Viral Complaint from Ioniq 5 Electric Car Owner: A PR Practitioner's Perspective
A feature that should have provided convenience has instead caused problems for a Hyundai Ioniq 5 owner. Influencer Aa Juju, who runs the Instagram account @makanlurrrr, expressed disappointment after the electric car he purchased outright experienced a number of issues, including when used for parallel parking.
In a video posted on social media that has been viewed millions of times, the man whose full name is Julian Adityo Suwardi said he had conveyed his parallel parking needs to the salesperson from the outset. He said he was given information that the Ioniq 5 could be used for parallel parking. However, after using the car, he encountered a number of problems.
As a result, complaints about Hyundai’s technology and the service provided by its sales staff became the target of criticism. The peak of the matter, which triggered a strong reaction from netizens, was the response of the salesperson and his supervisor when Aa Juju conveyed his complaint for the umpteenth time directly at their dealership in the Fatmawati area of South Jakarta. The greatest attention was directed at the supervisor named Widay Markus, who was deemed defensive and did not respond to the consumer’s complaint properly.
Responding to the issue, a Hyundai product user who is also a public relations practitioner, Bima Marzuki, assessed that the case should serve as an important lesson for automotive companies.
In his view, product knowledge among sales staff, their communication, and after-sales service must be managed properly. According to him, problems can escalate when consumer complaints are not channelled properly through official channels.
“Firstly, if we look at this case, it is because there was a complaint that was not channelled due to a lack of in-depth product knowledge on the part of the salesperson, which ultimately left the consumer disappointed,” Bima said when contacted by Republika.co.id on Friday (21/8/2026).
Bima assessed that the very rapid development of vehicle technology over the past five years has made the understanding of sales staff increasingly important. Moreover, sales staff are the parties who directly hear consumer needs while explaining product capabilities before a transaction is made.
According to him, information provided by sales staff often sticks more than information in brochures. This is because not all consumers read all the technical information about a vehicle before buying.
“Most consumers will not read the brochure. Most consumers will remember what was said, what was promised by the salesperson,” said Bima, who used a Hyundai Santa Fe for quite a long time.
For this reason, the CEO and Founder of Media Buffet PR reminded of the importance of preventing over-promising in the sales process. Sales staff must understand in detail the capabilities and limitations of a vehicle so that the information provided to consumers does not create expectations that are difficult to fulfil.