I got a new 2014 Subaru Legacy a few weeks ago. Going down open highway the other night I heard a loud POP! noise, and then some weird shifting. Turns out my moonroof burst or something. Looks like it bubbled up from the bottom up, and was spiderwebed and had a growing hole in it. It was also during a downpour.
dealership says it isn't warranty work since I can't prove a meteorite came from outer space and wacked it, causing it to shatter from the inside out. :( :( :( :( :( :( :( :( Wants me to put in an insurance claim, which will still have a large deductible.
That dealership seems like it sucks. Is there another one even kind of nearby?
There are a few different Subaru dealerships around metro Boston.
Yeah, sounds like that stealership are been assholes. The moonroof must have been installed crooked or something and the temp change cracked it.
HOw the hell isn't that a warranty claim?
That is my question. I e-mailed the managers there last night and haven't heard back. I'm gonna call my lawyer now.
With the Subaru warranty, you're guaranteed service at any dealership, right? I'd head over to one of the other ones and see if they don't have a different opinion. I don't know which one you went to, but I spoke to some of them when I was trying to buy a used car. I recall at least 2 or 3 located in the vicinity of the Rte 128 corridor.
Concur with the mob. Dealer is full of shit, try another.
1-800-SUBARU3
Time to go up the corporate tree.
Stick it to the man Wags!
And by man i mean El jefe Anger!
I know how to satisfy
A customer.
Good luck with that Wags. The dealership should have stood behind the warranty and fixed it, bill the manufacturer for it, rather than screw over a customer. Bad word of mouth, poor customer relations.
Yeah, were I in your shoes I'd contact the dealership - ideally a manager you can contact directly - and politely make clear the following:
1 - you are quite dissatisfied with the level of service and justifications you have gotten from them
2 - you're pursuing this with Subaru corporate, because you know that the disappointing response you've gotten from this particular dealership does not - at least so you hope - reflect on Subaru as a company
3 - you are sharing the terrible customer service and apparent uselessness of the Subaru warranty (or at least this dealership) with everyone you know, which may include the better business bureau and various relevant message boards
4 - you might want to post on Subaru of America's facebook page with your story and specifically call out the dealership (if you're on Facebook, that is). They'll probably take it down, but whoever takes it down ought to forward your complaint to someone to get in touch with you
At the same time, I'd probably also contact a few of the other dealers to see if they can help you.
Good luck!
As a countervailing experience, I had a problem with the sunroof on my 2 year old Forester (it leaked), and the dealer here fixed it up without fuss.
Then again, I guess they are counting on me doing servicing with them, buying accessories from them, and possibly buying my next car from them, so I suppose it is worth it to them.
Quote from: Jacob on January 17, 2014, 03:59:58 PM
Yeah, were I in your shoes I'd contact the dealership - ideally a manager you can contact directly - and politely make clear the following:
1 - you are quite dissatisfied with the level of service and justifications you have gotten from them
2 - you're pursuing this with Subaru corporate, because you know that the disappointing response you've gotten from this particular dealership does not - at least so you hope - reflect on Subaru as a company
3 - you are sharing the terrible customer service and apparent uselessness of the Subaru warranty (or at least this dealership) with everyone you know, which may include the better business bureau and various relevant message boards
4 - you might want to post on Subaru of America's facebook page with your story and specifically call out the dealership (if you're on Facebook, that is). They'll probably take it down, but whoever takes it down ought to forward your complaint to someone to get in touch with you
At the same time, I'd probably also contact a few of the other dealers to see if they can help you.
Good luck!
I would take each of those steps individually, rather than go full-bore right off the bat. You want to escalate pressure, but not to the point where they just dig in their heels out of spite.
Surely the warranty is a liability of the parent company and not the dealership. Which means the dealership denied the claim not because they are greedy peckerwoods, but because they think the parent company won't pay out for any work they do.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 04:41:28 PM
Surely the warranty is a liability of the parent company and not the dealership. Which means the dealership denied the claim not because they are greedy peckerwoods, but because they think the parent company won't pay out for any work they do.
:yes: That's what I thought.
I just spoke to a manager there, said that I was concerned about glass spontaneously shattering on a car I've only driven a few weeks, and my unhappiness with a large payout already. He said I should be concerned, as the glass was broken in a strange manner and they had no idea why that would have happened. Said I should call Subaru corporate to complain and that they'd send it up the the corporate ladder on their end.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 04:41:28 PM
Surely the warranty is a liability of the parent company and not the dealership. Which means the dealership denied the claim not because they are greedy peckerwoods, but because they think the parent company won't pay out for any work they do.
Not necessarily. I thought that while corporate covers warranty repair, they are less than generous in their rates, so dealerships have an incentive to decline warranty repairs if possible.
Quote from: Barrister on January 17, 2014, 04:58:37 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 04:41:28 PM
Surely the warranty is a liability of the parent company and not the dealership. Which means the dealership denied the claim not because they are greedy peckerwoods, but because they think the parent company won't pay out for any work they do.
Not necessarily. I thought that while corporate covers warranty repair, they are less than generous in their rates, so dealerships have an incentive to decline warranty repairs if possible.
Probably has a set list of what they will pay for certain repairs, and odd stuff that doesn't fit a particular known category has a low set reimbursement compared with the time it would take to fix the thing. Thus, the dealer could be considerably out of pocket if, say, it takes 5 hours to repair and the manufacturer only pays for 2. Hence the incentive to pass it on to the manufacturer and have them deal with it if it is an oddball issue - which seems to be what they are doing ...
Replacing a cracked moon roof shouldn't be a crazy labor intensive job. Mostly it will be a question of paying for the replacement part.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:11:17 PM
Replacing a cracked moon roof shouldn't be a crazy labor intensive job. Mostly it will be a question of paying for the replacement part.
The problem is that it isn't obvious why it was damaged. That may indicate a more expensive problem lurks.
Quote from: Malthus on January 17, 2014, 05:28:36 PM
The problem is that it isn't obvious why it was damaged. That may indicate a more expensive problem lurks.
Nothing says credibility quite like an econ major and a JD debating automotive engineering. ^_^
If only DG had weighed in with his expert knowledge of cars.
katmai weighed in. :(
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:31:39 PM
Quote from: Malthus on January 17, 2014, 05:28:36 PM
The problem is that it isn't obvious why it was damaged. That may indicate a more expensive problem lurks.
Nothing says credibility quite like an econ major and a JD debating automotive engineering. ^_^
Hey, I know nothing whatsoever about auto engineering - but I do know something about people making claims for reimbursement on warranties. :lol:
Edit: don't let BB catch you calling us JDs. :D
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:31:39 PM
Quote from: Malthus on January 17, 2014, 05:28:36 PM
The problem is that it isn't obvious why it was damaged. That may indicate a more expensive problem lurks.
Nothing says credibility quite like an econ major and a JD debating automotive engineering. ^_^
:ultra:
I don't get it. I thought Malthus and CC had JDs and Beeb went the olde schule apprenticeship route.
No?
Quote from: Malthus on January 17, 2014, 05:28:36 PM
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:11:17 PM
Replacing a cracked moon roof shouldn't be a crazy labor intensive job. Mostly it will be a question of paying for the replacement part.
The problem is that it isn't obvious why it was damaged. That may indicate a more expensive problem lurks.
Spontaneous cracking like that could be anything from a bad sheet of glass (replace the glass) to a deformity in the roof frame (replace the car).
@Yip, no idea, just know don't get Beeb started on JD's :bleeding:
Should be in PDH's drinking sig.
Quote from: katmai on January 17, 2014, 06:02:51 PM
@Yip, no idea, just know don't get Beeb started on JD's :bleeding:
Should be in PDH's drinking sig.
Goddammit.
Beeb bitches about his goddamn degree or whatever the fuck it's called - 1 drink
Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on January 17, 2014, 04:52:34 PM
I just spoke to a manager there, said that I was concerned about glass spontaneously shattering on a car I've only driven a few weeks, and my unhappiness with a large payout already. He said I should be concerned, as the glass was broken in a strange manner and they had no idea why that would have happened. Said I should call Subaru corporate to complain and that they'd send it up the the corporate ladder on their end.
That sounds more promising :cheers:
Quote from: The Brain on January 17, 2014, 05:33:18 PM
katmai weighed in. :(
That's how windshields get cracked.
Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on January 17, 2014, 04:52:34 PM
I just spoke to a manager there, said that I was concerned about glass spontaneously shattering on a car I've only driven a few weeks, and my unhappiness with a large payout already. He said I should be concerned, as the glass was broken in a strange manner and they had no idea why that would have happened. Said I should call Subaru corporate to complain and that they'd send it up the the corporate ladder on their end.
[Appeal to Self]As an attorney who regularly sues over warranty claims, that manager is a fuckstick liar dickbag shitface.[/Appeal to Self]
See what happens when you listen to what Malthus has to say about cars?
Even in benighted shitholes like Mississippi, it is the duty of the warrantor to disprove the validity of your in-warranty-period claim. That manager is a lying sack of shit. Subaru needed to replace that thing gratis.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:56:25 PM
I don't get it. I thought Malthus and CC had JDs and Beeb went the olde schule apprenticeship route.
No?
:cool:
For as long as there have been law schools in Canada, people were awarded the LL.B. degree. The same was true in the US, by the way, until the 50s-60s or so.
Back when CC, Malthus, and I went to law school (I'm actually younger than them by a couple of years), every school handed out the LL.B.
But early 2000s, those traitors at the U of T decided that sticking true to Commonwealth/Canadian traditions wasn't good enough - they had to have JD instead. Their program was completely unchanged - all that changed was the nomenclature. And then, slowly but surely, every Canadian law school has followed suit. :weep:
Well, apparently McGill still awards LL.Bs - those brave, noble bastards. Good luck to them.
Yale was the last to do away with the LL.B. in the 70s, and when they did like many other schools they would issue a J.D. if you brought in your extant LL.B. to exchange it.
Quote from: Jacob on January 17, 2014, 06:10:29 PM
Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on January 17, 2014, 04:52:34 PM
I just spoke to a manager there, said that I was concerned about glass spontaneously shattering on a car I've only driven a few weeks, and my unhappiness with a large payout already. He said I should be concerned, as the glass was broken in a strange manner and they had no idea why that would have happened. Said I should call Subaru corporate to complain and that they'd send it up the the corporate ladder on their end.
That sounds more promising :cheers:
No, he was just passing the buck. They hadn't contacted me at all in response to my e-mail, and I can't believe that four people were either out or without access to mail yesterday or Thursday evening.
Quote from: OttoVonBismarck on January 18, 2014, 02:45:12 AM
Yale was the last to do away with the LL.B. in the 70s, and when they did like many other schools they would issue a J.D. if you brought in your extant LL.B. to exchange it.
My
alma mater did the same.
But they can have my LL.B. when they pry it from my cold, dead hands... :mad:
*takes a drink*
ll cool b
Quote from: Barrister on January 18, 2014, 01:27:45 PM
But they can have my LL.B. when they pry it from my cold, dead hands... :mad:
Only a doctor can attempt that.
Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on January 18, 2014, 01:25:53 PMNo, he was just passing the buck. They hadn't contacted me at all in response to my e-mail, and I can't believe that four people were either out or without access to mail yesterday or Thursday evening.
Oh. That's disappointing :(
I'd make sure to include his exact name and details of the buck passing, both when you move up the chain and when you document it publicly on Facebook and assorted message boards.
When he says he has no idea, I guess the thing that springs to my mind is that there's a previously unknown manufacturer's defect which could cause them reputational damage; so I'd be quite concerned were I the manager.
Subaru America is paying for it.
Quote from: Admiral Yi on January 17, 2014, 05:56:25 PM
I don't get it. I thought Malthus and CC had JDs and Beeb went the olde schule apprenticeship route.
No?
Naw, I still have my LL.B.
The law school has some sort of program where you can exchange it for a JD, but I never bothered - I'm not sure why anyone would care.
Other than false-pedantically insisting on being called "doctor", that is. :D
All lawyers in Ontario at least and I assume elsewhere in Canada have to go through apprenticeship ("Articling") in order to pass the bar. That has nothing to do with the name of the degree, though. JDs still have to do it.
Quote from: Darth Wagtaros on January 20, 2014, 05:06:49 PM
Subaru America is paying for it.
Did they tell you what the problem was?
No.