Dealership(AKA STEALERSHIP) Problems.

[Medic_Morgan]

So here's the problem guys(and girls ). So as I posted in an earlier thread(Radio HELP), my radio quit working a few days ago after re-wiring my Hella's. All that I actually did to the Hella's was disconnect + - wires/cables, re-shrink wrap some spots and re-ran the cables through some conduit piping. After reconnecting the battery my radio no longer functioned and just displayed the time. I checked all the fuses and all was good. After trying to disconnect the battery for awhile and reconnect I still had the problem, so today I was off to the dealership. Now on to the good stuff and my hoping you all can give me suggestions/insight on how to deal with my problem....

When I purchased my H3 from the dealership last year(09/06/12) I also purchased the "extended warranty" from MPP(Mechanical Protection Plan) which is as they stated at the time of buying and "insurance" added to the vehicle. My coverage is for 4yrs/48k miles or whatever comes first blah blah blah. The Finance manager that sold me the "warranty" stated that as long as I brought the vehicle back to them then I would be covered but if I went to another dealership I would be paying a $100 co-pay/deduct. Soooooo when I brought my H3 in today to figure out my radio woes I was told they "needed to quore me $100 just to start the work order". I reluctantly asked why and was given the run-around that they can't start w/o a price blah blah blah, so I signed and waited. Just about 2hrs later I was approached by the same service tech that had written me up, his reply was:

"after running a diagnostic and finding nothing, the technician 'removed your dash' and found that one of you connectors in the back was loose so he plugged it in and it began to work again so we're done and its going to cost you $100 for our work"

After hearing that(more was said but I paraphrased what he was saying bc clearly he didn't know what he was saying) I asked how they removed my "whole dash", knowing that all he did was pop out the center via the cig lighters, and why was I being charged the $100 when I brought the vehicle back to them(original purchasing dealership) AND that all they did was plug a "loose" connector in!!?? So after passing on trying to talk to him I asked to speak to the manager. When speaking w/ the manager, he did the same run around blah blah as the tech and come to find out the said tech never even called in to the warranty company due to his "thinking they were already closed". So the manager instructed him to call and a quick/EXACT 2mins later the manager was phoned by the tech saying "they denied the claim". By now it was 1630 in the afternoon and knowing that the MPP Office was on the East Coast, I think that the tech actually lied about calling the claims office(kinda hard to navigate an 800# menu and get a claim denied in a quick 2mins). Sooo I paid to get my vehicle, got the GM HQ number and left in a s****y pissy mood. Now my question for all of you who have dealt with said "stealerships" how do you propose that I go about attempting to get my wrongly charged $100 refunded? Call GM?, Call the Warranty line? Make a service dept complaint? I'm really at a loss and really pissed that I was charged just to plug a wire in securely.

Hope you can help since I know we've all been jacked at some point by the dealers w/ our vehicles. Thanks for reading this long post/vent session, hope to hear from you all soon.

 

[3Hummers]

I would start by calling the warranty company and ask if it was a covered repair. I would also ask if they had been called on it by any dealer.

 

[LagunaH1]

What does the fine print in your MPP contract say?

 

[Hunner]

Did you remove the center panel to do the work you did to wire the switches?

 

[Mr_Rich]

JMO, but I think you paid the dealership for a problem that you/ yourself caused/ may have caused. If you do electrical work you could've chased the problem down with a schematic. It was just the radio, not anything more complicated. If this is all it was, then suck it up, and quit blaming the dealer. We all know how they operate, and they need to pay someone to fix these things.

 

[Kurt]

Its not out of line for dealerships and independent shops to charge a diagnostic fee which [around me] typically runs about 1 hour of labor. Thats kind of the minimum billable charge.

I've brought my truck in for weird electrical stuff and had it fixed or confirmed what the issue was for $100-120 and its money well spent vs having a more elaborate repair or a huge bill.

My only question is to read the warranty policy and see if it was covered under warranty or not. They may have a clause where the warranty does not cover repairs due to incorrect 3rd party installation of after market accessories.

The problem with shops and dealerships is they are often busy. If you pull a guy off an engine job or a transmission replacement, that tech gets paid the same with the same benefits and costs as he would just checking interior switches or doing an electrical test. Thats why "simple tasks repairs" get billed the same.

 

[Kurt]

[repeat]
...

 

[H32NV]

Yeah, my thought is that the Hummer Dealership has to pay the technician looking at your truck, and the only way they can compensate for that is to either charge the customer, or to charge the warranty plan for the time it takes him to find the issue. $100-$110 is pretty standard from what I've seen. Even if I take my truck into the dealer for a warranty repair, they want me to authorize $109, to cover their costs of diagnosing the problem, and if it is found out to be covered by warranty, then they waive that diagnostic fee because the repair is covered by GM, and GM sends them the check for both the diagnosis and the repair. I'm with a few others on here, this is going to come down to what your warranty will cover, and if they will, then they may reimburse you for the diagnosis, or they may get the dealer to return the money to you, and then pay them at their contracted rate for a diagnosis fee(warranty programs negotiate the rate that they pay for service because they control so much volume of repairs).

 

[Medic_Morgan]

@3Hummers... Thanks, I already fig'd I'd be calling tomorrow based on the fact that it would've been about 8p EST by the time I called.

@LagunaH1/Kurt... As far as I can tell from the little brochure they sent me after my purchase was the hoopla about not covering serviceable items(oil change, tranny flush), wear items(brake pads, tires), door seals etc. Nothing(that I read) mentioned not covering the diagnostic fee or the repair(or in my case, pushing in a plug ). As for the aftermarket accessories clause, my radio is still the stock single CD unit.

@Hunner... Center panel was NOT removed for the switch. I placed in in a spot that was free and allows for more in the future. The wifey doesn't want me to destroy the factory head unit yet lol


@Mr_Rich... I'm sorry if my posting/ranting has inconvenienced you in any way, I'm just trying to ask fellow Hummer owners for some advice as to how to possibly navigate this issue. Seeing as I don't have $$ coming out of my *** (due to expecting my first child) and that I should "suck it up" to "stop blaming the dealer" then if you want I can send you my PayPal via PM for the $100 to help a fellow H3 owner out I'll even send you a thank you card.

@H#@NV... Thanks I guess I'm just gonna be playing phone tag tomorrow

 

[Steve #1]

Honestly, this shouldn't be covered by the warranty. It's prety obvious that something got pulled loose while you were working on the lights. It was even sugested in your other thread (where you asked for suggestions) for you to check the wiring at the radio.

Did you mention to them what you were doing before it stoped working?

They may take care of it. If they do, count yourself lucky.

 

[4speedfunk]

Now my question for all of you who have dealt with said "stealerships" how do you propose that I go about attempting to get my wrongly charged $100 refunded? Call GM?, Call the Warranty line? Make a service dept complaint? I'm really at a loss and really pissed that I was charged just to plug a wire in securely.

Welcome to the new GM!....Call 1-800-BEN-DOVER for all warranty complaints.

 

[Xlr8n]

If the warranty you purchased was through a third party, GM itself most likely has no liability and no real involvement in your issue with the dealership.
You didn't indicate whether your warranty was bumper-to-bumper, or just a mechanical/powertrain. Either way, if you already let them know you had been recently under the dash then they obviously are going to stick you with the charge.

 

[08H3]

I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but in your original post, you stated "My coverage is for 4yrs/48k miles or whatever comes first blah blah blah." , The blah, blah, blah part suggests to me that you probably either didn't read or understand the warranty terms. I'd say at this point you'll just have to learn and live.

 

[Medic_Morgan]

@Steve #1.. As you can see by the picture I posted nothing as even wired close to the radio or center console so I don't think it's do obvious that I pulled something.

@4speedfunk... Thanks for the number but when I tried to call I just got slapped in the Face

@08H3... Sorry for the misconception on the Blah Blah Blah part of my original post, that was meant to convey I'm not going to write out all the terms/conditions of the warranty. As I understand my fine print, I would be liable for charges if I have/had altered the radio w/ any non-GM aftermarket accessories and seeing that I haven't touched anywhere close to the radio/center dash I would think that I'd still be covered. I'm still hoping to get a straight forward answer today from my calls.


Thanks for all the replies guys.

 

[backcountryislife]

The warranty you mention, you say ""extended warranty" from MPP", is that a GM warranty? If not (the GM warranties are all called ***-guard,so I assume it's not?) wouldn't your beef be with the specific warranty company then, or with the guy who may have misled you at time of sale? It amazes me how often these guys sell a warranty, and they say something about how it works... and they have ZERO clue as to how it really works.

Either way, if it was supposed to be covered, you paid for it to be covered, and the guy who sold you told you it would be covered (the diag fee I mean) then... I'd be ticked as well if it weren't covered.