quick warranty question

[enobmort42]

i brought my car in to a dealer at approx 20k miles, under warranty, with a squeaky shifting problem. it took them several "small fixes" to correct the problem, the last time being at 37k miles, out of warranty. they had no problem writing it off as warranty work. i kept all of the paperwork and invoices, too.

now i'm at 70k and i'm having the same exact symptoms from before; squeaky shifting from 1st/3rd into neutral. i brought it into the same place that put a bandaid on it before and was told they won't provision this into the warranty. i asked if they guarantee their work and was told "only until the car's warranty is expired. if you bring it in at 35k miles, the work is guaranteed until the end of the 36k mile warranty."

is that right? i was under the impression that there was a toyota-backed lifetime warranty on all labor or parts or something... am i wrong?

[UTVitz]

They were probably working under the powertrain warranty which was good to 60K miles. However, you have documented this is a problem that keeps coming back and that may hold some weight. I'd ask to speak to the Toyota regional rep. for that dealer-this may require an appointment seeing how busy they are these days, but he has the final word on covering this again on their dime.

Once you are past the 3/36 bumper to bumper you go on the 5/60 powertrain warranty. A dealer will usually cover their work for either 1 year or 12K miles after the warranty is up, but this varies from dealer to dealer and is at their courtesy. I believe what you are referring to about lifetime warranty may apply to installed factory toyota replacement parts, i.e., alternator, starter, things like that, but never covers labor. That said-I am not sure Toyota still offers that deal.

You're not that far past the powertrain warranty-give the rep a try. It's worked for me in the past when the dealer was saying no.

[thebarber]

well, what was the problem? sounds like the shifter @ the transmission was squeaking....could be the clutch fork too....

[why?]

if it was the same place you said put some pressure on them. They might be being jerks because of your age. Talk to the maintenance manager and calmly inform him you want it repaired right. Then tell him what you'll do if he doesn't.

i'd start with going above him if he doesn't cave, as in the dealership manager, on up. Then to the local BBB and the like. Complaints hurt more than they'd like to let you know. Be a big enough of a problem and they should fix it right for you.

[TheSilkySmooth]

Isnt there a good DIY thread with pix here somewhere about fixing this squeak? I think it involves using a dry moly bearing lube to lube where the shifter cables conncect to the transmission levers. I think grease will just grab sand and dirt.

[talnlnky]

if it was the same place you said put some pressure on them. They might be being jerks because of your age. Talk to the maintenance manager and calmly inform him you want it repaired right. Then tell him what you'll do if he doesn't.

i'd start with going above him if he doesn't cave, as in the dealership manager, on up. Then to the local BBB and the like. Complaints hurt more than they'd like to let you know. Be a big enough of a problem and they should fix it right for you.

the BBB is a joke, I had a 3month ordeal with them & priceline last year... I got screwed out of $25 because they messed up on booking my plane tickets (they bought 4 instead of 2)... and then when they corrected the problem, charged me $25.... I never saw that $25 again... priceline wouldn't give me a dime... asshats. ORBITZ ftw now!

BBB is just a non-profit with virtually no power.

[why?]

it is one place that lists customer complaints. If a company has too many complaints, then said company is in deep trouble. Yes, the organization itself will not solve anything, however people will see those complaints and then decide to not go to said business.

[weaver615]

The OP is in NY...You can file a complaint with the NYS DMV, what happens then is they send an inspector to the stealership and they look over EVERYTHING!!! I mean EVERYTHING to do with the maintenance they performed on your car as well as 1 or 2 randomly chosen cars. If they find something not right or illegal the stealership has its repair, inspection, sales, license issued by NYS DMV either suspended or revoked and they are fined a hefty fine too...Just an avenue you can take.

I don't bother with the BBB they just take your complaint and say "whatever".....My grandfather lived by a saying which goes..."If you want to get results, NEVER start at the bottom and work your way up. Start at the TOP and work your way down...." Worked for him for 85 years.

[RedRide]

The OP is in NY...You can file a complaint with the NYS DMV, what happens then is they send an inspector to the stealership and they look over EVERYTHING!!! I mean EVERYTHING to do with the maintenance they performed on your car as well as 1 or 2 randomly chosen cars. If they find something not right or illegal the stealership has its repair, inspection, sales, license issued by NYS DMV either suspended or revoked and they are fined a hefty fine too...Just an avenue you can take.

I don't bother with the BBB they just take your complaint and say "whatever".....My grandfather lived by a saying which goes..."If you want to get results, NEVER start at the bottom and work your way up. Start at the TOP and work your way down...." Worked for him for 85 years.

Yup, that's my philosophy also .......go right to the top via a registered/signature required letter that they can not ignore or claim they never got.:smile:

[Jem_hadar]

Isnt there a good DIY thread with pix here somewhere about fixing this squeak? I think it involves using a dry moly bearing lube to lube where the shifter cables conncect to the transmission levers. I think grease will just grab sand and dirt.

I just had my Yaris Hatch into the dealership to take care of this little high pitched squeak when I'm shifting into 3rd, and usually when shifting out of 2and and 4th.

The shifter cables just needed some lube, nothing too serious.

[watersoilair]

Hey All - my 2008 has been doing the same thing for over a year...squeaks from 1-2 and 3-2. I greased the bushings with silicone lube, but it came back a short while later. Just this morning I noticed that my clutch was squeaking. I took it into the dealership and they were going to charge me a whopping $178.00 to lube the gear linkage bushings and the shifter stem...I said NO WAY. The car is under warranty. I asked what they were proposing to do about the squeaking clutch and was met with "uh, hang on a second"...they came back and said, no it's just your shifter stick. I turned around and said "I may be a woman, but I do know a bit about cars. I learned how to drive a standard and have always driven one...never to have this problem. I want it fixed and I want it covered under warranty. The car is ONLY TWO YEARS OLD."

They're replacing the gear linkage bushings, lubing it all up and are replacing the clutch bushings as well! All under warranty:) Sometimes you just have to advocate for yourself!!

If this happens again after my warranty is up I will demand that they pay for it...