HELP - Nissan dealership F'd up my car!

[JDBoston 0]

Here's the scoop:

The full story with fun details is on www.joedeal.com, but basically I took my car to get a 90K mile service at a new dealership (since I'm traveling), they forgot to tighten the lug nuts completely, and as a result the right front wheel got loose enough that the vibrations/wobbling caused 3 of 4 lug nuts to shear after about 4,000 miles which caused the wheel to come completely off while I was driving.

The tech that worked on my car at a different dealership, making it driveable again, said that the lug nuts were loose (1/2 turn or so) on ALL the wheels, strongly suggesting that it happened the last time they were worked on, i.e. when I had the 90K mile service. This is so far the only rational explanation anyone has come up with.

I expect to be given the run-around by the first dealer (it's kind of started already), since a wheel breaking off at 40 mph is a life-endangering situation and something they would probably be reluctant to admit to causing. All I want to do is get them to pay for my damages ($450 to get car driving again, another $800+ work needed) and get a refund on the work they f'd up.

SO:

1. Does anyone have experience dealing with a similar situation, and how did you handle it & what was the result?

2. What is the most effective way for me to be a thorn in these guys' side if I need to do that to get them to own up and pay for the damages they caused? (considering small claims court, getting insurance company involved, Better Business Bureau, etc. - any other suggestions?)

Thanks & blue skies...

Joe

[lawrocket 3]

2. What is the most effective way for me to be a thorn in these guys' side if I need to do that to get them to own up and pay for the damages they caused? (considering small claims court, getting insurance company involved, Better Business Bureau, etc. - any other suggestions?)


THE PRESS! THE PRESS!!!

Newpapers, and local news stations, LOVE stories like this.

Let that be the lesson if they don't pony up.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[JoeyRamone 0]

Buy American

[Muenkel 0]

Bummer of a story Joe, but I'm glad you're OK.

If you can get the 2nd dealer (who fixed the vehicle) to give you a statement, I would definitely do the small claims court bit. The original dealer will hand it over to their insurance company who will send one of their lawyers to the hearing. Trust me, it will cost the insurance company a hell of a lot more to have a lawyer standing around all day than it will cost you.

As for the BBB, definitely file a complaint after you get it settled. You owe it to future customers.

Good luck,
Chris

_________________________________________
Chris

[akarunway 1]

I bought a new 1999 Dodge Ram P/U. Paid cash. After many, many problems before even 5000k miles(assembled in Mexico) I finally called up and told the GM, "I'm gonna call channel 2, 6, and 9 and have them across the street and I'm going to DRIVE THIS FUCKING TRUCK THROUGH YOUR SHOWROOM WINDOW AND PARK IT ON TOP OF YOUR TWO VIPERS". I had a whole new front end on the truck a couple days later.. Extreme yes, but that's what it took

I hold it true, whate'er befall;
I feel it, when I sorrow most;
'Tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all.

[FallRate 0]

A friend of mine took his truck into the dealer to have scheduled service. When he got the truck back there was a large scratch next to the door. He told the dealer about it and the dealer said that he would agree to have the scratch fixed, but my friend had to cover any further cost for the rental vehicle he had been using for the day. My friend decided to take his truck elsewhere to be fixed, and he left the rental, running with the keys locked in it, right in the entrance to the dealership.

Didn't fix the truck, but it made him feel better.

FallRate

[bodypilot90 0]

Quote

1. Does anyone have experience dealing with a similar situation, and how did you handle it & what was the result?

Ask for the service manager and talk with him. Be NICE. If he will not help talk to the dealership manager or owner. Then if still unresolved talk the Nissan rep. They come around monthly. Be nice seen a lot more stuff get taken car of by people who didn't yell or cuss than those who do. Were they the only ppl who worked on your car since new. If so you stand a very good chance of getting it paid for. As a 30 year auto and truck tech I've seen a lot of mistakes. If nothing works small claims court. PM me if you need help

[Stacy 0]

Actually I just had prettymuch the same thing happen. I took my car to a local Jiffy Lube (that I'd been happy with before) for a routine oil change and tire rotation. It was taking suspiciously long after I'd cashed out, so I walked out side and saw all the techs around my front drivers side tire, trying to shove the last lug on so badly that metal shards were flying out. I'm no mechanic, but I know that means they were stripping out the screw and lug.

I ended up taking oit to the dealer and getting the lug and bolt replaced. called hte customer service # on my receipts frm teh jiffy lube, did hte email complaint and edfinitely made myself known. I faxxed them the jiffy lube sheet as well as the dealer repair bills and requested reimbursement. Found out the names of some higher up people, called them too to complain.

I got my check prettty quickly.

__

[marks 0]

call. 1-800-nissan1 nissan takes care of there cust.. always have and always will..

i do have to say though.. are you sure somone isnt mad at you...... and loosened them??

if they were not tightened by a half of turn im sure you would not have made it 4000 miles.. also lug nuts are usually "by most techs" started 1/2 to 1 turn then run down with an impact gun... i have never seen somone leave a lug nut 1/2 turn loose.. but you see it sometimes when the the nut is still only at the 1/2 to 1 turn on.... but those cars wheel will usually fall off before you leave the parking lot...

i will bet you somone loosened them i seriously doubt you would have got 4000 miles without noticing a serious vibration or the wheel falling off long before then....

[Vertifly 0]

Quote

I bought a new 1999 Dodge Ram P/U. Paid cash. After many, many problems before even 5000k miles(assembled in Mexico) I finally called up and told the GM, "I'm gonna call channel 2, 6, and 9 and have them across the street and I'm going to DRIVE THIS FUCKING TRUCK THROUGH YOUR SHOWROOM WINDOW AND PARK IT ON TOP OF YOUR TWO VIPERS". I had a whole new front end on the truck a couple days later.. Extreme yes, but that's what it took

Dude!, Not to be NIT-PICKY, but... What does having a 'whole new front end' put on your truck have to do with any problems with the vehicle itself? Did you get into an accident then threaten to blame the dealer? Please expand on this, I gotta know.

[freefallfreak 0]

Just dump a bottle of bobcat lure in the air intake of the heating system of their building. Ya may not get what you want but they sure will have a hard time breathing, lol.

FFF

"Upon seeing the shadow of a pigeon, one must resist the urge to look up."

[JDBoston 0]

Well, I was 1000+ miles from home and knew virtually no one in that area, let alone had any disputes with anyone there. Someone loosening them intentionally (but not TOO much...) and then replacing the wheel covers does not seem a very likely possibility to me. If you really want to screw with someone's car there are plenty of better ways, and if someone was looking to steal the wheels, this would not be a logical approach either.

I don't believe that the lug nuts being 1/2 turn loose when the incident occurred necessarily means they were that loose 4000 miles earlier. I would imagine they were a tiny bit loose and worked themselves looser over that time but am interested in hearing other opinions.

At the point that the LOUD front end noise and steering wheel shaking started, (a milder noise had been there ever since the 90K mile service in GA, and now THAT noise is gone...), I had already driven 100+ miles that day, and probably at least 20-30 miles since I had even parked it last (in the front of a hotel parking lot, in broad daylight, for 1 hour).

Also, the wheel did not fall off - three out of four 1/2-inch thick steel studs sheared, and it broke off... not exactly the kind of thing that would happen easily or immediately, IMHO... but I definitely welcome all feedback on the possibilities.

Joe