Warranty Hypochondriacs
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2001
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From: Austin, TX
Warranty Hypochondriacs
An article from today's WSJ.... right on target.
The Best Car Deal Around:
Never Paying for Repairs
By JANE SPENCER
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Rachel Corey, a 42-year-old Manhattan free-lance writer, has named her BMW 'Esmeralda' -- and Esmeralda is spared no indulgence.
When the car was under warranty, Ms. Corey asked the dealer to replace an interior panel for an eraser-size scratch, she demanded a new soft-top because of a six-inch smudge, and she had them fix a "minor whistling" sound that occurred only at speeds above 50 with the windows down. She had her drink holder replaced twice, even though the only liquid she allows in the car is a solution for wiping off bird droppings.
"Okay, so I'm anal," says Ms. Corey, who swerves to avoid grass clippings.
Mechanics have another term for customers like Ms. Cory: warranty hypochondriacs. And they are seeing more of them these days.
On top of incentives like 0% financing, car makers are finding another way to sweeten the deals: longer and more comprehensive warranties. Hyundai launched the trend with a 10-year warranty, and rivals are now racing to follow suit. In July, DaimlerChrysler introduced seven-year, 70,000-mile powertrain warranties, four years longer than before. And Ford just lengthened the warranty for its new Ford Focus from three years to five years.
In the luxury market, car makers are competing to add extra services. Volkswagen's Audi and DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes now cover all scheduled maintenance costs, from replacement wiper blades to 24-hour roadside assistance, and Toyota Motor's Lexus guarantees free loaner cars. With October car sales tumbling to their slowest pace in four years, some experts expect warranties to get even more generous.
The lengthy contracts are designed to distinguish brands in a crowded market. But they are also prompting many customers to screech into the repair lot for every squeak, rattle and scratch. The complaints range from "oversensitive seat belt locks" to intermittent thumping noises that occur only when the customer drives over railroad tracks at high speeds.
"Sometimes we have to fix the customer, not the car," says Steve Gorogias, service manager at Chevy Chase Buick/Hyundai in Maryland.
Richard Simonds brought his Mercedes to a dealer twice because of a "squeak" under the driver's seat that no one else in his family could hear. He eventually had the dealer install new seat tracks which involved disconnecting the car's wiring. Mr. Simonds has also brought the car in five times because of a "rough shift" between first and second gear that occurs only at speeds between 18 and 24 miles per hour. "Instead of going mmmmm, it goes rrrrrr," he says. His mechanic can't hear it -- but that doesn't satisfy Mr. Simonds. "If they can't fix it, I want them to replace the transmission," he says.
The emerging hypochondria is particularly acute among luxury-car drivers, where entitlement and paranoia converge. At British Motor Cars in San Francisco, some customers don't even bother to come up with a specific problem. "They say 'I'm going out of town. Why don't you drive it for a while and fix whatever's wrong,'" says service adviser Jennifer Smith. She stopped listing her home phone number after too many customers tracked her down (one even interrupted her pec workout at the gym) to discuss their cars.
For years, standard warranties hovered around three years or 36,000 miles, whichever came first, and covered only manufacturing defects. But the warranty arms race has increased customer expectations and led to more gray areas for dealers. One example of a murky claim: an obese customer who complained his seat wore out prematurely. (The dealer eventually covered it.)
The Domino Effect
Such demands trigger a domino chain of negotiations. Customers appeal to the dealers, who in turn appeal to the manufacturer to be reimbursed for parts and labor. It is important to get the dealer on your side since they may be more generous than manufacturers. They don't want to lose loyal customers over a warranty tiff. Indeed, dealers will occasionally absorb the cost of the repair after a rejection. A small percentage of dealer warranty work is "good will" coverage, which isn't reimbursed by the manufacturer.
But pestering a dealer too much can backfire. David Himes of Shoreline, Wash., demanded that a dealer repaint his $25,000 BMW Z3, which he has named Maximillian, because highway sand left tiny pock marks in his paint job after several years of driving. The dealer called it "normal wear." After several heated discussions with the general manager, Mr. Himes was formally banned from the dealership. Now, when he calls for service, the scheduler tells him he is "flagged in the computer" and can't have an appointment. "I guess I should have been more diplomatic," says Mr. Himes.
Overall, the cost of providing warranties is actually declining for many car makers because of improvements in vehicle quality. For General Motors and Ford Motor, the average warranty cost per vehicle is roughly $1,000, down from $1,600 in the early 1990s, according to estimates by J&L Warranty Pros. But plush amenities like roadside assistance and free maintenance are undercutting those savings for car makers. Extending warranty length also raises the costs: Analysts estimate DaimlerChrysler will spend an additional $400 for each vehicle on its new seven-year warranty.
Warranty costs are also rising fast in one area: those sophisticated computer systems that clutter dashboards with blinking lights and warning signals. Current Volvo S60 modules are fitted with 26 censors that prompt six levels of warning messages, ranging from the mildly unsettling "FIX NEXT SERVICE" to the more hysterical "STOP SAFELY ASAP."
Not only are these systems prone to bugs, but the constant monitoring can add up to information overload for paranoid drivers. On many vehicles something as minor as a loose gas gap can set off the "check engine" light. Ms. Corey rushed Esmeralda back to the dealer nearly a dozen times over an overactive air-bag light.
There are limits of course to even the most generous warranties. Hyundai's warranty isn't transferable to a second buyer unless they are immediate family. Chrysler's new seven-year warranties include a $100 deductible on any repair after the first three years. And having repairs done anywhere but the dealer can void some warranties.
A Sympathetic Ear
Some dealers have other strategies for dealing with difficult customers. "We take them in a private office, and start some small talk," says Gene Beauchemin of New Country Motor Cars in Hartford, Conn. "You ask about their kids. You're empathetic to their concern about the car, whether it's valid or not." He says some problems vanish after such conversations.
Alan Entin, a clinical psychologist in Richmond, Va., says people who make heavy warranty demands may be seeking parental attention from their mechanics. "It's 'Take care of me. You're bigger, you're stronger, you can make all thing right in the world if you fix my car,' " he says. "The warranty represents approval or fixing from their daddy."
And no matter how accommodating the dealer, some problems can never be fixed. "Some customers need an exorcist, not a technician," says Mr. Gorogias, the Buick Hyundai dealer.
The Best Car Deal Around:
Never Paying for Repairs
By JANE SPENCER
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Rachel Corey, a 42-year-old Manhattan free-lance writer, has named her BMW 'Esmeralda' -- and Esmeralda is spared no indulgence.
When the car was under warranty, Ms. Corey asked the dealer to replace an interior panel for an eraser-size scratch, she demanded a new soft-top because of a six-inch smudge, and she had them fix a "minor whistling" sound that occurred only at speeds above 50 with the windows down. She had her drink holder replaced twice, even though the only liquid she allows in the car is a solution for wiping off bird droppings.
"Okay, so I'm anal," says Ms. Corey, who swerves to avoid grass clippings.
Mechanics have another term for customers like Ms. Cory: warranty hypochondriacs. And they are seeing more of them these days.
On top of incentives like 0% financing, car makers are finding another way to sweeten the deals: longer and more comprehensive warranties. Hyundai launched the trend with a 10-year warranty, and rivals are now racing to follow suit. In July, DaimlerChrysler introduced seven-year, 70,000-mile powertrain warranties, four years longer than before. And Ford just lengthened the warranty for its new Ford Focus from three years to five years.
In the luxury market, car makers are competing to add extra services. Volkswagen's Audi and DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes now cover all scheduled maintenance costs, from replacement wiper blades to 24-hour roadside assistance, and Toyota Motor's Lexus guarantees free loaner cars. With October car sales tumbling to their slowest pace in four years, some experts expect warranties to get even more generous.
The lengthy contracts are designed to distinguish brands in a crowded market. But they are also prompting many customers to screech into the repair lot for every squeak, rattle and scratch. The complaints range from "oversensitive seat belt locks" to intermittent thumping noises that occur only when the customer drives over railroad tracks at high speeds.
"Sometimes we have to fix the customer, not the car," says Steve Gorogias, service manager at Chevy Chase Buick/Hyundai in Maryland.
Richard Simonds brought his Mercedes to a dealer twice because of a "squeak" under the driver's seat that no one else in his family could hear. He eventually had the dealer install new seat tracks which involved disconnecting the car's wiring. Mr. Simonds has also brought the car in five times because of a "rough shift" between first and second gear that occurs only at speeds between 18 and 24 miles per hour. "Instead of going mmmmm, it goes rrrrrr," he says. His mechanic can't hear it -- but that doesn't satisfy Mr. Simonds. "If they can't fix it, I want them to replace the transmission," he says.
The emerging hypochondria is particularly acute among luxury-car drivers, where entitlement and paranoia converge. At British Motor Cars in San Francisco, some customers don't even bother to come up with a specific problem. "They say 'I'm going out of town. Why don't you drive it for a while and fix whatever's wrong,'" says service adviser Jennifer Smith. She stopped listing her home phone number after too many customers tracked her down (one even interrupted her pec workout at the gym) to discuss their cars.
For years, standard warranties hovered around three years or 36,000 miles, whichever came first, and covered only manufacturing defects. But the warranty arms race has increased customer expectations and led to more gray areas for dealers. One example of a murky claim: an obese customer who complained his seat wore out prematurely. (The dealer eventually covered it.)
The Domino Effect
Such demands trigger a domino chain of negotiations. Customers appeal to the dealers, who in turn appeal to the manufacturer to be reimbursed for parts and labor. It is important to get the dealer on your side since they may be more generous than manufacturers. They don't want to lose loyal customers over a warranty tiff. Indeed, dealers will occasionally absorb the cost of the repair after a rejection. A small percentage of dealer warranty work is "good will" coverage, which isn't reimbursed by the manufacturer.
But pestering a dealer too much can backfire. David Himes of Shoreline, Wash., demanded that a dealer repaint his $25,000 BMW Z3, which he has named Maximillian, because highway sand left tiny pock marks in his paint job after several years of driving. The dealer called it "normal wear." After several heated discussions with the general manager, Mr. Himes was formally banned from the dealership. Now, when he calls for service, the scheduler tells him he is "flagged in the computer" and can't have an appointment. "I guess I should have been more diplomatic," says Mr. Himes.
Overall, the cost of providing warranties is actually declining for many car makers because of improvements in vehicle quality. For General Motors and Ford Motor, the average warranty cost per vehicle is roughly $1,000, down from $1,600 in the early 1990s, according to estimates by J&L Warranty Pros. But plush amenities like roadside assistance and free maintenance are undercutting those savings for car makers. Extending warranty length also raises the costs: Analysts estimate DaimlerChrysler will spend an additional $400 for each vehicle on its new seven-year warranty.
Warranty costs are also rising fast in one area: those sophisticated computer systems that clutter dashboards with blinking lights and warning signals. Current Volvo S60 modules are fitted with 26 censors that prompt six levels of warning messages, ranging from the mildly unsettling "FIX NEXT SERVICE" to the more hysterical "STOP SAFELY ASAP."
Not only are these systems prone to bugs, but the constant monitoring can add up to information overload for paranoid drivers. On many vehicles something as minor as a loose gas gap can set off the "check engine" light. Ms. Corey rushed Esmeralda back to the dealer nearly a dozen times over an overactive air-bag light.
There are limits of course to even the most generous warranties. Hyundai's warranty isn't transferable to a second buyer unless they are immediate family. Chrysler's new seven-year warranties include a $100 deductible on any repair after the first three years. And having repairs done anywhere but the dealer can void some warranties.
A Sympathetic Ear
Some dealers have other strategies for dealing with difficult customers. "We take them in a private office, and start some small talk," says Gene Beauchemin of New Country Motor Cars in Hartford, Conn. "You ask about their kids. You're empathetic to their concern about the car, whether it's valid or not." He says some problems vanish after such conversations.
Alan Entin, a clinical psychologist in Richmond, Va., says people who make heavy warranty demands may be seeking parental attention from their mechanics. "It's 'Take care of me. You're bigger, you're stronger, you can make all thing right in the world if you fix my car,' " he says. "The warranty represents approval or fixing from their daddy."
And no matter how accommodating the dealer, some problems can never be fixed. "Some customers need an exorcist, not a technician," says Mr. Gorogias, the Buick Hyundai dealer.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 2,224
Likes: 0
From: Lafayette, CO USA
Originally posted by I am RobG
oh man i would NOT have patience for those people if i was a service rep. if someone called me at my house and said i have car problems i would rip them apart. Just my info
oh man i would NOT have patience for those people if i was a service rep. if someone called me at my house and said i have car problems i would rip them apart. Just my info
Racer
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 475
Likes: 0
From: Northern VA
My take on this article is that no matter what you offer people there are always going to be people who try to take advantage of it. But it doesn't separate the "maintenace covered warranty" from warranties that attempt to offer peace of mind on the product. I think of Hyundai's 10-year warranty as offering piece of mind that should the car fall apart outside of what other manufacturer's define as a bumper-to-bumper warranty, that your car will be put back together again. I think the Chrylser warranty is the same thing. People equate Chrysler with lesser quality and the warranty is an attempt to kep people coming back.
I wonder how many of these warranty claims are justified?
Also, I never really knew you could tell the dealer what to replace. Boy the number of repeated visits to the dealer (to have the same thing fixed) I could have eliminated!!!
I wonder how many of these warranty claims are justified?
Also, I never really knew you could tell the dealer what to replace. Boy the number of repeated visits to the dealer (to have the same thing fixed) I could have eliminated!!!
Pro
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 701
Likes: 2
From: Maywood, NJ
Talk about true!!! It is becoming an epidemic!. Someone buys a new CL and just loves it. He finds a board to read about it and presto- his sunroof is noisy, his brakes vibrate, his seats are noisy, his rear deck vibrates, and his trans doesn't feel right. I can't tell you how many times we get customers coming is with shopping lists of things they think are wrong just because they may have read about it someplace. People seem to forget there is normal wear and tear- things on cars get old just like people do- just at a shorter pace. Believe me- it takes incrediable patience to deal with what goes on now. Too bad people can't be more understanding. There are more important things in life than the slight noise in your seat at 40 mph on a right turn when the temp is 64 and its cloudy!
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337
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 3,141
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From: Iowa City/Des Moines
warranty hypochondriacs are seen every where not just cars. When sold shoes for a few years, there were some huge asses that expected their year old pair of sandals to be replaced because the buckle broke. They wouldnt except a repair of any kind.
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