Warranty company requires a $2700 tear down? what should I do? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

peterjlee · 10-31-2011, 03:20 PM

Hi, I have a 2007 I4 Camry.
My dad bought it about an year ago from a Toyota dealer in NC and it was a Toyota Certified Used Vehicle.
Now the car is mine and I'm in California.
Well the car had the check engine light on many times and the oil level was decreasing very fast.
I took it to my local dealer in California few times and they just filled more oil up to do an oil consumption test.
The check engine light came on again and I took it to the dealer and they said the engine is no good and it needs to be replaced.
Apparently the TCUV warranty company in South East and West coast are different so the dealer called the warranty company (Fidelity) and they sent an inspector to see the engine.
The inspector is now requiring an engine tear down to prove what exactly is wrong with the engine.
The dealer is charges $2700 for engine tear down which may be covered by the warranty company if they admit somethings wrong with the engine..
Otherwise I'll have to pay for the tear down cost plus a new engine to get replaced...

So what should I do?
Fidelity doesn't seem to have good reviews from customers...
Also, how much does it cost to just buy a used engine and replace it at the dealer?

------additional information
My car ran just over 60,000miles so it's still under extended warranty.
The engine is burning oil.
Few month ago check engine light came on and spark plugs were found covered in burnt oil and those were replaced.
Then the check engine light came on again few weeks later and the spark plugs were found burnt again and oil level was low.
The repair show guys cleaned the spark plugs, filled up more oil and check engine light was off, then I took it to the dealer right away.
The dealer wanted me to do a oil consumption test. They adjusted the oil level and told me to come back 500miles later.
Well not even 100miles later the check engine light came on and the dealer found the spark plugs burnt again...
It's only been about 1,000miles since the spark plugs were replaced...
and not even 2,000miles since the last oil change..
I guess burnt spark plugs isn't enough reason for the warranty company...

Mike Gerber · 10-31-2011, 05:44 PM

How many miles are on the car now. If it is actually a Toyota Certified Used Car, the powertrain, including the engine, should be covered by Toyota up to 100,000 miles. See the attached link:

http://www.toyotacertified.com/warranty.html

Mike

Pujols85 · 10-31-2011, 05:46 PM

Sorry to be so blunt but what other choice do you have.. If they tear it down and something is wrong then your covered by the warrenty. Obviously something is wrong or they wouldn't be willing to tear apart the engine to find out. That's not something they do just to say they did it.

peterjlee · 10-31-2011, 05:55 PM

Clearly something is wrong with the engine but the cause of it is unclear.
I just want to avoid the warranty company being an ass and saying they're not going to cover the engine because they couldn't find the cause...

Pujols85 · 10-31-2011, 06:06 PM

I don't think toyota will leave a vehicle in that condition simply because they don't know why it's not working properly. They are only taking one last step before having to place a new engine in a 4 year old car. But that's what warrenty is for. I'm sure it would all be worked out. If your within your warrenty like you say your good.

Big Wheezy · 10-31-2011, 08:20 PM

Was the dealer more specific than "no good"? If not, find a new dealer, if so give us more detail. It's not rocket science to diagnose oil loss if it's significant, a compression and leak down test should pretty quickly isolate where all that oil is going if it's not going all over the floor.

peterjlee · 10-31-2011, 08:26 PM

The oil is going into the chamber...
The check engine light was on even when it had enough oil and they found the spark plugs covered in burnt oil.
The spark plugs were changed less than 1,000miles ago and this is the second time the spark plugs were found burnt..
I guess burnt spark plugs weren't enough proof for the warranty company inspector..
The car ran 60,000miles so it's still under extended warranty and there were no oil leak on the floor..

Big Wheezy · 10-31-2011, 08:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterjlee

The oil is going into the chamber...
The check engine light was on even when it had enough oil and they found the spark plugs covered in burnt oil.
The spark plugs were changed less than 1,000miles ago and this is the second time the spark plugs were found burnt..
I guess burnt spark plugs weren't enough proof for the warranty company inspector..
The car ran 60,000miles so it's still under extended warranty and there were no oil leak on the floor..

I'd start putting both Toyota and the warranty co on blast over the whole thing. Has the dealer done a compression and/or leak down test? The results from those tests are generally pretty definitive and if you're getting enough oil to foul plugs you should be outside of the specifications for your engine, which calls for a repair/replacement PERIOD. Also Toyota should be covering your car to 60k anyways, if you're just over 60k raise a stink and then contact Toyotas regional rep and tell them they need to work this out with the warranty company and make it right. Toyota has spent so much money on customer good will I can't imagine they'll jerk you around unless they think you did something to the car to cause it.

peterjlee · 10-31-2011, 08:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Wheezy

I'd start putting both Toyota and the warranty co on blast over the whole thing. Has the dealer done a compression and/or leak down test? The results from those tests are generally pretty definitive and if you're getting enough oil to foul plugs you should be outside of the specifications for your engine, which calls for a repair/replacement PERIOD. Also Toyota should be covering your car to 60k anyways, if you're just over 60k raise a stink and then contact Toyotas regional rep and tell them they need to work this out with the warranty company and make it right. Toyota has spent so much money on customer good will I can't imagine they'll jerk you around unless they think you did something to the car to cause it.

Sadly it's just over 60k....
Do you mean the regional rep of where I live or where my dad bought the car from?
And what should I tell them?
I guess the situation could've been more simpler if my car was covered by a warranty company toyota contract in the west coast because my car is covered by the southern east coast company and i'm in a west coast dealer...

Big Wheezy · 11-01-2011, 05:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterjlee

Sadly it's just over 60k....
Do you mean the regional rep of where I live or where my dad bought the car from?
And what should I tell them?
I guess the situation could've been more simpler if my car was covered by a warranty company toyota contract in the west coast because my car is covered by the southern east coast company and i'm in a west coast dealer...

Tell your local regional reps that you bought a used Toyota at a Toyota dealer with an extended warranty, you're barely past the original warranty, and you aren't getting the kind of resolution you expected and are instead being told you have to pay 2700 dollars to diagnose something when the dealer has already told you that you need a new motor. You should do your utmost to make Toyota fight it out with this shady warranty company.

peterjlee · 11-02-2011, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Wheezy

Tell your local regional reps that you bought a used Toyota at a Toyota dealer with an extended warranty, you're barely past the original warranty, and you aren't getting the kind of resolution you expected and are instead being told you have to pay 2700 dollars to diagnose something when the dealer has already told you that you need a new motor. You should do your utmost to make Toyota fight it out with this shady warranty company.

So I called the regional Toyota and they just told me to call the national number.
When I called the national toyota they documented whatever I told them and gave me a case number but told me they can't do anything about it since the warranty is not through them... even though my car is a Toyota Certified Used Vehicle bought at a Toyota dealer...
They call it 'Toyota Certified' and have a warranty through another company and don't care about it? what part is it 'Toyota Certified' then...

Since there was no hope getting help from Toyota I just talked to the dealer.
The service manager at the dealer said the did some compression test and the cylinder pressure(?) should be 185 through out..(not sure about units..)
But cylinder 1 and 2 were at 160 and 175 which is a clear indication there's a problem.
The exact cause of the problem is unclear but the technician said by his experience there's probably a problem with the cylinder ring or the head or something...
But the warranty company inspector didn't believe them and required a tear down so they could see where the cause is...
So I just authorized the tear down since I don't really have any other choice...
The dealer said the $2700 tear down cost includes the cost of putting the engine back together in case the warranty company decides they're not going to cover it...

Thanks for the advice guys..
I think Toyota shouldn't sell Toyota Certified Used Vehicles unless they're actually going to certify it... May be it's just South East Toyota distributor doing it weird since the national Toyota customer center said they couldn't find any extended warranty information on their system as if it should show up if it's a toyota certified used...
Do you guys know if Toyota in West coast use any 3rd party warranty company for certified used vehicles?

DOHCammer · 11-02-2011, 06:44 PM

You say the car is just over 60k. How far over? Were you having this oil consumption problem and subsequent plug fouling before the 60k limit? If so then you have a documented known problem with this engine and if the dealer is reputable they should be going under the powertrain warrranty to help you cover this. There is a TSB out for excessive oil consumption for your engine and specific instructions on how to cure it. Even if you didn't go to the same dealer, any dealer can look up the vehicle history in Toyota's National History database. If they do rip your engine down they will find completely clogged oil rings and you will need at least new pistons and rings. If there is any cylinder scoring then you will need a new short block. Either way the extended warranty should cover it.

sam333 · 11-03-2011, 11:22 AM

Just sickening, Toyota claims they are cleaning up their act, not from what I see. You have to play hardball with these creeps.

1956kiteboarder · 11-04-2011, 10:26 AM

there is a technical service bullitin on oil consumption , it is a known problem....and expensive....keep on toyota, the warranter....california law superseeds your east coast insurers catch 22 of paying first.

Be polite, do not yell, but be very firm and bug the crap out of everybody..

I would evan contact michal finney kgo tv consummer reporter.

Also call marin toyota service manager and get her opinion.

peterjlee · 11-08-2011, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1956kiteboarder

there is a technical service bullitin on oil consumption , it is a known problem....and expensive....keep on toyota, the warranter....california law superseeds your east coast insurers catch 22 of paying first.

Be polite, do not yell, but be very firm and bug the crap out of everybody..

I would evan contact michal finney kgo tv consummer reporter.

Also call marin toyota service manager and get her opinion.

Can you tell me where the technical service bulletin is on the oil consumption?
Also can you give me more information on what the california law is and how it superseeds the east coast insurers?