Have I driven a Matiz? I own one, a November 1999 V-reg example, but I haven't driven it much lately thanks to a series of problems and a local Daewoo outlet that is less than willing to help.
I booked the car into this outlet in July for its 10k service and to have several faults corrected. The faults were described in detail and I was told they could all be corrected in a day. When the car was returned to me, however, half the faults had not been rectified (alloy wheels that don't unlock/come off, crunchy gearbox, underbody paintwork peeling off, rusty windscreen wipers and a cigar lighter that has never worked).
So I took the car in again on 14 August (the earliest available date) and when I went to collect it, a week and a half later, I found the paintwork was still peeling, so I refused to accept the car back. The other faults had been rectified. A few days later, the Daewoo outlet manager rang to tell me the car was ready, but one peeling area still hadn't been touched at all, while the other looked as if it had been repaired by a two-year-old. It took a further visit before the paintwork was repaired properly.
Two days later, however, as I was driving home, the car developed a new problem. It would start to shudder, before losing power completely, and then it would suddenly go back to normal again. This problem recurred, so I had to go back to Daewoo. They changed the HT leads, but the problem persisted, so I was advised not to drive the car and was told that the manager would give me a call. Of course, I heard nothing. Finally, after several days, and a call to Daewoo's customer helpline, I got the car booked back in to have it seen to. Over two weeks after I first reported the problem, I was told the car was ready for collection. 'The valves were out of alignment,' I was told. But as I drove home, the shuddering began again.
This has been going on since June, and I am totally fed up with Daewoo. I live 25 miles from my local outlet and making so many visits is getting very costly in both time and fuel. I noticed a sticker in their showroom this afternoon stating: 'We want you to enjoy owning a Daewoo.' I had to laugh.
By comparison, we purchased a new Vauxhall Agila 1.2i last month, and the dealer concerned has repeatedly 'gone the extra mile' with regard to customer service. I would now never purchase a new car from anyone else.