# I want to make sure I didn't get ripped off at the dealership with repairs



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

Hi,

I just got back from picking my car up for repairs on the thermostat, water pump, two hoses and outlet. 

The thermostat was covered under the power train warranty and pump covered under my extended warranty. $0 for parts and $0 for labor, just $100 for my deductible.

I paid $69 for the remaining parts, but noticed they tacked on all of the labor costs onto the work for the hoses and outlet. 

This doesn't seem right. The warranties are supposed to cover the labor on the parts they cover, right?


----------



## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

Model year….current mileage needed…also, what engine or model.

Rob


----------



## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

mshissler said:


> Hi,
> 
> I just got back from picking my car up for repairs on the thermostat, water pump, two hoses and outlet.
> 
> ...


How many hours labor did they tack on? If they just tacked on 0.5 hours or so, then they're charging for the extra labor to replace the parts above and beyond the covered ones. If they're charging enough labor to cover the full amount of time they were doing the job, then that sounds like they either made a genuine mistake on how they billed the labor, or they're up to something shady. (of course this assumes you have a 1.4L engine and it is within the age and mileage window for the pump and thermostat to be covered)


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

2012 1.4L 84930 miles on the car.

Obviously you guys know, the invoice goes line by line. Each line of the work that was done and covered under warranty has $0 parts and $0 labor, $100 deductible. Then, you get to the non cover parts, which were only the hoses and outlet. $69 for parts and $228 for labor. I cant find any kind of hours on here, though, just the cost of labor.


----------



## Robby (Mar 1, 2013)

mshissler said:


> 2012 1.4L 84930 miles on the car.
> 
> Obviously you guys know, the invoice goes line by line. Each line of the work that was done and covered under warranty has $0 parts and $0 labor, $100 deductible. Then, you get to the non cover parts, which were only the hoses and outlet. $69 for parts and $228 for labor. I cant find any kind of hours on here, though, just the cost of labor.


Both items replaced were covered under power train…..your extended insurance should have paid nothing.
Any fluids required are also covered under power train since they were required as a consequence of the repair.

Any hoses that were needed are also considered a consequence but Chevrolet will pin the dealer against the wall expecting to know why the hoses required replacement since there was no hose problem prior to the repair.

Bottom line: you owed NOTHING since both assemblies are covered under power train and the remaining parts, if really needed (doubtful) were required as a consequence of the covered repair.

You should not bear any financial burden nor should your extended warranty have been charged anything.

Rob


----------



## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

mshissler said:


> 2012 1.4L 84930 miles on the car.
> 
> Obviously you guys know, the invoice goes line by line. Each line of the work that was done and covered under warranty has $0 parts and $0 labor, $100 deductible. Then, you get to the non cover parts, which were only the hoses and outlet. $69 for parts and $228 for labor. I cant find any kind of hours on here, though, just the cost of labor.


Looks like they charged you the "book" labor (how long the repair should take based on manufacturer estimates) on each of the parts they replaced. $228 looks like about 2.4 hours labor at $95/hour. I've never worked on a 1.4T (mine's a Diesel), but based on water pumps and hoses I have replaced in the past on other vehicles, an outlet and hose only takes about an additional 15 minutes per part, even on the worst of days. So if they charged you anything more than 0.7 hours labor, there was an error made somewhere. 

Basically, it looks like they charged you as if they had removed and reinstalled every part as an individual job rather than doing them together. Based on what I understand from your story, it seems to me that they should have "stopped the clock" when they got to the point where they had the water pump and thermostat out, counted whatever time it took to do the additional work, charged you for that portion, then gone back to billing the warranty for the remainder of the job.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

Thanks for the input everyone. What are my next steps here? Who can I contact to get this corrected? I know there are Customer Service agents that check the board. Is that my way to go or should I contact someone else?


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

I would start with the Chevy Customer Care account here. PM them. If you can, scan in your work ticket and attach it to the PM.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

Robby said:


> Bottom line: you owed NOTHING since both assemblies are covered under power train and the remaining parts, if really needed (doubtful) were required as a consequence of the covered repair.
> 
> You should not bear any financial burden nor should your extended warranty have been charged anything.
> 
> Rob


If I read this right, not only was the Service Contract charged, the Customer was made to pay their deductible as well. We do know many of these contracts don't pay for fluids and hoses/belts... and the labor charged, although most should have been covered under Warranty overall sounds right? My CRUZE had a new Water pump put in today, 9000 Miles as of this week!


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Your dealership didn't even bother to check with GM. Is this a "dealership" service contract? If so I wonder how many other people they've ripped off this way.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

The extended warranty is a 3rd party warranty. That is where the deductible comes from.

I took the car to an Autonation Chevrolet dealership. It was the one recommended to me from the Chevy Customer Care account when I had to have a previous part replaced. 

I had written the Chevy Customer Care account last night and I havent received a response just yet.


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Care to post your invoice here - black out name, address, phone, etc. I bet we have enough folks here who understand the warranty process to tell you if it's good or not.


----------



## Tomko (Jun 1, 2013)

Third party warranty. Not GMPP.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

obermd said:


> Care to post your invoice here - black out name, address, phone, etc. I bet we have enough folks here who understand the warranty process to tell you if it's good or not.


Here you go. 

https://www.pdfhost.net/index.php?Action=Download&File=fa9be31c3d9b22301265418a23eb91c9

I couldnt directly attached it, since it exceeded the max file size.


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

mshissler said:


> Here you go.
> 
> https://www.pdfhost.net/index.php?Action=Download&File=fa9be31c3d9b22301265418a23eb91c9
> 
> I couldnt directly attached it, since it exceeded the max file size.


Page 2 (PDF Page 1) Line item E - Low Engine Coolant Level without External Leak directly contradicts Page 1 (PDF Page 2) Line Item A diagnosis of leaks found.
Page 2 (PDF Page 1) Line item F - Replace Thermostat. The thermostat in the Cruze is covered under the GM Power Train 100,000 mile/5 year warranty. There is no deductible.

Page 1 (PDF Page 2) Line item B - Hoses are not covered under the power train warranty. You need to check your service plan with a fine tooth comb to verify yes/no on the coverage of these hoses. I'm not sure what the "Outlet" is but if it's connected to either the Thermostat or Water pump it should be covered under the Power Train.

Page 1 (PDF Page 2) Line item A states the water pump is leaking - where's the replacement water pump on the invoice. This line item states to install new water pump but I don't see the actual installation anywhere. The water pump on your Cruze is warranted for 150,000 miles/10 years.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

obermd said:


> Page 2 (PDF Page 1) Line item E - Low Engine Coolant Level without External Leak directly contradicts Page 1 (PDF Page 2) Line Item A diagnosis of leaks found.
> Page 2 (PDF Page 1) Line item F - Replace Thermostat. The thermostat in the Cruze is covered under the GM Power Train 100,000 mile/5 year warranty. There is no deductible.
> 
> Page 1 (PDF Page 2) Line item B - Hoses are not covered under the power train warranty. You need to check your service plan with a fine tooth comb to verify yes/no on the coverage of these hoses. I'm not sure what the "Outlet" is but if it's connected to either the Thermostat or Water pump it should be covered under the Power Train.
> ...


When reading it over, I assumed the "W - (S) Pump Kit" was the water pump, since it was grouped together with the notes to replace the water pump and the "coolant" line. Below that, it shows Parts $0 and Labor $0. The water pump was covered under powertrain, the thermostat wasnt and I had to use my 3rd party warranty with the $100 deductible. They told me that the thermostat was NOT covered under power train, even when I questioned him on it.


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Thermostat is covered on the Cruze.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

obermd said:


> Thermostat is covered on the Cruze.


Thank you.

I have reached out to the Customer Care user, but it doesnt look like they have come online yet, today.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

obermd said:


> Thermostat is covered on the Cruze.


 That is true if the O/P would have presented themselves at a GM Dealer. AutoNation does not honor a GM Powertrain warranty which runs for 5 years 100,000 miles.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

Eddy Cruze said:


> That is true if the O/P would have presented themselves at a GM Dealer. AutoNation does not honor a GM Powertrain warranty which runs for 5 years 100,000 miles.


The service rep told me the water pump was covered under the power train warranty, though.

And I have had other things serviced at this location that fell under "power train warranty".


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

obermd said:


> Thermostat is covered on the Cruze.


Is there something in writing where I can find this? Customer Care on the phone couldnt find where this is under Powertrain.


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Look in the warranty book that came with your car.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

I looked it up online, Sorry, I am a moron. It specifically states:

 Coverage on the engine cooling system begins at the inlet to the water pump and ends with the thermostat housing and/or outlet that attaches to the return hose

How can that be missed by the agent on the phone?!?!?


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

You aren't the first person to get caught by this one. It's not 100% clear from the wording that the thermostat itself is covered but since the outlet is on the far side of the thermostat from the water pump it's covered.


----------



## mshissler (Apr 28, 2014)

So they finally admitted to the thermostat being under powertrain and are returning my $100 deductible. 

That labor is still pretty crazy high, though. Any chance I can get that knocked off? All I kept hearing was "this is an independent dealer and we cant dictate what they charge." Its so obvious that they charged all of the labor for all 3 jobs and put it under the hose work.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

mshissler said:


> So they finally admitted to the thermostat being under powertrain and are returning my $100 deductible.
> 
> That labor is still pretty crazy high, though. Any chance I can get that knocked off? All I kept hearing was "this is an independent dealer and we cant dictate what they charge." Its so obvious that they charged all of the labor for all 3 jobs and put it under the hose work.


 Is this an Auto Nation Chevy Dealer? The Service Contract that you bought may or may not cover the labor as these shops are paid 33% of book labor and that's on a GM claim, who knows how low they go with independent shops. I would imagine they billed your non GM Warranty. I just had the identical repair today and the only parts needed were the Pump, the clamps which had to be ordered, and replacement fluid, along with 2 Rental Car days. What is the name of the Service Contract provider and what level of coverage did you get. Also it might be time to call the Service Director or the General Manager?


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

Thanks for the Likes guys. I scanned my RO and should be able to post it although I am still having major typing and posting problems, let's see if it shows up . As I just returned from San Diego I also got the Dealer to clean the car as well!


----------



## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Eddy Cruze said:


> That is true if the O/P would have presented themselves at a GM Dealer. AutoNation does not honor a GM Powertrain warranty which runs for 5 years 100,000 miles.


AutoNation is a very large chain of dealerships. When they operate a GM franchise they are required to honor the GM warranties. Likewise Toyota warranties are honored at their Toyota franchises. However, a GM franchise doesn't honor a Toyota warranty.


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

mshissler said:


> The service rep told me the water pump was covered under the power train warranty, though.
> 
> And I have had other things serviced at this location that fell under "power train warranty".


 Which begs me to ask, what have you had done, and were they power train items AND were you charged $100?? If so I would be asking for money back. I'm sure this is done to many people. Get to know and love your GM Dealer until you expire


----------



## Eddy Cruze (Jan 10, 2014)

Tomko said:


> Third party warranty. Not GMPP.


 Actually GMPP is a 3rd party contract as well and now as of this year the unofficial GM preferred policy. I spoke with those goons located in Chicago once and they told me if I cancelled their coverage I could never "Re Buy" another one. I cancelled and bought another GMPP for $500 less!


----------



## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

I just do the work myself, even what little warranty work I had done, always find something wrong, cables and lines not installed properly, push pin rivets missing, bolts not torqued correctly, even a stripped bolt.

In dealing with a warranty repair, get the quote first to make **** sure its zero. Call this experience. Of course they have to remove the hoses to change a water pump, and if they don't use the correct tool, will break something. With all this snap together crap, should also be replacing the O-rings. Didn't have to worry about crap like this when all brass fittings were used.


Think if my water pump goes out, will just pay the 45 bucks, almost wish I laid out 150 bucks for my rear calipers, God they made a mess out of my car, and its my life, not theirs. But they are the experts. 

Ha, my daughter just received a 270 buck quote to replace the right front wheel bearing, was told if she didn't do this, that wheel would seize and she would get killed. They let her hear the noise, but she checked with me first. Just a small stone struck between the rotor shield and the rotor. Not a darn thing wrong with that bearing. Know how to check the play on these things.


----------

