Hi Jud
It's been my experience with important warranties that if the need to
invoke it occurs it's important to have pre-established a level of trust with
the party that will do the warranty service. With today's motor vehicles it
is absolutely critical that their owners live up to warranty terms and
conditions. Same of course goes for the dealer when it comes to honoring the
warranty. However, if you've done exactly what the manufacturer requires,
have a warranty-covered problem, and the dealer gives you the run-around,
your recourse lies with the manufacturer, after all, he's the one who's
written it and will stand the cost of making his product right.
You can exceed the warranty requirements if you so choose, example is
doing oil and oil filter changes at smaller mileage or time intervals than
the warranty states. You might be throwing money away to do so but,
conversely, it makes an undeniable statement to the manufacturer in the
event you have a problem and your end, so far as required preventative
maintenance is concerned, is in question.
Today's vehicles are the most sophisticatedly complex ever built yet
they are turning in an almost astonishingly good record where frequency of
repairs are concerned. We can take this trend or condition to mean that
unless we mistreat today's vehicle, it should provide long and solid service
assuming we also follow whatever maintenance is required.
If your driving falls under the manufacturer's maintenance plan
requiring oil and oil filter changes @ 7,500 mi intervals and you want to do
these at fewer miles, that's up to you. Record all maintenance info, and if
the work was not done by your dealer (who will have in Chrysler's national
computer memory your service record of work done in a Dodge shop anywhere),
then keep an accurate paper trail, be that sales checks for stuff you bought
and installed yourself, or invoices for service performed by outlets other
than your dealer. If you have a claim and the dealer gives you static with
this situation, appeal to the regional Chrysler staff. If they reject you,
most states have consumer protection legal routes you can take. It's
important that you look good so far as doing all that was required.
Finally, I think it makes good sense during the 7/70 period that you
periodically take your truck to Dodge for an oil change or any of those
periodic service functions advertised in those mailings the factory send you.
If you want to do 3,000 mi oil changes, then do your own @ 3-6-9,000 and @
12,000, (or at least once per calendar year, whichever comes first) take it
to your dealer. It looks good in the event of a disputable warranty problem
that you at least gave his service department that much biz and if you're
using Mobil One and he doesn't stock it, bring your own oil along.
Paul Sahlin
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