I brought my 2000 C5 Chevrolet to my local dealer on 10/10/2011 for a squeaking belt problem. They informed me that I needed a new harmonic balancer since mine had a significant wobble. I let them do it and paid the hefty price. Ever since then, by harmonic balancer has continued to wobble, albeit slightly less than before. The belt squeaking however, has continued from that day. Since then, I have replaced both tensioners (AC and Main Drive), as well as both pulley's and put two new Gatorback belts on it. Even after all of that, the squeaking continued. Yesterday I got tired of hearing the belt squeak and took it to a local (non-GM dealer) mechanic who only works on C5's. He informed me that the harmonic balancer needed replacement. After I told him that I just paid Chevrolet to replace it on 10/10/2011, he told me with complete confidence that my harmonic balancer had NEVER been replaced and that the one on the vehicle was the original one that came with the car. So I called GM customer service (not the dealer) and explained the situation. They would like me to 1.) take it back to the original dealer that ripped me off and 2.) pay them $54 to evaluate it. When I refused to pay anything, they "elevated it" and said I would receive a call back in 24 hours.

So I need some advise on the following:

1.) Do I really need to pay anything? Sheeze, I never paid for an evaluation when I originally brought it to them.
2.) Do I really need to bring it back to the GM dealer that ripped me off in the first place? Seems like a conflict of interest as there is no way they would confirm that they ripped me off.
3.) At this point, I will not be satisfied with simply replacing my harmonic balancer. I want the dealership to pay for ripping me off. What are my options?

I am sooo

Thanks in advance.

 

That is BS, i had a problem with new vehicle still under warranty and kept taking it in and got tired of wasting time, I pounded GM customer service untill they caved,and lo and behold the dealer called and said, oh ya, we now have a solution, that was BS also. So, I would keep pounding customer service and maybe even mention that you have many friends and aquaintances on different forums. Don t stop and let it rest.

 

All work done by a GM dealer usually comes with a one year warranty on parts and labor. If your HB is still wobbling then take it back and inform them that you indeed took it to an independent shop and they informed you that it was never replaced. If they give you static then take them to small claims court immediatly with a written statement from the independent shop (even if you have to pay them a few bucks for it) and that should be enough proof that the judge would need. In all reality, as soon as they recieve the registered summons from the court no doubt they will magically repair the issue promptly. Going through GM to get anywhere is like asking a five year old what you should do, they are mostly clueless and and will make you jump through hoops and do tricks before you even start to get anywhere. SCC is the way to go if you want results quickly. Good luck to you bro and let us know how it turns out.

 

Lawyer up.
Unfortunately, that's about the only way the wheels get turned in this world any more.
I never let the Stealership touch my car. NEVER!

 

I think the straight forward point to be made here is that you had a squeaking belt to start with and after having dumped tons of your hard earned money you still have a squeaking belt. Word of mouth is very powerful and after having heard story after story of how Chevrolet dealers rip loyal hard-working Corvette owners off I will never buy a Chevy vehicle ever in my life (with the exception of the Corvette ). I think GM customer service should hear this and force the dealer to fix your original problem, the squeaking belt at no cost to you.

 

Small claims court, but it may take your vette mechanic going and being your witness.

But be careful with these type of threads. The last one I participated in I received a hateful PM from some expert mechanic on here. I won't say who.

 

After my Dad almost got burned by the dealership on a brake job in the 90's (they didn't count on him having the caliper to test the brake depth himself; he only took it in because he had just suffered a serious arm injury and couldn't work on the car for over a month), I mark all my parts with a punch or grease pencil before I take them in. If it's still there after the fix, heads roll.

 

It seems to me that if they claimed that they changed the harmonic balancer and charged you for that service and another mechanic said that it had not been changed, then wouldn't this be called fraud?With all the time and money you have spent trying to solve the problem to no avail then I would think a lawyer might be in order.Steelerships be damned.
Fred

 

My first car was 65 Impala SS. I took it to the Chevy dealer for something minor. Later that day I was about 10 miles across town riding with a friend when I saw my car in a parts store parking lot. They were using it to pick up parts for the dealership.

I didn't confront them at the parts store, I just took my car with my spare set of keys and drove it home.

Later that day I went to the dealer and asked for my car. They said it wasn't done yet and I would have to come back the next day. I kept escalating it until I had the dealership owner take me back into the shop and they couldn't find the car. I then explained that they were using my car to chase parts and what had happened. I am not certain, but I think two people got fired.

I have not been back to a dealer for service in the 42 years since.

 

My wife took her car in and came back later to check on it and it wasn't there. About 5 minutes later it pulled into the lot and the service manager said, oh here it is, he must have been on a road check.

The dude came in with a bag of Mcdonalds for each of the office staff.

I then got into with these people over an AC build. They completely rebuilt the system and I got it home and it leaked. took it back they said it needed more freeon. Ok so a month later it wasn't cooling. took it in and told them to check it for leaks. Picked it up ask where the leak was, they said you can't find those things it's better just to refill it each year.

Took it to another place a couple months later when the AC quit working again, and they said the compressor was leaking. The original shop said they got the parts place down to 200 bucks to replace it because the warranty had just ran out (6 months). I said ok so you are going to take care of the other 200 bucks then. oh no we can't do that.
After spending probably 5K on repairs since then, I have never been back to them for any of it. I got on their *** so bad my wife called back to apologize to them

I will save my Dodge dealership experience for another thread. In short, they ask me to never return.

 

Not all dealerships are like those mentioned, thankfully. The one I use occasionally always provides excellent survice at decent (not astronomical) rates.

The good thing about a good Corvette mechanic at a dealership or Corvette-specific shop is that he works on Corvettes regularly, unlike the local shop mechanic who rarely sees a Corvette in his shop. I'm not talking about oil changes - stuff like Corvette-specific fixes or maintenance.

 

I had a similar situation and I got so burned up I called General Motors ?Chevrolet division Customer service. And I gotta tell you the new General Motors Company IS NOT going to take any crap from a dealership. They won't pay for non defective parts, but if the part (As in a known problem in C5's harmonic balance) and they just tightened it up GM is going to remind them of how many Chevrolet dealers are now Ex-Chevrolet dealers and if this outfit would like to join the ex- class. So yes, I'd let GMC deal with the dealership. But have all your paperwork in chronological order and be will to stand your ground. You paid for something which the dealership diagnosed and they didn't do what is the necessary repair plain and simple. If you wanted a broken Corvette you could have brought the car in for a wash and wax and been on your way ? The dealer needs to be held responsible. Took GM 48 hours to get my car back in and fixed and I paid nothing more. The old GM is dead, The new GM isn't going to put up with shoddy work.

 

25 hours and the dealership name and problem would be in this forum to protect fellow Corvette owners. Then I would be on my way to the Court House.

OBD

 

Small claims court, pictures and sworn affidavit from your mechanic will suffice unless it becomes a court case then he/she may need to testify. Also report them to the local better business bureau and chastise them on every public forum you can find.

 

Chill out!

First off DON'T point fingers. People are so quick to judge and blame the dealership.

You brought your car to them because of a problem. Unfortunately it can be difficult to determine what the cause of a belt squeal is. Start with what you know is wrong, and the harmonic should not wobble. So they quoted you a the cost to replace the harmonic, YOU OK'd IT. Whether that replaced the problem or not, doesn't matter. Again, YOU OK'd IT.

Now, if you still had a squeaking belt when you picked up the car, you should not have taken it. You should have immediately brought it up to the service writer or managers attention. At the point they would have apologized and offered to take another look at no cost. If they determined the problem then they would most likely offer a discount on parts and labor.

Another point I'd like to bring up with your other mechanic. When you bring a mechanic a problem that has been worked on by another mechanic, the new mechanic is going to play a "hero" role. Meaning, he is going to be quick to blame the other shop for something. In this case it sounds like he is quick to say the harmonic was not replaced. You did say the harmonic doesn't wobble as much, then obviously they did something with it. There should be marks on the bolt that indicates a socket was on it, as well as the bolts on the steering rack. Plus the balancer itself will look fresh.

Keep in mind there are two sides to every story. Take it back to the dealership and talk with their manager and explain your concerns. Don't be judgmental unless you have facts. They will probably help you out.

 

First of all, you should not be required to pay anything for a Chevy dealership to evaluate your car under these circumstances. I would ask your mechanic if he would be willing to sign an affidavit swearing that the harmonic balancer was never replaced, and/or appear in court and testify, if necessary.

You should be able to get the dealership to correct its "mistake" by negotiating directly with them, with assistance from GM customer service. But that's all they are likely to agreeably do.

If you want them to "pay" more than just the actual damages, you'll need to sue it out, probably in S/C court as others have suggested if you don't want to hire a lawyer. Allege fraud and conversion, and ask for actual damages, plus punitive damages for the tort claims (fraud and conversion...conversion because when you take someone's money for performing a service, and then you don't perform the service, you essentially stole their money).

Sue for actual damages + punitive damages + costs, and make the total equal just below the jurisdictional limit amount of the small claims court in your state. Make sure the total does not go over, because the S/C court would then be deprived of jurisdiction and you'd need an attorney. If you end up in court, you'll need the mechanic live in court, as the affidavit would most likely be ruled inadmissible because it's hearsay.

Good luck.

G.O. "Jed" Morton

 

Arent they required to give you the old parts?

 

I think only if requested, and shops are supposed to keep the parts for 24 hours after the car was picked up before tossing.

 

That is FANTASTIC!!!!! Good for you! Man, I wish I could get this dealer back in a similar way...

 

Yes - and in my haste to pick up my car (it took them two days longer than they said it would) I never asked for the parts. I obviously should have...