Dealership Maintenance Rant [Resolved]

[Guilla]

Well, I am a pretty even tempered guy, but I just need to rant a little and hopefully this dealership can do what's right.

When i ordered my Hybrid Maverick, I also ordered a block heater from the supplies department, sometimes we get to -30 or 40F so even though the vehicle may start, it's nice to baby it a little in the winter so the engine doesn't work so hard at startup.

Well I took it in for the first oil change and to have them install the block heater (they couldn't install it at time of delivery, because of the hybrid engine they said i had to make an appointment since it requires a little more time). I showed up in the morning, asked the first guy how much time they were thinking and how much it really was going to be, he said they would call. Four hours later I try to get ahold of them through their text service, no response but I am not worried too much, working through the day anyway. A few hours later they call and said there was an issue, when lowering the exhaust system they damaged a manifold gasket. This immediately threw up red flags.
So I said "Hold on, I get stuff breaks, so not a huge deal, you can fix that and people make mistakes. But dropping the whole exhaust system? How much is this going to cost?" He assured me that I wouldn't have to pay for the repairs, but I knew that this cheap add on, was going to be a lot more expensive.
A block heater is a pretty cheap add on for the convenience, and $1000 more then what it would normally cost is not acceptable. I head in today to talk about it with them once it is fixed, we'll see what they say. But I think I have a huge gripe since they never called to give me an estimate or anything. I would have never done the add on, even if I had to pay for the part I had ordered.

Sorry for the rant, I just can't believe someone can do that kind of work without giving you an estimate. Will give you all an update on what they do, but just a warning, make sure to get an estimate, even if you think you know what it's going to cost.

EDIT: Updated - Service manager listened to my story, without a beat, looked at the cost of parts, and the hours of labor and gave me a much more reasonable price since there was a screwup on their part. He was super professional and I wasn't expecting it. Every time I have dealt with this dealership it has been something dissapointing, but I am happy to report they did what was right, without me even asking. Thank you all for your support and listening when I was very frustrated.

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[Deleted member 6544]

I thought the block heater was a factory accessory? Regardless, they know exactly what it costs to install. Every piece of work now a days comes with a work code. Hell even the shop that works on my Corvette, ( a Corvette shop specifically), uses work codes @ install exhaust. They know it takes say 3.5 hours. and estimate accordingly. I'd certainly call them out on not giving you an estimate. That's just not right.

 

[Cannedtunafishisgood]

Do you know they have issues with the block heaters leaking?

 

[Guilla]

I thought the block heater was a factory accessory?

I think yes, but it has to be put on the order by the dealer and not an option from the website, but I didn't want anything that would hold up the delivery of the truck, so just had the parts department order it. Definitely should have just put it on the order. I just assumed it would be a simple install.

I learn stuff every day, sometimes the cost of that knowledge is much more then I want to pay.

 

[Guilla]

Do you know they have issues with the block heaters leaking?

I had not seen that, though I do see another post about it now. Doesn't look too concerning, though it is good to keep an eye on. Thanks for the info!

 

[Cannedtunafishisgood]

The mystery of the missing coolant is the tread. Most in Canada since they are standard option there.

 

[grumpyunk]

Most shops in the US are required to give an estimate for any work to be done. Also required in many is a signature and an authorization to do the work. Some will accept notation of a telephone conversation authorizing the work.
I do not think I would have a shop do work without some sort of estimate...
tom

 

[paneubert]

Most shops in the US are required to give an estimate for any work to be done. Also required in many is a signature and an authorization to do the work. Some will accept notation of a telephone conversation authorizing the work.
I do not think I would have a shop do work without some sort of estimate...
tom

This is what I was going to say. Vehicle service/repair in most places are regulated so that a quote or estimate has to be signed off on before the work can be performed. Something seems fishy here.

 

[DryHeat]

So I said "Hold on, I get stuff breaks, so not a huge deal, you can fix that and people make mistakes. But dropping the whole exhaust system? How much is this going to cost?" He assured me that I wouldn't have to pay for the repairs, but I knew that this cheap add on, was going to be a lot more expensive.
A block heater is a pretty cheap add on for the convenience, and $1000 more then what it would normally cost is not acceptable. I head in today to talk about it with them once it is fixed, we'll see what they say. But I think I have a huge gripe since they never called to give me an estimate or anything. I would have never done the add on, even if I had to pay for the part I had ordered.

This part of your message is confusing to me. You say they are not going to charge you for the repairs, then say that "$1000 more than they would normally cost is not acceptable."

Are you saying they billed you for $1000 more than the normal cost for the installation? What is the "normal cost," anyway? Did the bill list the extra $1000 as labor? If so, what was it listed as being related to?

Sorry for all the questions, but every time I get a bill from a dealer (or the shop I usually use) it lays out the costs item by item. If they added $1000 to the installation labor cost you should be able to compare the hours to the book value for that job to see what is wrong. If they added it as labor cost for something you didn't authorize that should show up as well.

 

[Guilla]

Are you saying they billed you for $1000 more than the normal cost for the installation? What is the "normal cost," anyway? Did the bill list the extra $1000 as labor? If so, what was it listed as being related to?

I don't have the bill yet, but I was expecting about a $300 bill to install a block heater. Most of that bill is the block heater itself. When they said it would take a little more time I figured ok, it's a hybrid and they probably had not done one on a maverick yet.
When they called back saying they dropped the whole exhaust system I knew this was not my small option. So i said um, how much is this going to cost (after they had already damaged the gasket, and installed the heater)and the service guy said about $1200. We'll see what the final bill is, but that final bill will not include the repair to the gasket that they damaged in the work.

I am hoping we can come to a compromise with the dealer, since if they would have given me an estimate of 1200, i would have not done the upgrade, even if I had to eat the cost of the heater.

 

[fordtoughwait]

-40F.. Whew.. Yeah, dropping the entire exhaust to install the block heater would be a surprise to me too.. Probably would have affected my decision to install one too. Best of luck, hopefully they will treat you right. If not, it's just one of those pricy life lessons.. I've had my fair share..

 

[Jah.]

I don't know about N . Dakota but in Fla
Written estimates required and services cannot be more than 10% over estimates . can be more if they call and get approval .

 

[DryHeat]

I don't have the bill yet, but I was expecting about a $300 bill to install a block heater. Most of that bill is the block heater itself.
* * *
So i said um, how much is this going to cost ... and the service guy said about $1200.

In that case, I hope you can find someone (maybe at another dealership) who will tell you the book hours for installing the block heater. That's probably the best way to dispute the bill (assuming they are charging more hours than the book says).

 

[paneubert]

This doesn't look promising for North Dakota....

50 States Vehicle Repair Laws, etc....

Don't know how old of a document that is, but it seems to indicate very little consumer protection when it comes to "estimates" and other auto repairs in North Dakota. Must still be the Wild West up there.

 

[Guilla]

Must still be the Wild West up there.

Ha! Yeah I would be on the side that likes the wild west, I should have just been more careful than I was. We'll see how it all turns out.

That's kind of a fun document

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