Dodge Challenger Forum banner

Getting dealership to cover repair under warranty

6K views 36 replies 17 participants last post by  USponycar 
#1 ·
I have a 2010 Challenger SE with 31K miles on it. I was driving Monday and went to take off from a light and the check engine light came on. The car started sputtering a bit, rough idle (around 500 rpm) and wouldn't accelerate much. I immediately turned around and headed for home (approx. 1.5 miles away). I got home and plugged in my OBD-II scanner to check for codes. The code was a P0016 for Camshaft/Crankshaft Correlation. From the research it I did it appeared the timing belt may have jumped a tooth or one or both of the sensors went bad. The car was still running OK so I attempted to drive it to the closest dealer, approximately 2 miles away, to get it looked at ASAP. I only got about a half a mile when the car shut off and wouldn't restart. I called a tow truck and had the car towed to the dealer.

I received a call from the dealer yesterday morning that the timing belt on the car had broken. They replaced the belt and tensioner yesterday and then tested to see if there was further damage. Apparently, when the belt broke it damaged valves and 4 of the 6 cylinders are dead. I asked the service advisor if they could tell what caused the timing belt to break and they checked with the technician and said there was no definitive cause, it just broke.

My biggest issue with this problem and subsequent bill is that I believe a prior repair completed under warranty in November of 2015 may have caused, or contributed, to premature failure of the timing belt. I took the car into the dealer back in November 2015 due to the car surging and missing while idling. They determined that 2 of the exhaust valves were leaking and replaced 2 exhaust valves, the head gasket on that side, and also the water pump. From what I know, premature timing belt failure is generally caused by a bad timing belt tensioner, a leaking water pump or an under or over-tightened timing belt. To replace the water pump they would have had to partially remove the timing belt. There was never a mention of any wear or issues with the timing belt at the time. The car was still under the powertrain warranty then (5yr/100,000) and the repair was covered. This repair was completed at around 28,000 miles. Now 3,500 miles later the timing belt is broken with apparently no explanation why. I believe they may have under or over-tightened the timing belt when reassembling the engine. I just find it hard to not see a link between the prior repair and this issue.

The car is now out of warranty. They have quoted me over $3000 to replace the heads. What is the best course of action to try to get this covered under warranty or due to the previous repair by the dealer? Just trying to review my options before I proceed.
 
See less See more
#3 ·
"The car is now out of warranty"
You answered your question, once it out of warranty it's out. And I know it's hard to prove that a past repair caused a failure 3500 miles later.
One of the reasons I got an RT was the lifetime warranty. As a retired guy I can't have a 3k repair bill sneak up on me down the road and I plan on keeping my RT till death do us part.
Next time consider an extended warranty, it would have just paid for itself and then some
 
#5 ·
ummm.... SOL bro. good luck trying to get that repair under warranty.
 
#7 ·
If you cannot get the dealership to do anything for you and are staring down the barrel of a $3K repair bill, I would say you should consider cutting your losses and have the car towed away from the dealership to a local (trusted) mechanic who is willing to install a set of cylinder heads you bring him for a decent price. Then grab yourself a set of used heads from a wrecking yard and have him put them on. Not sure how much you would save going that route, but it would have to be cheaper than paying dealership to put on new heads.


Although, now that I think about it, it might be cheaper and easier to just buy the whole engine from a wrecking yard and pay a local mechanic to put that in for you. You'll likely have many more options on where to get it and price points versus trying to find a set of heads only for sale on the cheap.


Whatever happens, it sounds like you got a raw deal IMO, so I'm pulling for ya...be sure to update this thread with whatever resolution you come to!
 
#9 ·
I have started the ball rolling with an independent mechanic who is a family friend and does repairs on our other vehicles, waiting to get an estimate from him. The heads the dealer is actually talking about installing are remanufactured heads from a local wrecking yard. They quoted those at $480 each vs $816 for new ones from Chrysler. Plus 12 hours labor to swap them out. I'm going to make some calls tomorrow and see what I can buy the heads for direct and then see if it is worth it to tow it out of the dealer.
 
#8 ·
I know most insurance companies will back up claim work for at least a year, so trying to open a case with FCA might be an idea. I'd have another independent mechanic look at it though and get their opinion on the cause (if the previous warranty work is a possibly at fault) to back your case up. Lawyering up might be an option at that point.
 
#12 ·
You are talking a year later with 3500 miles. Most dealers around here will guarentee work for 90 days. And like others said once the warranty is out its out, really no recourse. Your only play here is to possibly escalate the issue and say the past repair wasnt done right and contributed to the failure. But then again if dodge or the dealer bulks, how you going to prove anything.

If it were me I make the phone calls to see if they bite, if not i start shopping local for the repair.
 
#15 ·
I was thinking of doing this as well. I have a feeling the past repair contributed to the failure, but I understand that proving that is nearly impossible. Likewise, it would be hard for them to prove it didn't cause it. It just becomes a he said/she said situation at that point with no easy resolution.
 
#13 · (Edited)
According to my dealership service center manager (OC Joseph Doge) parts replaced BY DODGE(warranty or otherwise) are guaranteed for 12 months. If the timing belt was replaced in 11/2015 and is bad now 6/2016 it's replacement should be covered. Additionally any collateral damage caused by a part under warranty that failed should also be covered.
 
#16 ·
Unfortunately they did not replace the timing belt in 11/2015. They replaced 2 valves, the head gasket on that side, exhaust manifold gasket, intake plenum gasket, intake manifold gaskets and the water pump. They are saying there is no sign of why the belt broke, I'm thinking it was either an over or under-tightened timing belt or the water pump was defective, or installed incorrectly and leaked on the belt causing it to jump a tooth and then break all together.
 
#14 ·
As far as I know, ALL Mopar replacement parts come with a 12mo/12k mile warranty when installed by an authorized dealer and most dealers offer the same warranty on their repairs.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#17 ·
Thanks for this information, I knew the dealer labor and parts had to have a separate warranty from the car itself. I guess their loophole here is they never replaced the timing belt itself. However, they did replace the water pump, which requires access to the timing belt, since it runs around the water pump. I understand that merely being in there to repair corresponding parts doesn't necessarily mean they damaged anything, it could be pure coincidence. However, when that repair was completed I never heard anything about the belt being worn or damaged or anything, so I can only believe the repair they did at that time caused something to go wrong and this caused the belt to fail 3,500 miles later.
 
#20 ·
I just got off the phone with Dodge customer care. I explained the situation to them and they said my car is an excellent candidate for payment assistance due to the low miles and short time out of warranty (6 months). They were going to forward the case to someone in that department and that person is supposed to get back with me tomorrow. I will update once I know more.
 
#21 ·
That's great news, fingers crossed!
 
#23 ·
I wouldn't be surprised if FCA took care of the expenses as part of a "Good Will" considering the mileage and past repair. I hope it all turns out well for you.

Please let us know what happens.
 
#25 ·
you can't over tighten a timing belt on a 3.5 they have a spring tentioner that has 2 bolts holding it in place and a plunger that uses a spring to push on the pulley to keep it tight there are no adjustments to it.
But if the water pump was seeping, I have seen coolant build up on the crank pulley and cause it to break a belt but not in 3500 miles
 
#26 ·
I just heard back from Chrysler. From what the guy explained they contacted the dealer and discussed the issue with them. The dealership is unwilling to repair the vehicle as a good will repair. However, Chrysler is willing to cover 50% of the cost to repair. Basically I would pay the cost to repair up front and they would reimburse me 50% about 2 weeks after the repairs are completed. It doesn't sound like a bad deal. I am a bit bummed that I would still have to shell out over $1500 for a repair like this with the mileage and repair history of my car, but it is definitely better than paying the full cost. What do you guys think?
 
#27 ·
You have a 6 going on 7 year old car out of warranty and your complaining about FCA picking up half the tab for an out of warranty repair bill. You should be celebrating. I think FCA stood up tall on this one.
Oh, and find another dealer to service your car, they sound like a$$ H@£€s
 
#32 ·
Do what this gentleman says.....Do not give the ass dealer a penny. Good luck.
 
#34 ·
If FCA had in fact agreed to the good will fix then I think you should contact them and ask if you can take the car to another dealer that would perform the fix under good will. That's what I would do if I were you. If not, paying 50% of the repair is also a good deal and respect to FCA for offering that.

I'm wondering why the dealer didn't agree to fix it under good will. I thought FCA would pick up the tab on the repair if it was under good will and not the dealer. Unless the dealer wants you to pay 50% because they are going to be paid warranty rates by FCA?
 
#36 · (Edited)
I just got the car back yesterday and everything seems to be working well. I ended up having the dealer it was originally at go ahead and do the repair. I also had them go ahead and use the remanufactured heads from Chrysler vs the salvage yard ones.

I did think about requesting the car be moved to another dealer and was very close to doing so. My primary motivation to keep it there was because Chrysler had been talking with them in regards to the car and they were the most knowledgeable about it. However, I will be looking for a new dealer in the future.

Thanks for all the input!
 
#37 ·
IDK, if the dealer screwed up on the repair and caused the replacement timing chain to fail the first time around, who's to say they won't do a botch job this time around? I realize you're lucky to get anything done under warranty. I'd get it fixed and put it up for sale in a heartbeat afterwards.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top