Bought a taco lemon... looking for advice!

But he's not in the same position prior to the sale. He's lost time. And with most lemon law cases, lots of time. My time is currency. As for the obligation, no, Toyota is not obligated to give him those things. But it's not unusual for companies in that position to throw a bone to a customer who has had to deal with issues they should not have had to had Toyota delivered the product they said they agreed to.

 

Also this isnt a negotiation. Because you have no negotiating power. what you have to offer is your good graces (or feelings) in return for free stuff. In the grand scheme of things that isnt much in return for a dealership. I wouldnt make the deal for the other free stuff i think the most they would do is offer you the extended warranty as a show of good faith but if you come to the table asking for more you might not get anything more than a dont let the door hit you on your way out with your new truck.

 

I don't think I'd accept a replacement/rebuilt engine on a brand new truck like that either.

Exact same replacement vehicle, compensation for rental.. those are the things I'd expect. Let Toyota deal with selling a new truck with a replacement engine (and service records indicating that the original engine shit the bed).

An extended warranty would be a nice gesture for my troubles.

 

You are only entitled to a replacement vehicle and nothing else.

There is always a set of procedures that have to be done in instances like this. There will never be a time where your vehicle breaks and you get a brand new one the next day, so that should never be the expectation.

This is not the dealers fault, its Toyotas. The extra items you are asking for comes out of the dealers pocket. Thats not fair to ask for.

It does suck but sounds like your process has been one of the least painful lemon law processes I’ve seen.

Also you cannot bed line these composite beds. The liner will just flake right off.

 

Unless he's actually pursuing litigation and a legal process (which was unclear when I wrote the post, because although he said they're lemon-lawing it, he might have been speaking loosely or imprecisely), there are no effing rules. It's all a negotiation based on goodwill. They have an interest in keeping the customer placated. So if the dealership decided to swap the truck for him outside of a formal legal process/demand, then anything is fair game.

Don't get me wrong -- personally, I'd just take the new truck and run. But people get stuff when they ask, and I've seen it happen. He's obviously not in a position to make angry demands, and I'm not saying that.

BUT If I didn't have my truck *new* for weeks, and I was making payments on it, and the dealership said, "bite me, all we gotta do is repair it, screw your troubles," they'd have a fight on their hands.

Contractual agreements are just that -- agreements. They don't limit what the dealership or Toyota *can* do, they are a base agreement on the *minimum* terms of service. Human decency is not constrained by commercial transactions.

Also, bonafied Xer here. Don't hate on me just because I'm not suiting up to die on the battlefield for Toyota Corp. They just aren't that important to me.

EDIT: this sounds more argumentative than I intended. I'm not trying to defend anyone with an exaggerated sense of entitlement. The OP seemed reasonable (not like a lot of the complaint threads you see here), so I figured with his demeanor, he might be able to swing an extra or two.

 

I found this article
Looks like Toyota tries to avoid court all together... BMW and Ford on the other hand 20 to 30 times more likely to go to court.
https://www.autoremarketing.com/trends/study-shows-oems-involved-most-lemon-law-cases

 

After hearing that ringtone twice, I would give the man anything he wanted just to get that noise to stop.

 

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Tell them to give you a TUNDRA.

 

No! You get a identical truck at the same price and financing. Period! Why should they give you anything more. They already did the right thing. Lemon law is for your protection not freebies!

 

Thanks for the comments guys.

So basically where I'm at now with Toyota:

I have a rep who is handling the Lemon law process and they have secured the identical truck that has been sitting on the lot since day 1. The rep has said that we will negotiate an extended warranty after the trucks are swapped. I'm a little unhappy that they are unwilling to confirm the details on this before I sign any agreements as it feels like I just lost any power I had to negotiate, though I do have the email where it says I will get one.

In response to some of the comments:
Rhino Line: I had originally made the appointment because I was in the process of buying a hail damaged Taco and I had a buddy who was going to do the entire truck (Not a style everyone would like but was going to be cheaper than repairing all of the dings plus I thought it would be cool). I hadn't done the research for applying it to the bed of the truck, made me look like a fool but that's how we got here.

My real tangible expenses for not having the truck during this time:
-Another round trip to Oregon, gas and hotels, plus 4 days time: $550 (Not sure when I will be able to take more vacation)
-Registering a second truck (Had to register to get title for lemon law process): $500

I had originally thought asking for accessories that I knew where available would be an easy way to make up for these expenses. The accessories I was looking for came out to ~$1100, and I figured once the mark up was accounted for Toyota came out ahead. After reading the comments here and after some more research, I think I will begin seeking for Toyota to take a few payments off of the loan as it sounds like others have had success there. I am financed through TFS.

 

OP you are lucky they are covering this under the lemon law and giving you a new truck. Lemon laws usually require the defect remain unfixed after a specified number of attempts, which would mean you would have to accept them repairing/replacing the engine. Take your new Taco and enjoy it. Montana DOJ has a webpage on the lemon law...google it.