside. I Brought These To The Notice Of The Manager Who Was Passing By. His Remedy Of Washing The Scooter In Plain Water Was Useless As The Oil Paint Had Dried And Was Unremovable. My Scooter Service Turned Into A Damage Event.

On 1st June '21, The Scooter Broke Down Again. It Wouldn't Start. I Raised A Complaint TVS_Gr_[protected] With TVS Cust. Care. A Mechanic From The ASC Came On 4th June '21 And Took Away The Vehicle. After Repeated Kicks He Had Managed To Start The Scooter. As I Had Lost Trust, I Went To The ASC, Called For My Appointed Advisor, Told Him Of The START Issue. He Guessed It As A Battery Issue. The Battery Was Removed And Sent For Charging To An External Vendor While I Waited In The Customer Lounge. I Happened To Notice That The Battery Was An AMCO Brand Which Is Unheard Of. I Had To Pay For Battery Charging. Later On, When I Searched The Internet For Similar Issues, I Found Numerous Complaints For TVS Scooters Fitted With AMCO Batteries.

The Battery Charging Worked For 10 Days. On 12 June '21, I Raised A Grievance With The Same Complaint No. A Mechanic From The ASC Visited On 14 June '21 And Diagnosed It As A Battery Replacement. I Insisted On The Replacement To Be Done Under Warranty. After A Conference Call With The Manager And Territory Manager Who Informed That The Battery Is Warranteed For 1 Year From The Date Of Purchase. I Argued About This As My Scooter Has Been Maintained By Them. It Was Decided To Send The Battery For Testing, Meanwhile A Service Battery Will Be Fitted. I Reluctantly Gave The Scooter. Frantically Called All Phone Nos, Finally Got A Callback On 17 June '21 That The Battery Will Be Sent For Testing And They Can't Give My Vehicle For Use With A Service Battery Fitted.
I Declined, As This Mean't That My Scooter Would Be Lying At The ASC Indefinitely.

Frustrated With The ASC, I Raised A New Complaint TVS_Gr_[protected]. I Got Calls From TVS Service Desk Who After A Couple Of Follow Ups Tried To Convince Me To Change The Battery At My Cost. This Is Unacceptable. I Have Raised A New Complaint Demanding A Permanent Remedy.

NO RESPONSE TILL DATE.