Dealership Experience(not feeling too good about it)

Two of my four cams were seized solid about 6 months later on a brand new truck. Had to cut them off with the sawzall. I also live in the dry west and no swimming with the truck. I if were to do it again I would pull the cams first thing and treat them with a liberal dose of marine antiseize. Not much of a big deal resetting the alignment by doing so as the only thing set at the factory anyway is toe.

 

I would but the warranty is long been up, im at 95k miles.i bought the truck Certified used from a Dealer. and previously had the stock strut replaced under warranty(a tough battle) and now the other strut burst off warranty and decided to go with the bilstein 4600s from previous experience seldom bust a seal, so I don't have to go thru a constant repetition of replacing front OE struts they don't hold up very long.

 

Yeah, things happen. I'm mostly critiquing the dealer for not reaching out once they realized the problem. It shouldn't take 9 hours and a phone call to find out what's going on. Usually when they run into a problem, they call you and let you know the issue (and that they'll have to charge you for extra parts).

 

if I could do it and another FYI to others like the new 3rd GEN owners is PULL THE PAN BOLTS! and liberally anti seize them before its too late, a f**king pain in the ass to get them when they rust even a wee bit.

 

Yeah, that really stinks. I think your comment was very useful.

 

I knew something wasn't quite right because I got no notice all day, your right shit does happen im hoping tomorrow they will get ironed out cause like most of us I really like this truck and want everything working as good or as close to new, so im keeping my cool with them and not going to pull a freak out on the phone, ive learned u get more with sugar than u do with salt.

 

an update on my truck, got a phone message from the dealership says my truck is ready for pickup and come get, also additionally said the sooner the better? so anyways the little added comment put me in the worst has happened mode, so I finally got there and before I go in I see my truck parked in the pickup area, parked the rental and check it out before going in(its a good habit) first thing I notice was the skid pan wasn't on(I knew that and agreed with them to leave it off, so's not to aquire a labor/repair fee for drilling/tapping them out) some may think they should pay for that repair but in most real world cases it will be an added expense for time and materials whether u like it or not no matter where u go. other than that im satisfied with the struts installation, the alignment was done all in spec, no noises,vibes,pulling on highway, the 4600s are a little firmer than the OE crap and lifted the truck a little for a better looking stance too. also I used the Wheelers inc replacement stem bushing kit with all the top and bottom cushions used, there is some confusion on whether the bushing that's under the hat is replaceable and it seems it is they said they used the whole kit, and everything looks fine with it. also they kept to the initial monetary agreement for the service no added expense for their pain and suffering with the alignment cams freeze up. my next step is to try and unscrew the broken pan screws thru the top and out instead of trying to drill them out, I have plenty of room and can see what im working on a lot better with the pan off.

 

Nope, but they got pretty close to the #s I needed.

 

I just did replacement coilovers on a first gen with an alignment. 40 minutes start to finish.

 

If I bring a vehicle in first thing in the morning on a “couple of hours” or “one day job” I always call way before the end of the day - couple of hours? Call at 11 and ask if I can pick it up at lunch. All day job? Call at 1 to see if ready by 5 - all fwiw.
I would never let a short job wait until the end of the day before checking in.

 

This is why a lot of guys here do their own work,me included,Toyota is not touching my truck.

 

believe me I wish I could have, but not having air tools plus never doing it before and doing it in my driveway with 100 degree plus weather I decided to let them do it

 

I didn't call them cause I figured they would have had an issue with the align cams on these 2nd gens are almost a given, so I don't want to be up their ass to rush break something and make a bad situation worse, i was I no rush to get the truck I had a loaner.

 

how much do u charge for that service? total with align and tax

 

I think this is what they did to mine, I did notice the passenger side cam dial was cranked way off compared to the drivers side although the alignment sheet shows the numbers are in the spec range.

 

i replaced my struts in 4 hrs

 

also I have a good tip for those who have broken pan bolts and need a fast, inexpensive way to repair them without drilling and tapping out the welded nuts.i used these body mount clips m8x1.25 after prying off the stud/weld nuts with a small bar/punch, pretty easy just lever the bar against the pan frame and pry they will pop off and slide these clips into place instead and align them to the holes on the pan frame. these clips will allow u to screw/unscrew the pan bolts without dealing with loose nuts because they will stay put on the pan frame and are just as good as the originalpain in the ass weld nuts without spending the weekend drilling and tapping. https://www.belmetric.com/index.php...BEgLRKPD_BwE&zenid=onut5421oajg9nrdcsa168i8o6 u can get these at any hardware store like ACE or Homedepot, lowes 4 cost me $4.

 

I would be interested in seeing the align sheet. Is that something you would care to post or are you getting tired of this thread?

 

I could try to post it up, I got a copy from them on the before and after.

 

People posting “he should have...” aren’t very helpful. Going forward, whatever the dealer broke should’ve fixed no charge. Don’t accept the truck back until it’s in the same shape you gave it to them.