02MaximizedVQ

WizzaMax------><------Maxwell Town North Nissan

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

Dayyyymn! I wish I could write like that.

I could only find $663.71 worth of receipts and that doesn't include the HIDs(or was that before he moved to Maxwell?). Anyways, I'm going to hit the $$$$ side of the equation and then fill in the AWESOME parts knowledge and EXCEPTIONAL customer service.

Keep up the CONSTRUCTIVE letters guys.....I truely appreciate it!

Maximum Velocity

iTrader: (3)

Dave, all I have to say is.."WOW!" I'm sure like many others, I am in utter disbelief about this whole situation. As the old saying goes, "it only takes one bad apple to spoil the whole bunch." I believe it adequately describes this particular situation. To you, I send my greatest thanks for everything you've done for me and everyone else. I truely believe that you've not only made the Nissan owning experience better for people nationwide, but you've made some lifelong friends/acquaintances as well. And to have these many people stand behind you says something more than all the money in the world. It's priceless.

I wish you the best in all future endeavors and if you ever consider working for a Nissan parts department (and are willing to relocate), I highly suggest one of the dealerships here in Hawaii. I truely think you'll do wonders for them, since they deal exclusively with Nissan of Japan. Also, I know the owner of the dealership, he's our family friend and lives right down the street from me. (sorry, had to put my two cents in...it doesn't hurt to ask right) But take care and you truely were the best in the business. Much thanks and good luck!!

woosh

Like the other members said,

*** PLEASE MAKE SURE THE EMAIL IS PROFESSIONAL AND CONSTRUCTIVE. ***

If I may suggest, the email should state at a minimum:
- how professional and courteous a person and an asset as an employee, David is.
- If you can provide copies of sanitized receipts or tell your story of a personal jam Dave has helped you out of (I'm sure we all have one)
- make it clear that your business will leave with Dave, if no favorable resolution can be made.


At a minimum we'll have provided them with hard facts of his personality, quality of work and the customer base he brings to the table. If this does not get DaveB a favorable outcome, we can always resort to medieval ways a few days after, org style!

for now, keep it professional
SHIFT_woosh

TimW

iTrader: (6)

also, keep in mind, they didnt drop Dave directly. They dropped discount part sales all together. Even if they hired Dave back, he wouldnt be in wholesale sales (although Dave having a job is good thing That dealership isnt interested in our money.


Dave's bread and butter is body shops for I believe most of TX. From what I understand, that network of shops is Dave's forte'. I doubt he'd want to work the retail parts counter if they offered it to him.

We were only a small part of his day, albeit we probably consumed a disproportionate amount of time I imagine that is a competitive high volume, low margin business. I suspect the logistics (high volume) make it an easy target for cost cutting, regardless of how shortsighted.

LouE37

Those RAT BASTARDS!!! Dont they know how valuable you are to us Max guys. Im sorry to hear about your situation...hopefully everything works out. Thanks for all your help in the past and hopefully in the future. Good Luck!!!

Dario

iTrader: (1)

i sent my email in as well.

Dave im sorry to hear the misfortune and wish you the best of luck. whichever place u go let us know we ALL will follow. One's loss is another's gain....

Colonel

To see if any email that is sent gets any response what so ever. Or can we expect to see the typical "blow you off, I dont need your money" casual lack luster inconsiderate attitude that I see more and more from Nissan dealerships?

And on top of it all, NMAC really does not seem to give a rats rear (Not that they can do one thing in this particular situation). And this can be proven by all the "garbage" stories when people call in with true complaints.

These kinds of decisions prove to me more and more that Nissan is no longer an option for me. At least when you go to other companies you get support for their product from their people. Nissan just hires bozos (read: unintelligent, uninformed, unable TO perform) that really are only there to collect a paycheck.

Good Luck Dave in you future endevors. Let us ALL know where you land (regardless of make) so we can give you the business you so honestly earned!

T-bone

iTrader: (1)

Dave,

I am sorry to hear about your bad news. I just placed an order with you on Monday! When my parts arrive, I will write a constructive letter to the delearship regarding my experiences with you.

Thank you, Dave. Good luck.

Y2K2Driver

iTrader: (1)

I couldn't agree more. I recently went to my local Nissan dealership to order some nuts which I thought was going to be a very painless transaction. Well, of course the idiot at the parts counter messed up my order 3 times, and that includes the time I spent 1/2 hour talking with him to get him to understand what I wanted (I basically had to point to it on a diagram though this was a very easy part to locate if you know anything about cars, which he apparently didn't and could have cared less about). After about 3 weeks of waiting, I just said the hell with it and told the guy to cancel the order. He didn't even blink an eye, could have cared less, and gave me an attitude when I questioned why it was taking so long. What has happened that customer service is no longer a priority? I don't know, but do know that Dave not only knows his stuff, but is extremely curtious, and treats his customers with respect. That is all anyone can ever ask for. He has gone well beyond what is required and that says something about the person he is. Dave, I'm sorry this happened to you, they really don't know what they are losing. I can only hope that another dealership will see the knowledge that you possess, see that as a strength, and hire you quickly. Good luck.

DAVEB

iTrader: (133)

Once again, thanks guys. I am overwhelmed by this show of support. Especially you, Alex. Tim- I appreciate your thoughtfulness, but there is no harm in people contacting Mr Worfe. He comes from a background that has not prepared him to accurately assess what goes on in this new business- As a relatively high-paid non-bigshot with that nasty word "wholsale" attached to my title, I was just a too convenient sacrificial lamb.
As good as it is for him to hear from you guys, I might need your help again with prospective employers!

Y2KevSE

iTrader: (13)

I will send an email with the Maxima.org email address when I get home.

Shaydz

iTrader: (2)

Dave,
You have been a great source of info and the "inside" guy we can trust. I just sent an email to your GM. It was in my typical business prose not for the purpose of bringing you back but informational from the standpoint of their dealership has basically been blackballed for it's shortsightedness.

If you can move to other areas of the country, there are others that have ties to Nissan dealerships. I would be glad to talk to my local dealership to see if they want to take advantage of internet wholesaling.
Also, you might PM TonyLittle. He works at a dealership in Va.
(Or if you see this, Tony, chime in).

Either way, hope someone takes advantage of your customer base and your reputation (and pays you well in the process).

Shaydz

Galo

I know how much you were an integral part of this network....email sent as well and needless to say, you will have DOZENS AND DOZENS of folks who will vouch for you at whichever dealer you choose to apply at.
Good luck
galo

VQ35DE

I hope this dealership will change its mind!

asu174

iTrader: (11)

E-mail sent.

And please, everyone, keep this professional. No name-calling or immature stupid stuff- especially if you have never bought anything from them. You only hurt his credibility if you do something silly like that.

Hello,

I'm sure you have received more than one e-mail about the termination of David Burnette, but here is one more to add to the pile.......

I originally met Dave online through Maxima.org, a Maxima enthusiast website. After hearing numerous recommendations for him from other members, I decided to give him a try for some parts I needed. I was astonished at the level of service I received. He was always 100% courteous and professional when dealing with me and delivered parts in an extremely timely manner. Once, he went as far as to dissect his own car in order to find a simple bolt that he could not locate in his parts book.

Every time I called there and spoke to Dave, he remembered who I was and provided me a level of service that I could only wish to provide to my own clients. The prices were great, but the service is what kept me coming back. Once, I actually left my car on a rack at my local mechanic because I chose to wait for my strut mounts to arrive here from Maxwell, versus having to deal with a local dealership here in Phoenix. Dave just made it easier, and I knew that I would be getting the correct part the first time when dealing with him.

I could go on and on, but I am guessing that you probably haven't even read this far, considering you had enough haste to fire Dave. Just know that I will no longer be ordering any parts from your dealership, so please feel free to remove my name and contact information from your system.


Andy Logan
Account Executive
*** Media

Larrio

iTrader: (10)

well guys.... someone actually responded to my email and several sent by other org members:

Since reading your emails to the General Manager I felt inclined to respond to your comments. Several comments made about Dave Burnette could not be more true. His product knowledge is extensive and his customer service skills are excellent. That being said, one comment made was that Dave Burnette was fired. That is an untrue statement as a "firing" alludes to some sort of misconduct, breach of policy or poor job performance. Dave Burnette was laid-off due to a reduction of work force and for no other reason. The profitability of the wholesale program in general and the internet program in specific has not met or exceeded corporate set benchmarks for quite some time. The basis for the for the profitabilty shortfall was due primarily to the deep discounts given to secure your business. Combining that with consistently misquoted freight charges as well as paying freight for any returns caused the program to fail to stand on it's own merit as it had to do to survive. Also to set the record straight for all of you the General Manager was not directly responsible for the action taken. As Dave Burnette's immediate supervisor as Parts Director the decision made was mine. If you wish to comment further, please address them to me at kgriffing@maxwellauto.com and not to Mr. Worfe.


Kurt Griffing
Parts Director
Maxwell Town North Nissan Mitsubishi
Nissan Dlr 2304 Mitsubishi Dlr 44085

asu174

iTrader: (11)

Something smells fishy in Texas.......

TimW

iTrader: (6)

heh, misqouted freight.. he meant 'fair' freight. :/

That's odd.. The only thing different about Courtesy and wherever Dave happens to be is about 10 cents and getting the right part every time and in a timely manner. (not a knock to Courtesy, but anyone that has dealt with Dave understands) There are lots of wholesale parts dealers who are appearently making it :/

Heh, 'profitabilty shortfall', we're making money - just not the enough

Hobert

I received that response too. We all figured it had to be something business related rather than his individual performance. But how could it not have been profitable? If you have a parts department anyway, it seems selling stuff to body shops and to people like us on the web should have been able to make money.

Colonel

Well isnt that an interesting comment? If there are "problems" with a system, usually there are meetings, discussions, problem solving sessions to try and save it, reduce losses or basically prep the over all system that changes are coming.

It would be interesting to see if Dave was aware of such problems and "nobody" did anything? At "our" company we knew impending "layoffs" or reduction in work force were coming because quarterly numbers were not being met ("for quite some time"). Strategies were adjusted to make up revenue. Unfortunately, even though we came close, the decision to cut was still made. I am curious if "management" gave Dave any warning or allowed him to make adjustement to the program.

asu174

iTrader: (11)

Colonel, you hit the nail on the head.

Y2KevSE

iTrader: (13)

Igor911

iTrader: (10)

This is a crazy story. I for one, ordered many many parts from dave over and over.

NOT EVEN ONCE did i ever have a problem.

I just also recieved a survery from nissan for Maxwell.

I will definatly comment on this matter in the comments section.

I believe Maxwell Nissan just lost a great deal of customers and a great EMPLOYEE!

blackY2Kmax

Exactly - if there were problems, something should have been said. Like, 'hey - we're really getting beat up with these deep discounts and freight charge issues. I need you to make sure that we are charging the right price per our set standards or else action will have to be taken'. Then, if nothing changed,then at least there was a discussion held so that goals were clearly communicated. It seems like since Dave and his immeidate boss were both surprised by the move that no such feedback was ever given. Seems like they were 'looking for a reason'. But, that's just me.

TimW

iTrader: (6)

I'm sure parts at wholesale prices is a gray area for them. They certainly arent going to promote discount parts to us.

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

Hmmmn....Who are they comparing themselves too? Courtesy Nissan?

Courtesy Parts Website--->http://www.courtesyparts.com/

Maxwell Parts Website--->http://nitra.nissandealer.com/townnorth/en_US/

Anyone see WHY Maxwell web sales weren't upto snuff? Pretty clear to me.

Padsy

iTrader: (1)

Sorry to hear about this Dave, we will support you any way we can.

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

However, you do see that these are sales they would NEVER see, ie profit in addition to profit.

People on the internet are typically from out of the area, so Daves' Internet Sales are tapping into a market that Maxwell would never see otherwise.

Any profit is better than none, right?

jjs

Crap!! Miss one day and the world goes to hell!!

Dave, not sure if relocation is in your plans, if so, please try Mossy or Baker Jackson here in Houston. Can't really say I love the dealerships, but they may be open to your abilities and style.

y2kse

iTrader: (1)

Kurt,

I understand that you’ve decided to terminate the services of Dave Burnette. I don’t know Dave personally, but I’ve had numerous dealings with him over the years. In every instance, he has provided me with absolutely first-rate service and support. When it comes to purchasing Nissan OEM parts, my loyalty is to Dave. I will continue to do business with him regardless of where he ends up.

Goodbye and good luck.

AFAIC, you are still THE MAN, Dave. Let us know where you land.

Bruce (y2kse) . . .

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

I believe you would be a PERFECT Parts Guy for an Infiniti dealership, because of your Nissan/Infiniti cross parts knowledge and SUPURB customer service. However, I doubt they would need your internet sales ability.

You need to get into the HIGH END automobile parts department. If you were in Tucson, I have 2-BMW dealerships(1-car/1-motorcycle) owners/friends of mine that would be pretty easily talked into meeting with you.

Just an idea.

jjs

Do you have the address you sent that to? I would be interested in showing support as well. I agree with your approach as well, no outrage, just simple statements of the way it is.

MaxDoogie

Dave has always been my number 1 go-to guy when it comes to Nissan parts, and he will always be, no matter where he shows up...Whether it be when he took the time to get me detailed pics of the 2K2 HID's to help me with my upgrade, or providing me with the correct parts for the 300zx brake upgrade (which my local dealer screwed up), Dave has always been there, not only correctly, but in the quickest manner possible. I have spent thousands of dollars for nissan parts, and mostly due to Dave's suggestions and help

I hope Townnorth realizes how much business they are going to lose from losing Dave. No more internet sells, and I can almost guarantee no more out-of-state sells.

Dave has never been anything but courteous, and I have enjoyed every time I have talked to him on the phone. I truly feel like I am losing a wonderful friend, and my thoughts about Town North nissan have dramatically changed.

Dave, please let us know where you end up, as I will be your customer for every nissan part I ever purchase...I wish you the best, and please let us know if you need a reference anywhere else. We, as a community will be there for you

jjs

OOppa! Just say the stickie!1

Sorry.

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

Did you email the GM?

Anyone buy G's worth of parts NEEDS to send an email at least.*cough**Kev**cough*

Thanks.

Trunksu

sorry dave. i just read the thread. I've only ordered one item from you but it was the easiest, smoothest, and hassle-free transaction i've ever made. you're the best and I really do hope they'll re-open your position. I'm sure there are tons of other dealerships that will want a knowledgable person like you. I too, will send an e-mail to Townnorth. Hang in there man.

MaxDoogie

I'm at work right now, but I will be sending him an email tonight

IceY2K1

iTrader: (3)

We need members to step up and mail in letters also.

Email is too easy to just click 'Delete'.

y2kse

iTrader: (1)

Kurt Griffing, Parts Director, kgriffing@maxwellauto.com