AP
Andrea Perry
Dec 27, 2025
In April 2025, we brought our 2020 Hyundai Palisade to Shottenkirk Hyundai for a transmission replacement. The car stayed with the dealership for a month before we were finally given a loaner and received a rebuilt transmission covered by a 12-month, 12,000-mile warranty from Hyundai. Because my daughter frequently needs the vehicle for her medically fragile five-year-old—who has Down syndrome, autism, a heart condition, and requires regular ABA therapy—we went over the mileage limit with medical appointments alone.
The new transmission failed again on October 21, 2025. Luckily, we were able to buy an extended warranty to help cover future potential repairs. Throughout this ordeal, our service advisor, Mike Wilcox Jr., was largely unresponsive; we often had to chase updates ourselves. After repeatedly failing to reach him, I called and spoke to Amanda Lawson, another service advisor. She transferred me to Joe Valadez. I explained we were seeking accountability since the transmission failed in less than eight months. Mr. Valadez repeatedly asked if I wanted him to fire Mike Wilcox and suggested I file a complaint with Hyundai, noting that there was another vehicle in their shop on its fourth transmission in two years. When I asked him if he had reported these recurring problems to Hyundai, he dodged the question, insisting each dealership operates independently even though all parts come from Hyundai.
Since we were getting nowhere, Amanda Lewis was reassigned as our service advisor. She promptly requested our claim details to coordinate repairs with the extended warranty company. Our warranty provider arranged an independent inspection, noting the previous transmission replacement was less than eight months prior, and ordered a transmission to be shipped to Shottenkirk.
We received an email from Mike Wilcox stating the parts had arrived and the repair was scheduled. I clarified I thought Amanda was now our contact—he insisted otherwise. That was on Friday, December 19. I asked for updates as our rental car had been in use since October with no clear communication. After returning the rental on Monday, December 22, we drove to the dealership to check the car’s status ourselves. Mike informed us the repairs were done two days prior, though he had not contacted us. He said we needed to sign the invoice for payment, but the extended warranty company told us Shottenkirk had already submitted the invoice without our signature, delaying payment. After another hour of calls, I paid the $1,593.35 repair bill directly to avoid extra credit card fees.
My daughter drove the car home on December 22 and parked it. When she tried to take her daughter to a doctor’s appointment on December 23, the vehicle drove poorly. She brought it to Firestone, where we paid for an inspection that revealed the tie rod had been damaged during the transmission installation. We had to leave the car at Firestone for safety reasons and rent another vehicle. We informed Amanda and Mike, but they’d closed early for the holiday and would be gone until after Christmas. We let them know about Firestone’s findings; they advised us to repair the damage and keep receipts for possible reimbursement.
At this point, we have to bring the car back to Shottenkirk again, now dealing with questions about the car’s safety and functionality after two transmission replacements in under a year.