What do you guys think?

[hatchet]

So I take my brand new truck (3 weeks old) in to the shop to get the Uconnect system looked at and a stopper on the tailgate replaced. I drop it off Monday night. I figure this is probably a one day fix and I have an extra vehicle, no big deal. Well tomorrow I am leaving on a family trip, one where I need to pull my toys. I have no truck anymore because the shop didn't order the stoppers until today and can't figure out what is wrong with my uconnect system. I demanded a rental car capable of pulling my two jet ski's. the dealer tells me that I don't have rental coverage or an extended warranty. My argument is that I paid 45K for a truck that is 3 weeks old (after I waited 4 months for it to be built), that should give me free rental on any extended work that needs to be done for some time after the purchase Am I out of line or do you think this is a reasonable request by me?

 

[BAILEY1]

It is very reasonable. I would remain polite, but I wouldn't leave until they gave me a loaner. With that said, if the dealership you are going to is not the same dealership you purchased the truck from, then I would understand them not giving you a loaner.

 

[jforest1]

This sounds like a service problem and dealerships won't usually give you a loaner unless your vehicle is going in for body repair damage and then the auto body shop will give you a loaner but come on, the truck only 3 weeks old and you sunk some serious time and cash into it. Try for a loaner but maybe getting your truck back until the parts come in would be the way to go. U connect won't kill anyone and the tailgate latch or whatever should be bearable until they can fix it properly with the right parts and upgrades to software or something. If you get your truck back, try to get something out of it like a free tank of gas or something to make it a little less disheartening. I don't know if you will get to read this message before you leave so if so, have a great holiday and if not, hope you had a nice holiday. Good luck.

 

[DannyMK2]

while asking for a rental is reasonable on a brand new truck, they still dont have to give you one. the issues that you are having with your truck arent serious, so technically if you need your truck, you can take it back and drop it off again when the parts come in.

 

[audio1der]

^ That's what I was thinking as well. Take it back and schedule another appointment when they get the parts in. Yeah it's a PITA but in life you have to pick your battles...

 

[JimE]

while asking for a rental is reasonable on a brand new truck, they still dont have to give you one. the issues that you are having with your truck arent serious, so technically if you need your truck, you can take it back and drop it off again when the parts come in.

In some instances Uconnect issues should be considered potentially serious. Sensors that feed that beast are all over the truck and it is possible that something with stability control, tire pressure sensors, and a host of other safety related sensors could well be creating havoc. The problem is Uconnect is an operating system that can go bonkers from failed sensor just about anywhere on the vehicle and apparently the diagnostic equipment at the dealers is often simply unable to point to the sensor causing the problem. Dealers having great diagnostic systems are a problem with virtually every make. Compound that with system newness and trying to make a mechanic an electronics technician makes a recipe for problems and a lot of buyer dissatisfaction.

 

[Paratrooper173]

I hate the fact that when you do bring your truck in for warranty work and they do give you a loaner, they giver you a Avenger? Like the OP said I spend 45K on a TRUCK for a reason, I didn't buy a dam 4 door car

 

[DannyMK2]

In some instances Uconnect issues should be considered potentially serious. Sensors that feed that beast are all over the truck and it is possible that something with stability control, tire pressure sensors, and a host of other safety related sensors could well be creating havoc. The problem is Uconnect is an operating system that can go bonkers from failed sensor just about anywhere on the vehicle and apparently the diagnostic equipment at the dealers is often simply unable to point to the sensor causing the problem. Dealers having great diagnostic systems are a problem with virtually every make. Compound that with system newness and trying to make a mechanic an electronics technician makes a recipe for problems and a lot of buyer dissatisfaction.

maybe i am missing something but any warning that comes through the uconnect system cant be that serious. tire pressure, esc and other critical warnings would come through the cluster/evic. not to mention everyone who changes out their radio would lose those important safety features? that cant be right.

 

[JimE]

maybe i am missing something but any warning that comes through the uconnect system cant be that serious. tire pressure, esc and other critical warnings would come through the cluster/evic. not to mention everyone who changes out their radio would lose those important safety features? that cant be right.

Sorry, I did a really poor job of expressing.

So to clarify, every "module" in our trucks is in someway connected to the on board computer via what is defined as the CAN IHS Buss. Envision the CAN IHS Buss as being basically the same concept as a LAN computer network where two way communications may be occurring with given devices connected to the network. In theory unrelated devices should not be communicating with one another because each device has a unique address within the LAN. The same is true with our trucks meaning an optional device added to the vehicle may require letting the computer know it is there. In the case of Uconnect radios/receivers they must be individually added to the system. Meaning going from one level of Uconnect to another requires a code recognizable by the computer for it to work as all Uconnect radios/receivers are connected directly to the data buss going into the computer. Add to the possibility of communication that should be going to Uconnect and interfering with it is the distinct possibility of RFI issues from unshielded cables being too near one another and all sorts of weird things can happen. To go even further, add a Cell phone device into the scheme of things and you have a little transmitter that can be a bit out of tolerance and playing heck with everything. Tolerances in electronic devices can make for real problems when two or more devices are at one end or the other of their respective tolerance spectrum. In all cases if Uconnect is having issues all the other systems in the truck should be subject to diagnostics to make sure the issue is solely with Uconnect.

Jumping ahead of the next obvious question. Why do aftermarket radio/recievers with like or similar functions to various levels of Uconnect not have problems that can occur with Uconnect? The answer is easy. Aftermarket radio/receivers are not connected into the Can IHS buss. More over, the on board computer does not care that no Uconnect device is connected to it. Thus no issues with aftermarket radios/receivers with exception of correct wiring to the speakers.

 

[hatchet]

thanks for the replies. I didn't get a rental, the issue ahs been referred to the STAR team (whatever that means) I'm not holding my breath. I have the truck right now. the issue apparently is widespread...the Yelp search feature for voice does not work. I foresee this going the following way:

1. I deploy in 3 weeks for 6 months. During the 6 months 1/4 of my warranty will lapse on a vehicle sitting still.

2. one half of the year of subscriptions for uconnect and XM will expire, even though Uconnect has been very frustrating fro the get go.

3. The ticket will be closed and unresolved, leading me to want to drive the vehicle off a cliff.

Uconnect for some reason randomly tells me I have no ucconnect subscription which is absolutely false. Each time this happens they have me do some Band-Aid fix that works for a few days.

some observations I've made about Uconnect/control interface:

-It takes an insanely long amount of time to load when the vehicle starts.

-the system lacks certain convenience options for example I cannot reroute myself through a city while driving using the voice system, I have to create a trip using the keyboard.

-I cannot navigate to a city center for example I am trying to drive through New Orleans by way of Denham Springs. I have to have a specific address in Denham springs to navigate to first then once I get there navigate to new Orleans. this is only true on the fly the above scenario will work if stopped, I still need an address though.

-avoiding certain roads is a huge PITA on the fly.

-I hate that I cannot control the rear seat heat from the front.

-Overall the owners manual lacks specific detail...maybe it's because I am used to reading aircraft/weapons technical orders but the manuals are way too general and do not answer my questions satisfactorily.

- the uconnect remote start /door unlock works about 50% of the time

-XM weather map sometimes takes 10 minutes to load.

I think the last two are a product of the sprint network. Why wouldn't they use a 4G network from a network with good coverage...Sprint is one of the least used networks in the country.

Hopefully others have better luck

 

[DublDee]

Very sorry to hear about your misfortune! When I purchased my 2013 I was told that if there were any issues I would need the extended warranty to be covered for a rental, so I guess I was lucky to have been told up front. In any case I was going to get the extended warranty anyway....IMO you can't have too much coverage.

 

[Etroze86]

thanks for the replies. I didn't get a rental, the issue ahs been referred to the STAR team (whatever that means) I'm not holding my breath. I have the truck right now. the issue apparently is widespread...the Yelp search feature for voice does not work. I foresee this going the following way:

1. I deploy in 3 weeks for 6 months. During the 6 months 1/4 of my warranty will lapse on a vehicle sitting still.

2. one half of the year of subscriptions for uconnect and XM will expire, even though Uconnect has been very frustrating fro the get go.

3. The ticket will be closed and unresolved, leading me to want to drive the vehicle off a cliff.

Uconnect for some reason randomly tells me I have no ucconnect subscription which is absolutely false. Each time this happens they have me do some Band-Aid fix that works for a few days.

some observations I've made about Uconnect/control interface:

-It takes an insanely long amount of time to load when the vehicle starts.

-the system lacks certain convenience options for example I cannot reroute myself through a city while driving using the voice system, I have to create a trip using the keyboard.

-I cannot navigate to a city center for example I am trying to drive through New Orleans by way of Denham Springs. I have to have a specific address in Denham springs to navigate to first then once I get there navigate to new Orleans. this is only true on the fly the above scenario will work if stopped, I still need an address though.

-avoiding certain roads is a huge PITA on the fly.

-I hate that I cannot control the rear seat heat from the front.

-Overall the owners manual lacks specific detail...maybe it's because I am used to reading aircraft/weapons technical orders but the manuals are way too general and do not answer my questions satisfactorily.

- the uconnect remote start /door unlock works about 50% of the time

-XM weather map sometimes takes 10 minutes to load.

I think the last two are a product of the sprint network. Why wouldn't they use a 4G network from a network with good coverage...Sprint is one of the least used networks in the country.

Hopefully others have better luck

I have delt with dealers while over seas. Find a person you like at the one you are dealing with, get all of their contact info you can, ie email, work line, work cell, personal cell if they will give it too you, mailing addres. You can still get things done when you need to but it really won't be convient for you. VOIP phones are all over the place in deployed locations so it is a lot easier getting in touch with people than it was a few years ago. Hope all this is worked out before you leave. Keep your head down and good luck.

 

[Chewy]

I've deemed Uconnect completely worthless and unless it keeps the truck from running, I'm not taking it to the dealer. I'll continue to use my smartphone for any internet based questions/research and to hell with the truck.

 

[JimE]

thanks for the replies. I didn't get a rental, the issue ahs been referred to the STAR team (whatever that means) I'm not holding my breath. I have the truck right now. the issue apparently is widespread...the Yelp search feature for voice does not work. I foresee this going the following way:

1. I deploy in 3 weeks for 6 months. During the 6 months 1/4 of my warranty will lapse on a vehicle sitting still.

2. one half of the year of subscriptions for uconnect and XM will expire, even though Uconnect has been very frustrating fro the get go.

3. The ticket will be closed and unresolved, leading me to want to drive the vehicle off a cliff.

Uconnect for some reason randomly tells me I have no ucconnect subscription which is absolutely false. Each time this happens they have me do some Band-Aid fix that works for a few days.

some observations I've made about Uconnect/control interface:

-It takes an insanely long amount of time to load when the vehicle starts.

-the system lacks certain convenience options for example I cannot reroute myself through a city while driving using the voice system, I have to create a trip using the keyboard.

-I cannot navigate to a city center for example I am trying to drive through New Orleans by way of Denham Springs. I have to have a specific address in Denham springs to navigate to first then once I get there navigate to new Orleans. this is only true on the fly the above scenario will work if stopped, I still need an address though.

-avoiding certain roads is a huge PITA on the fly.

-I hate that I cannot control the rear seat heat from the front.

-Overall the owners manual lacks specific detail...maybe it's because I am used to reading aircraft/weapons technical orders but the manuals are way too general and do not answer my questions satisfactorily.

- the uconnect remote start /door unlock works about 50% of the time

-XM weather map sometimes takes 10 minutes to load.

I think the last two are a product of the sprint network. Why wouldn't they use a 4G network from a network with good coverage...Sprint is one of the least used networks in the country.

Hopefully others have better luck

Better Luck? I wouldn't place a ten cent bet on that happening. As for the Owner's manuals providing other than just very basic info, that is typical of all vehicle owner's manuals going back over sixty years.

While I personally think Uconnect is a great example of really HORRIBLE engineering and software to make it go, I suspect your navigation problem is a Garmin problem. Consumer GPS systems are all flaky for one or more reasons, not the least of which is the necessity of being updated daily to adjust for movement in the Earth's magnetic North Pole. (it moves at the rate of roughly 40 miles per year and is getting close to being in Siberia). The main reason I prefer to rely on the good old fashioned Rand-McNally manual GPS known as a Road Atlas. FYI, the USAF has a group whose sole job is to monitor Magnetic North movement and to update Navigational Satellite data output accordingly. If they didn't do that your New Orleans destination intentions might wind up taking you to Houma. One of those places where I spent a month one night, but the Shrimp/Okra Gumbo is great there!