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Forum Thread
Engine mysteriously died in a new car - how can I turn it to my advantage?
May 14, 2013 at
08:36 PM
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Brief version, without any names:
Six weeks ago, I bought a brand new car, with warranty and all that other good stuff. Two days ago, as I was driving on a highway, the coolant light came on, followed by an engine light, followed by my car dying just a minute later.
After it got towed to the dealership, they said the cause was a leaking radiator hose. (Keep in mind, the car is 6 weeks old and has only 850 miles on it!) After they replaced it, it kept acting up, so they decided to hold it a bit longer. (They got me a rental car in the meantime.)
When I called them earlier today to see if they had any updates, I was told this: "Oh, hi there. Uh, we don't really know what's wrong with your car, so we decided to replace the whole engine!
We'll get a brand new one tomorrow and it'll be good to go by Thursday! "
When I asked what exactly was wrong, they just kept repeating the same thing. I don't know a whole lot about cars, but a friend told me that getting a replacement engine pretty much destroys the car's resale value because people will wonder what else might be wrong with it. Is that correct? Logically, it would seem that, for example, a 10-year-old car with a 1-year-old engine is better than a 10-year-old car with a 10-year-old engine, but consumer psychology is a strange animal.
Personally, I plan on driving the car for 10 years and 120,000 miles (it's got an extended warranty) before I trade it in, so the resale value isn't a big deal for me. That said, is there any way I can spin this to get some major freebies (e.g., get the car company to shave off a few grand off my loan balance) or something along those lines? Right now, they're just paying for my rental car and nothing else. Given the sheer immensity of this colossal fark-up, though, it seems to me that they owe me a lot more than that.
Got any comments, advice or suggestions?
Thanks!
Six weeks ago, I bought a brand new car, with warranty and all that other good stuff. Two days ago, as I was driving on a highway, the coolant light came on, followed by an engine light, followed by my car dying just a minute later.
After it got towed to the dealership, they said the cause was a leaking radiator hose. (Keep in mind, the car is 6 weeks old and has only 850 miles on it!) After they replaced it, it kept acting up, so they decided to hold it a bit longer. (They got me a rental car in the meantime.)
When I called them earlier today to see if they had any updates, I was told this: "Oh, hi there. Uh, we don't really know what's wrong with your car, so we decided to replace the whole engine!
We'll get a brand new one tomorrow and it'll be good to go by Thursday! "When I asked what exactly was wrong, they just kept repeating the same thing. I don't know a whole lot about cars, but a friend told me that getting a replacement engine pretty much destroys the car's resale value because people will wonder what else might be wrong with it. Is that correct? Logically, it would seem that, for example, a 10-year-old car with a 1-year-old engine is better than a 10-year-old car with a 10-year-old engine, but consumer psychology is a strange animal.
Personally, I plan on driving the car for 10 years and 120,000 miles (it's got an extended warranty) before I trade it in, so the resale value isn't a big deal for me. That said, is there any way I can spin this to get some major freebies (e.g., get the car company to shave off a few grand off my loan balance) or something along those lines? Right now, they're just paying for my rental car and nothing else. Given the sheer immensity of this colossal fark-up, though, it seems to me that they owe me a lot more than that.
Got any comments, advice or suggestions?
Thanks!
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Anyway, even if I had the money to ever consider getting a new car, I probably would never get one due to the huge drop in value when you drive it off the lot. I would maybe get a car that is 2 years old or something...
Anyway, even if I had the money to ever consider getting a new car, I probably would never get one due to the huge drop in value when you drive it off the lot. I would maybe get a car that is 2 years old or something...
not worth it imho.
not worth it imho.
not worth it imho.
The other people are right.
Most dealers would've fixed the leaky antifreeze and replaced whatever part was needed to make the engine light turn off. They would've returned the car to you with a damaged engine.
At least this dealer is being honest and actually making things right.
Please don't make them regret being honest by turning the screws to them to get free stuff
Emotionally, however, I want the f**kers to pay. The dealership's manager was a total dick to me the first time we spoke. He never once apologized, but he did imply that maybe it's all my fault; refused to pay for a rental car, saying it's a complicated process that takes several days (the horrified customer service rep I called the next day said they'll reimburse me for everything after I pay for the rental); said it's a-okay for brand new cars to have huge defects because "all mechanical parts break down. It could have broken down after just 10 miles!" (Yes, he really did say that.)
And to satisfy everyone's curiosity, the car is 2013 Kia Rio LX sedan.
wtf why should they pay, its not like it caused you to get into any type of accident or anything like that…. and you're being a jerk if you want to exact revenge for something that didn't "to YOU"…. well actually, if you act like this all the time, maybe they were plotting against you
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http://en.wikipedia.or
Assembly:
Gwangmyeong, South Korea (Sohari Plant)
Jiangsu, China (Yangcheng Plant)
St. Petersburg, Russia (Hyundai Rus)
Quito, Ecuador (AYMESA)
Jakarta, Indonesia
Just saying.
That's what happens when you buy rebuilt alternators from Autozone / Advance Auto / Pep Boys, or other similar auto parts stores. It's probably not the car's fault. Gotta love aftermarket parts makers, since they can make a crappy part and for some reason most people blame the car.
You kept driving a car with dash lights on. That is typical woman behavior, and everybody knows this.
We bought a fuel pump from Autozone because all the other parts dealers we deal with where closed when mine went bad in a parking lot - hubby had to flatbed my car up to work - this was less than a year later the fuel pump went bad again - it had a 1 yr warranty on it - so you are correct about this with parts coming from places like this - he wasn't happy in less than a year he had to replace it - though it did go through 260K miles before needing replacement - let's see how long this one lasts
You weren't sexist in your statement - most women on average don't listen to their vehicle - they have no clue when they hear a noise what is wrong with their vehicle - let alone when a CEL comes on - to pull over and check the code and look it up to see what is wrong - but the most important aspect is listening to your vehicle - you really can diagnose it from how it sounds every day you drive it and a new noise pops up - that way you can tell your technician the noise is coming from A, B, C and it sounds like this - and this is not normal.
Your statements about radiators is correct as well; if we pick up a used vehicle - we never buy new - and there is a problem with the radiator an aluminum one goes in - nothing else.
What makes you think I'm a woman? Kudos on showing off your sexism, by the way.
It wasn't a sexist comment - it is basically true - most women have no clue what is happening under the hood, let alone if their catalytic converter is rumbling because they need a new one. They simply do not listen to the vehicle they are driving; but they can name most of the new shades of nail polish that came out recently. Don't hate me ladies
A Tech's wife will know more on this subject; as well as a Carpenter's wife will know more about that subject if they are interested; as well as other subject matters in life with couples.
http://en.wikipedia.or
Assembly:
Gwangmyeong, South Korea (Sohari Plant)
Jiangsu, China (Yangcheng Plant)
St. Petersburg, Russia (Hyundai Rus)
Quito, Ecuador (AYMESA)
Jakarta, Indonesia
Just saying.
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