Blaupunkt woes solved . . . for now

[David Head]

Having just been on their website today looking over the older 98/99 7 series
units (variocolor, keycard) as a prelude to searching for one on the net I
immedietly spotted that model number as a low end POS... Just finished swapping
faceplates on my 90 Blaubunkt Delta/Bose so it would no longer change stations
with a bump in the road. Not a job for the mechanically challenged. I'd still like
to find a place to buy the 1-2mm or so allen wrench needed to pull the side screws
out..
Talked to my Audi mech about swapping it for a Gamma - he said they're less
reliable and more expensive - sheesh!
FYI - for those that decide to replace the soft actuators, use the Porsche style
grey ones. They hold up a lot longer.

Mike Arman wrote:

> A small victory.
>
> As you may remember, I've been having progressivly worsening problems with
> a Blaupunkt ACD 2900 which I bought new, and began experiencing problems
> with turn-off well within the warranty period. I mean, I applaud this
> unit's enthusiasm and determination in trying to provide music for me, but
> it would be nice if I could shut it off when I'm not in the car, to avoid
> draining the battery (ask me how I know).
>
> Blaupunkt was less than less than helpful, first blaming the installer
> (that was me - and I have successfully installed avionics suites multiple
> orders of magnitude more complex and expensive than ANYTHING Blaupunkt or
> Bobby Bosch ever contemplated), then blaming the car's "flaky" electrical
> system, then telling me that I should have bought a more expensive unit
> from them, and what did I want from an "entry level piece of junk like
> that, anyway"? (Just my money's worth - and for them to honor their warranty.)
>
> Letters to Blaupunkt USA, Blaupunkt Germany and Bosch Germany were totally
> ignored - and these were *letters*, postage and all, not just an e-mail
> fired off in the heat of the moment.
>
> Finally, the unit wouldn't turn off at all, not even with the reset button
> (which loses all the presets, BTW).
>
> Choice - buy something else or get this fixed, because it was obvious there
> was no help forthcoming from Blaupunkt.
>
> Went to the internet and looked up "Blaupunkt repair", and shortly
> thereafter found myself talking with a tech (who evidently didn't have much
> else to do, because it was a LONG and interesting conversation).
>
> It seems that Blaupunkt's lower end units are made for them - in Taiwan and
> China - and are EXACTLY the kind of cheap garbage I was trying to avoid
> when I bought a Blaupunkt ("Fine German Engineering!") in the first place.
> The tech said that Blaupunkt (and Becker) had really gotten a black eye
> from the lack of quality of these units, and now heartily wished they had
> never gone down that particular path in the first place. If it costs a
> minimum of $250 to build a CD player that works, then finding someone who
> claims to be able to build one for significantly less is an invitation to
> problems, and that is exactly what happened.
>
> I thought about this for a while, and decided that in light of Blaupunkt's
> "blow him off" attitude toward me, their customer, it was time to raise the
> ante a little.
>
> And I did. A strong letter to the Florida Department of Consumer Affairs
> followed, with a copy to Blaupunkt USA. The letter talked about my being
> misled into thinking I had bought a quality German product (based on the
> name "Blaupunkt", which is about as German a company as you can get), and
> finding that I had been swindled into buying some cheap, inferior piece of
> far eastern junk instead, masquerading deceitfully under the revered
> Blaupunkt name. I also mentioned that none other than General Motors had
> ben slammed by the Feds for something very similar - a few years ago they
> sold a slew of Cadillacs equipped with Oldsmobile engines (re-badged), and
> quickly lost a class-action suit from hundreds of disgruntled buyers whose
> position was "I paid for a Cadillac, I expect a Cadillac. If I had wanted
> an Oldsmobile, I would have bought one, and paid a bunch less."
>
> No more than ten minutes after I sent Blaupunkt a copy of the e-mail to the
> Florida Department of Consumer Affairs, I got a VERY VERY polite phone call
> from a Mr. Dallas Winston at Blaupunkt USA.
>
> About ten minutes later, after I had made my position and intentions
> abundantly clear (politely, but firmly), he offered to have my ACD 2900
> repaired or replaced (repair station's option) if I would just please ship
> it to them with an explanation of the problem.
>
> Dallas Winston was as good as his word - the unit came back, repaired, and
> with a 90 day warranty - which would have taken it to the year I originally
> thought I was getting. I re-installed the unit in my type $$, and
> sonofagun, it works, and it even turns off!
>
> Non illegitimi carborundum! (Don't let the bastards wear you down!)
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Mike Arman
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Mike Arman