Here goes....
I had planned to take a trip last week to Missouri, to a friend's place to help him move. I get as far as Greenville, MS (about 3 hours north of me), and my check engine light came on. I checked all my guages, and then stopped to check under the hood, then the gas cap. The truck seemed to be running fine, so I decided to go ahead with the trip. I get into Greenville and the truck starts sputtering... (this is around 9:30 AM)
I had only driven about 45 miles since my last fill up, so I knew it wasn't an empty tank. I knew I would pass by the Greenville dealership on my way, so I stopped there. (BTW, I used to live 15 miles south of Greenville, so I know the area fairly well.)
I went in and talked to the guy at the service counter and told him the problem. I waited and waited and waited and waited and finally someone drove my truck into the shop. I waited and waited and waited and waited some more, and finally the service guy (not the mechanic) came and told me that there was a problem with the ignition system.
Now my truck is still under the original manufacturers warranty by about 2300 miles, so getting this fixed should have been no problem...right? WRONG
(11:30 AM)I asked him how long it would take to fix it and he said only about an hour, and I could be on my way, and he said it would be covered under the warranty, no problem. So he left and I waited for the repairs to be finished. 30 minutes later the Service Manager comes up to me and tells me that they can't perform the repair because the vehicle is "out of factory condition". He goes on to point out my AIRAID intake, body lift, shackles, wiring for my KC's, and my stereo. And he said "Any of those items could have contributed to your problem". I tried to explain to him that the Magnusson Moss act established that unless he could prove the parts caused the problem, then he had no case. I also asked him how in the heck could a properly installed body lift affect the ignition system. (12:00 PM)
After I finished he said he would consult someone at GM, and we would go from there. so I thought, ok, the hassle is over, but NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
He comes back an hour later and tells me that he spoke with someone at GM and they agreed with him totally. So I told him to wait while I made a phone call. (1:00 PM)
I have the good fortune of being very good friends with the son of the Mississippi Public Service Commissioner. I called him (the PS Commissioner) and asked him about the problem, and he did some research and called me back. He told me he was going to call the dealership and speak with the general manager. So I waited. And waited. And waited some more.
Finally he called back and said that the General Manager apparently didn't believe who he was, so he went through the proper channels to contact GM. This is where it gets good. He said that the GM manager/rep told him that this was not the first time they had had trouble out of this dealship. Then he said that the GM rep would be calling me shortly. (1:45 PM)
So I waited another hour or so and I got a call from the GM rep. He apparently was some type of district or area manager. He apologized over and over for the inconveinience, and told me that he would arrange for a rental vehicle if I wanted to continue my trip. I told him that I would rather wait with my truck, considering the vultures at the dealership. So he arranged for a hotel room newby, since he wouldn't be able to make it down until the next morning. I was very surprised by this guy. He was definitely all about taking care of the customer.
Anyways, I took a cab to my hotel room, ordered pizza, and watched TV and went to sleep. The phone rings the next morning--it's the GM guy. he said he is about an hour away, and would like for me to be at the dealership when he gets there. So I got dressed and took another cab back to the dealership. My truck is out on the service lot, un-touched.
The GM guy pulls up in a Colorado crew Z71 and introduces himself. He told me that he was new to this position, and that this was the first time he'd made it to the dealership, so he suggested that I talked to the Service manager again--with him present, to see what he said.
So we went in and asked for the service manager. He came out and I asked him if they had repaired the problem. He reminded me about the aftermarket accessories. So I asked "So you have talked to someone at GM about this and they agreed with you?" And he said yes. So then the GM guy asked to speak with the dealship manager. So we waited a while and were sent to his office.
The dealership manager said that he had been informed of the situation, and that while he was sorry for the inconveinience, there was nothing he could do.
I could tell that the GM guy was getting kinda upset. He was about my height, but kinda pudgy, and his face was starting to get really red. Then he asked if they had spoken with someone at GM, and the dealership manager said yes, and that those were GM's policies.
So the GM guy says "Sir, I can assure you that those are NOT GM's policies concerning vehicle warranty coverage!" The DM was clearly aggravated, and he said "Our hands are tied in this matter. You can either pay for the repair, or you can pick up your keys at the service desk."
--The grande finale--
The GM guy reaches into his pocket, and handed the dealership manager his business card. The DM looked at it for a second, then his face turned white. He started sputtering this and that, and the GM guy held up as hand. Then he asked me to step out of the office for a few minutes.
After I left the office, I heard yelling
I was so happy.
So after 10 minutes or so, the DM and the GM guy come out of his office, and the GM guy said "since it's about lunch time, the dealership is going to give you a rental, if you want to get something to each or anything."
Then the DM told me how sorry he was for the mix up...blah blah blah...and that my truck would be ready by the time I got back, with no charge.
So I thanked the GM guy, took the rental Z-71, and went to lunch. I got back about two hours later and the truck was ready. So I left and went on to Missouri. I have had no problems so far
