Errors in '03 Owners Manual

[ab7fh]

Have you compared the Schedule A and Schedule B charts???



Many of us are aware of the 15,000 mile front and rear axle gear lube intervals set so stringently in the B schedule. Why is it the gear lube NEVER needs to be changed in a Schedule A vehicle??? That makes absolutely no sense.



Ok, maybe that was intended for some crazy reason that only a team of DC engineers could explain away, but what about this...



In the Schedule A chart it says to check your front wheel bearings at 30,000 miles. In the Schedule B chart the bearings don't get inspected until 60,000 miles!!



Let me get this straight DC. You want the vehicle that is used in a heavy duty environment to get the wheel bearings inspected half as often as the non-laden vehicle???



What other misprints are there in the maintenance schedule? They need to come out and admit the 15,000 mile intervals is INCORRECT or the AAM axles are faulty in that they can only go 15,000 miles on the very best possible lubricants. I'm all for changing fluids regularly, but I'm not out to support the synthetic oil industry by owning a Dodge with soft gears... . or a misprint in the owners manual.

 

[ab7fh]

Over 200 views and no comments?

 

[DPelletier]

In Canada, you get a special booklet telling you that Canadian conditions require the use of Schedule B. I also noticed that they start at 6,000 kms, not 12,000 kms. Upon closer inspection, the 6,000 km service doesn't include an oil change!

Dave

 

[jman]

I agree with you on this one. I think it is just CYA for the 70K drivetrain warranty. This is an easy out for DC to not cover any repairs on the diffs. Oh, you didn't change the gear lube at 15K, I'm sorry this will not be covered now because of improper change intervals. I think this sucks. Basically every 15K you have to spend a weekend and a bunch of cash to keep it within DC specs. I wish they would have kept Dana. It looks like Mag-Hytec covers will be a good investment since you have to drain and refill these silly things so often.

 

[adsharpe]

Well, you guys are learning about DC. Remember, it is not an American company you are dealiing with. And DC loses billions of bucks every quarter.



Why don't you let them hold your wallet for you?



They aren't really that different from the others. Everyone is scrambling to stay in business.



Ford just "earned" a BBB credit rating which means that I have better credit than they do.



Also, remember that there are lotsa guys out there that love DC, no matter what.



The DC manuals are messed up because they were outsourced to Afghanistan. Or was it Peru? No, I remember now - Borneo.

 

[Parshal]

Originally posted by adsharpe

The DC manuals are messed up because they were outsourced to Afghanistan. Or was it Peru? No, I remember now - Borneo.

It could be India or China, the places where the rest of America's jobs are going!

 

[rbattelle]

And at $20/quart or more they make a TON on the fluid changes too! I'll perform the recommended changes at the recommended times, but they can shove their $20/quart fluid you-know-where. I'll use Mobil 1 instead.