Warranty claim help
07-15-2019, 03:13 PM
#41
Thank you for the feedback. There are a few things that indicate this was not the case. One, the engine hours recorded by the computer shows it was reset. Two the rebuild work would have taken longer than replacement and the turnaround time was too fast for the rebuild. Lastly, GM did a second review when I filled the BBB Autoline claim.
07-15-2019, 03:16 PM
#42
I followed up with the dealership for the root cause of the failure. They said it could not be determined as they did not fully disassemble the engine. So there is no way they can know that the oil was a factor. However, since I did the oil changes I can also say this was not a factor.
07-15-2019, 03:29 PM
#43
Drifting
Thank you for the feedback. There are a few things that indicate this was not the case. One, the engine hours recorded by the computer shows it was reset. Two the rebuild work would have taken longer than replacement and the turnaround time was too fast for the rebuild. Lastly, GM did a second review when I filled the BBB Autoline claim.
D.
07-15-2019, 06:56 PM
#44
Racer
Probably not rebuilt in the dealership.
I doubt it it would be rebuilt in the dealership. It would not be worth training the techs for the limited amount of rebuilds they would see. I believe GM would sell rebuilt engines. They would be superior to anything you could buy. With that said I’d prefer new.
Lu
But you have a totally new motor and not one that was rebuilt in a dealer service bay by a tech that may or may not been competent to do said rebuild. Given that it was not your normal dealer I think the new motor and bearing the extra cost was a good deal for you and a good decision. If I am at Abel Chevrolet or my old race car sponsoring dealer (now long since sold for real estate development) where I absolutely know the competence of their service department than I would go the less expensive rebuild. But at a dealer out of your normal area because of a track day event you traveled to, the new motor makes all sort of sense.
11-29-2019, 05:00 PM
#45
A Tale of Two Dealerships
I know this thread has been dead for some time. I wanted to post the full story on this. The short summary of this story is, in my opinion, to avoid at all costs the Betten Baker Dealership in South Haven Michigan. And Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis, IN are, in my book, superheroes. If there is a better place to post this story for more visibility please let me know.
Here is the full story:
On Memorial Day weekend this past summer I took my car up to Gingerman Raceway near South Haven, Michigan for a high performance driver education event. On my first session out my car suffered a piston ring failure. I did not know this at the time or I would have had the car towed back to my hometown. Instead I had the car towed to Betten Baker Chevrolet dealership. They called me on the following Tuesday to let me know the bad news that my car needed a new engine. As is described in this thread my car was under the powertrain warranty and GM went back and forth for three weeks with the dealership trying to assess the engine failure. And while I provided my oil purchase receipts, GM said I did not log my exact oil change dates (I always used manufacturer oil and oil filters) so I had to pay $5,000.00 of the engine replacement.
I decided to pick my car up, this was now June 29th, about one month later. I decided I would sue GM later for the money. My troubles were just beginning. I brought the car home and everything seemed fine, it was all highway driving. The next day while driving I started hearing a grinding or rattling noise in my car while downshifting. The noise was very subtle. I called Betten Baker back on Monday and notified them of the noise. Dana, the service manager, told me that he couldn't see how there would be any issue as he indicated it all bolts back together. I suggested that I take it to my local mechanic to listen. I did so the same day and it took a bit for him to hear the sound, but he agreed that there was something loose or not aligned right. He suggested I call Betten Baker back the next day and suggest taking it to a local dealership. I followed his advice and brought it to Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis.
Bill Estes called me a couple of days later and informed me that there was bad news. They indicated the wiring was not run properly and was resting on the exhaust. This could cause the wiring to melt. Further they indicated that there was a bearing that was missed on the engine install. This bearing was part of the drive-shaft/crankshaft assembly (as best as I recall). They indicated the entire car had to be taken apart to repair it. A small but costly miss.
Bill Estes called Betten Baker and provided an estimate to do the work and shared the pictures of the wiring issue to Betten Baker. A few days later, Dana at Betten Baker called me back and said that they would pay for the tear down work but they wanted to fix it themselves. They agreed to tow the car back up to Michigan and then deliver it to me. I agreed. Bill Estes had to put the car together enough to roll on the tow truck.
During this time Dana at Betten Baker assured me of a delivery date of the middle of July. He then said there was a missing clamp for a clutch line and it took another week to get that part in and the car delivered to me. So I did not get my car back until the third week July. I drove it on the street for three weeks and it seemed fine.
On August 9 I attended a high performance driving event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On my first session out my car went into limp mode on the front straight. I had cars passing by at 130mph or more while I was limping at 70-80mph. As soon as I could I pulled off and waited for the session to be over. I restarted my car at the end of the session and the codes were clear. I drove the car off the track and around the museum a couple of times. All seemed well. I figured there could have been a glitch or something of the like and I went back out on track. I again went into limp mode and pulled the car in. I called up my local dealership, Bill Estes and asked if I could bring the car in. They said sure, they could look at it same day. I then got in my car and my clutch went to the floor and locked up. I had to tow my car back to Bill Estes and my weekend was done.
Bill Estes called me the next week and said, I have some bad news for you. I went over and they showed me that the electrical problem they identified last time was not taken care of. They showed me that the wiring was now melted and the entire wiring harness had to be replaced. This could have caused an electrical fire. They further showed me that the brake lines weren't run correctly and that they were experiencing increased vibrations. This can cause the brake lines to fall apart and the brakes to fail. They showed me also where ordinary hardware was used (off the shelf nuts and bolts) in place of factory bolts. This was all poor workmanship issues by Betten Baker. The clutch was a result of the master cylinder and actuator failure. The clutch they could not directly attribute to Betten Baker's work so they submitted that through my extended warranty. That was $3,000. The wiring, the brake lines and bolts were going to cost another $3,700.
Bill Estes contacted Betten Baker. Betten Baker informed them that Service Manager, Dana, and the mechanic who worked on my car were fired and that triggered a mechanic walkout. This is supposition on my part based on this event and them wanting to repair my car themselves, but I wonder if they told the mechanic that he didn't do the job right and he would not be paid for fixing the issue and gave him a box of parts. The General Manager at Betten Baker, Chris Usher (I believe is his last name) called me up a few days later. He and I had a few phone conversations that resulted in Chris Usher telling me that he wanted to fix the car himself again. He would tow the car back up and tow it back to me. I informed him that he returned the car to me in a hazardous condition and that I could not trust him to repair it right. He also had two shots at this. In my opinion, they could not be trusted to do the repair correctly. They also put my life in danger. I told him that he needed to pay Bill Estes or I would sue him. He told me to go ahead and sue him.
I called Bill Estes, my local dealership back. They told me that I did not need to sue them that we could work through GM. We could get the area managers involved and put pressure on them to do the right thing. Jos Burger at Bill Estes, a service manager emailed the Michigan dealership and called and emailed GM every day for about a month. I also called GM 3-4 times a week as well. Finally after a month of putting pressure on Betten Baker, they agreed to the $3,700. But my problems did not end there.
When Bill Estes disassembled the car they found more missing bolts, low coolant and other parts with melted wiring. The determined another $3000 was needed fix the car. GM and Bill Estes called Betten Baker back. Of course, responses were slow, but Betten Baker refused to pay. From what GM told me, they were arguing that there was now way that all those repairs were needed. After another month of Josh Burger and I calling/emailing GM and Betten Baker, GM agreed to send out a warranty inspector. The warranty inspector reviewed everything and agreed that all repairs, except for one kinked hose that was tested and determined to be cosmetic damage only, were necessary. They asked Bill Estes if they would accept warranty pricing. This would make the total $5700 and Betten Baker would only have to authorize another $2000. My understanding from talking with Bill Estes and GM is that the warranty inspector for Bill Estes' area and Betten Baker's area went back to Betten Baker and said essentially that it was only another $2000 and just pay it as they car was put together negligently.
Betten Baker refused to pay. From what Bill Estes told me, they gave Betten Baker a week to come to their senses and when Betten Baker didn't, they went in and took the money from Betten Baker. They approved the repair for Bill Estes. I finally got my car back the third week of October. The UAW strike caused about a week delay in getting the parts.
I just want to say that Bill Estes were superheroes. They went to bat for me and held the car for over two months. In my opinion, you should never take your car to Betten Baker in South Haven Michigan.
Here is the full story:
On Memorial Day weekend this past summer I took my car up to Gingerman Raceway near South Haven, Michigan for a high performance driver education event. On my first session out my car suffered a piston ring failure. I did not know this at the time or I would have had the car towed back to my hometown. Instead I had the car towed to Betten Baker Chevrolet dealership. They called me on the following Tuesday to let me know the bad news that my car needed a new engine. As is described in this thread my car was under the powertrain warranty and GM went back and forth for three weeks with the dealership trying to assess the engine failure. And while I provided my oil purchase receipts, GM said I did not log my exact oil change dates (I always used manufacturer oil and oil filters) so I had to pay $5,000.00 of the engine replacement.
I decided to pick my car up, this was now June 29th, about one month later. I decided I would sue GM later for the money. My troubles were just beginning. I brought the car home and everything seemed fine, it was all highway driving. The next day while driving I started hearing a grinding or rattling noise in my car while downshifting. The noise was very subtle. I called Betten Baker back on Monday and notified them of the noise. Dana, the service manager, told me that he couldn't see how there would be any issue as he indicated it all bolts back together. I suggested that I take it to my local mechanic to listen. I did so the same day and it took a bit for him to hear the sound, but he agreed that there was something loose or not aligned right. He suggested I call Betten Baker back the next day and suggest taking it to a local dealership. I followed his advice and brought it to Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis.
Bill Estes called me a couple of days later and informed me that there was bad news. They indicated the wiring was not run properly and was resting on the exhaust. This could cause the wiring to melt. Further they indicated that there was a bearing that was missed on the engine install. This bearing was part of the drive-shaft/crankshaft assembly (as best as I recall). They indicated the entire car had to be taken apart to repair it. A small but costly miss.
Bill Estes called Betten Baker and provided an estimate to do the work and shared the pictures of the wiring issue to Betten Baker. A few days later, Dana at Betten Baker called me back and said that they would pay for the tear down work but they wanted to fix it themselves. They agreed to tow the car back up to Michigan and then deliver it to me. I agreed. Bill Estes had to put the car together enough to roll on the tow truck.
During this time Dana at Betten Baker assured me of a delivery date of the middle of July. He then said there was a missing clamp for a clutch line and it took another week to get that part in and the car delivered to me. So I did not get my car back until the third week July. I drove it on the street for three weeks and it seemed fine.
On August 9 I attended a high performance driving event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On my first session out my car went into limp mode on the front straight. I had cars passing by at 130mph or more while I was limping at 70-80mph. As soon as I could I pulled off and waited for the session to be over. I restarted my car at the end of the session and the codes were clear. I drove the car off the track and around the museum a couple of times. All seemed well. I figured there could have been a glitch or something of the like and I went back out on track. I again went into limp mode and pulled the car in. I called up my local dealership, Bill Estes and asked if I could bring the car in. They said sure, they could look at it same day. I then got in my car and my clutch went to the floor and locked up. I had to tow my car back to Bill Estes and my weekend was done.
Bill Estes called me the next week and said, I have some bad news for you. I went over and they showed me that the electrical problem they identified last time was not taken care of. They showed me that the wiring was now melted and the entire wiring harness had to be replaced. This could have caused an electrical fire. They further showed me that the brake lines weren't run correctly and that they were experiencing increased vibrations. This can cause the brake lines to fall apart and the brakes to fail. They showed me also where ordinary hardware was used (off the shelf nuts and bolts) in place of factory bolts. This was all poor workmanship issues by Betten Baker. The clutch was a result of the master cylinder and actuator failure. The clutch they could not directly attribute to Betten Baker's work so they submitted that through my extended warranty. That was $3,000. The wiring, the brake lines and bolts were going to cost another $3,700.
Bill Estes contacted Betten Baker. Betten Baker informed them that Service Manager, Dana, and the mechanic who worked on my car were fired and that triggered a mechanic walkout. This is supposition on my part based on this event and them wanting to repair my car themselves, but I wonder if they told the mechanic that he didn't do the job right and he would not be paid for fixing the issue and gave him a box of parts. The General Manager at Betten Baker, Chris Usher (I believe is his last name) called me up a few days later. He and I had a few phone conversations that resulted in Chris Usher telling me that he wanted to fix the car himself again. He would tow the car back up and tow it back to me. I informed him that he returned the car to me in a hazardous condition and that I could not trust him to repair it right. He also had two shots at this. In my opinion, they could not be trusted to do the repair correctly. They also put my life in danger. I told him that he needed to pay Bill Estes or I would sue him. He told me to go ahead and sue him.
I called Bill Estes, my local dealership back. They told me that I did not need to sue them that we could work through GM. We could get the area managers involved and put pressure on them to do the right thing. Jos Burger at Bill Estes, a service manager emailed the Michigan dealership and called and emailed GM every day for about a month. I also called GM 3-4 times a week as well. Finally after a month of putting pressure on Betten Baker, they agreed to the $3,700. But my problems did not end there.
When Bill Estes disassembled the car they found more missing bolts, low coolant and other parts with melted wiring. The determined another $3000 was needed fix the car. GM and Bill Estes called Betten Baker back. Of course, responses were slow, but Betten Baker refused to pay. From what GM told me, they were arguing that there was now way that all those repairs were needed. After another month of Josh Burger and I calling/emailing GM and Betten Baker, GM agreed to send out a warranty inspector. The warranty inspector reviewed everything and agreed that all repairs, except for one kinked hose that was tested and determined to be cosmetic damage only, were necessary. They asked Bill Estes if they would accept warranty pricing. This would make the total $5700 and Betten Baker would only have to authorize another $2000. My understanding from talking with Bill Estes and GM is that the warranty inspector for Bill Estes' area and Betten Baker's area went back to Betten Baker and said essentially that it was only another $2000 and just pay it as they car was put together negligently.
Betten Baker refused to pay. From what Bill Estes told me, they gave Betten Baker a week to come to their senses and when Betten Baker didn't, they went in and took the money from Betten Baker. They approved the repair for Bill Estes. I finally got my car back the third week of October. The UAW strike caused about a week delay in getting the parts.
I just want to say that Bill Estes were superheroes. They went to bat for me and held the car for over two months. In my opinion, you should never take your car to Betten Baker in South Haven Michigan.
The following 2 users liked this post by cmichels1999:
Harbgrogan (11-30-2019),
SilverGhost (11-30-2019)
11-29-2019, 05:32 PM
#47
if its the ''bill estes,on the north side of town [right by the bypass],they are great,they fixed my chevy dually and let me store my car trailer in their lot while they replaced my engine,freindly and fast too
they used to set-up all the ''indy'' pace/parade cars/trucks too
they used to set-up all the ''indy'' pace/parade cars/trucks too
11-29-2019, 05:48 PM
#48
Yes it is
if its the ''bill estes,on the north side of town [right by the bypass],they are great,they fixed my chevy dually and let me store my car trailer in their lot while they replaced my engine,freindly and fast too
they used to set-up all the ''indy'' pace/parade cars/trucks too
they used to set-up all the ''indy'' pace/parade cars/trucks too
I also forgot to upload some pictures from the condition of my car:
The following users liked this post:
Harbgrogan (11-30-2019)
11-30-2019, 11:06 AM
#50
Le Mans Master
Wow. This must have been incredibly frustrating. Good for you keeping your calm.
11-30-2019, 02:53 PM
#52
Close to lawsuit
Well I can't say that I remained calm at all times. I certainly raised my voice at the GM customer care center person many times.
I was also just about to file a lawsuit when I got word from Bill Estes that GM was sending out the warranty inspector.
I was also just about to file a lawsuit when I got word from Bill Estes that GM was sending out the warranty inspector.
The following users liked this post:
Harbgrogan (11-30-2019)
11-30-2019, 09:26 PM
#53
Melting Slicks
I would still sue them. Thats god awful and dangerous
12-01-2019, 10:09 AM
#54
Pictures and story
I know this thread has been dead for some time. I wanted to post the full story on this. The short summary of this story is, in my opinion, to avoid at all costs the Betten Baker Dealership in South Haven Michigan. And Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis, IN are, in my book, superheroes. If there is a better place to post this story for more visibility please let me know.
Here is the full story:
On Memorial Day weekend this past summer I took my car up to Gingerman Raceway near South Haven, Michigan for a high performance driver education event. On my first session out my car suffered a piston ring failure. I did not know this at the time or I would have had the car towed back to my hometown. Instead I had the car towed to Betten Baker Chevrolet dealership. They called me on the following Tuesday to let me know the bad news that my car needed a new engine. As is described in this thread my car was under the powertrain warranty and GM went back and forth for three weeks with the dealership trying to assess the engine failure. And while I provided my oil purchase receipts, GM said I did not log my exact oil change dates (I always used manufacturer oil and oil filters) so I had to pay $5,000.00 of the engine replacement.
I decided to pick my car up, this was now June 29th, about one month later. I decided I would sue GM later for the money. My troubles were just beginning. I brought the car home and everything seemed fine, it was all highway driving. The next day while driving I started hearing a grinding or rattling noise in my car while downshifting. The noise was very subtle. I called Betten Baker back on Monday and notified them of the noise. Dana, the service manager, told me that he couldn't see how there would be any issue as he indicated it all bolts back together. I suggested that I take it to my local mechanic to listen. I did so the same day and it took a bit for him to hear the sound, but he agreed that there was something loose or not aligned right. He suggested I call Betten Baker back the next day and suggest taking it to a local dealership. I followed his advice and brought it to Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis.
Bill Estes called me a couple of days later and informed me that there was bad news. They indicated the wiring was not run properly and was resting on the exhaust. This could cause the wiring to melt. Further they indicated that there was a bearing that was missed on the engine install. This bearing was part of the drive-shaft/crankshaft assembly (as best as I recall). They indicated the entire car had to be taken apart to repair it. A small but costly miss.
Bill Estes called Betten Baker and provided an estimate to do the work and shared the pictures of the wiring issue to Betten Baker. A few days later, Dana at Betten Baker called me back and said that they would pay for the tear down work but they wanted to fix it themselves. They agreed to tow the car back up to Michigan and then deliver it to me. I agreed. Bill Estes had to put the car together enough to roll on the tow truck.
During this time Dana at Betten Baker assured me of a delivery date of the middle of July. He then said there was a missing clamp for a clutch line and it took another week to get that part in and the car delivered to me. So I did not get my car back until the third week July. I drove it on the street for three weeks and it seemed fine.
On August 9 I attended a high performance driving event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On my first session out my car went into limp mode on the front straight. I had cars passing by at 130mph or more while I was limping at 70-80mph. As soon as I could I pulled off and waited for the session to be over. I restarted my car at the end of the session and the codes were clear. I drove the car off the track and around the museum a couple of times. All seemed well. I figured there could have been a glitch or something of the like and I went back out on track. I again went into limp mode and pulled the car in. I called up my local dealership, Bill Estes and asked if I could bring the car in. They said sure, they could look at it same day. I then got in my car and my clutch went to the floor and locked up. I had to tow my car back to Bill Estes and my weekend was done.
Bill Estes called me the next week and said, I have some bad news for you. I went over and they showed me that the electrical problem they identified last time was not taken care of. They showed me that the wiring was now melted and the entire wiring harness had to be replaced. This could have caused an electrical fire. They further showed me that the brake lines weren't run correctly and that they were experiencing increased vibrations. This can cause the brake lines to fall apart and the brakes to fail. They showed me also where ordinary hardware was used (off the shelf nuts and bolts) in place of factory bolts. This was all poor workmanship issues by Betten Baker. The clutch was a result of the master cylinder and actuator failure. The clutch they could not directly attribute to Betten Baker's work so they submitted that through my extended warranty. That was $3,000. The wiring, the brake lines and bolts were going to cost another $3,700.
Bill Estes contacted Betten Baker. Betten Baker informed them that Service Manager, Dana, and the mechanic who worked on my car were fired and that triggered a mechanic walkout. This is supposition on my part based on this event and them wanting to repair my car themselves, but I wonder if they told the mechanic that he didn't do the job right and he would not be paid for fixing the issue and gave him a box of parts. The General Manager at Betten Baker, Chris Usher (I believe is his last name) called me up a few days later. He and I had a few phone conversations that resulted in Chris Usher telling me that he wanted to fix the car himself again. He would tow the car back up and tow it back to me. I informed him that he returned the car to me in a hazardous condition and that I could not trust him to repair it right. He also had two shots at this. In my opinion, they could not be trusted to do the repair correctly. They also put my life in danger. I told him that he needed to pay Bill Estes or I would sue him. He told me to go ahead and sue him.
I called Bill Estes, my local dealership back. They told me that I did not need to sue them that we could work through GM. We could get the area managers involved and put pressure on them to do the right thing. Jos Burger at Bill Estes, a service manager emailed the Michigan dealership and called and emailed GM every day for about a month. I also called GM 3-4 times a week as well. Finally after a month of putting pressure on Betten Baker, they agreed to the $3,700. But my problems did not end there.
When Bill Estes disassembled the car they found more missing bolts, low coolant and other parts with melted wiring. The determined another $3000 was needed fix the car. GM and Bill Estes called Betten Baker back. Of course, responses were slow, but Betten Baker refused to pay. From what GM told me, they were arguing that there was now way that all those repairs were needed. After another month of Josh Burger and I calling/emailing GM and Betten Baker, GM agreed to send out a warranty inspector. The warranty inspector reviewed everything and agreed that all repairs, except for one kinked hose that was tested and determined to be cosmetic damage only, were necessary. They asked Bill Estes if they would accept warranty pricing. This would make the total $5700 and Betten Baker would only have to authorize another $2000. My understanding from talking with Bill Estes and GM is that the warranty inspector for Bill Estes' area and Betten Baker's area went back to Betten Baker and said essentially that it was only another $2000 and just pay it as they car was put together negligently.
Betten Baker refused to pay. From what Bill Estes told me, they gave Betten Baker a week to come to their senses and when Betten Baker didn't, they went in and took the money from Betten Baker. They approved the repair for Bill Estes. I finally got my car back the third week of October. The UAW strike caused about a week delay in getting the parts.
I just want to say that Bill Estes were superheroes. They went to bat for me and held the car for over two months. In my opinion, you should never take your car to Betten Baker in South Haven Michigan.
Here is the full story:
On Memorial Day weekend this past summer I took my car up to Gingerman Raceway near South Haven, Michigan for a high performance driver education event. On my first session out my car suffered a piston ring failure. I did not know this at the time or I would have had the car towed back to my hometown. Instead I had the car towed to Betten Baker Chevrolet dealership. They called me on the following Tuesday to let me know the bad news that my car needed a new engine. As is described in this thread my car was under the powertrain warranty and GM went back and forth for three weeks with the dealership trying to assess the engine failure. And while I provided my oil purchase receipts, GM said I did not log my exact oil change dates (I always used manufacturer oil and oil filters) so I had to pay $5,000.00 of the engine replacement.
I decided to pick my car up, this was now June 29th, about one month later. I decided I would sue GM later for the money. My troubles were just beginning. I brought the car home and everything seemed fine, it was all highway driving. The next day while driving I started hearing a grinding or rattling noise in my car while downshifting. The noise was very subtle. I called Betten Baker back on Monday and notified them of the noise. Dana, the service manager, told me that he couldn't see how there would be any issue as he indicated it all bolts back together. I suggested that I take it to my local mechanic to listen. I did so the same day and it took a bit for him to hear the sound, but he agreed that there was something loose or not aligned right. He suggested I call Betten Baker back the next day and suggest taking it to a local dealership. I followed his advice and brought it to Bill Estes Chevrolet in Indianapolis.
Bill Estes called me a couple of days later and informed me that there was bad news. They indicated the wiring was not run properly and was resting on the exhaust. This could cause the wiring to melt. Further they indicated that there was a bearing that was missed on the engine install. This bearing was part of the drive-shaft/crankshaft assembly (as best as I recall). They indicated the entire car had to be taken apart to repair it. A small but costly miss.
Bill Estes called Betten Baker and provided an estimate to do the work and shared the pictures of the wiring issue to Betten Baker. A few days later, Dana at Betten Baker called me back and said that they would pay for the tear down work but they wanted to fix it themselves. They agreed to tow the car back up to Michigan and then deliver it to me. I agreed. Bill Estes had to put the car together enough to roll on the tow truck.
During this time Dana at Betten Baker assured me of a delivery date of the middle of July. He then said there was a missing clamp for a clutch line and it took another week to get that part in and the car delivered to me. So I did not get my car back until the third week July. I drove it on the street for three weeks and it seemed fine.
On August 9 I attended a high performance driving event at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. On my first session out my car went into limp mode on the front straight. I had cars passing by at 130mph or more while I was limping at 70-80mph. As soon as I could I pulled off and waited for the session to be over. I restarted my car at the end of the session and the codes were clear. I drove the car off the track and around the museum a couple of times. All seemed well. I figured there could have been a glitch or something of the like and I went back out on track. I again went into limp mode and pulled the car in. I called up my local dealership, Bill Estes and asked if I could bring the car in. They said sure, they could look at it same day. I then got in my car and my clutch went to the floor and locked up. I had to tow my car back to Bill Estes and my weekend was done.
Bill Estes called me the next week and said, I have some bad news for you. I went over and they showed me that the electrical problem they identified last time was not taken care of. They showed me that the wiring was now melted and the entire wiring harness had to be replaced. This could have caused an electrical fire. They further showed me that the brake lines weren't run correctly and that they were experiencing increased vibrations. This can cause the brake lines to fall apart and the brakes to fail. They showed me also where ordinary hardware was used (off the shelf nuts and bolts) in place of factory bolts. This was all poor workmanship issues by Betten Baker. The clutch was a result of the master cylinder and actuator failure. The clutch they could not directly attribute to Betten Baker's work so they submitted that through my extended warranty. That was $3,000. The wiring, the brake lines and bolts were going to cost another $3,700.
Bill Estes contacted Betten Baker. Betten Baker informed them that Service Manager, Dana, and the mechanic who worked on my car were fired and that triggered a mechanic walkout. This is supposition on my part based on this event and them wanting to repair my car themselves, but I wonder if they told the mechanic that he didn't do the job right and he would not be paid for fixing the issue and gave him a box of parts. The General Manager at Betten Baker, Chris Usher (I believe is his last name) called me up a few days later. He and I had a few phone conversations that resulted in Chris Usher telling me that he wanted to fix the car himself again. He would tow the car back up and tow it back to me. I informed him that he returned the car to me in a hazardous condition and that I could not trust him to repair it right. He also had two shots at this. In my opinion, they could not be trusted to do the repair correctly. They also put my life in danger. I told him that he needed to pay Bill Estes or I would sue him. He told me to go ahead and sue him.
I called Bill Estes, my local dealership back. They told me that I did not need to sue them that we could work through GM. We could get the area managers involved and put pressure on them to do the right thing. Jos Burger at Bill Estes, a service manager emailed the Michigan dealership and called and emailed GM every day for about a month. I also called GM 3-4 times a week as well. Finally after a month of putting pressure on Betten Baker, they agreed to the $3,700. But my problems did not end there.
When Bill Estes disassembled the car they found more missing bolts, low coolant and other parts with melted wiring. The determined another $3000 was needed fix the car. GM and Bill Estes called Betten Baker back. Of course, responses were slow, but Betten Baker refused to pay. From what GM told me, they were arguing that there was now way that all those repairs were needed. After another month of Josh Burger and I calling/emailing GM and Betten Baker, GM agreed to send out a warranty inspector. The warranty inspector reviewed everything and agreed that all repairs, except for one kinked hose that was tested and determined to be cosmetic damage only, were necessary. They asked Bill Estes if they would accept warranty pricing. This would make the total $5700 and Betten Baker would only have to authorize another $2000. My understanding from talking with Bill Estes and GM is that the warranty inspector for Bill Estes' area and Betten Baker's area went back to Betten Baker and said essentially that it was only another $2000 and just pay it as they car was put together negligently.
Betten Baker refused to pay. From what Bill Estes told me, they gave Betten Baker a week to come to their senses and when Betten Baker didn't, they went in and took the money from Betten Baker. They approved the repair for Bill Estes. I finally got my car back the third week of October. The UAW strike caused about a week delay in getting the parts.
I just want to say that Bill Estes were superheroes. They went to bat for me and held the car for over two months. In my opinion, you should never take your car to Betten Baker in South Haven Michigan.