How Patient should I be with Svc Cntrs?

[max49]

This place worked on my MH 3 different times while it was under warranty. Fuel pump, fuel rail clip, IP cluster, an air bag and the 1st SP wire that failed and I was always satisfied with their work. I thought I found a good secret of a WH svc cntr because WH does'nt even have them listed but always approved me taking it there if they would accept it.
I asked if they could work on my MH before I had it towed there. I told them it sounded bad and I felt it was an internal engine problem. They said they could'nt work on it until Tu. and now it's Fr. and it's sitting right where the tow trk left it and it hasn't been touched.
He said yesterday they looked at it to see what it needs and he has to call the extended warranty co. When asked what it needs he said he has'nt seen the ticket yet but he'd call me after he talks to the warranty co. He tries to assure me that he deals with them all the time.
It's hard for me to imagine that the warranty co is just going to tell him to put a new engine in just because he says 'it sounds awful'.
Roadcare towed it there at my request so if I have to move it some where else it'll cost me $500 to $1000. It's not easy finding shops that will work on these, especially something this major. Another svc cntr, and RV shop said it would be "a couple of weeks" before they could start on it.
So I have to be careful and be prepared to take it else where before I get too demanding, but it is irritating when they say they will work on it and then they don't. Do you think I need to just be more patient or am I wasting time with them?
Many people have told me that I would have to take responsibility for the cost to tear it down, until the warranty co finds that the failed part would be covered, and I would agree to this, but they haven't even asked me to do this. Should I offer? I'm probably going to have to do this any way so it seems like we're wasting time. But I hate to tell the svc writer how to do his job.
Sorry for ramblin but I'd be interested to know how other people would deal with this situation.

[radams]

'better the devil you know than the devil you don't'

It sounds like you're getting a bit of runaround from them for sure but after my experience with CW you're not anywhere close to experiencing lousy service. Try being without your coach for 3 months! It would be a crap shoot to go elsewhere and I doubt this outfit is going to be more motivated if you offered to pay them the teardown charge. They're going to get that anyway. I'd suggest working with who you have it with now as calmly as you can. Nothing good can come out of everyone getting all worked up.

My approach is always that between them and I we need to get it worked out or else I'm going to have to call in the DW, and believe me, none of us wants that to happen.

[InPursuit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49 (with some editing) I asked if they could work on my MH before I had it towed there. They said they could'nt work on it until Tu. Another svc cntr, and RV shop said it would be "a couple of weeks" before they could start on it.

In the middle of the summer and everyone else on vacation...
waiting is the norm. Sounds like you have been tolerant at least as regards time to get the diagnosis complete.

Quote:

He said yesterday they looked at it to see what it needs and he has to call the extended warranty co. Do you think I need to just be more patient or am I wasting time with them?

BUT! service is all about communication. Do you ramble and such when talking with them too or do you get right down to the nitty-gritty?

"Joe... do we have a hard diagnosis of what the problem actually is?"
"Joe... just tell me what is going on with getting my RV repaired"

If the response to those two Q's is anything other than clear and affirmative and reasonable (all things considered)... then they will (probably) have lost my business forever.

[DriVer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49 Sorry for ramblin but I'd be interested to know how other people would deal with this situation.

Max, Do not offer to go out of pocket for any of this. If it has to come to that, cross that bridge when you come to it. You have a blown engine it would seem and it's not going to get fixed overnight so I think you just need to put it out of your mind for the next week or so and go fishin'.

I know how they get engines out of W series chassis but I would not be liking to disassemble all of that steering and IFS suspension gear on the bottom of the P to get the motor out if I were still in the business. Have you asked them how they propose to R&R the engine? That would be one of the top 10 questions that I would have.

Update: I just called a center that has done a ton of these things. He has a special rig where he told me he would remove the engine through the driver's door using a wrecker. The steering wheel column, the seat and door are removed. Not able to do that the engine could them come out of a front window which would have to be removed OR it could come out of the front of the unit through the grill.

The only option not taken here would be to pull it out from the bottom of the rig ... he said that it would be too much like work.

[InfinityJim]

One thing I know as a service writer is that before you make any phone call to the extended warranty company you have to have all your i's dotted and t's crossed. You spend alot of time on hold (normally) and the last thing you want is to have to call back because of some crazy question they ask of you or worse yet get denied a claim. Most service writers have made this phone call many times and the larger ones and the unusual ones we just know are going to be hard to get thru. My advise is be somewhat patient, let him do his job, these type of claims can be hard ones, and the warranty company only pays for bad parts and we (service writers) don’t get to keep calling back adding to the claim, (normally).

[max49]

Thanks guys, Since I read 'InPuruit' recomendation, I started preparing an e mail on a word document since I was having a hard time getting him to do what he said he was going to do.
Then I came back here and read what Driver and Infinity Jim had to say, so I won't send the word doc for a while. I would have appreciated it if he would have explained the process like Jim and Driver did and not tell me he would do this and then don't do it. I'm just worried that he has been making a lot of promises , he hasn't been able to keep, already. I would be scared to ask him how he plans to get the engine out but I'd probably get the same answer that I did when I asked other questions like ,if it was a problem getting these engines, since GM quit making them. He said, "Don't worry about that, that's my job".
"Burt" used to be the largest auto dealer in the Denver area. They sold every brand I think. However, the 3 newer dealerships in Parker are all empty now and several others have new owners. To my knowledge, the Burt Chevrolet where the MH is, is the original Burt and the only one left open. I hope they kept their best mechanics.
I just thought that since it was a GM engine problem , a GM dealer would be better than an RV dealer.

On a side note, my extended warranty policy says for "Motor Homes only, your Star RV service contract will pay for the expense of a rental vehicle when your vehicle is in for covered repairs".
All this sounds so great! Any body know what this is about? You think they are going to rent a MH for me?

[DriVer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49 On a side note, my extended warranty policy says for "Motor Homes only, your Star RV service contract will pay for the expense of a rental vehicle when your vehicle is in for covered repairs". All this sounds so great! Any body know what this is about? You think they are going to rent a MH for me?

Max, Short answer ... No! But I would ask to see what's up wit dat?

[max49]

It's for a rental car only. But not until the repair facility gets approval, which they haven't even called them yet. This is what I don't understand. If they think it is this major, it does'nt seem to be that difficult to call them. I was not 'on hold' at all when I called and they told me to make sure they call before they do any work, other wise it won't be covered.
Of course I had to call Burt and the service writer is off today and they don't seem to know whats going on with it except it's on hold for parts.

[DriVer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49 I was not 'on hold' at all when I called and they told me to make sure they call before they do any work, other wise it won't be covered. Of course I had to call Burt and the service writer is off today and they don't seem to know whats going on with it except it's on hold for parts.

Max, I might want to get a written estimate from the service folks detailing what is and what is not covered.

[max49]

When you say the "service folks", do you mean at Burt Chevrolet? My service contract reads as follows,

ENGINE

All internally lubricated parts, including: pistons, pins and rings; connecting rods and bearings; crankshaft and main bearings; camshaft, followers and cam bearings; push rods, valves, spring guides, seats and lifters; rocker arms, shafts and bushings; timing gear, chain or belt tensioners and retainers; eccentric shaft; oil pump; engine head(s), engine block and cylinder barrels. Also covered are the following: water pump; oil pan; intake and exhaust manifolds; engine mounts and cushions; engine torque strut; timing cover; valve cover(s); harmonic balancer; vacuum pump; dipstick and tube; pulleys.

What bothers me is that they haven't even called them. If they call , they will probably tell them that tearing it down will be my responsibility until the cause is determined. But at least the warranty company will know it's there and be involved. I'm just getting scared that these guys may be 'over their head' and that is the only reason I can see why they haven't got up the nerve to call them just to hear what they say to do. 2 different days he told me he was going to call them and still has not. I have been impressed at how easy it is to talk to a person at Star Warranty. I wish Brazels or Redlands would chime in and give some expanation as to why they have'nt called yet.

[InPursuit]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max49 All internally lubricated parts, including: pistons, pins and rings; connecting rods and bearings; etc etc (basically everything but the block itself).

yadda yadda bfd

Quote:

...tearing it down will be my responsibility until the cause is determined... But at least the warranty company will know it's there and be involved. I'm just getting scared that these guys may be 'over their head' and that is the only reason I can see why they haven't got up the nerve to call them just to hear what they say to do.

The labor factor to tear down and then **rebuild** the engine is gonna be crazy high. The dealer knows this.

Far higher than it would cost to R&R the whole motor and doing that piece meal approach is in complete opposition to normal shop practices there. They don't want to be on the hook to warranty a rebuild job.

and it sounds like the smoke signals are telling them that it is NOT gonna be a warranty job in any case so the dealer may be doing you a sideways favor by NOT running up a tab you would have to pay and then all for naught.

Without revealing too much on an open forum...
did YOU do something dumb that has cooked your motor?

[max49]

1 Engine block is covered,
2 NO
3 There is absolutely no reason this failure will not be covered. But I guess they may try.
4 I've never had to replace an engine before either. This could happen to anyone.
5 Neither Burt or Star has told me I have to pay for the tear down, only other forum members.
6 Maybe he is planning a strategy to try to persuade them it needs a new engine without tearing it down. Although, getting it out looks more difficult than taking it apart after it's out.

[FreshAir]

Max, the WH shop I used to visit, no longer in business, had broken 8.1s lying on pallets all over the place. I asked how they replaced the engines as it got my attention seeing all those scrapped 8.1's as I had just purchassed a new MH on the WH chassis. This was in 2005. They would put the MH on a service lift where there was access to the front of the MH. They had a small shop fork lift with a jig made from a pallet for the 8.1 that fit on the forks and went under the engine. They would drive to the front with the forks under the engine, do their thing, lower the engine with the forks and back out. They said there wasn't much to it and after replacing a couple it was simple. As I recall I think they said they could do an RR in about a day or a little over. They just scrapped the engines as WH didn't want them sent back. I also think that back then there was something wrong that caused a heat problem that distroyed the engine. Can't really remember the exact cause.
Pat

[CoastieSCPO]

Max;

It broke my heart to see the photos of your rig with the tow truck. Mine has been towed three times and it is upsetting. In January 09, the Allison transmission on my W-20 failed in Florida, was towed and ultimately replaced by a Detroit Diesel Allison dealer in Ocala. It took three weeks to do the work and required a lot a patience, not only with the shop but with the warranty company.

With my deal, we knew that the tranny was broke, but now exactly just what was wrong with it and there was some labor involved in just knowing what was wrong prior to it's removal. The warranty company dispatched an investigator who witnessed the beginning of the removal of the tranny and approved the work. I would have been responsible if he denied the claim, but luckily it was covered. Now, I realize that the engine is a more complicated thing than the tranny, but the process should be similar.

My thoughts are with you and I know that you are under a lot of pressure, but like it was said previously, try to take it one step at a time, be as reasonable as you can and hopefully everything will work out for you.

Bob