- Joined
- Jun 21, 2018
- Posts
- 676
- Reaction score
- 679
- Location
- puyallup, wa
- Ram Year
- 2012 1500
- Engine
- 5.7 Sport
Im posting here for my durango because over the years ive come to appreciate and trust the level of expertise ive gotten from this forum and ive tried my best to return the favor.
Vehicle:
2019 durango V6 GT AWD, 59,824 miles
I have what i believe to be a "workmanship" factory defect but the Basic Limited Warranty that would of covered it ended at 36k miles. I feel the time required for the problem to surface would have been a ways after that expired anyway so im looking for advice on how to proceed, try to convince them of why it took so long for the problem to appear? Or someother course that could help me get this under warranty?
The issue:
Couple weeks ago brought in the car for leak at water pump, dealer warrantied the job, fixed it and we brought it home.
2 weeks later, i have another coolant leak, after a quick look i didnt see where it was leaking from so i happily brought it back to the dealer since im still on cloud 9 from actually experiencing what a warrantied fix feels like as i usually do maint myself. dealer says the "rubber" coolant hose to heater core was "tore up" and said it was "probably road debris". Since warranty dosent cover "environmental" damages, they want $2,800 for the fix. The cost of parts is $100 and the rest is labor because the "book" says the fix requires engine and transmission to be pulled.
What i did:
Asked them for the part numbers and brought it home, figured the "book" exaggerated the extensiveness of the required labor and i could just worm my way in and out. figured a hose coming off the firewall, to easy right? Well, parts get delivered and i get to work. i found the heater lines and they are fine. I was frustrated, paid for a bad diagnosis, waited for 2 weeks for wrong parts to get delivered just to have to do my own diagnosis in the end. Some UV dye, a bit of driving and bam, found the leak.
A hose clamp had rubbed a hole into a stainless steel coolant line. Now i understand why the labor is so extreme as the line runs between the engine and firewall and runs down above the transmission and its very well tucked in there. Explains why i had coolant running down the back of the transfer case.
Hard to see but there is some sort of tape over the metal just before a rubber line is attached above it but its definitely the stainless line that has a hole.
Heres where i got skeptical because after having the leak in my view for about 5 seconds, i realized what had caused it. Not "road debris" but poorly positioned hose clamp ears that after many miles of vibrations finely rubbed open a hole in stainless steel which is a fairly hard material.
This is what i meant when i said "the amount of time needed for the problem to appear". Stainless is hard, it destroys HSS drill bits if you dont take your time. Thats why i know It needed alot of time and friction to open up that hole. If my wife didnt drive like a responsible adult and more like me, that hole would of opened along time ago (maybe within the warranty period)
feel the technician either lied to avoid possible warranty repair or is incompetent because even someone with minimal experience could of deduced the how and whys of what happened after seeing the leak.
I brought it back to the dealership and explained my findings and showed them the pictures. Said i feel this to be a "factory workmanship defect" since the hose clamp ears should of been positioned away from other components. im sure there is a written engineering standard that is supposed to be followed every step of the production process and ill bet there is something written or meetings held that conveyed "2 pieces of metal should not touch unless under constant lubrication or rubber spacers needed if unavoidable, if fastened together always use a gasket" blah blah etc. im also fairly certain that "tape" isnt a approved barrier.
They said they will have there tech go over it again. Get a call later the next day and they said "sorry, we gave you the wrong part number" "we meant you have to replace the whole line, not just the rubber hose to the heater core" and warranty was still denied. I smell bullsh!t, they are doubling down on a bad diagnosis that includes the terms "road debris" and "environmental cause" to defend a shoddy diagnosis. I can understand recommending all the rubber be replaced that is directly connected the problem steel line because removing them can damage them but again, the original diagnosis had the problem listed somewhere completely different, like 3 rubber hoses and steel intersections away.
I dont care about the $200 diagnosis fee but i feel since they are standing by the original, its hurting my chances of talking to the FCA warranty office myself since there tech would be considered the "subject matter expert" regardless of my professional experience.
Sorry i rambled alot, took me like 2 hours to write this with many fixes and revisions in hopes of keeping your attention through candor while also giving as much detail as possible.
If i cant figure out a way to get this job warrantied i dont know what im going to do. Just bought a house so i have zero savings and dont think i can afford another loan at the moment.
any and all advice appreciated
Vehicle:
2019 durango V6 GT AWD, 59,824 miles
I have what i believe to be a "workmanship" factory defect but the Basic Limited Warranty that would of covered it ended at 36k miles. I feel the time required for the problem to surface would have been a ways after that expired anyway so im looking for advice on how to proceed, try to convince them of why it took so long for the problem to appear? Or someother course that could help me get this under warranty?
The issue:
Couple weeks ago brought in the car for leak at water pump, dealer warrantied the job, fixed it and we brought it home.
2 weeks later, i have another coolant leak, after a quick look i didnt see where it was leaking from so i happily brought it back to the dealer since im still on cloud 9 from actually experiencing what a warrantied fix feels like as i usually do maint myself. dealer says the "rubber" coolant hose to heater core was "tore up" and said it was "probably road debris". Since warranty dosent cover "environmental" damages, they want $2,800 for the fix. The cost of parts is $100 and the rest is labor because the "book" says the fix requires engine and transmission to be pulled.
What i did:
Asked them for the part numbers and brought it home, figured the "book" exaggerated the extensiveness of the required labor and i could just worm my way in and out. figured a hose coming off the firewall, to easy right? Well, parts get delivered and i get to work. i found the heater lines and they are fine. I was frustrated, paid for a bad diagnosis, waited for 2 weeks for wrong parts to get delivered just to have to do my own diagnosis in the end. Some UV dye, a bit of driving and bam, found the leak.
A hose clamp had rubbed a hole into a stainless steel coolant line. Now i understand why the labor is so extreme as the line runs between the engine and firewall and runs down above the transmission and its very well tucked in there. Explains why i had coolant running down the back of the transfer case.
Hard to see but there is some sort of tape over the metal just before a rubber line is attached above it but its definitely the stainless line that has a hole.
Heres where i got skeptical because after having the leak in my view for about 5 seconds, i realized what had caused it. Not "road debris" but poorly positioned hose clamp ears that after many miles of vibrations finely rubbed open a hole in stainless steel which is a fairly hard material.
This is what i meant when i said "the amount of time needed for the problem to appear". Stainless is hard, it destroys HSS drill bits if you dont take your time. Thats why i know It needed alot of time and friction to open up that hole. If my wife didnt drive like a responsible adult and more like me, that hole would of opened along time ago (maybe within the warranty period)
feel the technician either lied to avoid possible warranty repair or is incompetent because even someone with minimal experience could of deduced the how and whys of what happened after seeing the leak.
I brought it back to the dealership and explained my findings and showed them the pictures. Said i feel this to be a "factory workmanship defect" since the hose clamp ears should of been positioned away from other components. im sure there is a written engineering standard that is supposed to be followed every step of the production process and ill bet there is something written or meetings held that conveyed "2 pieces of metal should not touch unless under constant lubrication or rubber spacers needed if unavoidable, if fastened together always use a gasket" blah blah etc. im also fairly certain that "tape" isnt a approved barrier.
They said they will have there tech go over it again. Get a call later the next day and they said "sorry, we gave you the wrong part number" "we meant you have to replace the whole line, not just the rubber hose to the heater core" and warranty was still denied. I smell bullsh!t, they are doubling down on a bad diagnosis that includes the terms "road debris" and "environmental cause" to defend a shoddy diagnosis. I can understand recommending all the rubber be replaced that is directly connected the problem steel line because removing them can damage them but again, the original diagnosis had the problem listed somewhere completely different, like 3 rubber hoses and steel intersections away.
I dont care about the $200 diagnosis fee but i feel since they are standing by the original, its hurting my chances of talking to the FCA warranty office myself since there tech would be considered the "subject matter expert" regardless of my professional experience.
Sorry i rambled alot, took me like 2 hours to write this with many fixes and revisions in hopes of keeping your attention through candor while also giving as much detail as possible.
If i cant figure out a way to get this job warrantied i dont know what im going to do. Just bought a house so i have zero savings and dont think i can afford another loan at the moment.
any and all advice appreciated
