forg0tmypen

I recently noticed above average coolant temps at idle. Seemed the fan wasn't working properly or intermittently.

I had the mechanic diagnose the car and he came back with a melted fan plug. However the service manager also told me I needed a new fan, AND control module replaced. I knew about the fan plugs in these cars short circuiting however I was skeptical about needing to replace the fan and module. But service manager was adamant that they needed replacing. So I debated back and forth about what to do and decided to trust the dealer, maybe the fan and module blew up and were toast. So after one last plea to manager to please see if the connector can be replaced and only connector, I decided I needed my car back sooner rather than later and to just go ahead and replace the fan and module and connector. Well, I get car back and it is working fine again. Coolant temps are perfect, car is great.

I get home, I requested original parts back. So I take a look at them. They are PERFECT. Perfect. So here I am, with beautiful parts, that I just had to rebuy at DEALER MARKUP prices, and am out $1,100 in parts and labor for a $50 fix.

I called dealership and they explained to me, that I am SOL.

I know Im not SOL. And Im willing to do whatever it takes to get some or all of this money back. They replaced working parts that didn't need to be replaced. Fan was good, module was good.

I put the charge on my credit card. I am toying around with disputing that.

Please, any advice anyone can give me?

KLLRVET

follow the correct steps with the state of florida to dispute the bill

psp6158

What parts are perfect, it seems like they fixed your problem. If its the fan, I think a short trip to the dealer with an explanation from them might resolve your issue. I agree there are stealerships out there, there are also many shops that are not after your best interests. In an even tempered tone,I would go up the chain till you are happy. Good luck

forg0tmypen

The fan and control module are still like new. They are fine and work fine. They did not need to be replaced. They equated to $700 parts and $200 labor. That's $900 parts and labor I didn't need.

Vette @ 71

If all appeals fail, tell them you will report this incidence to the BBB, as well as notifying the local GM service rep. The best response sometimes are threats against there reputation..GL

forg0tmypen

The manager at the dealer was trying so hard to be a hard ***. He told me, go ahead and "scream bloody murder and tell everyone you know about how horrible a dealer we are"...he'd rather me go on a crusade against the dealer than refund me a few hundred to make me feel better about this whole thing. Well if its a war he wants, I can almost guarantee Ill cost this dealer way more business than a few hundred dollars and certainly more than the $1100 they scammed out of me.

Wait till the regional rep hears about his "advice" to me. I might be young but im very smart.

pkincy

In most states there is a Bureau of Automotive Repair that is designed to catch these type of situations. You may not have one if Florida, but if you do find it. Show them the parts and let them take it from there.

Next stop might be the local media. Do you have a crusader in the print or visual media that loves to take on these stories and then publlicize them? Try that.

Lastly take videos of the new parts working, and then install the old parts all in one video, and show that they work and head off to pay your filing fee at Small Claims Ct. You won't need an attorney and 6 months later you will get a judgement against the dealer without having to hire a lawyer.

At least those steps would work in my state.

PS: maybe you should just show them your avatar. <g>

Mr. Jean

The evening news announces that ____________ Chevrolet has done a bait and switch to the sum of $1,100.00 and refuses to correct the error.
Are they continuing to rip off the public ? See our exclusive video at 11:00.

VetteVinnie

I hate to say it, but you authorized the repair. Not too much of a leg to stand on. Lexus tried to do the exact thing to my wife a couple of weeks ago. They wanted to charge her $2400 for a water pump (which I personally had just replaced a couple of months ago and knew to be in perfect working order) and rear struts. I told her to get the car out of there. Thankfully she called me first. Only reason she took it there was for a couple of minor recalls and a $50 oil change. Took it to Firestone because it did need a couple of tires and an alignment, and find that the struts are perfectly fine.

Bottom line, don't ever authorize questionable repairs.

ctsv510

Wait, is the original problem you brought the car in for still existent? Or is it fixed?

RedZ4me

Forget the manager, set up a meeting with the dealer principal....the owner whose office is upstairs

Mr. Jean

Evil, he has a case, as they told him the parts were bad and needed replacing. He now has the old parts and he says they work fine, that he has tested them. He paid for their advise and got parts sold to him that he didn't need. My attorney would say there's a case to be made.

H82BFST

So, you are saying the dealer sold you parts that you didn't need?

I don't think you are going to shock many people that have been around cars for a while.

Consider yourself lucky. Most dealers would have not even switched out your original parts and just cleaned them up (especially if they were mostly clean to begin with) and just charged you. Most people never even notice.

Had a dealer once say the AC lines need to be replaced to the rear AC because of a crack, instead they sprayed undercoating on the old lines and tried to charge for completely new lines. Silly crooks everywhere.

Just think how much extra dealers are going to make off of all these recalls! There will be stuff breaking on cars after recall fixes that likely would have never broken if they didn't go in for the recall fix in the first place.

It's sad, but after decades of owning GMs, you just need to learn to build in that 'eventually getting screwed by the dealer' cost into the purchase of your GM vehicle from day one.

On a bright note, it's not exclusive to GM dealers. Some service managers are so brazen that they will brag among their peers. Legalized theft.

Sorry to hear that you have to go through this, hope it works out for you.

spy2520

This is why I work on cars. I understand its not a reasonable option for most people, but I personally can't imagine not knowing how to fix these things. Too much cost.

I think its clear what happened here. They did not want to risk not fixing the problem and didn't want to spend time testing components, or they didn't want to risk a comeback due to another component causing the problem again. Similar -but different- to replacing ALL the AC **** when a compressor fails when it really should be dependent on the type of failure.

I work with a guy like that. oversells more or less to cover his own *** in case he misses or overlooks something. Two different techs I guess.

In my opinion they should have just did whatever you told them to do and let you know their concerns about the other stuff.

michaelinmech

Is it possible, since cars today are largely serviced based upon what the diagnostic computers report, that 'faults' were showing with the fan and switch - thus the dealer's reasoning that they must be replaced?

spy2520

Yes

SonnyAK

1. Have a talk w/owner or overall manager...Don't even talk to the shop manager anymore.
2. Contact BBB and start a discussion.
3. Dispute charges with CC company.
4. Take them to small claims court.

You may get nowhere with the process, but at least you'll become a pain in their a$$ for a while and maybe make them regret their initial course of action??

forg0tmypen

I will attempt to contact someone higher up and at the very least explain my displeasure with the dealer manager. He was a "us against them" type. And frankly, would make no attempts to remedy what I feel is a genuine screw up on their part. I said all along if I got these parts back and they didnt work then alls well. I trusted the dealer and they betrayed my trust. Transaction will be disputed soon when it posts to account and Ill have video evidence to submit of the fan working. Ill keep everyone posted.

forg0tmypen

They fixed it too well. Like if an LS7 blows, this dealer would recommend replacing the trans and diff also at your dime of course.

VetteVinnie

Well, good luck with that. Because he'll need it if he put that signature on the repair order.