Service Department Just Lied to My Face

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I took the '08 CR-V to the Honda dealer this morning for both airbags to be replaced as a recall. On the way, the "D" gear indicator light in the dash started flashing at me. No shifting problems, no slipping, nothing. I dropped the car off and asked what that could be and he told me they'd hook it up to see.

The guy called about 45 mins later and said it was the 3rd gear pressure switch. He said the diagnostic would be $40 but he would take that off the $440 to replace it (whoopee
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). I told him to not do it right away, that I'd see about it later. I got on the Honda forums and found a DIY tutorial to change it. Basically, take the splash shield off the front bumper, unplug the switch, unscrew it, and install the new one. About a cup of ATF will come out.

When I went to pick the car up I asked him how much for just the part. He said, "oh, this isn't something you can do yourself. You have to go inside the transmission and that'll require draining the fluid." Lie 1. I told him that I thought it was on the outside of the case and was a pretty straightforward fix. I wasn't going to argue, was going to leave and do some more research in case I was wrong and didn't want to look stupid, and I generally don't like confrontation (my blood pressure was already rising).

I told him I'd think about it and give him a call if I wanted them to do it. He said, "now that price includes a full transmission service with 5 quarts of fluid". Lie 2. I just said, "thanks" and got out of there. You see, I just changed the ATF in this car a month or so ago and I KNOW you can only drain about 3.5 quarts at a time. If they were really "going inside" the transmission, they would have to remove it from the car and split it apart (these don't have a trans pan). It would cost more than $440 if it was really that involved.

Point of the story, he lied to my face and smiled about it and it really bothered me. Sorry, I'm just venting. Now I have to find the part (I won't be buying it there) and make sure I'm not completely wrong about changing it. If I am, I know a good, honest independent shop (I go to church with the owner) that'll be doing the work. Anyone have experience with CR-V's and the 3rd gear pressure switch?
 
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I know their job is to sell, but the complete lack of integrity coupled with ignorance is easy to be upset about.
 
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I'd print off the directions, go in and see him and call him a lier to his face, then talk with the manager. I'd also write a letter to the BBB and state attorney general. also inform the manager that you are going to tell everyone to never do business with that place.
 
Well, the Toyota stealership did the same thing to me when I put my old Sienna for a recall.
At the end, they told me that the valve cover gasket was leaking.
I know it was not leaking.

Earlier, when the Sienna went in for another recall, they told me that the Power Steering rack is leaking that is why the boot is torn.
I checked, there was no leak.
I just had to put in a new boots cost about $15 and another $60 for the mechanic to put it on when the car was in for TB as supposed to replacing the whole steering rack for $1200.

So, I just brushed them off.
 
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Must be a common theme with Honda dealers. My former dealer lied to me back in '08 when I began having trouble with the brakes on my '08 Accord. Short version of a long story, Honda was starting to see issues with the brakes on that model year. Service department knew it and tried to blame the premature wear on me. Notice I don't have any Hondas in my sig.
 
I found this all hard to believe, so I looked up the word liar in the dictionary and one of the definitions was "service departments at car dealerships."
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Thanks for the replies everybody. And thanks for sharing the video OneEyeJack. That looks similar to what I'll be doing but mine might be in a different location. I'm going to have someone else read the code before I do anything.

I would also like to share another experience with this same dealer. My grandma bought a new CR-V in 2012. A couple years ago, she asked me to "take it to the Honda place so they can see why the dash is lit up". It was the maintenance minder telling her it needed an oil change. I told her I'd change the oil for her and reset the light. She insisted I "take it to the dealer because they know more about what they're doing than you" (I have three Honda that have never seen a mechanic since I've owned them... except for recalls of course). Gotta love grandmas. So I drop it off for her. They called me and said the car needed an ATF change, a cabin air filter, and an engine air filter. I called my grandma and told her that I could do all of that for $50-100. She insisted they do it. Her total bill was $680. Of course, she thought she is doing the best for her car. I knew they ripped her off, but what can you do... they know best! They charged $80 labor to change the air filter!!! That was the one thing that stuck out to me. A 1 minute job.

Anyway, they won't be getting my business anymore.
 
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Maybe I can provide a more balanced perspective for you.

First off, the capacity in the manual is 5.3 quarts, and easily achievable using a fluid exchange machine.

Secondly, worst case, he exaggerated the complexity of the job, perhaps out of ignorance (no excuse) or to make a sale. It's hard to say which category this would fall into.

However, it does NOT appear that they tried to sell you on unneeded services. Give him a call and tell him what you found and see what he says.
 
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I must just be lucky but i've always had good experiences for the times my Forester has been in the service dept of the local Subaru dealer, and I didn't even buy it there. Only for warranty work back in the day and I am actually awaiting a call that the parts are in for the Takata Air Bag recall. Been almost a month and no call yet.
 
Originally Posted By: LoneRanger
I must just be lucky but i've always had good experiences for the times my Forester has been in the service dept of the local Subaru dealer, and I didn't even buy it there. Only for warranty work back in the day and I am actually awaiting a call that the parts are in for the Takata Air Bag recall. Been almost a month and no call yet.


Took me a year at Toyota.
 
The scams a smelly stealer can pull are endless! Another good one is the stereo trick ...you bring your vehicle in for whatever service or part and leave. A day or so later one of your speakers is scratchy or intermittent. Hmm a new problem with a new checkout fee and it is electrical work.

Bottom line is the last service guy loosens the harness plug on the back of the head unit and a few dozen bumps down the road it starts acting up... VIOLA! Instant additional cash stream with a 30 second reach behind fix!

My experience with this particular scam was at the Ford dealer ~2 miles from the Ford product development center I worked in. It became obvious when I brought it up that others had the exact same experience.
 
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Originally Posted By: JohnnyJohnson
Originally Posted By: LoneRanger
I am actually awaiting a call that the parts are in for the Takata Air Bag recall. Been almost a month and no call yet.


Took me a year at Toyota.


Coincidentally, that's what mine was there for.
 
What's the cost of the part and what is book time to R&R?

Shops just don't pull labor cost out of thin air. They look up how long the job takes in Mitchell, multiply it by their hourly rate and add in the cost of parts.
 
Originally Posted By: TheOilWizard
Maybe I can provide a more balanced perspective for you.

First off, the capacity in the manual is 5.3 quarts, and easily achievable using a fluid exchange machine.

Secondly, worst case, he exaggerated the complexity of the job, perhaps out of ignorance (no excuse) or to make a sale. It's hard to say which category this would fall into.

However, it does NOT appear that they tried to sell you on unneeded services. Give him a call and tell him what you found and see what he says.



I know I'm probably over-reacting, and I know that's these guys' jobs. Like I said, I'm just venting. I'm also hoping this guy isn't right all along and it really isn't something I can tackle myself. Now that would certainly turn the tables.
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It's just the guy's attitude and how it changed from "I'm your best friend, let me help you" to "how dare you try to turn a wrench on a car you own, you ignorant consumer!" after I asked him how much the part was (since he said it was in stock).
 
I like a good stealership story myself. In this case though, I am not inclined to believe you got the "Gotcha" crime of the century here. Quite frankly, $440 would be about 2 man hours worth of dealership shop labor with shop supply fees and parts cost rolled in. About what I would expect for a job like this.

Sure you can argue after the fact but the truth is you were pig ignorant on the procedure yourself until you perused the internet. I am sure the service advisory deals with a bunch of different designs and would give him the benefit of the doubt on getting it wrong of the switch being external instead of internal.

Others telling to write the BBB, State Attorney General and talk to the service manager will be a waste of time. BBB will do nothing nor does anybody under the age of 40 every consult BBB rating before hand. State Attorney General will do nothing because it is small potatoes and the dealership service manage will fein concern to placate you and move you along the way.
 
I've had good luck so far on recalls at my local Honda and Toyota dealers. Sure, they've recommended service, almost all of which I've turned down, but all the service recommendations were reasonable (if not the price). I don't call them Stealerships unless they have a proven track record. I can list a few of those, too.

The "oh, this isn't something you can do yourself" part is really something the service writer pulled out of his [censored]. Maybe he didn't know and winged it, or maybe he was flat out lying. Either way he was totally wrong. I've replaced that transmission sensor, and it's easier than most spark plugs.

The fluid exchange, yeah, that could be an added, maybe needed, maybe unneeded service, or a case of lying. Hard to say. The OP knows if it's ready for an exchange.

I do know one thing. Rounding up fluid quantities is common in the industry. Someone here linked a GM dealer service forum where rounding up was it was discussed, and it's always done to the nearest Quart (in the US) and sometimes more. Never mind fluid dispensers have been around for decades that dispense just the right amount. If you spec something that only comes in Quart bottles, that I can understand. Otherwise it's just another rip-off.
 
Sounds like the Nissan dealer we used to trust.
15k miles ago they told us we needed front and rear brakes.
Been to pepboys three times since and they laugh. Still don't need brakes.
I did get a good deal on front and rear rotors and pads from AA. So they are in the garage waiting for me.
 
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