I need help! Please ADVICE

jeep9mm

New Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
Charlotte, Wilmington
I want to kill someone. Yall remember what happened to my Jeep...http://www.nc4x4.com/forums/showthread.php?t=853&highlight=water

Anywho...new events have unfolded. 3 weeks ago my car starts acting up and I had a tow truck tow me to neuwirth jeep. Because of what my Jeep was doing I assumed it was water in the gas. I told Jeep that as soon as it got there and to check for it. Next day they call me and tell me that it is not water in the gas that it was ignition coil, they change that, it doesnt work, they try new CPM and that doesnt work, they try new injector and that finally does work. So they call me today that it's all good but they can't have warranty pay for it like they had originally said because I have a tankful of water and that is not their fault. So what can i do NOW???

I specifically told them to check for it. They said it wasnt that and they told me all along the repairs would be under warranty. can they go back and change that after the work is performed? What can I do wiht the gas station? I have no receipt but i guess i can get a credit card statement that it says that on March 30th I filled up and since then it has been in the Jeep dealership. Is that good enough!?!


FUCK, please help


Rod

PS. Josh you were right, fawk neuwirht
 
tell them to take the new parts off and put the old ones back on, since it didn't fix the problem, or they can warranty out the new parts.

The dealership needs to document that it's been there since 3/30, and whether it was fresh or salt water in the tank... (the gas station may try to mount a defense of you driving on the beach and getting salt water in it)

You may need to consult an attorney before the owner of the gas station will cough up some cash.
 
Many years ago I ran a gas station/service center. Old station, old tanks. unknowingly, I pumped 18(that I know of) cars full of water! The owner of the station I rented from payed for all the repairs of everyones car. You should not have to pay for the repairs the Jeep place did, but as Rich said, talk to an attorney.
 
Thanks Rich and Chip. See Rich, the parts they put did fix most of the problem now the remaining problem is droppin the gas tank, cleaning it,and then that should be it.

Jeep is saying now that the bill is 1400 dollars and that only 809 of those can be attributed to the water in the gas. They say the rest are repairs that were needed because the Jeep has evidence that it has been driven through water or that water got in and that is not covered in warranty. Now keep in mind that for three weeks they told me that water in the gas was not the issue...so i think they did unnecessary repairs bc they were wrong and now they want me to pay for them...although they had said warranty would take care of them. The mechanic said that part of the problem was the gasolines fault and the other part that I had to have driven through water...now I have never crossed a creek or anything like that..i have gone through flooded roads never above waht Jeep says you should and like the mud in Uwharrie. So if he says he has evidence...then I guess it is possible, but that they both happened to go bad at the same time? That my jeep had been goin perfectly for 11,000 miles and the day I pump bad gas it goes bad because of me "driving through water"? seems a lil weird.

So this is what I think; that the jeep was acting up solely because of water in gas and what that ruined. And my parts did show water damage from wheeling but were not causing the problem, they were probably still fine but since they thought they were the problem the dealer repaired them and now they want me to pay for it.

If they said that warranty would take care of it from the beginning...cant they be held to that? Although I would have no problem with the gas station payng their 800...but my 600 should be paid by Jeep like they said.

Rod
 
1 fuel injector + 1 throttle position sensor (is that what a CPM is?) + 1 ignition coil = $1400?? :lol:

No wonder where these guys come up with their $70,000 FJ40's..
 
1 fuel injector, one ignition coil, spark plugs, one PCM= powertrain control module, draining the gas tank and cleaning it...and the labor for all of it=1400..its ridiculous!!

Im about to cry...i so freaking confused and dont know what to do

haha WAAAAAA
 
Tell them to take the parts off, you'll go to another dealership. #1. All those parts were not the issue, gas in tank was. #2 they said it was under warranty #3 you didn't drive thru water, stick to that.
 
Sorry, the PCM would either work right or not at all after a dunking, and that's probably the lion's share of the repairs... take that off, but leave the rest, persue the bill with the gas station owner.
 
rich is on the right track. no reason for you to pay for parts they "thought would fix it but dont"

a good dealership tech should have access to enough testing equipment to not have to "try things and see if it fixes it"

tell them to put your old parts back on and get a clue. report this whole incident to Jeep.
 
I got to ask, if you knew there was water in the tank, why didn't you just drain it yourself ? I've heard you can poor rubbing alcohol in the tank to "dry" up the gas or just use some "gas tank dryer" fluid.

I HATE stealerships :mad:

JB
 
Wow. Thanks guys, seriously this is why this is the best 4x4 board out there for me. I appreciate it so much.
JB...well im in college so i would have no place to do it and towing was only free to the dealer and since I never thought I was a guilty party I figured free tow through DC roadside...then a few bucks to drain the gas and fix whatever it caused which i could hold the gas station liable for. I figured since it wasnt my fault why not have professionals handle it...I just wish I knew as much about cars as you all do to hold my own when I go in and fight.

In some good news the dealer already has certified samples of the gas and that it has water...so 800 of those should be nondebatable. Anyone want to make a trip to Wilmington and go fight with me? hah or anyone know of a mechanic who would go argue with me...of course id pay him?
Id take Josh(mxwake)...but they already hate him there


Thanks guys, the problem is nowhere near solved so if u have more thought PLEASE add them to this thread.
 
First thing they should have done if water was suspect was test the fuel.

There are test strips for this, draining some into a clear bottle and letting it settle out, trying to burn some on a bench top. done them all.

You want to know what codes were stored in the PCM ( you had a Check engine light right ? ) and what led them to replace the PCM. What led them to replace the parts they did. MAKE them explain it to you IN DETAIL.

The tech is required to write a story for each repair or part replaced, ESPECIALLY if the ticket is thought to be a warranty repair. HE has to justify the parts he put on the vehicle. IF the part did not fix the problem he is "supposed" to remove the part and reinstall the old if possible.

I'm guessing in this case he/they can't justify the parts for warranty rembursment so now they are gonna try to get you to pay. A lot of folks roll on this and pay, just to get the vehicle back.

WHY did they replace a PCM? the odds of a PCM failure are pretty slim, (I've replaced 1 in the last year, lost my ass testing every damn thing I could before I did it, and it did fix the problem )

If there were codes, and the engine ran, then salt water intrusion wasn't likely

Same with the TPS and what ever else that was replaced. If you are required to pay for the parts, you want the old ones in return for testing purposes ( tell them this ) to verify they are indeed bad. You know people who CAN test them, and can verify they are infact parts for an '04 Jeep. You should be returned everything but the PCM, as there is a core on that. the small parts are tossables if customer pay.

If they tell you they have to turn them in to DC, then they are trying to get warranty on them, why are you paying for them as well ?

THe tech is trying to get paid for the time he spent on your vehicle, warranty repairs don't pay shit, period ! if he spent 10 hours on your Jeep, he may get paid 2, if that.
If you pay then he gets most of what ever time he has in it. and the dealership makes more $$$ too. Which would you go for ?

Kevin
 
water in the gas would not have killed those parts, you cant compress water and it dont burn!!!!
thats why it would not run. I have never seen a injector die from water. my short!!!.o2
 
an old timers trick( for the future) pump some of the gas out on concrete, doesn't take much. the gas will seep in and the water, if there is some, will bead up on the top
 
No I never authorized it TSPryson. I mean I knew it was happening but I had been told that it would be under warranty. I was never told I would have to pay until today. I am willing to pay for the 800 that water in gas cause and then sue the gas station or whatever, but not the other 600.

Krehel, They are claiming that two different things went wrong. Some are from gas in the water and others are from "being driven through water". I do not believe that the jeep ran perfect for 12k miles and the day i pump bad water something else like the PCM and injector also fail. I think that they saw some things that looked bad and figured that was the problem and didnt test for water in gas until today...so they had done all this work in vain and since Jeep was made aware of this, they want me to pay for it now...despite they said it would be under warranty.

Chip, thanks for the tip ol timer! I prolly will do it from now on...i'm sure im gonna be paranoid from now on everytme i pump gas.

Rod
 
Well, years ago, I used to be a service writer. (HATED that job..)

I always had to provide an estimate within 5% of the total bill..
(I can't quote laws.. Its been so long ago..)

Might be something somewhere on the net

If we did work that wasn't authorized.. we ate it.
 
The Contract For Repair:

When you ask a car repair shop to repair your car, the North Carolina Motor Vehicle Repair Act requires the shop to prepare a written repair estimate if the cost of repair will exceed $350.00. By means of a conspicuous sign (24â€x 24â€), the repair shop must notify you of this right, as well as your right to the return or inspection of all parts which have been replaced if you authorize a repair. The written estimate must include the cost of repair to you, including diagnostic work, and be given to you before any repair or diagnostic work is performed. The estimate must also include a statement allowing you to indicate whether the replaced parts should be saved for your inspection or returned to you, and a statement indicating the daily charge for storing the car after the shop has notified you that the repairs have been completed.

No written estimate is required by law if the repair shop does not agree to repair the car. You may also waive your right to receive a written estimate for the period of time specified in the waiver document. There are three instances when a partial waiver is implied by law: if you leave your car at a repair shop during hours when the shop is not open; if you allow the shop or another person to deliver your car to the shop; or if the repair shop reasonably believes that an accurate estimate of the cost of repair cannot be made until diagnostic work is completed. In the latter instance, as soon as the diagnostic work is completed, the repair shop must provide you with the full written repair estimate.

By law, the repair shop must notify you by telephone, mail, or other means

* if a determination is made that actual cost for repairs will exceed the written estimate by more than 10%;
* if the written repair estimate contained only an estimate for diagnostic work necessary to estimate the cost of repair and the diagnostic work has been completed; or
* if an implied partial waiver exists for diagnostic work and the diagnostic work has been completed.

You then must notify the repair shop orally or in writing that you either authorize, modify or cancel the order for repair. If you cancel the order for repair or you decide not to repair your car after the diagnostic work is performed, the repair shop must expeditiously reassemble your car in a condition reasonably similar to what it was when you brought it to the shop. You will be obligated to pay the cost of repairs actually completed which you authorized in the written estimate, as well as certain costs associated with reassembling your car if you were notified of the possibility of these charges in your written estimate. If you authorize the repair, the repair shop cannot charge you more than 10% beyond the written estimate plus any amounts that you have authorized beyond the written estimate. The shop cannot refuse to give you your car for refusing to pay more than this amount. Upon completion of the repair, the shop must provide you with an invoice describing the work that was done, itemizing labor, parts, and merchandise and their costs (unless covered under service agreement or warranty), and identifying any replacement part as being used, rebuilt, or reconditioned.

The Motor Vehicle Repair Act includes a detailed list of prohibited acts and practices in the repair of your car. Violations of the this Act can result in the award of attorneys fees to the consumer in addition to all other remedies available under North Carolina statutory and common law.
Click to expand...

Linky here
 
You might also want to call the state Attorney's General office on Monday AM. They typically have a team of people assigned to monitoring and mediating (and prosecuting) disagreements between consumers, mechanics, and dealerships.
 
Do like I did. Go to corporate and get the law firm of dewey screw em and how involved. Have them prob the tank and show you the water. Probing is just like we do in the boat business. You pull gas from the lowest point of the tank to get an idea of how much is in it. Have them show you in a clear container. Water seperates from gas so you'll be able to see it.
 
Have you contacted the gas station yet? If the water came from their store I'd be surprised if they don't already know about the problem. You can't be the only person going through this.

Any chance it was vandalism that happened after you filled it up? How far did you make it from the gas station before the first sign of a problem?
 
Josh, I alredy have the samples from my gas tank. I am not worried about that part...ill have to sue in small claims court.

I am worried about the reaminging 600...they seem to be repairs that were not needed that they claimed to be underwarranty and now thwy say they were not.

Fart...no chance of vandalism...my jeep was waaay on empty...i pumped more than 16 gallons on a 19 gallon tanks and after about 7 miles it starting fucking up.

I have no problem at all with paying DC the part that the gas station is responsible for and me suing or dealing with them...i just WILL NOT pay for repairs that were not needed.


ROD
 
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