Management's New Car

by Donna Daniels

Dear Management:

Yesterday during the day-long in-office team meeting that occupied all of us sales reps, you switched out our company cars, the Yuma Classic (we have had these cars for years!) for the new 2013 Yuma Neo. While we appreciate that you are giving us a newer model vehicle in which to do our jobs, several of my co-workers found their personal items taken from their Classic and thrown into the back seat of their new Neo. In many cases their things are now un-usable because they are now broken, torn, or damaged and have missing parts. These were personal logs on client visits and other sales tools we all use to help us do a better job. We all realize that company vehicles have to be upgraded eventually but these people are justifiably upset that quite a few of their personal items are now broken or missing. This makes our jobs more difficult.

Those issues aside, I have a particular issue with this new car, and that is that it has no windshield wipers and the buttons to operate the windows to roll up or down are gone! What good is it to have a window if you can't roll it down? And though it doesn't rain much in this part of the country, we need those wipers for the times when it does. Please correct this issue right away.

Dear Sales Rep:

We want you to know we are listening and we care about your issues. After 2 weeks gathering feedback from the other sales reps on the issues you mention with your brand new 2013 Yuma Neo vehicles, we have today added windshield wipers to all the cars. In addition, the side windows can be rolled down now with the use of a hand crank (not a button you had on the Classic model--this type of button is now outdated).

To locate the hand crank, tap on the door panel until you hear a hollow sound--this is the little door to the conveniently recessed hand crank. Once you have located the door, press firmly on the upper left corner of the door until you hear a click. Then press on the lower left corner of the door and it will open, revealing the hand crank. Rotate the lynch pin on the crank 1/4 turn to the left and it will then extend so that you can use it to roll the window down.

Dear Management:

I have found the window crank difficult to locate, even with your instructions. I am not sure what the "lynch pin" is, or looks like, but after quite a while of experimenting I was finally able to get the crank extended so that I could roll the windows down. This technique is not easy to locate or use while the car is in motion. But I have a more pressing problem at the moment. The weather report last night on TV said that there will be a heavy rainstorm the day after tomorrow and I can*see* the windshield wipers you have mounted on the car but I find no way to operate them. I have looked all over the instrument panel and find no button or lever to operate the windshield wipers. I have pulled and pushed and twisted every usual lever on the steering wheel and nothing I do will make the windshield wipers work! Please help.

Dear Sales Rep:

Please refer to your online owner's manual for instructions on turning the wipers on or off. For your convenience we have reprinted that here:

"We have updated your Yuma Neo to now include windshield
wipers! To operate the wipers, insert your key in the ignition
and press firmly as you turn the car on. Once the car is running
use a coin to turn the screw on the radio volume knob clockwise
3 times then press down and hold the button used to open your
glovebox."

That's all there is to it! We are happy to provide you with improvements to your company car and know you will come to love this vehicle even more than you dislike change.

Dear Management:

While driving my new 2013 Yuma Neo yesterday I could not find any way to operate the turn signals. Turn signals are not mentioned in the online owner's manual. Does the Neo have turn signals? The old Classic had turn signals. :(

While operating my windshield wipers has required me to pull off the road to turn them off or on yesterday, today they will not work at all with the same procedure of pressing on the ignition key, turning the screw in the radio volume knob with a coin and holding down the glovebox button.

Dear Sales Rep:

The last step in the operation of the windshield wipers has been changed from the glovebox to the 1st station preset button on your radio, making it more convenient for you to reach.

As far as the turn signals, we value your opinion but none of the other sales reps has mentioned that they would like to have turn signals. If you can start a petition among your co-workers and get at least 25 signatures, we will put this option under review.

Dear Management:

One of the purposes of our company car has always been to take customers to a free lunch or dinner. I cannot find a way to open the passenger side door either from the inside or the outside, so that the customer can not get into the vehicle through the passenger door. Some of the customers are finding it too difficult to get in the driver's side door and climb over the center console into the passenger seat. I am embarrassed to say that the CEO of my biggest account called this situation "bizarre". (I do think that had she been wearing a pants suit instead of a pencil skirt and heels, she could have been able to navigate this.) Can we please get our Yuma Classic vehicles back so that we can entertain customers properly? I am now afraid I might lose this major account.

My co-worker started a petition for this passenger door issue (which I signed). Today our supervisor disallowed a third of the 25 required signatures because those people had already signed either the petition to re-route exhaust fumes from the passenger compartment or the petition to add an on/off switch to work the headlights and tail lights so we can drive at night which saves time on many trips. But this morning when we arrived at work, the exhaust fumes petition and all its signatures was missing.

A number of my fellow sales reps are are experiencing headaches because of the exhaust fumes in the passenger compartment. Getting signatures on petitions is beginning to take a lot of our personal time. We would like these 2013 Neos changed out for our old Classics. The Classics allowed us to get far more work done and we felt safe in the Classic.

Dear Sales Rep: The Yuma Classic is no longer an option for our company. The Classic was literally falling apart from the inside out and we had to abandon it for a newer vehicle. Once you have adjusted to the change to the Neo you will realize it is a wonderful new experience in comfort and convenience! 

Please remember you may only sign one petition at a time. Once a petition you have signed has achieved 25 valid signatures and management has marked it either "completed" or "dismissed" you are free to sign one other petition, and so on.