|
|
'02 Ram 1500 4.7 is costing me $$$
|
|
|
| |
|
|
carjunkybob
New User
May 27, 2007, 7:35 PM
Post #1 of 4
(1266 views)
|
'02 Ram 1500 4.7 is costing me $$$
|
Sign In
|
|
this truck has been a bane for me and i am glad i found a forum that i can vent and hopefully get good advice from.
i'm not a motorhead so i usually take it to the dealer to get service. i've never found a really good domestic auto mechanic i could TRUST. Well, its only been about a month or so and already, the truck is in for another issue. I am probably paying an average of $1200 in auto repairs every 10 months or so. I got so fed up with the dealer I bought the vehicle from. I took it in for a check engine light and power steering noise. I got the power steering replaced just last September and here the repair guy was wanting to charge me for a new one, and the other one was still under its warranty. There was a hose that was made loose after I picked up the vehicle when it was "done". As I'm driving it home, pulling in the driveway, I hear this rattling noise, not unlike the portable electric power generators. I'm looking around to see if its the gardeners or what not and no one was around, then realized it was coming from my engine. Arrgh! I had just spend $700 getting it fixed and now this! Took it back and of course on my "test" drive with the mechanic, it never fails...NO NOISE, so I look like a paranoid freak.
So to make a long story short, he said, just bring it back WHEN I do hear it. So I'm pulling away and the mechanic says, "wait, I hear it". Anyhow, we prop open the engine and lo and behold, a tube, is loose and is hitting the fan. I get fed up and start making a lot of noise about their service and how my Japanese vehicles and service departments never gave me these issues. So the service manager is asking me how they can make things better. I proceed to tell them to not rip me off and "advise" a new part on a part that has already been replaced. Also, to not have such sloppy work when releasing the vehicle back to the owner...needless to say, I told that dealer that I will not bring it again to their shop.
So now, almost 2 months later, I start my truck one day and I hear this loud hissing noise, not unlike a revolving sprinkler, psst, psst, psst that is in sync with the idle. I'm thinking, "great, not again". So I just drive it like normal and when I hit traffic and am sitting, I notice the temp gauge starting to rise slowly. It then slides back to middle normal when I start moving on the freeway again. As I'm pulling into the warehouse shopping store, I'm looking for parking then I hear an alarm and my dash has "Check Guages", so at first I'm thinking my guages are going bad...I look and see my temp is nearing HOT. I find a parking spot and turn the engine off. Going home the same thing, guage gets hot when I slow down, cools off to normal when I'm going. I then hit bad traffic and am getting worried, so I blast the heater on full heat. Temp guage goes down, but not to "normal", but slightly hotter. Then I notice the hot air blowing is now a cool air, as if the heat dissapated.
So why the "cool air"? I take it to another dealer and they tell me that the hoses and cooling system parts look ok but it will cost me $1000.00 to "checK" to see if it may not be my head gaskets. I'm thinking, WTF, this is a 2002 with a little over only 100K miles on it. My 4 cylinder Honda which I would do 14K mile oil changes lasted well into 208K before I sold it, and I would redline that car ever chance I got!
I declined to do the check, as I don't have $1000 to again throw into this P.O.S. truck. He told me to just bring it in when I'm ready but I'm so fed up, I'm ready to get rid of it and get something else. A 5 year old V8 should not have to wear down like a 10 year old car from the 1980s!
So far, the short miles I drive the truck, the temp hasn't gone up, but I haven't driven on the freeway, and I drive it pedestrian and not use my AC.
What are my options? Should I get a second opinion? And if so, how do I do it without having to "pay $1000-before-we-can-diagnose-your-problem" fee?
Is it my head gaskets? Its not that old, I just can't believe it.
I've had a blown hose before and a thermostat that was replaced about two years ago, so would that be the same issue or cause?
Any ideas?
Please help!!!
Thanks!
bob
|
|
| |
|
|
Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
May 28, 2007, 4:55 AM
Post #2 of 4
(1260 views)
|
|
Re: '02 Ram 1500 4.7 is costing me $$$
|
Sign In
|
|
bob,
Seems like most of your problems are with the service folks you are dealing with.
Sloppy work makes more work and problems. Don't blame the vehicle itself for that. It will have more issues than your old Honda which would act up too with sloppy work.
$1,000 bucks to diagnose this is crazy! You didn't say that would fix it just diagnose it. Bull! That could be a charge for 20 hours of work or even just 10 at $100 bucks an hour which is a long time to diagnose problems.
The problem may not be the technicians but the protocal to get jobs in and out fast which is a bad management move as it ticks off customers in the long run if they have to come back and the savings or profits of being fast is lost.
I suggest to you and all that when you select a shop to introduce yourself as a person and customer. Find out in larger shops who will get the job and talk to them also and remember who they are. If you are pleased with the work let the shop and the person know it. Ask for the same person by name for future needs. Some of these places are so impersonal that as a technician you just feel like you are just puttin' in time at the dungeon, pick up a paycheck and do it all over again the next week. When that person is requested for a job, trust me it will get the extra attention as they have been noticed and that's a good feeling for both of you.
The respect works both ways. If you go in mad or demanding YOU will be treated differently. The $1,000 dollars needs to be addressed though as that's just too much,
T
|
|
| |
|
|
Guest
Anonymous Poster
May 28, 2007, 11:41 AM
Post #3 of 4
(1258 views)
|
|
Re: '02 Ram 1500 4.7 is costing me $$$
|
Sign In
|
|
The $1,000 dollars needs to be addressed though as that's just too much,
Tom, thanks for that tip. So far, my 2 closest Dodge dealers seem to charge me these high rates. The former, trying to sell me things I didn't need at the time.
I hate to think conspiracy and be paranoid and all, but why would they charge me such a high rate? Don't they really want the business or do they just think I'm stupid?
I take my other car, a Honda, to the Honda dealership and the car was taken cared of. They even paid for my rental with Enterprise, even though the fix was out of warranty. That makes me want to buy another Honda, just beccause of the good service.
I've taken this to TWO Dodge dealers and the latter one was even a recommendation from my friend.
And I even introduced myself to the guy as a recommendation from my friend, and yet, I get this high charge.
I'm thinking of going to an independent shop, but I don't know who to trust. How do I go about this?
Thanks,
Robert
|
|
| |
|
|
Tom Greenleaf
Ultimate Carjunky
/ Moderator
May 28, 2007, 12:38 PM
Post #4 of 4
(1257 views)
|
|
Re: '02 Ram 1500 4.7 is costing me $$$
|
Sign In
|
|
Some more food for thought Robert:
You like your Honda dealership and shop. Technicians don't come tatooed with a brand name of vehicle and most will take work at about any brand of vehicle so check with them. The only down side is that they would have a tougher time using OEM parts and some count and many don't. If OE parts are best for a certain job they can get them delivered at some loss of time for you.
Check that out. You may be pleasantly surprised,
T
|
|
| |
|
Auto Repair Home
SEARCH
WHO'S 
LOG 
mdma pills for sale : WhatsApp +33758633852
Drive Shaft Repair
2006 Toyoto Camry XLE Driver Side Electric Window Trouble
Grounding Cable, 2017 Jeep Renegade Trailhawk
equipment
