VOIDED Factory Warranty after taking it through mud

[Sduncan]

My opinion.. which is as useless as any others...

1. There is a distinct difference between mud in an alternator and water in an alternator. Mud will immediately cake up and dry due to the heat, water will run off and there is usually no side effects.
2. I can’t understand why you’d take a new truck out and run thru the first sewer hole you could find( to each his own blah blah) even through “the commercials say I can” . I used to watch idiots in trucks driving thru the ocean too (“because I saw it on TV”).
3. Expecting warranty coverage for not doing the brightest thing I’ve ever seen is ridiculous. And then sending it to the dealer STILL covered in mud was definitely a mistake. I guarantee you that the dealer photographed and fully documented the condition it was given to them.

Now that that part is said, the others issues are likely NOT because you went out and douched the whole truck in a mud hole.. the rear axle issue is a common documented problem. There is a $180 solution from Z Automotive (same place who make the Tazer) that’ll fix it with no need to replace the rear axle. The other issues (and more that will pop up) may or may not be tied to the mud hole. .. depends on the specific problem.
The dealer flagged the truck to avoid these costs to them in the future. Should the whole warranty be voided. Not in my opinion, but refusing to warranty electrical I can completely see. The OP has learned an expensive lesson and I’d give FCA the advantage in court by a long shot. Suck it up and take your lumps or sell/trade it off.

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[Riccochet]

Some seriously dishonest people on this forum.

 

[PyrPatriot]

Some seriously dishonest people on this forum.

Please elaborate on what causes you to have that opinion? Is it the washing vehicles before taking them in for warranty work? Why would that be dishonest? The conditions that allow for Jeep/dearlership to decline warranty coverage, i.e "abuse" or "misuse" are vague and undefined (at least not told in plain language to end-users). Why would it be dishonest to make them work a little harder before potentially screwing over a customer?

ETA: the uncertainty is why I only "off-road" on county roads. Yes, even the one in my profile picture is one you can find on Google Maps. I have it in writing that my car insurance covers damage incurred on such roads and I have been VERY forthcoming with descriptions and names of roads should they care to investigate before essentially signing off on potential future damage. I also have it covered under my Mechanical Breakdown Insurance. Now, I'm not going to do something unreasonable that increases the chances of damage to my rig. Even if it would be covered I'd still not want to be without my Jeep for the time it takes to hash out with who pays for it and to repair. But I do like knowing I can travel the backwoods with a lot more peace of mind.

 

[Captn_Obvious]

This thread reminded me of that video when Jeep was launching the Gladiator.. and held that event somewhere out in Cali where they set up a course for journalists w/ rocks and mud etc. It had rained for days and the entire course was a sloppy, mudfest where Jeep happily encouraged driving the vehicle thru deep, sloppy, mud slinging everywhere!!

 

[Riccochet]

Please elaborate on what causes you to have that opinion? Is it the washing vehicles before taking them in for warranty work? Why would that be dishonest? The conditions that allow for Jeep/dearlership to decline warranty coverage, i.e "abuse" or "misuse" are vague and undefined (at least not told in plain language to end-users). Why would it be dishonest to make them work a little harder before potentially screwing over a customer?

ETA: the uncertainty is why I only "off-road" on county roads. Yes, even the one in my profile picture is one you can find on Google Maps. I have it in writing that my car insurance covers damage incurred on such roads and I have been VERY forthcoming with descriptions and names of roads should they care to investigate before essentially signing off on potential future damage. I also have it covered under my Mechanical Breakdown Insurance. Now, I'm not going to do something unreasonable that increases the chances of damage to my rig. Even if it would be covered I'd still not want to be without my Jeep for the time it takes to hash out with who pays for it and to repair. But I do like knowing I can travel the backwoods with a lot more peace of mind.

Yes. Being dishonest with ones self, the dealer, potential future owners.

But, hey, if people can sleep good at night knowing they're dishonest pieces of shit then more power to them. I choose to live an honest life and take personal responsibility for my actions.

Besides that, factory warranties are to cover defects in manufacturing or assembly. Not defective owners.

 

[PyrPatriot]

Yes. Being dishonest with ones self, the dealer, potential future owners.

But, hey, if people can sleep good at night knowing they're dishonest pieces of shit then more power to them. I choose to live an honest life and take personal responsibility for my actions.

Besides that, factory warranties are to cover defects in manufacturing or assembly. Not defective owners.

Now, that's a fair point. And I'll agree, screwing the next guy because you didn't get your way or something happened beyond your expectations of what should happen under wheeling conditions is uncouth. Corporate/dealers need to be more honest with what Jeep owners should expect from their vehicles, and maybe Jeep owners would be less likely to do stuff expecting a warranty safety net.

Yes, warranty is to cover defects. But how is the lay person to know what conditions exceed factory specs? When sliding down from a rock will be beyond what an axle component will handle or if in fact it is unreasonable to expect a seal to hold up to an impact. The only CLEAR guidance I have seen from Jeep regarding off-roading is the water fording part: 30" at 5mph. Why can't they be clear on other stuff or at least try? They have the ability to take a fully loaded down, 6250lb gvw JT and subject it to X number of impacts at Y height and Z angle. They do so with testing the suspension, rain exposure, etc. If they market a vehicle to a base of customers, sure 99% won't wheel theirs at all, they could still say here's the line, don't cross it, and here's what else we did, extrapolate to your circumstances as you can". Then, they can only guarantee what they, Jeep, did, and if your impact/damage from going over a rock was not within that range then they would have every reason not to cover it. Likewise, with mud, they could do mud tests, and see where the seals/electrical fails. Hell, they could make mud holes of different muds and depths and drive Jeeps through them to see what happens and what they would consider normal use. They have the ability to post videos on it. And it wouldn't, in theory, expose them to any more liability, it might even save them a lot of bother from newbies who don't know any better, and attract more customers who can have actual Jeep-approved demonstrations. They do this somewhat with their test tracks at auto shows on pitch/roll, I like those.

 

[redrider]

How do you folks clean mud from the underside? Like driving as pictured by myself and others gets mud UP there. Do you raise it on jacks? I have had a modicum of success with using ramps

There's no hiding the dents and scrapes to my skids and marks on the frame. I guess I'll just have to say those happened a long time ago and not related to any potential future (hopefully never) issue

Off road motorcyclists spray a variety of things onto the exposed bits as well as hidden from sight areas. Silicone spray, non-stick cooking oil and the like. Washdown is a snap. No pressure washers, please. Rinse and ride.

 

[PyrPatriot]

Off road motorcyclists spray a variety of things onto the exposed bits as well as hidden from sight areas. Silicone spray, non-stick cooking oil and the like. Washdown is a snap. No pressure washers, please. Rinse and ride.

I'm planning on getting the underside coated before the heavy brine-solution hits the road.

 

[redrider]

Some seriously dishonest people on this forum.

Just a cross section of Humanity in general.

 

[Riccochet]

Now, that's a fair point. And I'll agree, screwing the next guy because you didn't get your way or something happened beyond your expectations of what should happen under wheeling conditions is uncouth. Corporate/dealers need to be more honest with what Jeep owners should expect from their vehicles, and maybe Jeep owners would be less likely to do stuff expecting a warranty safety net.

Yes, warranty is to cover defects. But how is the lay person to know what conditions exceed factory specs? When sliding down from a rock will be beyond what an axle component will handle or if in fact it is unreasonable to expect a seal to hold up to an impact. The only CLEAR guidance I have seen from Jeep regarding off-roading is the water fording part: 30" at 5mph. Why can't they be clear on other stuff or at least try? They have the ability to take a fully loaded down, 6250lb gvw JT and subject it to X number of impacts at Y height and Z angle. They do so with testing the suspension, rain exposure, etc. If they market a vehicle to a base of customers, sure 99% won't wheel theirs at all, they could still say here's the line, don't cross it, and here's what else we did, extrapolate to your circumstances as you can". Then, they can only guarantee what they, Jeep, did, and if your impact/damage from going over a rock was not within that range then they would have every reason not to cover it. Likewise, with mud, they could do mud tests, and see where the seals/electrical fails. Hell, they could make mud holes of different muds and depths and drive Jeeps through them to see what happens and what they would consider normal use. They have the ability to post videos on it. And it wouldn't, in theory, expose them to any more liability, it might even save them a lot of bother from newbies who don't know any better, and attract more customers who can have actual Jeep-approved demonstrations. They do this somewhat with their test tracks at auto shows on pitch/roll, I like those.

Put it this way. Are Jeep's marketed as being off-road capable? Yes. But the warranty only covers normal driving conditions, i.e. road use. The same way Corvette's, Porsche's, Ferrari's are marketed as excellent track vehicles. But, their warranties do not cover track use. Same as the Hellcat Redeye. Designed for the track, warranty explicitly states that track use is not covered.

What a vehicle is capable of doing and what the manufacturer will cover via warranty don't directly relate to one another. They have to draw a line that failures under normal operating conditions will be covered. Failures under abnormal operating conditions are not. Track use, off-roading, etc.

But, this is also where dealer discretion comes in. Some dealers are great. You can go beat the shit out of your Wrangler and they'll fix it. Others not so much. Having a good relationship with your dealer service department goes a long way.

 

[jtimbrook]

13 pages of conjecture, what was the actual outcome???

 

[steve68]

I've grown up in Florida AKA Flori-duh, I've been stuck in the mud for days on end, I've waded for miles to get to dry land, this all when I was much younger, now as others have said they avoid mud at all costs, me too, went out with a group and they were like aren't you going through that, nope don't need to!

easy analogy what's mud spelled backwards???? dum!!

best experience was my own father, took our 76 Land Cruiser out in the mud, he says how was that, it was fun, good now go clean it!!!

hope you get it all straightened out,

 

[DAVECS1]

If the pictures at the beginning, are the extent of the mud. I would say that is normal use. The parts should have the proper environmentalnratings to handle splash and debris.
As for warranty. My friends and my wife face palm and freak when they walk in my garage and see my year old cars taken apart. They ask why didn't you use the warranty. 1. If it broke once, chance it may break again, going with better parts. 2. I hate my vehicle being messed with by someone who has no vested interest in the well being of my ride, just their bottom line. It os expensive and it sucks, but warranties and insurance are not worth much these days, just a way to pry money from the hands of the uninitiated

 

[PyrPatriot]

I don't think anyone posted this yet but here is the copy of the base factory warranty that comes with all 2020 JTs
https://msmownerassets.z13.web.core...Gladiator/P115758_20_J_G_GW_EN_US_Digital.pdf

 

[mike921921]

If the pictures at the beginning, are the extent of the mud. I would say that is normal use. The parts should have the proper environmentalnratings to handle splash and debris.
As for warranty. My friends and my wife face palm and freak when they walk in my garage and see my year old cars taken apart. They ask why didn't you use the warranty. 1. If it broke once, chance it may break again, going with better parts. 2. I hate my vehicle being messed with by someone who has no vested interest in the well being of my ride, just their bottom line. It os expensive and it sucks, but warranties and insurance are not worth much these days, just a way to pry money from the hands of the uninitiated

And there's always the quite real possibility of the dealer making the problem worse, or fixing A and breaking B - a sad state of affairs these days for sure.

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