3.0D is $4000 on the Wrangler

[biodiesel]

To go along with costs, I'm being quoted $250 per oil change at the dealership. The oil filter alone is $92 and I think they're raping people on oil too at over $100 for oil, plus labor and taxes. Ouch.

Yeah, you have to work a deal with your dealer. My dealer sold me a 3 oil change bundle for $230, which includes Mopar Oil Filter and Rotella T6 Synthetic. Wait until you hear the cost of the fuel filter change, lol. kclendaniel is right, it's going to be much cheaper to do it yourself, plus you have the peace of mind that it's being done correctly.

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[WXman]

Yeah, you have to work a deal with your dealer. My dealer sold me a 3 oil change bundle for $230, which includes Mopar Oil Filter and Rotella T6 Synthetic. Wait until you hear the cost of the fuel filter change, lol. kclendaniel is right, it's going to be much cheaper to do it yourself, plus you have the peace of mind that it's being done correctly.

Oh I have no problem doing it myself, I would prefer it actually. And, judging from prices online, it would cut my costs by 50-75% on maintenance. BUT...my hang up is that if I let them do it, then all the service records are in their computer and at least some liability is on them, so if my fuel injection system takes a dump or I throw a rod bearing, it'll be likely much easier to get it covered under warranty. And how many $10,000 fuel injection jobs does it take to make up for all that extra cash you gave the dealer for oil and filter changes?

Sigh.. so that's my dilemma. I should let the dealer do it all. But I don't want to let them do it all.

 

[kclendaniel]

Oh I have no problem doing it myself, I would prefer it actually. And, judging from prices online, it would cut my costs by 50-75% on maintenance. BUT...my hang up is that if I let them do it, then all the service records are in their computer and at least some liability is on them, so if my fuel injection system takes a dump or I throw a rod bearing, it'll be likely much easier to get it covered under warranty. And how many $10,000 fuel injection jobs does it take to make up for all that extra cash you gave the dealer for oil and filter changes?

Sigh.. so that's my dilemma. I should let the dealer do it all. But I don't want to let them do it all.

For your hypothetical $10,000 fuel injection job I can pay for quite a few hours of time with a very good lawyer to push the dealer and FCA to prove an action taken on my part caused the failure and therefore would void the warranty. Remember this would potentially be a Federal lawsuit not a State one (https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0138-auto-warranties-routine-maintenance). This is why I don't buy into the 'you must have all your service done at the dealer to protect your warranty' line. In the end they have to determine if it will cost more to fight you over the repair or just cover the repair under your warranty as it should be. In most cases costs for litigation on their side (dealer and FCA) will far outpace the cost of a repair. Obviously this is worst case scenario but I think you get my point.

 

[lrtexasman]

Oh I have no problem doing it myself, I would prefer it actually. And, judging from prices online, it would cut my costs by 50-75% on maintenance. BUT...my hang up is that if I let them do it, then all the service records are in their computer and at least some liability is on them, so if my fuel injection system takes a dump or I throw a rod bearing, it'll be likely much easier to get it covered under warranty. And how many $10,000 fuel injection jobs does it take to make up for all that extra cash you gave the dealer for oil and filter changes?

Sigh.. so that's my dilemma. I should let the dealer do it all. But I don't want to let them do it all.

WXman has a valid point. My neighbors 2016 F250 with 90k miles started having fuel issues (limp mode) and it turns out the fuel filter failed and blew metal shavings throughout the fuel system. The bill was over 7k and fortunately was covered by Ford. They did not fight him as he had maintenance records on file with Ford. 10k miles later and he would have been SOL.

 

[biodiesel]

Sigh.. so that's my dilemma. I should let the dealer do it all. But I don't want to let them do it all.

I understand your concern. I made a deal with my service advisor, otherwise, I would have done it myself. I'm planning to keep my new truck, so this time I'm more paranoid about ensuring the work is done correctly. I want to make sure the oil has fully drained from the engine, I want to make sure that no dust or debris ends up in my fuel filter housing when that is changed, etc. I'm major OCD when it comes to maintenance. I'll change my oil at 5,000 mile intervals instead of 10,000 miles intervals. I will change the fuel filter at 10,000 miles intervals instead of 30,000 mile intervals. I'll change the air filter at 10,000 mile intervals instead of 20,000 mile intervals.

 

[biodiesel]

WXman has a valid point. My neighbors 2016 F250 with 90k miles started having fuel issues (limp mode) and it turns out the fuel filter failed and blew metal shavings throughout the fuel system. The bill was over 7k and fortunately was covered by Ford. They did not fight him as he had maintenance records on file with Ford. 10k miles later and he would have been SOL.

As long as you provide receipts and a written maintenance schedule, the dealer has to prove that your neglect is why the system failed. We are all protected by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. There have been plenty of EcoDiesel warranties that were covered even though the owners did the maintenance on their vehicle.

 

[lrtexasman]

Thanks, agree on the law. Point I am trying to make is that a dealer can deny your claim stating you used the wrong oil, wrong intervals (if receipts are lost), or wrong replacement part. In my buddies case the dealer could not blame him for using a bad filter or incorrectly installing/priming the fuel filter, causing it to come apart and contaminate the fuel system. Many service departments are great with approving warranty work on self maintained vehicles and many are not.

 

[kclendaniel]

Thanks, agree on the law. Point I am trying to make is that a dealer can deny your claim stating you used the wrong oil, wrong intervals (if receipts are lost), or wrong replacement part. In my buddies case the dealer could not blame him for using a bad filter or incorrectly installing/priming the fuel filter, causing it to come apart and contaminate the fuel system. Many service departments are great with approving warranty work on self maintained vehicles and many are not.

If they deny your claim with an excuse that they can not prove beyond reasonable doubt that becomes a legal case. Your vehicle including the fluids they may have drained becomes evidence. Yes, if you damaged the filter housing or forgot to put the o-ring on the filter that can indicate your negligence but just simply changing your oil/filter within the recommended intervals is not in itself grounds for denial. Even if you didn't change the oil they would have to prove the oil was degraded to a point that it was the cause of the damage (requires oil analysis if they even kept it). It is not your job to prove their case for them. Now as far as using non-Mopar parts such as the filter, that is a grey area with the FCA warranty. The filters I use are not OEM but come with their own warranty to repair/replace engine parts if the filter was defective.

 

[biodiesel]

Many service departments are great with approving warranty work on self maintained vehicles and many are not.

I agree the dealer you go to can make it easy or difficult on you. There was a guy on the EcoDiesel forum who had his engine failure warranty claim denied. It wasn't so much the dealer who denied him, but in this case, it was the field (area) supervisor. He went to a second dealer and they approved the warranty right away. How crazy is that? The problem is not always directly FCA, the problem is those working under FCA who provide the necessary documentation for final approval.

 

[biodiesel]

Now as far as using non-Mopar parts such as the filter, that is a grey area with the FCA warranty. The filters I use are not OEM but come with their own warranty to repair/replace engine parts if the filter was defective.

That's a good point. I only use OEM recommended filters (air, oil, and fuel), but not necessarily oils/lubes/fluids. I use recommended oil specs, though. In the case of my 2015 EcoDiesel, FCA recommends an actual name brand (Rotella T6 5w40 full synthetic). That's what I use in the engine.

 

[WXman]

I read one instance on another forum where a guy kept all his receipts, and the dealership said "that doesn't prove that you actually changed the oil, only that you bought oil."

It can certainly get messy. I hope that never happens. I'm just trying to protect myself.

 

[Oilburner]

I read one instance on another forum where a guy kept all his receipts, and the dealership said "that doesn't prove that you actually changed the oil, only that you bought oil."

 

[biodiesel]

I read one instance on another forum where a guy kept all his receipts, and the dealership said "that doesn't prove that you actually changed the oil, only that you bought oil."

It can certainly get messy. I hope that never happens. I'm just trying to protect myself.

Yeah, except it's the dealer's responsibility to prove that you didn't change it. I don't know if Amsoil still advertises this or not, but they used to say they would litigate the case for free if the dealer tried to blame Amsoil products for a failure.

 

[WMWHV]

If it comes to that, the question of what was or was not done is ultimately a question of fact for the jury to decide, not the dealer or FCA. If you don’t like their determination, you have the option of asking a jury whether you just bought the oil and filter or actually changed them.

 

[biodiesel]

If you don’t like their determination, you have the option of asking a jury whether you just bought the oil and filter or actually changed them.

Unless your Nancy Pelosi, Adam Schiff, or Chuck Schumer, you believe in innocent until proven guilty.

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