Car Service rip off - be warned

[BobP]

In reply to not being able to dispute unwanted service already performed.  Pay for the service with your credit card.  You can dispute the charge with the credit card company and you may be able to get out of having to pay for the unwanted service.

Edited September 16, 2018 by BobP

[GeoffH]

10 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

Are they getting away with warranty voids if the consumer does not follow the "months" schedule?

If you don't follow 'the months' schedule then when you come back in (eventually) they treat your warranty status according to the month schedule and in order to maintain cover you have to get all of the work done that would have been done by any time based services you've missed, so if distance based you're due for a minor service but time based you're due for a major service and that's what you have to have if you want to maintain your warranty cover.  And yes I've experienced exactly that situation with my Mirage in Australia.

And if you miss more than a certain number of services they'll void your warranty cover back to the statuatory legal minimum cover and the 'extended warranty' will no longer apply.

Some people have successfully argued in court that a failure was unrelated and won but that is neither quick nor easy.

Edited September 16, 2018 by GeoffH

[Jack Peterson]

10 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

Yes, I'm very familiar with the minor and major service intervals on my two vehicles.  The bottom line is that you have to follow all of them, at the dealer, or you risk warranty avoidance if there is ever a problem.

 So to me it is a boots on the Ground thing and we as owners should take all the steps we can to avoid unnecessary work being carried out and that means, we don't send a driver with a Note.( and that is what happened with the OP) That to me, is just a door being opened for any Scam that could arise due to our not being on top of things  but it sounds like we have all got our priorities right to get that peace of mind we should have where our transport is concerned, We know life is not easy here so I for 1, take no chances. 

Jack

Morning All

 

[BobP]

9 hours ago, BobP said:

 

 

[JJReyes]

On 9/15/2018 at 4:59 PM, sonjack2847 said:

On 9/15/2018 at 7:27 AM, JJReyes said:

You can't dispute it because the service was already performed. 

Yes you can (at least in the UK) unauthorised work is not chargeable.

The dealer makes you sign a standard form that you will pay for all services required to maintain the warranty.

I did write the manufacturer's US corporation complaining the large price difference for identical services by two different dealer. The response was dealers can charge whatever they want. On my 2nd complaint, I was charged nearly $100 for a service that was never performed. They sent a refund check.

You can complain and fight, but is it worth the effort? For peace of mind, I prefer to move forward and fight other battles. 

[Ryan.]

11 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

Jack, not sure why you cut my quote off.  I said "Yes, but it is still a scam if they are requiring ridiculous service intervals and services in order to not void your warranty".  I may not have worded it well, but I was referring to a second scam perpetuated on Philippines consumers by the manufacturers and dealers.  The first scam is that of dealers doing unneeded service.  I described the second scam in a previous post.  The second scam is not a common practice all over the world, although I only know that for sure in the U.S.

Yes, I have had extensive discussions with my incompetent Chevy dealer that I no longer patronize.  The one that when I asked for a list of services the mechanic did, the service adviser pulled out a check list and checked them off right in front of me. And my Trailblazer Club  lobbies Chevy Philippines (TCCI) for change, to no avail so far.

Yes, I'm very familiar with the minor and major service intervals on my two vehicles.  The bottom line is that you have to follow all of them, at the dealer, or you risk warranty avoidance if there is ever a problem.

Retail here has not evolved. Onus is on the customer to prove their case against a predatory retail culture that cares little about customer relationships. The country suffers and locals are typically passive about it. imo. (not that this is news to anybody here)

[Jack Peterson]

11 minutes ago, Ryan. said:

Retail here has not evolved. Onus is on the customer to prove their case

So very true but the Western Worlds external Influences and marketing strategies make it more difficult to get to grips with it making more prevalent to exercise, Due Diligence at all times IMHO 

[CoffeeRulzMe]

 As for me, I've been doing all preventive maint on my own cars during warranty period since the 1980's back in the USA. Never backfired on me (no pun intended). Usually, a defect will show up early in the first 6 months. Beyond that chances are high you will not have a problem during the warranty period if you maintain properly; oil and filter change, checking fluid levels, etc.

Be interesting to see how that works out for me here in the near future. Yeah, I know, it's a gamble about voiding the warranty, but I don't drive as daily commuter now so the km's don't rack up high and a warranty period will be over before there's 10km traveled.  Not a bad risk in my mind.

I like working on my own cars and are not totally comfortable with others working on it. Some of us are just that way, does not mean others cannot do the job - I'm sure they can but I'm just a DIY type of person. I'm older now though, so heavy work I won't bother with like years ago. For example; don't like replacing drum brake shoes or leaky/rusty wheel cylinders, exhaust systems, etc. (FYI just a thought; brake shoes will last longer if you remove the drum and air blow the dust out once in a while).

 

[earthdome]

There has been a dramatic change in auto tech in our lifetimes. Many of you may often spent time Saturday mornings working on your car. There were many things on a car which needed frequent routine maintenance back 40 - 50 years ago. Now cars are much more complex yet require a great deal less maintenance. The new VW I bought last year only requires an oil change once each 10k miles or one year. Tune ups are rare now. Etc. I used to do all my own work on my cars in my youth. But now with the complexity and special tools required best to leave it to the professionals. As with most everything there are trade offs between the simplicity of years gone by vs the convenience of the modern car.

[Jollygoodfellow]

7 hours ago, earthdome said:

There were many things on a car which needed frequent routine maintenance back 40 - 50 years ago.

Your referring to the running board on the side ?