Dealer Service Center Oil Change Nightmare

[FRS-Texas]

Hey guys.... I'm looking for a little guidance here.... Below is an account of what is/has happened the past few days.



My Scion is a 2014 Argento FR-S that was bought Feb. 2014. Before it was dropped off at the dealer, it had about 8400 miles on the motor.

On August 9, 2014 I took it to the Service department of the Dealer I bought it at for the 7500 mile service and oil change (Yes, it was a little late).

After waiting about 1-1.5 hours, they said it was finished. I got the keys and went about my day, running errands, lunch, etc.... Well, about1-1.5 hours later I got a call from the Service rep that they "may have not put enough fluid in, or may have made a mistake". Since I waso ver 10 miles away they wanted to tow it "because it may do damage to the car".

So, the tow truck towed the car back to the dealer with me riding shotgun since the Service rep said it may just take 10-15 minutes........ (HAHAHA!)

After 20-30 minutes the Service rep approached me and said "The service Tech accidently filled your oil pan with Transmission Fluid instead of oil".... My reaction was.... Huh??? What the..... He then proceeded to say, they were flushing out the transmission fluid and doing another oil change, the right way.....

When he walked away, I proceeded to make phone calls to anyone and everyone I knew who may be able to give me advice....

One thing they all said was, "DO NOT ACCEPT THE CAR!!!" (Which I didn't, but that parts coming up)

I then called my insurance company to get their advice.... the claims rep.... thought I was pulling a practical joke.... (Wish I was doing that)

I started the claims process which is on hold currently....

During my long conversation with my insurance company the Service rep was trying to give me my keys, which I kept refusing... Then the Director of Service started to approach me trying to give me my keys.... I told him, "I'm on the phone with my insurance company", he took off running...

After I got off the phone, the Director of Service wanted to talk. He apologized for the issue and what they did, he took full responsibility for it and wanted to work with me to resolve the issue...... We discussed several options:

1. Extend the warranty to 100k miles

2. Replace the motor

3. New car swap

Well, my first reaction was go with #2 or #3 because who would want to extend a warranty on a car that will probably have issues later....

Monday afternoon I met with the Director of Service, their Sales Manager and a Scion Sales guy to discuss what happened and what I was looking for in the new car swap..... Up to this point I was upset they made the mistake but I was willing to work with them to resolve the issue in order to maintain a relationship with the dealer.... This is where they started to go downhill....

The sales team basically were trying to sell me a NEW car at MSRP, giving mea bad Trade-In value on my now destroyed car, and a payment plan that didn't add up (72 months at $465ish per month)....

That deal would mean, I would owe my current loan about $2k, and pay about$33k for a new FR-S because they put transmission fluid in my oil during a routine oil change......

And they also said they couldn’t replace the engine…… (didn’t give me a reason why)

Needless to say, I walked out....

I received a call later that night to "offer me" them paying off my current loan, they keep the car, and I could go somewhere else.... So they wanted me to take a loss of about $10k (Down payment and 6 months of payments)for their mistake.... Putting Transmission Fluid in the Oil.... During a ROUTINE OIL CHANGE.......

During the call, I mentioned I filed a complaint with Scion which they responded, the offer I just got will not be there for a long time....

Needless to say, I said thanks, but NO thanks.....

Scion just called me back..... They said they CAN'T HELP because it's a DEALER SERVICE ISSUE and not a MANUFACTOR DEFECT..... I asked to speak to his manager, who is supposed to call me tomorrow….. Which he said, she will just reiterate what he told me….. Oh and they refused to send me any documentation stating that they can’t intervene….

So….. That’s where I am folks…. I need help…. I have no idea what to do…. If you have real suggestions, I’d like to hear them…. Please, no jokes, no sarcasm, or trolling…. I’m not in the mood….



Thanks for reading and hopefully (praying to baby Jesus) this will get settled soon….

[dtrop]

This is probably one of the worst service stories I have heard.....I'm really sorry.

Having no experience with any of this, this is what I would say.....

State YOUR terms. At this point, you probably would just want a brand new car, they should give that to you. State how you want that done, and state how you want the payment plan to work out. YOU decide the numbers, don't let them.

Other than that.......get a lawyer.


I don't know enough about cars to tell whether how the problem would effect the car.

[hypercarfanatic]

Same as above, is what I would do. THEY fucked up your car, so THEY are ones that should pay it. Not a dime should come out of you (well maybe the dime you throw at the sales managers thick skull).

State your terms. If they don't abide by them, go up the ladder. Once you are as far up as you have been able to get, get a lawyer and sue. A summons on that guys desk might be the shock he needs.

I'm really sorry this happened to you, what an awful service from the dealer. If I were you, I would also go around telling people what happened. Yelp, Angie's List, Better Business Bureau, any review site you can get on, and get your story out - warn everyone of this incompetence.

Needless to say, if someone fucked up my car like that, their head would be on a stick.

[poptart]

I wouldn't even mess around. Retain an attorney and send a demand letter. They owe you a new car. Or at worse, they should pay off your loan and get you another used 2014 fr-s with similar miles and condition for whatever balance you owed on the one they ruined. I'd never trust that engine again.

I doubt they will do the right thing unless you threaten to sue.

[humfrz]

WOW - what a story .....

About how many miles did you drive the car with the transmission oil in the crankcase .. ??

Do you know if they put manual transmission OR automatic transmission oil in the crankcase .. ??


humfrz

[W2]

That is pretty awful considering it is their fuck up. I wouldn't expect a brand new car out of this, but I would expect more reasonable offers.

I would be very leery of an extended warranty. I would bet it would be through the dealer only and it would cause problems with Scion/Toyota covering any warranty issues in the future. This would be a major hassle for you if anything ever comes up.

I think you need to seek legal advice and figure out what your options are.

[OICU812]

Do some quick research obtain a lawyer it will be worth it. Dealerships are used to people taking it up the rump. A lawyer or quick letter means business and changes tone of the situation instantly in my experience. It's obvious everything's been noted and documented, if not recount dates and times and all details possible for first meet with your attorney. Lastly even though this is a hassle make quick action of getting on this. Facts, words and memory fades very quickly.

Good luck

[HeadBanger]

I don't know what your current payment is like on the car, but try and push for a new car, on the same term and payment. So they lose whatever you've paid off, but in return get your old car. At least try to get the new engine. Ask to speak to whoever is in charge of the dealership too.


The lawyer thing is your best bet though. Worst case scenario you're out a few hundred bucks to prove you're serious and they get their act together.

[PHLonomenal]

As someone said above...LAWYER UP homie!
That is some bullsh*t. Good luck to the OP.

[noobcake]

Wow, your world has flipped overnight. Yea get a lawyer as others have said. It seems like out of the 3 options they gave you, they're pretty much forcing your to extend your warranty. And what did your insurance say?

[FRS-Texas]

Thank you all for the advice and support.... The insurance claim is on hold because the dealership said they wanted to work this out. I'm doing research now on other options including retaining a lawyer.

To answer a question, I drove about 30-40 miles with the transmission fluid in the engine.....

I really do not want to bring my insurance company or lawyers into this because it will just take more time, cause me more grief, and more money......

Thanks again everyone!!

[ntron1]

The moment they get the letter from the lawyer they will want to settle immediately and put a new motor in it asap. You will get a loaner, motor and 100k warranty and they will pay your legal fees.

You will not be getting a new car....

Been there when the oil change place forgot to put oil in the engine a few years ago. Their insurance paid the claim.

[nmctacticz]

Wow thats terrible... sorry to hear that. You gotta plant your foot down and run the show even though your hands are tied on this one.
Make the call and tell them THEY fucked up and YOU are not responsible.

Who puts transmission fluid in an engine??? tell them to pull their heads out of their asses... 1. New Engine or 2. New car
At this point I would actually be afraid of them doing any more work on my car who knows what else they will fuck up

[Accurate Race Shop]

Do not pass go do not collect $200 (monopoly) until you have a lawyer. The couple hundred you will spend to tell them your story and have them draft a settlement agreement will be way cheaper than dealing with what they just did to your valve seals! this is embarissing and they do not want this in the media they will most likely settle and give you what you want to keep them off the 6 o'clock news putting trans fluid in the oil pan.

Sent from my Q10