Speaking as someone with a soft spot for these types of cars, a wrecked Chevy Camaro ZL1 is a tragedy indeed.
But one owner isn’t just grieving over the loss of a lovely vehicle: Car enthusiast John Hooper is beside himself with rage.
Hooper brought his vehicle into First State Chevrolet in Georgetown, DE for a simple repair. He had no idea that employees from the dealership would decide to take his dream car for a joyride. He certainly didn’t know it would end the car slamming into a telephone pole.
According to Hooper he knew nothing was wrong until the dealership finally got around to informing him—Sixteen hours later. That wasn’t the only thing he learned.
“The dealership [told] us it is not their problem. They even refuse to provide my wife and I (and our insurance company) with their insurance information.”
This “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” nightmare come to life has turned into a battle of wills as a month has passed since the incident. While Hooper didn’t initially name the dealership responsible, internet detectives determined the name of the business, and he confirmed it in a forum post. And as word of mouth has spread, First State Chevrolet has been faced with a load of bad PR. In addition, Hooper has since taken the advice of fellow Camaro enthusiasts and consulted an attorney.
This is why the car dealership model is completely broken, and @teslamotors has the right idea http://t.co/JuXVIYzOBf via @therealautoblog
— Adam Happel (@GO_AHappel) January 11, 2014
I would be pissed if the dealership wrecked my car!!
http://t.co/NEHVLREsZE
— Zengod (@Zengod55) January 10, 2014
Perhaps realizing that the problem was not going away, the dealership seems more willing to play ball then they did via Hooper’s earlier impression.
First State, which had fired the employees responsible for the crash, offered to provide Hooper with a loaner car, and with used ZL1 models. However, Hooper had something different in mind: A brand new car or full compensation for the wrecked model that he was still paying for.
“We’re losing sleep over this, time off from work, and this still isn’t resolved,” lamented John Hooper. “This is so ethically and morally wrong it isn’t funny.”
Bob Hansen, co-owner of First State Chevrolet wouldn’t comment to the Cape Gazette when asked about the possibility of a complete replacement of the beloved car. It’s clear that the dealership is looking to lose as little much money on this controversial issue as possible.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
