Auto repair problem with a 2002 Toyota corolla. Yes even a Toyota can have mechanical problems. In this case the vehicle owner notified me that her engine was leaking oil and wanted to know if this would be covered under warranty.
The vehicle warranty was 3 years or 36,000 miles which ever came first. The customer had 36,125 miles on the vehicle, just over the warranty limit. I was surprised that the vehicle was having this problem because Toyota’s are very well built.
I did some research on auto repair problems and found out that the vehicle had brand new technology in the engine compartment. This vehicle was the first year for a new engine know as the vvti (variable valve timing).
I used All-Data online auto repair manuals to research TSB (technical service bulletins). The very first bulletin was about engine oil leaks from the front timing cover. I called the customer and asked if the oil leak was from the right side of the vehicle. The customer put some cardboard under the vehicle and confirmed the next day that it was on the right side.
I faxed over a copy of the TSB from the online auto repair manuals and the owner took her vehicle to the Toyota dealer instead of an auto repair shop. The dealership performed the repairs under warranty even though it was technically out of warranty by miles.
As a side note the dealer has some lead way when it comes to warranty coverage. If the vehicle is out of warranty but close the dealer can still cover the repairs under a grace period clause provide by the manufacture.
The dealer can fix auto repair problems for customer satisfaction and brand loyalty reasons. Most dealers will not do this unless you ask. If they refuse to offer you a slight grace period you can call the manufacture and explain that if they assist you, the next time you buy a car it will be their brand because of the support received.
Back to the 02 Toyota corolla story. The owner of the vehicle picked up the car and the oil leak was fixed. The customer was looking at her receipt and the repairs did not match the repairs that I sent her in the TSB. I had her fax me a copy of the receipt.
The warranty paper work stated that the dealer replaced the cylinder head gasket and not the timing cover seal that had been updated by Toyota. I called the dealer to find out why the receipt did not match the repair. I wanted to make sure that the redesigned timing cover seal was installed on this vehicle to avoid future problems.
The service adviser honesty surprised me. He stated that the timing cover seal was replaced with the updated part number but they had charged Toyota to replace the head gasket because the head gasket operation paid more labor from Toyota. So what this meant was the dealership was actually stealing from the factory.
When I went back to the customer and told her the story she asked me to drop it and not get the dealer in trouble because as far as she was concerned the car was fixed properly. The customer felt that looking out for Toyota was not her concern.
I agreed to drop it but I wanted to tell you the story. If the dealer cannot scam you they can still scam the factory. The dealerships lust for money knows no boundaries. This is a good time to touch on warranty repairs and the relationship between the dealer and the manufacture. I have worked at dealers that scammed the manufacture worse than they did the customers.
This affects all of us as in the manufacture takes these loses in account when pricing new vehicles and passes the cost on to the consumer at the point of sale on new vehicles. I have worked for dealerships that pushed the manufacture to the point of the dealership being audited by the factory.
This process is very interesting and I wanted to share it with you. When a dealership performs warranty repairs the factory requires the dealership to turn in the old parts for inspection. Yes the manufacture uses the same techniques I recommended earlier in the verifying the repairs chapter.
The factory does not trust the dealership either. When the dealerships warranty claims exceed what the factory considers normal an audit is performed. The manufacture will send out a factory representative to review warranty claims and old parts.
The dealership is then responsible to pay any charge backs that the factory feels is necessary. If the dealership refuses to pay, then the franchise is pulled and the dealer is out of the new car business. I hope you found these auto repair shop stories entertaining and helpful.
Many more free stories at www.auto-facts.org . Also visit here to learn more about online auto repair manuals
My girlfriend has a 2002 Toyota Corolla. It was time to replace the original serpentine drive belt on her vehicle, due to heavy cracking of the now six-year-old belt. After being very disappointed with the quality of the after market dayco belt I decided to buy a factory original Toyota part. I expected this part, to have come from Japan. When the parts counter man handed me the belt, I was pleasantly surprised by the overall thickness and quality of this factory original part.
