Help with disputing a warranty denial?
 

Here's the situation:

2010 Dodge Charger 3.5 V6 with 54k miles on it, we bought it from Carmax with about 35k on it in March 2011. It's my sister's car but the loan is in my name. Engine siezed/failed. Before we knew it was the engine, we had it towed to a local mechanic (knows my family well), thinking it was something minor. When he told us it was the engine, I immediately looked up the warranty coverage (powertrain: 5 yrs/100k mi) and had the car towed (for free) to the nearest Dodge dealer. The car had just had an oil change done that day, so we had him check oil/level/plugs/etc, which all checked out.

Once they determined it was the engine, they asked for maintenance records in anticipation of submitting the warranty claim. Unforrtunately my sister is a horrible record keeper and all we could dig up was the last oil change that was done by Jiffy Lube the day the car broke down. Since that's all I could provide, I had to give them authorization and a $700 deposit to tear the engine apart so they could look inside the cylinders. They even had some "forensics" guy from Chrysler come out to look at it. I never got to talk to that guy directly.

Day after Thanksgiving I get the call stating Chrysler denied any assistance through the warranty for two reasons; 1) The paperwork on my last oil change shows 318 miles more than what's on the odometer - ok...so someone at Jiffy Lube was lazy and rounded the mileage up...BFD!; and 2) "The oil in the pan was darker than it should have been for having just been changed." - Umm yeah! That's what happens when SOMETHING GOES WRONG!

So the repair cost is $6,000 (for a new long block). The car is just sitting there while I figure this out.

I was able to determine, through my sister, that she's had 3 oil changes since we got the car. Depending on how spread out they were (she couldn't recall the intervals), that about puts it on par with the every 6k miles recommended in the manual.

So I'm scouring the internet for what to do in this situation. I'm going to start going up the chain of command at the dealership, and then possibly getting in touch with a "zone representative" for the manufacturer. Any tips/assistance is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

P.S. First time, after 5 Japanese cars (3 Hondas, 2 Subarus - now 3 with my BRZ), that I put my name on an American car and this happens. Go figure...

That's American Car quality for ya...sorry to hear about the BS.

Try to find all the records by looking into the payment methods (credit card history) which your sister paid with to have the services performed... And then contact the businesses to reprint / email the invoices to you.

Don't give up, and keep in touch with the manufacturer regarding this. The manufacturer is the one responsible for covering the repair, so make sure you consistently follow-up with the manufacturer's customer relations department.

If you truly feel you should be covered, remember to NOT give up regarding getting covered by warranty... Good luck! :thumbsup:

This. You should be able to locate those invoices. Also have Jiffy Lube get a statement from the tech that they rounded the mileage or misread it.

This.

Her credit card probably has online access showing all the transactions going back many years. Surely Jiffy Lube can print out her client file.

Also: Do not fret over a $6k engine. Worst case scenario you get a used replacement from a car that's been rear-ended. Those cars are plentiful. Plentifulllllllll.

Even if you aren't able to get payment history yourself, find out where she had the work done. Chances are they can pull up the history by VIN and reprint the invoices for the oil changes. Get a statement regarding the odometer.

Jeff

If you bought it from carmax its under there warranaty bug them and if that doesn't work. Here 's what happened to me. I have a 2004 Kia Rio with 54000 miles on it. 1 year ago the timing belt blew out and blew up the engine. They said it wasn't covered under the 10 yr 100000 mile warranty because they don't cover the timing belt. I said I'll see you in court. The cost of repair was 5000$. I took them to small claims court in CA anything under 7500 can go to small claims cost me 75$ to file and they put in a new engine. P.m. me if you have any ? .

Unfortunately, this is one of the most effective methods. Getting someone from corporate out to appear in court, familiarize themselves with the situation, gather evidence, etc. usually just isn't worth it for a large business.

They called me the day before court and wanted to look at the car and cancel my court date, I didn't cancel the date and made them drive our from L.A. into the desert in June and sweat in 110 degrees outside the courtroom just for not honoring there waranty.

Have you ever thought about internet justice or parking the car across from the dealer with a giant sign?

Sometimes ranting on several message boards could get you enough attention and provide bad press for the dealer to give in. Or start posting your story across reviews.

If you have time you could always park across from the dealer with a giant sign that says "engine seized after XXXXX miles. Dealer denied warranty. Ripped Off." I promise you that if you do this for a week or so they will eventually give in. If not I will buy you a cookie. (proof required to get cookie).

every place you have service done should have a record based on your vin. I would figure out the place that you've had the work done. Also, a great way to get attention is to havea public case filed, and then send them a letter that will notify them that the lawsuit will be brought to the attention of the local media after it is settled if it is not settled outside of court.

I have a very similar situation happening right now. I am wondering what ever happened and how to resolve this issue. Any help would be appreciated. We also have a Dodge Charger 2010 - bought in April with 37k miles..put 20 k on it and the engine seized. They are saying it is from lack of oil but we are sure there was always oil in it! We have our warranty and an extended warranty and the car was certified Pre-owned!! Help!

How are you sure? How often did you check the oil level?

I can't offer advice like everyone else, but I am curious. You bought the car used with around 35k miles on it. Even if you find your records, I doubt you have the previous owner's records, so they might still deny it because no one knows how hard that guy beat on the car. Now, the solution might be pretty simple. Did the car come with a carfax? Or can you get one? Maybe the previous owner was good at taking care of his car and always went to the dealership. Get a carfax, show them it's (hopefully) clean service record, and get it fixed.