In February, I took my 11-year old, long-out-of-warranty Ram 2500 to Faricy Boys Chrysler in Colorado Springs to let them handle a couple minor recall items. All was well and no work was needed. However, they did take the truck into their shop to perform their "courtesy inspection", something that is pretty much the norm these days.
All seemed well. For a while, anyhow. Now, I don't have a need to drive this pickup much when the weather is nice unless we take the camper out or I need to haul something, and we hadn't done that this year because I've been sick. But a weekend or two ago, when I was driving it, I heard a nasty growl from the back end of the truck. By the time I got home, it was pretty consistent; the growl was apparent on acceleration, and silent on coast. Classic symptoms of a rear pinion bearing failure in the axle. And this is the big Dana axle, the 11-1/2" version. An expensive repair.
It took me a couple days to get around to it but when I looked under the back of the truck, I was just sick to see the fill plug missing from the differential cover. It took me a few days to put 2 and 2 together but when I looked at the invoice they gave me on my recall visit, it was obvious to me that they had left the plug out after their inspection. Over the last 400 miles, all the oil had been blown out of that hole and the axle began its fall to failure mode.
On Saturday, I had a sit-down with the service manager at this dealership and pleaded my case. I expected a brush-off but instead was greeted with a sympathetic ear. He pulled up the notes from the technician who had written something about "diff dr". Don't know if that meant DRAIN or DRAIN and REFILL, but in any event, it was evidence that the tech was back there. The manager said he wanted to look at the truck.
On Sunday, we had AAA haul the truck down there.
Today, I got an email from the service manager that says yes, the bearings are shot - and the ring and pinion gears are pretty scored up, as well. He said they would repair it all on their dime. They need to order some parts so it'll take a few days; that's OK, they're making it right and that's the important thing.
Guys, I have a new found respect for car dealerships, at least for this one. There are still some dealerships (of several brands) which will never see me visit, but this one has gained a customer for life. If you're in the Colorado Springs area, and need the services of a Chrysler dealer, Faricy Boys gets my recommendation. For whatever that's worth.
I'm impressed. Mistakes happen. It's HOW a business handles its mistakes that matters.
All seemed well. For a while, anyhow. Now, I don't have a need to drive this pickup much when the weather is nice unless we take the camper out or I need to haul something, and we hadn't done that this year because I've been sick. But a weekend or two ago, when I was driving it, I heard a nasty growl from the back end of the truck. By the time I got home, it was pretty consistent; the growl was apparent on acceleration, and silent on coast. Classic symptoms of a rear pinion bearing failure in the axle. And this is the big Dana axle, the 11-1/2" version. An expensive repair.
It took me a couple days to get around to it but when I looked under the back of the truck, I was just sick to see the fill plug missing from the differential cover. It took me a few days to put 2 and 2 together but when I looked at the invoice they gave me on my recall visit, it was obvious to me that they had left the plug out after their inspection. Over the last 400 miles, all the oil had been blown out of that hole and the axle began its fall to failure mode.
On Saturday, I had a sit-down with the service manager at this dealership and pleaded my case. I expected a brush-off but instead was greeted with a sympathetic ear. He pulled up the notes from the technician who had written something about "diff dr". Don't know if that meant DRAIN or DRAIN and REFILL, but in any event, it was evidence that the tech was back there. The manager said he wanted to look at the truck.
On Sunday, we had AAA haul the truck down there.
Today, I got an email from the service manager that says yes, the bearings are shot - and the ring and pinion gears are pretty scored up, as well. He said they would repair it all on their dime. They need to order some parts so it'll take a few days; that's OK, they're making it right and that's the important thing.
Guys, I have a new found respect for car dealerships, at least for this one. There are still some dealerships (of several brands) which will never see me visit, but this one has gained a customer for life. If you're in the Colorado Springs area, and need the services of a Chrysler dealer, Faricy Boys gets my recommendation. For whatever that's worth.
I'm impressed. Mistakes happen. It's HOW a business handles its mistakes that matters.
