The reason dodge is suffering to others...

[steved]

I had car trouble with my Subaru Outback this weekend... 150 miles from home...



Had the car towed to a local (and unknown to me) Subaru dealer... they replaced the alternator based on a recall without even questioning the car or warranty... the car is a 1997 with 78k... they didn't even call me, just replaced it... I am even the second owner of the car... didn't cost me a dime...



I had so much trouble getting warranty work done on my 2004 Ram when it was STILL under warranty... needless to say, I will never buy another new Dodge (or anything DCX for that matter) because their warranty service sucks. I am really disappointed with dodge... they "pick" who and what they want to warranty...



steved

 

[Yo Hoot]

I will agree with you there. My experience was with GM and most of the time GM was first class. I even had the A/C system replaced in a 1994 Full Size Blazer out of warranty for free because they considered it a pre-existing condition.



The thing I hate the most about Dodge is the dealerships refuse to do work on your vehicle if you didn't buy it there.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

YUP - our manufacturers still haven't grasped what's needed to adequately cope with the foreign brands - first provide a superior vehicle, THEN back it up with no-doubt-about-it SERVICE!



I suppose it will give them something to ponder on as they eventually are shutting their doors and going out of business...



SURE, most of us prefer to "buy American" but WE have families to feed and clothe too - and can't afford to buy poorly designed stuff that breaks too often and dealers won't service!



NOR is it any great consolation that often Ford and GM are "just as bad"...

 

[steved]

The best part is they brought it in between other appointments (mine was a tow-in/walk-in)... then fixed it, on a SATURDAY!! They were a five-star Subaru dealer. All this and they even had me mixed up with a second tow-in (I wondered how a broken transmission line caused the battery to die!)... mine didn't get looked at until after noon...



I also got to give AAA a thumbs up too... they took a few transfers to get me to the right "area", but they took care of me... figure this: Broke down at 2145 Friday night... by 2228, I was in a Taxi on the way to the local airport for a rental car (They had to drive 25+ miles to get me)... by 2321 I (along with 3 other wedding-bound persons) was back on the road in the rental car... around an hour and a half from break down to resumption of trip...



I don't even know a Dodge dealer open on Saturday! Let alone a five-star dealer that would have given me that kind of treatment, let alone have the parts needed to fix the problem... I was lucky to get a phone call on the progress on my truck, let alone when it was done... A local five star dodge dealer hosed me on non-warranty work... I was just so disappointed with warranty service after buying my truck that it left a very bad and long lasting impression...



I have seen a lot of the "foreign" car manufacturers giving a lot less headaches and when they do, they are usually a whole lot better on correcting the problem than DCX...



steved

 

[Regcabguy]

Bad luck w/GM.

I will agree with you there. My experience was with GM and most of the time GM was first class. I even had the A/C system replaced in a 1994 Full Size Blazer out of warranty for free because they considered it a pre-existing condition.



The thing I hate the most about Dodge is the dealerships refuse to do work on your vehicle if you didn't buy it there.

I had horrible luck with warranty service on my '89 Chevy 2500. On the other hand my experience overall w/my local D/C dealer has been pretty good and I didn't buy it there. My experience w/toyota with my '85 was pretty pitiful too. The manufacturer's need to reimburse the techs more for work done.

 

[zstroken]

Alot of it depends on dealer. DCX has suffered huge warranty costs, because of people turning up their trucks and tearing something up. Why do you think a VP44 was so hard to get replaced? I mean I can be somewhat understanding, but I know of a dealer who has put 3 transmissions in a guys truck. He has a box and tows heavy. Wander why he trashed the transmission??

 

[steved]

Alot of it depends on dealer. DCX has suffered huge warranty costs, because of people turning up their trucks and tearing something up. Why do you think a VP44 was so hard to get replaced? I mean I can be somewhat understanding, but I know of a dealer who has put 3 transmissions in a guys truck. He has a box and tows heavy. Wander why he trashed the transmission??

But for those of us that have ZERO mods, we should not be brow beat every time we need warranty work done because of someone else's problems. Why should I get scrutinized every single time for someone else's issues??



And I have heard it is not limited to the trucks either, seems like it is a company-wide policy to either do as little warranty work as they can or make it so miserable for the customer that they go away... the local dodge dealers practice the latter.



I doubt I will need a truck for a very long time... most likely buy a smallish SUV next time around... most likely a Subaru. This is actually my second Subaru and I had ZERO trouble getting any warranty work performed on either one... and one was the predecessor to the SVX, the XT6 (which will run 145mph in stock trim easily... !)



steved

 

[SKneeland]

DCX has suffered huge warranty costs, because of people turning up their trucks and tearing something up. ??

i would dispute thats the reason they have huge warranty costs. modded trucks make up a very small percentage of total trucks sold. now lets look at the big picture, warranty costs are up across the spectrum. so if you figure in how many modded trucks there are out of ALL the vehicles DC sells... .

 

[zstroken]

Maybe maybe not. I know of warranty disputes I had with a chevrolet. I know my neigbor had diputes over a nissan, the other neigbor had disputes over his toyota. Lot of people on here have modded trucks, and they seem to be the ones complaining. Why do you think DC puts freezes on parts, such as VP44. I know for a fact that DCX warranty costs on trannies prior to 2000 was largest on diesel pickups. Know why that trend turned around? 2001 was the advent of torque management software. In a DCX service manual it showed where to look for a wire tap on a VP44. I have had very little problems with my warranty claims.

 

[Todd T]

Maybe maybe not. I know of warranty disputes I had with a chevrolet. I know my neigbor had diputes over a nissan, the other neigbor had disputes over his toyota. Lot of people on here have modded trucks, and they seem to be the ones complaining. Why do you think DC puts freezes on parts, such as VP44. I know for a fact that DCX warranty costs on trannies prior to 2000 was largest on diesel pickups. Know why that trend turned around? 2001 was the advent of torque management software. In a DCX service manual it showed where to look for a wire tap on a VP44. I have had very little problems with my warranty claims.

I think you can thank not only your TDR brotherin for this problem but the vendors who build this stuff to spoof the ECM and not leave a trace.



I just bought a new chevy, so i've been over on the diesel place learning about it. Over there these guys share secrets on how to hide electronics and the traces of them like its a sport and which dealers are bomb friendly and the like. I've had six diesel trucks since 1995 and not one of them has seen the inside of a dealership for a warranty repair after I turned it up. I AM my own warranty station and stand behind it!

 

[EMD-Run8]

A kudo for Subaru-----they have one of the highest customer satisfaction rates of ANY manufacturer and they get A LOT of repeat customers. They do it right for sure.

 

[DSteimle]

i work for a dcx dealer (we are open on saturdays btw). i've also worked for some smaller manufactures. lastest was hyundai. great company as far as service goes. also great warranty. i think being a smaller company with less users affords the opportunity to better serve each one. any business is that way no matter what they sell.



the other problem is when you finish argueing with customer A that his transmission in his hemi magnum is not warranty because of the supercharger he added to the engine (had that discussion a few weeks ago) its difficult to tone down and address the next customer correctly. i'm not saying it's fair, buth that's the way it is. most major manufactures feel the world is out to get them on false warranty repairs. they keep us in check by having us supply some warranty parts to them for inspection.



as far as your truck not being modded, almost none of them are. must be the same group of people who never smoke, have pets, or children in the used rv market :-laf

 

[dpuckett]

Girlfriend had a similar problem in her 04 Dakota- paint peeled off the front of the bed in an obvious mfg defect- there is no way it would have gotten chipped in normal use, esp with as careful as she is. "Service" manager here in Cape said he didnt see how it was a defect- it was on the bed. I almost asked him to explain how he came to that conclusion, but held my tongue.



She talked to the saleswoman she bought it from at Morlan Dodge in Sikeston, and they took it in and fixed it, supplied a loaner car while the truck was in the shop, no questions asked. Is there a way that we can report bad dealers, poor service? I'd like to tell someone of importance of our experience at Auffenberg in Cape Gir.



Daniel

 

[smartineau]

steved,



I like to hear that about Subaru, as we are looking at buying one.



I have had almost no dealer service warranty work on my truck, perhaps because of the dog doo way we were treated when we took in Debbies 2000 Durango. She bought a new car in 2004 (extreemly worried about the ball joints or what ever it was in the front end that was failing). So she looked at new cars, she only looked at Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Subaru, She opted for the Honda Accord but now wishes she would have gotten the larger Subaru Outback.



We have had one Honda warranty thing in 70,000 miles, Debbies operator error, butthe technician met us at the check in desk and checked things out. No wait nothing, that was service.



GM service SUCKS!!!!! I was screwed by them IMHO, on a new motor that had a head gasket fail, totally stock truck.



Be your own warranty station or shop for the forgien company cars.



steve

 

[steved]

as far as your truck not being modded, almost none of them are. must be the same group of people who never smoke, have pets, or children in the used rv market :-laf

When I was having issues, my truck was 100% stock... the only "mod" it had was a CB. Since I was obviously out on my ear for warranty, I have since mod'd the truck to better suit me and provide, hopefully, a longer service life...



Some of us do not have the need/desire/ego to mod away... I was perfectly happy leaving my truck stock for warranty purposes, but why should I since the warranty isn't worth the paper it's written on??



I shouldn't say that the DCX warranty is totally bogus, as I did have some work done under warranty... but it did come with major stress and aggrevation and time without my truck... I will see how much $$ I can save by declining any warranty on any future dodge purchase...



As I stated, I have owned two Subarus, both used, one with a extended warranty (the XT6) and one without (the Outback)... any service I had done was either covered with no questions, or the cost of the service was very fair and the service was top notch... more than I can say for the DCX "technicians" I have had the pleasure of meeting...



steved

 

[DSteimle]

sorry to imply you were trying to get by the system, there are a lot who do. wonder if you bought a wrx (a vehicle more likely to be modded than the rest of the suburu line-up) if they would look a little harder. dealers are forced to play the odds as to who will stretch the limits of the warranty. some guys get on sites like this one and discuss how to beat the warranty system (at times to great lengths) and then are the same guys whining when the dealer catches them.



i know there bad dealers out there. i know some shops would rather do customer pay work then warranty. but i dont think comparing warranty claims on you suburu car to a dodge diesel truck is fair. let suburu build a full-size diesel truck, with the mod capabilities of the dodge, then compare warranty service. (btw, if you dodge has a recall, it will be fixed at no charge to you, regardless of the mileage, also. )



one last thing, ctd owners think they get singled out for warranty denial. the list of potentialy modde vehicles includes jeeps, neon srt4's, any hemi powered car or truck, any 4wd, and the list goes on. i have stories on all of them.

 

[steved]

wonder if you bought a wrx (a vehicle more likely to be modded than the rest of the suburu line-up) if they would look a little harder. dealers are forced to play the odds as to who will stretch the limits of the warranty.



... but i dont think comparing warranty claims on you suburu car to a dodge diesel truck is fair. let suburu build a full-size diesel truck, with the mod capabilities of the dodge, then compare warranty service. (btw, if you dodge has a recall, it will be fixed at no charge to you, regardless of the mileage, also. )



one last thing, ctd owners think they get singled out for warranty denial. the list of potentialy modde vehicles includes jeeps, neon srt4's, any hemi powered car or truck, any 4wd, and the list goes on. i have stories on all of them.

And again... YOU are implying I tried to get through with mods... I have been denied your so called "free" recalls (had to pay for a computer reflash) on my completely stock truck. I did NOT try to "get one over" on DCX by slipping a modded truck past them, I was basically a typical truck owner that needed his truck fixed under the "implied" warranty DCX had supposedly sold the truck with... I could have had a bicycle and gotten warranty denied.



And FYI, the XT6 is basically an older version of the WRX... it is just as fast, just as quick, and just as nimble... it was Subaru's first attempt (and a good one at that) at a 2 seater sports car.



And AGAIN, subaru could build a "modable" diesel truck anyday, and I would probably still have no problems getting my STOCK un-modded "modable" truck warrantied.



You keep bringing this up like everyone with a CTD automatically mods their truck... it is because of techs LIKE YOU that cause stock truck owners severe grief.



Not all of us need to mod our trucks to inflate our pathetic ego or to prove something to someone, some of us leave them alone so we don't have problems... then just as you are doing here, we are automatically GUILTY BY ASSOCIATION.



steved

 

[zstroken]

Unfornately Steve there is a reason their is guilt by association. The dealers I am sure have taken a claim for warranty and to find out they got burnt. The WRX and I think I know the XT6 that you refer of are sweet cars. For $1000 can you double the HP of the engine? That is the issue with the CTD, for almost no money, just plug in stuff you can pick up 300HP or more. Less than an afternoons worth of work. What does it take to get another 300 out of a non diesel? I think you will see warranty relations improve. DCX got burnt on the warranty claims in the years past since it was so easy to get big hp and tq. They have built in all sort of safeguards on the CR to check for engine modding. In for your a/c to get worked on I doubt if your tech will say anything about the big turbo on there, but go in for a leaking injector, you had better hope it wasn't modded. I have heard from a few people the amount of checksums in the new ECM is almost impossible to fool. I doubt if the smarty even will get the job done, it might divert someone who just plugs in with a DRB, but if you have engine troubles, you had better have a great dealer or be ready to pay.

 

[steved]

They have built in all sort of safeguards on the CR to check for engine modding.

That's fine, but it DID nothing in my case... (How does engine modding cause an axle seal to fail?)... you see my point, it doesn't matter if it is the door seals, I got grief over it.



steve

 

[zstroken]

That is a bum deal. Sounds like you needed a new dealer. Unfortunately you found one, just happened to be a subaru dealer.