Bob, your situation could be profitable for you. No aftermarket part can
void your entire warranty. I see an easy win win for an attorney.
Think about it... If I were to replace my OEM RT rims with a set of , say,
VIPER front rims, and later on I have a bearing failure in the front end...
The dealership COULD claim the part I replaced (RT rim with Viper rim)
caused
the failure, so it's not covered.
They COULD NOT void the entire powertrain warranty, nor could they void my
electrical (3/36 bumper to bumper) because the rims had NOTHING to do with
the
reason my passenger side window quit working (example).
You get the L work (Lawyer), and pay a Lawyer $20 for piece of their letter
head,
and fax it to the district guy and state "Unless we can work this out, I
will be forced
refer this to my Attorney." They don't want the bad press, nor do they want
people
to see that they have their pants around their ankles.
No different if I put on headers on my truck (I did), O2 sensor goes out (it
did)...
COVERED.
Get Hotchkis involved... They sell enough kits that DC knows what kind of
product it is.
IF all aftermarket parts VOID your warranty, then their wouldn't be any
aftermarket products,
because people would be too scared to put them on for fear of voiding your
warranty.
If you need assistance, IE. Calls to the service mgr, to explain to him the
facts of life, etc... LET ME KNOW.
Sam '00 RT
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-dakota-truck@buffnet.net
> [mailto:owner-dakota-truck@buffnet.net]On Behalf Of Bob Mankin
> Sent: Tuesday, May 09, 2000 4:31 PM
> To: dakota-truck@buffnet.net
> Subject: Re: DML: another hotchkis Question
>
>
> Sam Parthemer wrote:
> >
> > Answer #1: The only thing affected are the parts removed
> > (springs, shocks, etc.) So, really, NO, it won't affect
> > your warranty-- I've had my '00 RT to the dealership for a
> > few items under warranty, and no problems having the
> > Hotchkis suspension.
>
> Sam,
>
> Be careful. It depends on how big a prick your dealer wants to be. Today
> I learned the local service manager CANCELED my ENTIRE warranty(both
> standard and extended that I paid extra for) over a dispute I'm having
> with them on warranty issues from last week. At first they were going to
> replace some bearings in the rear end, but once the service head got
> involved, he stated he would not service my vehicle and that was that.
> He is pointing to the suspension modifications as his reason.
>
> The cancelation was a complete surprise to me and it was only after I
> called the national customer complaint line today that I even learned
> about it. I was livid when I heard. The dealer said nothing about
> canceling and I haven't been able to get any straight answers yet. All
> my calls to the general manager are being referred back down to the
> service manager that I have the beef with. There is NO RECOURSE beyond
> the district representative on these issues and the guy here is already
> on the service managers side(Good ole boys club). The warranty maunal
> will suggest differently, but call the national number yourself and ask
> questions. Lots of them. It and the whole 5 Star program they brag so
> much about is a complete sham, IMO and IME. As a consumer with a
> borderline warranty issue, you are at their mercy, sorry to say.
>
> I see a really ugly, drawn out situation ahead for me and legally I
> don't think their moves will stand, but it'll be some painful exchanges
> and lots of arbitration before I ever get any relief on this one.
>
> Buyer beware. And if anyone on this list is considering buying ANYTHING
> from Stevens Creek Dodge in San Jose, CA, just say NO! You're setting
> yourself up for a nightmare if you ever attempt to modify the truck
> during the warranty period. Not my first, but my third bad experience
> with this service department over 2 different vehicles. Never again!
>
> Bob
>
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