What's the name of the dealership?

 

Have you asked for a sit-down between you, the SM and the factory rep?

Seems the dealership's fear is that they are going to be denied warranty coverage and then they'll end up holding the bag. If you can convince the factory rep to declare that this is a repair covered by warranty, then that should satisfy the dealership SM. It is true that the dealership is compensated at a lower rate on warranty work as compared to walk-in work, but they are not going to lose money on this situation, unless their mechanics are actually being paid the $105/hr they charge for labor...NOT. The top mechanics in the service dept. at best are getting $35/hr and the new guys might be getting $18-24.

 

That's the problem - the Infiniti warranty system is really screwed up. I can't get a hold of anyone that I can talk to from Infiniti about the warranty. Infiniti just tells me that the dealership decides who is and isn't covered by warranty, and that even they don't have anyone to talk to about that. All the dealership can do is pay for all the work and send away for reimbursement, hoping that Infiniti agrees with them. When I asked consumer affairs why they didn't have anyone to answer to, consumer affairs said that they had to answer to the legal system, that if I did not agree with them as to the transmission not being covered, I would have to sue them.

But at this point it's not even about the warranty. I'm ready to walk away with my car and pay someone else $3500 to replace the transmission. It's the $1550 they're charging me without having made a single repair that makes me sick to my stomach. And I'm still waiting for the GM to call me.

The name of the dealership is Roswell Infiniti, located in Roswell, Georgia.

 

Hey JMar99. Very sorry to hear about what's going on. Sounds extremely stressful. It might be too late since they've already took everything apart, but may it have been possible to put the Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act into effect? I believe it states that they would have to "prove" that it was tampered with before denying you warranty work. I'm not a lawyer like you so I may be wrong...maybe you can take a look at it and see if you see any loopholes you can use in your situation.

Good luck. But most important, try to stay professional, avoid finger-pointing, and show facts. They sound crooked as hell!

 

I see your in Atlanta.There's newspapers their right with large circulations right.I'm sure one of them has a consumer advocate right.See where I'm going.Any retailer hates bad press,it's a business killer.These guys print your story and try to resolve your problem with the retailer for you,for free!They then print the results about the retailer positive or negative,and they can be nasty or nice.
I had nearly the same problem your having with an Intrepid I had a few years back.Wrote the consumer advocate of a large newspaper here.The day the story appeared in the paper the dealer called and said Chrysler had decided to give a new engine and was there anything else they could do...losers.And they gave me a loaner which Chrysler does not do for Intrepids ever.
Don't give an inch to these clowns,they well come crawling.

 

They have lawyers on retainer, so he basically said "do whatever you want, because I won't have to pay lawyer fees, so I'm not lowering the bill." And gave me a spiel about the awards the dealership has for customer service, and how they only have about one case like mine per year (though I'm guessing that's because most people decide they don't really have a choice and just pay the bill). I made all the threats in the world - lawsuit, newspaper, and I've already filed with consumer affairs; he doesn't care, says that my beef should be with the Aamco.

His explanation for the work done after they told me the warranty was void? He said that they took my word for it that the tranny hadn't been serviced anywhere else, so continued to assume that it was still under warranty. That they were trying to do what I wanted by continuing to diagnose the problem with the vehicle.

I'm going to have to give them the money on Friday. I've been without my car for a month, and even if I pay them, I'll be without it for another week while someone else replaces the transmission. And Atlanta is not a city you can live in without a car. I'll then have to try small claims court. If I sue for the entirety, there's a chance I will have to pay attorney's fees, which could be in the thousands. So rather than risk that and sue under the theory that we never agreed on a contract, my hope is that if I only sue for the work done in disassembling the transmission, after they'd told me that it wasn't under warranty and without my authorization, then I'll have more success and less risk.

EDIT: Upon further review, it appears that they could potentially collect attorney's fees on any claim I make. Basically, they say they relied on my statement that nobody had worked on the transmission when they disassembled it. They'll provide evidence that the transmission had been worked on. I can't provide evidence that it hadn't been worked on, because if I take it to a mechanic now, it'll obviously appear to have been worked on (since the dealership worked on it). So the Judge agrees with them, believes that the transmission was tampered with, and could very easily decide that I knew that it had been worked on and lied to them. Which means I lose and end up paying their attorney's fees.

Sorry to let you all down, especially myself, but I think I'm going to have to suck it up and just pay the money. It's all going to come down to he said/she said, and since they've gone and done the work, they have "evidence" that I cannot get. I think I have about a 50% chance to win, and if I do, I keep my money. But if I don't, I might end up paying way more than $1500. This sucks.

 

I don't see how you can lose if you never authorized the repairs.

They have to call and tell you what they are going to do and how much it's going to cost before they proceed. If you didn't agree to this then you should not be liable for the charges.

 

I'd still ask for the document stating you approved the work and I would send a letter to all the consumer advocates at the two major papers and also contact the advocates at all news stations regardless of the outcome. If there's one thing these advocates latch on to, it's shaddy auto shops. I'd also send a formal complaint to the BB because it will appear on the BB website and the BB will contact the dealership. I'd also send copies of the complaint letter to the dealership just so they know you aren't f-ing around. They might have gotten your money, but the end result for them could be ten of thousand in losy sales. Let them know that. Follow through with all the free stuff to let them know you're serious. When they see the documents pouring in, their tune will change. I also HIGHLY doubt they have a lawyer on retainer. That's a great scare tactic. Call thier bluff. I would.

 

I did file a complaint with the BBB. And I do think they have a lawyer on retainer - they sent me a certified letter in response to my letter; they're a collections law firm. And the dealership not only got my complaint letter, but will be getting the one from the BBB. These guys just don't care; at this point, anything I did would just be out of spite. For example, the credit card companies wanted the information of the business that won't take their cards in good faith, but the dealership didn't care.

Basically their argument is that by asking for a diagnosis, I authorized them to do what it took to diagnose the problem with the car. And that included taking apart the transmission. And they didn't have a dang clue as to what was wrong until they did that, as evidenced by their idiotic diagnosis that too much transmission fluid caused the problem. Yes, it's BS, but it's not like they don't have a leg to stand on.

I assure you, I've called their bluff all I possibly can without actually taking them to court. Which I may still do. Georgia is known for having the worst consumer protection laws (or total lack thereof) in the country, particularly for automobiles. Consumer complaints are kept secret. Lemon laws are non-existent. And the lawmakers are dealership owners.

 

"A collections law firm" thats all they've got??
Ok I'm laughing histarically.
Write the Newspapers for christ sake.Write Judge Judy.Give them a check and put a stop payment on it after you drive away.
Actually I'd probably smack the Service Manager in the mouth,get arrested for assault,get a fine and probation but thats me.It would be worth every dime!

 

DO NOT write a check & then place a stop payment on it. If you do they can file charges for "theft of services" or "theft by check" & therefore you would have less of a leg to stand on.

 

I forget American law is different from Canadian.Consumers are protected from this sort of thing here.I could get away with that here,and go to court,plead my story,and walk away making them pay for what they should have in the first place.Was only kidding before about the smack thing also.Don't recommend it at all .God Bless The Queen.And write the newspaper dude,don't give in if you believe your right!

 

Usually when you authorize services they tell you 'there is no charge or $50 charge for diagnosis'. Did anyone ever told you what initial charge will be?? If they did, then they dont have a case at all. Now if you never talked to them about the diagnosis fees... then sorry to say but you are screwed. I have never left my car at the dealer without signing work authorization/initail estimate... and telling them specifically not to perform any work without my authorization. Perhaps its just me.

 

if you were in new york i would say take it to kings infiniti their service dept is the best

 

some dealers are pretty cool though, I had went to a local nissan dealer for a tranny rebuild and they billed it under my fathers VIN, since we both had the same model maxima.