Have to say I am getting really sick and tired or warranty repairs on GM products, but right now I’m facing another issue - the dealer denying a warranty!
The vehicle in question is a ’07 Tahoe Z71, which actually belongs to my best friend. The truck is at 63,000 km (39,375 miles) and has developed a valve cover leak. Reading through the vehicle’s owner manual, there are two different warranties on this vehicle: bumper to bumper, which is 3 years or 60,000 kilometres (36,000 miles) and an engine/drive train warranty, which is 5 years or 160,000 kilometres (100,000 miles).
We took the truck into the dealership, where the truck was purchased and serviced, and I have to say my friend and I were rather offended by the “Service Manager’s” behaviour. First we asked to see a member of staff who is authorised to deal with warranty claims. Next, we were passed onto the Service Manager. His first response was “Your vehicle has exceeded 60,000 km, we are not covering this repair”. Considering their overpriced servicing costs ($310 to change engine oil/filter and drop the trans pan and refill with 5 quarts of Dexron VI), I was outraged with the fact that he would not even view the vehicle.
Next, I took out the service booklet and pointed out that there were two types of warranty offered on this truck, which I mentioned above. When I showed him the bumper to bumper warranty, he goes “See, it even mentions it in the manual!” Then I showed him the warranty supplement. He took the warranty supplement, which mentions engine/drive train warranty and accused us of faking it. This booklet was supplied with the truck. Next he goes out and checks every single Tahoe/Suburban on their lot (both new and those in service) and comes back to say this wasn’t a GM document. Then he goes back to his old story of the warranty being expired. I told him I was not referring to the bumper to bumper warranty and his response literally was “What? You want a new bumper?”.
Then he walks out and throws a print out at me from autopartners.net, which mentions only bumper to bumper. He then takes it back, saying he cannot give this to customers. At this point, I threw the ball back in his yard. I told him this engine calls for 5w30, you dump 20W-50 in my slump and when I have a problem you tell me to walk out the door I came in from. Next he tells us stories about them using BP 5w30. I asked for a spec sheet, and he said it cannot be given to customers. I always stick to manufacturer recommendations, and I’ve had a tough time finding a 5w30 weight oil in Kuwait…if BP had one, I would have known. The only 5w30 oils I have seen are Pennzoil and Fuchs Titan. So I knew he was telling me porkies.
At this point, my friend got rather annoyed. So he said “We’re not getting anywhere with you, mate…we’re just going around in circles” and walks out. This isn’t an Epica or an Aveo. It’s a fully loaded Tahoe, which cost over $53,000 back in 2007. The fact that his family has an ’10 H2, ’09 Silverado HD and ’09 Escalade and has been a loyal GM customer for over 20 years is even more annoying.
Do dealers not get reimbursed by GM for warranty repairs? When my uncle's '09 Denali had a problem with his automatic climate control, the Service Manager accused us of "abusing" it and the truck only had 1,927 km (1,204 miles) on it. And that's after my uncle paid them for additional oil changes at 500 km and 1,000 km, when all he had to do was drive and get his complimentary oil change at 1,500 km. You dump all this hard earned cash, and get treated like this in return, as if money grows on trees.
The vehicle in question is a ’07 Tahoe Z71, which actually belongs to my best friend. The truck is at 63,000 km (39,375 miles) and has developed a valve cover leak. Reading through the vehicle’s owner manual, there are two different warranties on this vehicle: bumper to bumper, which is 3 years or 60,000 kilometres (36,000 miles) and an engine/drive train warranty, which is 5 years or 160,000 kilometres (100,000 miles).
We took the truck into the dealership, where the truck was purchased and serviced, and I have to say my friend and I were rather offended by the “Service Manager’s” behaviour. First we asked to see a member of staff who is authorised to deal with warranty claims. Next, we were passed onto the Service Manager. His first response was “Your vehicle has exceeded 60,000 km, we are not covering this repair”. Considering their overpriced servicing costs ($310 to change engine oil/filter and drop the trans pan and refill with 5 quarts of Dexron VI), I was outraged with the fact that he would not even view the vehicle.
Next, I took out the service booklet and pointed out that there were two types of warranty offered on this truck, which I mentioned above. When I showed him the bumper to bumper warranty, he goes “See, it even mentions it in the manual!” Then I showed him the warranty supplement. He took the warranty supplement, which mentions engine/drive train warranty and accused us of faking it. This booklet was supplied with the truck. Next he goes out and checks every single Tahoe/Suburban on their lot (both new and those in service) and comes back to say this wasn’t a GM document. Then he goes back to his old story of the warranty being expired. I told him I was not referring to the bumper to bumper warranty and his response literally was “What? You want a new bumper?”.
Then he walks out and throws a print out at me from autopartners.net, which mentions only bumper to bumper. He then takes it back, saying he cannot give this to customers. At this point, I threw the ball back in his yard. I told him this engine calls for 5w30, you dump 20W-50 in my slump and when I have a problem you tell me to walk out the door I came in from. Next he tells us stories about them using BP 5w30. I asked for a spec sheet, and he said it cannot be given to customers. I always stick to manufacturer recommendations, and I’ve had a tough time finding a 5w30 weight oil in Kuwait…if BP had one, I would have known. The only 5w30 oils I have seen are Pennzoil and Fuchs Titan. So I knew he was telling me porkies.
At this point, my friend got rather annoyed. So he said “We’re not getting anywhere with you, mate…we’re just going around in circles” and walks out. This isn’t an Epica or an Aveo. It’s a fully loaded Tahoe, which cost over $53,000 back in 2007. The fact that his family has an ’10 H2, ’09 Silverado HD and ’09 Escalade and has been a loyal GM customer for over 20 years is even more annoying.
Do dealers not get reimbursed by GM for warranty repairs? When my uncle's '09 Denali had a problem with his automatic climate control, the Service Manager accused us of "abusing" it and the truck only had 1,927 km (1,204 miles) on it. And that's after my uncle paid them for additional oil changes at 500 km and 1,000 km, when all he had to do was drive and get his complimentary oil change at 1,500 km. You dump all this hard earned cash, and get treated like this in return, as if money grows on trees.
