Ray, no, the Jeep has no towing package or hitch. I has probably been in
4wd for 50 miles in a snowstorm on I-24 last year and that is it. He did
not remove the diff covers, just "claimed" to vacuum out the fluid and
replace, but they sure charge for removing and replacing the covers.
I must admit, the SM was genuinely upset, especially when I proved that
there was no way 6 quarts of fluid could have been used on the car...he said
someone should have known better...
Rascal
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
[mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net] On Behalf Of RayB
Sent: Monday, December 13, 2004 4:08 PM
To: dakota-truck@dakota-truck.net
Subject: DML: RE: Liberty Service Saga...
Hey Rick, I'm really pleased to hear you got that straightened out, and with
a full refund no less!
Being a suspicious sort though, I have to wonder if the tech actually
changed your fluid at all.
> From: Rick Barnes
<snip> I asked how the tech decided that I
> needed the service, and all he could say that the tech likely went on the
> appearance of the fluid.
Without sucking some out there is no way to determine if it looks bad. And
what is "bad" anyway? It's gonna look darker after 30K miles but unless
you've done some heavy towing it's not gonna be hurting. BTW, do you have
the trailer tow package? Unless you do, the diffs don't require synthetic.
At least that's the way it is in my Grand Cherokee.
The reason I'm so suspicious of what some techs do comes in part from an
experience I had with my wife's Stratus. Long story short, they were
supposed to change the thermostat, under warranty. On the '02 Stratus with
2.7L V6 you have to remove the right front wheel, a splash shield, the
alternator and some other things just to get to it. I watched the tech for
about 20 minutes as he consulted his computer and looked around and under
the engine compartment. I got the distinct feeling he didn't know where
the TS was. (you really can't see it without removing stuff) Finally he
lowered the rack, raised the hood and put a fender cover on the fender. I
went outside for a smoke and when I came back in the car was gone. A few
minutes later the service writer came over and said it was done. WTF I
said. Ain't no way he could have done the job in the 15 minutes I was
outside! It would take that long just to refill the coolant. When they
brought the car to me I pointed out that the brake dust on the wheel and the
dirt on the splash shield had not been disturbed. No finger prints or
smudges at all. Now just how does one remove those without touching them?!
The service manager asked the tech and the tech just said he changed the TS.
He had no explanation why he didn't leave any smudges or prints. By then
even the manager was suspicious and checked with the parts dept. They said
the tech picked up a TS and coolant and returned a TS with coolant on it a
few minutes later. Bottom line....they said he changed it and that was
that. I noticed that the coolant was still low (at the same level it was
when I got there) and the water temp still read just as low as it did
before. Made no difference. They said the job was done and the temp
reading was fine (even though when I took it in they noted it was too cold).
They then topped off the coolant and basically said adios! Sooo, DC got
charged for the warranty work and the tech got paid for doing nothing but we
still had a car that didn't warm up. I no longer go to that dealer.
Rick, I hope your diffs at least show some signs of having been cleaned off.
A tech can make it LOOK like he did something even if he didn't. Mine
wasn't even that bright.
Dak content...I towed my Dakota to California from Ohio with my Grand
Cherokee. :-)
RayB
http://www.dragtruk.com/ENTRIES/20KM1FD2KWBP.html
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