I am not one to air my complaints on a public forum. However, sometimes the service provided (or lack there of) is so incredibly poor it needs to be shared so others can avoid wasting time and money.

I went to AI Design several months ago to have them install a system in my 2005 E55. They seemed competent enough and I commited to the installation of 2 Audison VRX amps, 2 sets of Focal K2P speakers, a Focal 27KX subwoofer and the repainting of my rear spoiler...and thus began my journey in frustration.

When I went to p/u my car the trunk, where the spoiler was removed, was scratched so badly the entire trunk deck would need to be painted and the spolier was mounted off center. Further, there were several chips in my rear quarter panel were they apparently braced whatever tool they used to remove the spoiler. So now, my practically new Benz would require paint work I am sure this will do wonders for my resale value. It took them another 2 visits to attempt to fix this issue and I am still left with several chips in my quarter panel.

On to the stereo... After nearly 13k in labor and electronics it sounds marginally better than stock. Actually, at times it sounds like there is a wet towel over my speakers. I can't say I was expecting perfection, after all I didn't want to replace my factory navigation system, but I certaintly was promised more from my system.

As a last ditch effort to improve my sound quality I had them order the Rockford Fosgate 3SIXTY integration device. Upon AI Design recieving the piece they discovered they didn't have the necessary tool to install it. At this point I just wanted my car back. When I went to pick it up they insisted I pay the Rockford device even though they couldn't install it I told them to just return it. They refused and to add insult to injury they ordered the wrong one. Never the less I was out an additional $420 and had to listen to considerable attitude from one of the shop hands.

Bottom line: I will never go back to AI Design. There customer service, quality of work and general attitude is shameful.

 

I understand your disappointment , but without providing your location and the location of the installer we are left in the dark.

 

Hard to imagine that AI Design sunk that low in customer satisfaction......

 

I am in the Northeast. AI Design in in NY.

 

My sympathies. I hate poor customer service and in those situations you feel so helpless and ripped off.

 

That is ridiculous treatment!! When you drop $13K in someone's hands, they better be providing A++++ service in my books.

Did you talk directly to the owner of the business? Sometimes people that you interact with have no ownership in the business and go on power trips. Make the owner aware of what happened.. If it was the owner that you were dealing with, then, AI Design needs to wake up!!

It wont take long before this information spreads and their reputation becomes tarnished.. Make the owner aware of this thread and see how fast he reacts to fix the problems.

 

I agree. Raise hell with the owner and management......

 

Some, if not many, sound shops rip off customers on a daily basis through crappy work quality, lack of true product knowledge, and dumb-as-rocks installers, ESPECIALLY the more expensive ones. It truly pains me to hear story after story of audio systems gone horribly wrong.

BTW, are you using the OEM head unit? If you are, and if you really want your 13k system so sound like one, I can't recommend a JL audio CleanSweep enough.

 

Surprisingly I have been in touch with the owner. I even contacted him in a last ditch effort to make the situation right before I made a public post. He had no response.

 

Contact your local BBB office and your local news station to get help.

 

You've got to be kidding? The OWNER thinks that is acceptable treatment? WOW! He's doomed already.

I was going to order the Valentine V1 complete concealed display (rear-view mirror etched) for my car from them.. Thanks for the heads-up.. They will never see a penny of my money.

Very sorry about your troubles. Dont know what to suggest at this point. I wouldnt want to lose the integration capabilities of the stock head unit, so I definitely understand your position... rock.. hard place.

Good luck!

 

The BBB is a toothless tiger. Business owners know that 99.9% of consumers, especially car audio consumer (young kids) don't know how or never check with the BBB for a list of competent business owners. If there is a local TV station that would be interested in your case, that's the best bet. The problem is, it has to be sexy and usually requires that the consumer be viewed as a true victim. Owners of MB vehicles usually don't fit that demographic. The best bet is to post all over the car forums in the area and let the owner know you're getting the word out.

 

Here's a link to contact information for the AI Design people:

http://www.aidesign.com/frame_aboutus.html

I would suggest that other members of this forum send Matt and Chris emails asking why a company with their supposedly good reputation chooses to treat a customer in such a manner. If you decide to do so, send rotex a PM to get his personal info so they know to whom you are referring. Keep the comments to the point and non-aggressive.

 

Wow, this is really surprising to hear. Their reputation is stellar (their work a bit pricey though). I know Spero had them do his K2 as well as V1 mirror job and was very happy. I believe he ended up with an exhaust leak due to the header install and they actually paid a local shop to make the repair.

 

I brought the car to my body shop today and they are going to have to paint the whole rear quarter panel to appropriately take care of the chipping

I want to thank all my MBWorld friends who let me vent with regards to this situation...it definitely made feel a little better to express my frustrations to folks who understand what it's like to be picky about their cars.

 

We're all car nuts or else we won't be driving this car. My front bumper has a ton of stone chips as well and I also thought about getting it refinished and wrapped in 3M clear bra. There's nothing wrong with pampering your car. After all, it's an AMG. Thanks for posting your experience as I've been thinking about using AI for some mods. I guess they won't get my business now.

 

We are certainly disappointed that Rotex feels that AI Design had not delivered what he expected. We have built our business through 15 years of leading edge audio-visual modifications and performance tuning, developing a reputation for excellence in both technical execution and service both before and after a sale. AI Design can claim satisfied, repeat customers of all types, from simple one-hour jobs to major projects for corporate clients and world recognized automotive enthusiasts. We don’t advertise very much; the overwhelming majority of our business comes as a result of referrals from clients who have had their expectations exceeded by AI Design. This being said, with thousands of customers served over the years, even our best efforts may result in an unsatisfied customer. In the rare cases that this has happened, the disagreement typically comes down to a difference in perspective, but our goal has always been to do whatever we can to resolve problems for a customer to the best of our ability.

Forums such as MB World are valuable resources for enthusiasts to share information freely. As a rule, we do not jump into discussions about AI Design or our competitors as we feel that it can be unfair to the members of the community when a vendor tries to pontificate about their abilities, or promote their own agenda. This situation is an exception, because Rotex has decided that the only way he could feel satisfaction after his involvement with AI Design is to air his opinions on this forum, opinions that he is absolutely entitled to. In theory this is precisely what a forum is for. However, in this case, Rotex’s voicing his opinions as he has is defamatory and bordering on libelous, and therefore I felt it necessary to post a comment. What I will not do is go point-for-point with this customer in public. This type of “he said/she said” is pointless, as Rotex has his point of view on how things progressed and we have ours. Further complicating the matter is the fact that Rotex had a second vendor involved in this project, which was not mentioned in Rotex’s post and confuses the issue of responsibility.

As a service provider, what is most damaging is that in the environment of a forum there is no judge or arbiter to decide who is right and who is wrong. So, a customer can post what they feel is correct and the rest of the community will accept this as the truth, therefore damaging our reputation. In reality, AI Design can, in good conscience, refute all the issues raised by Rotex, but this is and should remain a private issue between the customer and my company. However, it is unfair to AI Design that someone can say that our “customer service, quality of work and general attitude is shameful” and intimate that customers would be “wasting time and money” by dealing with AI Design. We welcome anyone who wishes to come to our facility and see the work that we perform and to speak to some of our satisfied and loyal customers about their experience with us. Even more importantly, we can provide, on an individual basis, testimonials from individuals who have needed warranty satisfaction and have received the best care possible.

I hope my post will provide some balance to the opinions expressed, and that anyone who is interested in working with us in the future will give us the opportunity to prove that we can live up to our good reputation.


Best regards to all MB World members-

Matt Figliola, President
AI Design

 

Are you threatening rotex? His comments are "defamatory and bordering on libelous"?
Are you thinking that your pompous post will win back any customers?
Realize that you just lost more by reinforcing EXACTLY what Rotex was comlaining about.
Many of us, myself included work in the service business and your response is completely out of line and bordering on unprofessional. i would NEVER consider giving a cent to you or your thugs.
Please sue me for this as I'd love to take your $$

 

Matt,

Owning a Major Brand Service Center. I find it's always easier to satisfy customer's... no matter what it takes... before they leave the shop... then later.

And you did a great job of presenting you view of the story. But it's like when someone asks you if you still beat your wife... You of course say NO... but then they ask... when did you quit.

MachC5

 

For the record I toured AI's shop several years ago and was very impressed! You could eat of the floor and all most every car in the shop was high $$$. I spent over $13K with them when I owned my E55 and Matt, Chris and the rest of the team are top touch. As stated in a earlier post, I had a leak with my Kleemann headers and they paid a local shop to fix the problem no questions asked.

They have earned my business and I will be sending my 07 Z06 for the inegrated VI install since I feel they are one of the best shops in the US for this type of work.

I have had many conversions with Matt & Chris over the years and the behavior that is being discribed above seems very much out of line.

the Greek in MD

 

AI - make it better w/ Rotex or you've lost a lot of business. This forum is 'searchable' and this post is here FOREVER.

 

Which part are you refuting?
....the chipped paintwork,
....the crooked spoiler,
....the sound system that sounds like a wet towel over the speakers,
....or ordering the wrong part and then demanding payment???

These things seem all verifiable.

 

I had never intended to post the following information about my negative experience with AI Design, but I feel obliged to now, since the discussion has been opened.

I went to AI Design a few months ago to have them install the V1 radar detector w/ etched mirror display & a hands-free Bluetooth phone car kit. I dropped the car off in the morning & headed into NYC for the day. They were very cordial in the morning & I had no reason to suspect there would be any problems in customer service or installations.

I got back in the early evening to pick up the car. They showed me how to work the systems & I thought all was goodness. After that, things went downhill quickly.

When I was going to pay, they had trouble with their computer billing system. Now I work with computers so I understand they can be a pain in the butt. While they tried to work it out, I stood for at least 45 minutes waiting. At no time did anyone apologize or even acknowledge me. One of the co-owenrs walked into the office while this was going on, saw there was a problem, sat down at his desk & ignored me completely.

I know I only dropped $5K there that day, but I still expected to be treated with some amount of courtesy. To be honest, it made me feel like a piece of crap to be treated that way.

As I started using the hands-free car kit I realized that (i) it did not automatically mute the audio system when a call came in or I made a call. I knew the kit had this capability so I emailed them to see why they hadn't implemented this capability. In addition, the system did not use the car's speakers.

The person I spoke to (I forget his name, but he was a co-owner) told me that neither of these functions could be implemented with the E55 audio system. I was suspicious, so I went off to do some Internet research & became convinced that both WERE possible.

I contacted them again & this time spoke on the phone to the co-owner. He told me again that this was not possible & that their installer (i) had advanced training in MB audio systems, & (ii) had spoken directly to someone at MB about this. He assured me again that what I wanted was not possible.

To cut to the chase, I went to a local audio installer who spent about 30 minutes & charged me $50 to use the car's speakers & make muting work perfectly with the hands-free car kit.

I have to admit that the V1 install works wonderfully & is a thing of beauty. Nonetheless, I wil not use AI Design again. Sometime in the next few monmths I am looking at new wheels/tires & an exhaust system I will find someone else to do this work.

--
Hook

 

AI Design installed my radar detector and my stereo system a week after I purchased my car. If I said I was happy with their service, it would be an understatement. In my opinion, they are one of the best in the NY area. Especially when it comes to installing stereo upgrades and radar detectors for these cars. They have done a lot of this type of work on MBs.

Their shop is immaculate and I think they do top rate work. I was very impressed with my stereo upgrade. I had 4 Focal speakers installed with a JL Audio sub and 1 Audison amp. The stock stereo is a piece of crap in my opinion. (And I say that because a buddy of mine bought an M5 around the same time that I purchased my car and his stock stereo sounded light years better than my stock stereo.) I am extremely pleased with the sound quality of my new stereo.

Matt and Rotex I am very sorry to hear about your problems. I do not think that this 1 experience is representative of AI Design's workmanship at all. They have done a lot of installs, not just on MBs, and this is the first issue that I am aware of. There are 2 sides to every story and the only people that know what truly happened are AI Design and Rotex.