Engine Failure at 40K, Multiple Repair Attemps

I'd contact corporate about working out a trade in deal on the truck as is and take my loses to avoid any further headaches. At minimum they should have replaced the entire engine to begin with. I don't think you'll get very far with the lemon law route, but each state is different. Also, legal fees could well surpass the value of the truck very quickly.

Tell Toyota Corp/ Dealership that they can keep this truck/ engine to practice on!

Obviously, neither the dealership or corporate want to pay for each others defects or workmanship and it's leaving you in a bad position financially (payments, insurance, depreciation) and for practicality reasons (being without a vehicle, loss of use) while they figure it out.

I just noticed the 7-8 week timeframe. That might qualify for lemon law, but I think each state varies on how old/new the vehicle must be. Personally, I'd still be looking to dump that truck/ trade it in.

 

Agreed. Any pointers on how to contact toyota and best way to proceed?

 

I doubt a 3 year old truck with 40K would qualify for lemon law.

 

Just to relate an experience my son had at their local Toy dealership, they had a 4 Runner that had a master cylinder go out suddenly. When I say suddenly... I mean suddenly. It could have been ugly. The dealership replaced the master cylinder and the second one went out before they got home, about fifty miles. The third one went out, the fourth, and the fifth. My son kept bringing the 4 Runner back with a bad master cylinder and they finally got their vehicle back with a master cylinder that has lasted about a year and a half. Of the first five, none lasted more than a couple of weeks.
I'm not sure what is going on with Toyota dealerships or the training their mechanics get, but five (well, six) master cylinders is unreasonable.
Still... with persistence they now have a vehicle to drive.
Once the dealership has worked on your vehicle they are obligated to return a road worthy vehicle.

 

You are most likely out of luck going the lemon law route.
Seems CA lemon law covers vehicle in the first 18 months or 18,000 miles, whichever comes first.
How Many Repairs Before New Car is a Lemon? (thelemonlawcalifornia.com)

- I would call Toyota corporate and open a case. Give them the facts and only the facts.
- I would contact the dealership (general manager) regarding the number of failed repairs.
- Maybe you can get a good deal on a buy back for a new vehicle.
- Don't expect 100% recover if a deal can be made. You have put on 40k on the vehicle.

Good luck

 

https://www.toyota.com/support/contact-us

 

I feel like we’re seeing more and more engine failures sub 100k miles.

 

I would start by trying to talk to the service manager. If you either can't catch him or he doesn't give you a satisfactory answer, escalate to the general manager.

If that fails and the dealer is on premises, call his number. You won't get him, so leave a voicemail. His executive assistant will get back to you and she can get stuff done.

If none of that works then contact corporate. If you haven't tried to resolve it at the local level first, they are likely to tell you to start there.

 

Good luck OP.

There have been some other posts about various top end failures on the 3rd gen forum. All of forum sticks up for Toyota telling the owner to suck it up, let the dealer fix it, and move on. 'This is why you have a warranty'...

This is why I wouldn't want the local dealership doing serious engine work. Once you start tearing apart that engine who knows what's going to happen later down the road.

I'd try to keep a good relationship with your dealer while working a case with Toyota Corprate. Maybe you can negotiate a buy back like some owners got for the clear coat paint failures.

 

I would reach out to Toyota. Speak to a case manager and tell them you haven't had possession for 8 months and they'll try their best to sort it out... See what they say, if they say they want to fix it and it will take 2 months I would offer to trade it in for what the KBB value is and then it is no longer your problem. The service manager and general manager at your dealer are also good resources.
Since it is in warranty I would suggest taking a loaner car so they have some collateral on the dealer/corporate side. Should be free.

 

Definitely be patient and try work with the dealer while in contact with corporate if you can. Definitely get a free loaner vehicle while your truck is being worked on.

If you feel like you've hit a wall with the Service Department, politely ask the Service Manager for the number of the Toyota Manufacturing Regional Service Representative to schedule a face to face meeting with him/her to discuss your repair concerns/problems. (dealers hate this as it kills their ratings) This would be a lower level contact than trying to go through corporate, but corporate may choose to send someone out to investigate this issue anyway.

 

I would really look into lemon law and ask a professional regarding lemon laws. In california the lemon law applies during the warranty of the car. ( I think someone earlier said 18k miles, I don't think this is correct) The problem here is you are out of your basic warranty but you are still in your power train warranty. They have multiple attempts to repair and have taken it out of use for greater than 30 days. So I think this is still lemon law (able) for buy back or replacement. Sorry this happened to you. I hope this works out for you. Good luck .

Cali Doj, regarding lemon laws:

https://oag.ca.gov/consumers/genera...mon Law (Civ,the vehicle—whichever you prefer.

 

I believe they said during the first 18 months of ownership, not 18K Miles.

 

I don't see what the big deal is. The original engine had an actual mechanical failure that can be blamed on toyota. The repairs are simply bad workmanship not a problem with the mechanical components. Find a shop that can actually do the work properly and you'll be good.

 

My mistake but still not correct, california lemon law can be claimed during the warranty of the car. It can also be applied to purchase of used cars that are still under warranty. I know because I had a car bought back from me (in full, including taxes, doc fees and registration fees) when I bought a used car under warranty.

We are not certain if it was do to poor repair or not. If it were that simple Toyota's mechanics would have been able to fix it already and not take it out of service for 7 to 8 weeks and still not resolved. You can't take it out to any random mechanic because then if they attempt to fix it and fail Toyota will place blame on that mechanic and wash their hands of any responsibility.

I don't think it's reasonable for an engine to fail this early. A truck without a functional engine will be significantly devalued. Which is why warranties exist as well as lemon laws to protect consumers.

 

From what I understand most lemon laws are based on the amount of time the vehicle is in the shop during the warranty period. I'd stay with the same shop. Ten weeks in a single year is the cut off for most of those laws from what I understand.
Take the truck back in every time they don't fix it. Document your efforts. Once a dealership has worked on the truck under warranty they are obligated to return a functional truck to you. Be persistent but polite.

 

Try a new shop.

 

Bad shop. 2 potential scenarios: The oil pump was the culript and they didn't change it. Or they assembled the head wrong. They should be sending a tow truck for your truck, provide a loaner, and fix it ASAP. If they expect money then you go to corporate. If corporate doesn't fix it, then you go to small claims court. But let the shop do the right thing first. Mistakes happen, but it's how they handle it that is important.

 

Extended oil changes, more complex technology are a perfect setting. But hopefully they'll get to the root as usually

 

‘ broke down ‘ ????????????? ..............the dealer can always say ‘ U Broke IT !!

something like..................is a whole universe o crap

any mechanic can tell U whats broken !!!!!! maybe Not how it got broke

doesnt take 7-8 weeks to rebuild an engine

would have been cheaper just ro pur acrate engine in

while U ae standing there schmooozin the guy with the $200 haircut

tassel wing tip loafers

French cuff starch shirt

talk to the lead line mechanic instead the guy