Warning- Rant And Whine- My Toyota

[TexasErin]

I just got rid of my 2000 VW Passat because it had been in the shop a few times and was tired of the hassle (and expense). I had bought it new.
I have always wanted a Toyota 4Runner but cannot afford a new one so I decided to go to Carmax (2 hours from here) and bought a used 2000 with 28,000 miles on it. It is so pretty- a dark red color and looked like it was in perfect condition. 25 days after buying it we were on our way to WDW when the oil light came on.
To make a long story short, by the time we got home we had had the SUV for like 35 days. It needs a NEW ENGINE!!! The local Toyota dealership ran a check on it and found out it was a lease that was repo'd. It is still under Toyota warranty, but they won't cover it because it was from abnormal wear and tear! We did get the extended Carmax warranty but they don't want to cover it because evidently they think Toyota should! We just bought the darn thing a month ago and I am so angry. The damage was done by the previous owner- not us- and nobody wants to pay for the new engine.
I hate to have to drive 2 hours and get ugly at the dealership. I really don't like confrontation. Plus I have a gazillion gifts to wrap and Christmas cookies to make (and I also have to work). This is not a good time to have to drive to Dallas and act like a fool!
Okay, thanks for listening.

 

[iNTeNSeBLue98]

3yrs old with less than 30K and it needs a replacement engire for wear & tear? Try and another Toyota dealer or Toyota USA directly. What about contacting your congressman/woman? I hope it works out for the best and you don't have to pay to have the repairs made.

 

[preshi]

I just read that to my coworker. We have 3 Toyotas between us ( a '99 Tacoma, '03 4 Runner and an '04 4 Runner)

He and I both think that Carmax is responsible. They sold you a "lemon" and as far as I know thats illegal. I'd press Carmax a little further.

Good luck... it's a great car I can't imagine what the previous owner did to it to make you need a whole new engine.

 

[mudnuri]

Why can't you call Toyota Directly...they've gotta have customer service center.

With General Motors- you can call, and have a service record sent to you on warranty work that was done. what I'm trying to say is "carmax" may have done some warranty work, knew it was going to need a new motor..etc. etc..

Now, I've gotta know HOW Toyota knows the engine needed to be replaced to to "Abnormal Wear & Tear"....before I can help you with whose responsible.

Was there no oil in the engine...hard to believe if the oil light came on, you MUST have checked it.....if it was low on oil....must be a leak somewhere....if Carmax had done a full inspection prior to selling it, they would have seen the leak...

Is there a website with the extended warranty on it? I'd love to read it's exclusions to help you.

good luck

Brandy

 

[tkd lisa]

We had a similar experience with Carmax several years ago. I'm sure some people have good experiences, but the van we bought had obviously been wrecked. We made them exchange it for another van that hadn't been wrecked. Keep pressing them. You should also probably contact your BBB and consumer protection agency locally.

 

[FreshTressa]

ACK! That is why you BOUGHT a warranty!!!

Someone is going to pay, you may have to fight, but I bet you can get one of them to pay!

 

[RitaZ.]

but they won't cover it because it was from abnormal wear and tear

How did they determine this? Don't let them intimidate you and quietly go away, that's what they are hoping that you'll do. Remember that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you can't reason with them, tell them you'll take your problem to a local news station and their consumer reporter. I doubt they will like the negative publicity, either Toyota or Carmax is responsible.

What's the point of buying an extended warranty if they won't honor it?

Good luck getting this resolved, just don't give up!

 

[nativetxn]

How frustrating and disappointing this situation must be for you. No advice but I'm wishing you luck. I hope you get someone to take care of this expense for you.

 

[DD2Disney]

DH works for Toyota (well a dealership) but is in parts. Has to deal with this kind of stuff im sure.....gonna call him and see what he says....

 

[KingsFanInRI]

As DW stated above, I work for Toyota. I just asked the Service Mgr about this situation, and he stated that unless you can track down a service history to prove that the truck was maintained properly (receipts from Jiffy Lube or whatever) you are unfortunately SOL. It is Toyota's policy to not warrant any repair like this if you cannot prove that the vehicle was properly maintained. Kind of a cruddy policy, but all car makers actually are like that.
The dealership from which you bought the truck should be able (and in the interest of good business practice, willing) to find you a history if it is available. Dealerships have tools like CarFax.com that they can use to access this info.
Besides, if they gave you an extended warranty, they ought to back it up. I'd keep the pressure on them.

 

[mudnuri]

I can tell ya, that if the rig was a repo'd loan..I'm sure it wasn't maintained that well...if they can't pay for it, do you think they are going to change the oil?

I always play devils advocate in a case like this, I'm a service managers worst nightmare! DH doesn't even go to dealerships anymore, I deal with them...

For instance, I would ask the Toyota Dude..."Prove that the oil hasn't been changed"....of course they'd probably laugh... But my point is this....if that car was a lease, I'm willing to bet that at least a FEW of these oil changes happened at the dealership. There is NO reason why ANY dealer can't get the info from Toyota directly. The work orders are written up with the VIN....toyota has got to have the big computer system that GM has...just gotta.

Now here's another idea.

Run a CARFAX on it...find out where it was purchased/registered etc... find the Toyota Dealership in that area.....contact them with the Vehicle, VIN etc... and find out if they have any info on work performed on this vehicle. I'm sure they'd be happy to help you.

Now let me ask you this one. DH had always changed the oil on his truck himself. HOW could he prove to GM that he did?? That doesnt seem right to me. I do NOT think its your responsibility to prove it's your fault...I think it's THERE job to prove your fault.


By the way- ANY dealership that tells you that your warranty is void if you DONT use their dealership for oil changes is a CROOK....

Okay thats it...(can you tell how much I LOVE dealer service depts?)

Anyway- if you can find me a copy of that extended warranty online I'd be happy to disect it for you.

Brandy

 

[KingsFanInRI]

Originally posted by mudnuri
if that car was a lease, I'm willing to bet that at least a FEW of these oil changes happened at the dealership. There is NO reason why ANY dealer can't get the info from Toyota directly. The work orders are written up with the VIN....toyota has got to have the big computer system that GM has...just gotta.


Brandy

Only if the work was done at a Toyota dealership.

Originally posted by mudnuri
Now let me ask you this one. DH had always changed the oil on his truck himself. HOW could he prove to GM that he did??
Brandy

Just in case it ever comes up, receipts for the purchase of oil and oil filters would suffice as proof of maintenance (at least as far as Toyota is concerned).

 

[mudnuri]

Only if the work was done at a Toyota dealership.

Thats what I meant...I know my Grand Am is a lease, and I did do the 1st change at the GM dealer, only to pacify the guy...

Just in case it ever comes up, receipts for the purchase of oil and oil filters would suffice as proof of maintenance (at least as far as Toyota is concerned).

Okay now, maybe Toyota is different but a GM 350 engine from say a 1989 and say a 1999 have the same filter..does Toyota have different filters for each year of a car? What I mean is, I could get you receipts from oil and filters, but what if I have 3 rigs with the same engine?


I REALLY hope the OP gets a special christmas gift from Carmax...I did find it online- and read the limitations...it sounds to me as though your covered...now of course, there may be A LOT more fine print in the paperwork you have, but according to the site, only normal wear and tear items are not (brakes, plugs, wires etc..)..it covers just about every component in an engine..says it should cost you $75.00 for an "engine replacement"...sounds to me like they cover it...

CALL, CALL, CALL...keep buggin then, they are hoping that you'll go away!

Brandy

 

[nealymouse]

Listen to Brandy, she seems to know her stuff. I just so happen to run into some what the same problenm but with my Oldsmobile Van. Brand new but had total brake lose 5 TIMES !!!4 brand new wheel barens replaced and my anti-lock braking system wnet 4 times. Went threw the Lemon law in the State of Maine and WON !!!!

Keep calling DONT STOP INTILL YOU ARE HAPPY.

Good Luck

 

[DocRafiki]

Doesn't CarMax advertise that they run a CarFax on all their cars? Their big selling points are that (a) you'll know your car's history, and (b) you can get a warranty. Seems like they let one slide on the car history.

 

[stego]

when you go up to them, just say these two words:

Mark Mitsubishi.

If they even have half a clue, they'll do WHATEVER it takes
to resolve the situation.

 

[Christine]

Oh Boy, I had the exact same problem. In 1999, my DH and I bought a used 1997 Dodge Dakota. Our only difference was that we bought directly from the owner and not a dealership.

DH looked under the hood, did a preliminary inspection, etc. Everything looked good. About a month or two after we bought it, we started having problems with it--oil problems specifically. We took it to our mechanic and he did a more thorough check and told me that the engine was "sludged." The previous owner had not changed the oil. When we got the car it only had 13,000 miles on it and somehow, he had managed to ruin the engine in that short of time.

We knew where the Dodge was originally purchased and we were unable to get any satisfaction there. I mean, after all, it is not Dodge's fault that the engine sludged due to neglect. As well as it is not Toyota's fault either. Also, usually when you buy a used vehicle it is "as is" and "buyer beware." However, since you *purchased* an additional warranty from Carmax, I really think they are liable. There is no way that you caused abnormal wear and tear on that car in 35 days to cause this. They should have inspected that vehicle more carefully when they took ownership. It seems they have to back this up. I'd get a lawyer.

As for me, I had to get a new engine in my Dodge.

 

[ToyStory Fan]

I would find out a little more about the lemon laws, but I think your DMV will get involved in this as well as your State Department of Consumer Affairs. I think your profile said Texas, let me tell you about the Attorney General's office out there...I had a small issue with Panasonic in McAllen and I filed an online complaint with the Attorney General in Texas....I got an immediate (within 1 week which is immediate compared to my experience with NY) and got results. There should absolutely be no finger pointing between Carmax and the dealer that you should have to be involved with...start making some noise with the a few "alphabet soup" departments DMV, DCA and TAG you'll get results fast.

Good luck!

 

[mudnuri]

The lemon laws are VERY specific, and it's actually quite hard to "win" those...

The vehicle has to be worked on 3 times for the SAME problem, before it will come under lemon law. When I say SAME, i mean SAME...you can't say..

"my transmission is shifty roughly".....then "my transmission slips"...gotta be the same issue each time.


I dont think you need to go as far as the Attorney' General...In all seriousness Erin, if you want to fax me copies of your warranty, I'll check through them for you. I've done my fair share of dealing with stealer..oops I mean dealerships....

Brandy

 

[TexasErin]

Thank you so much everyone for your help!
Here is where it stands currently:
DH spoke with Carmax's service manager who states he needs the estimates. DH spoke with our salesman since he is keeping him informed and the salesman said, "Oh, he asked for estimates. That's a good sign."
I'm thinking what do they mean- a good sign. We shouldn't have to wait and hope that they decide to pay for it.
I actually work for the Texas Attorney General's Office (but in the child support division), but I hadn't even thought about contacting the consumer division.
I will try to see if I can get this resolved in a nice way. I was mad enough yesterday to really call and give them an earful , but DH says that everyone has been kind to him so begged me not to call.
I will keep you up to date on what happens. Right now, we are waiting on a phone call from the service manager at Carmax. But we have been waiting for them to call us back since yesterday. AARRGGHHH!!!

BTW, STEGO, who is Mark Mitsubishi? You've gotten me curious!

Thanks again, everyone!