Author Topic: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?  (Read 10339 times)

Parizade

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Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« on: February 15, 2016, 08:04:10 PM »
My "emissions system" warning light came on Saturday, at the same time my car started running rough so I pulled over to check my manual regarding that particular warning light. The manual said it was okay to drive but get it in for service soon so I went home and made an appointment for today.

I just bought the car in November as "certified pre-owned" so it is still under full warranty, I assumed that any repairs needed would be covered. But the mechanic told me that a rodent had chewed through my wiring harness, which would need to be replaced for two-hundred-some dollars. Apparently my warranty doesn't cover mice so I am on the hook for it.

When I got home (in the free loaner car) I googled mouse damage to cars and discovered that the new soy-coated wires they use in cars now are apparently quite tasty to mice. Honda customers have initiated a federal class action lawsuit against Honda for using wires they know will attract mice, then not covering the rodent damage under warranty.

My car is a Kia so the outcome of their lawsuit might not help me but I will be watching closely. I will probably mention it before I pay for the repairs as well, on the off chance I could convince them the repairs should be covered.

What do other Mustachians think? Should rodent damage be covered by the warranty if the car manufacturer is using materials they know will encourage rodent damage?

gooki

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2016, 08:55:16 PM »
1. No rodent damage is not a warranty issue. It's an insurance issue, make an insurance claim.
2. No car manufacturers should not make cars that are tasty to animals.

JLee

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2016, 09:09:51 PM »
No, it should not be covered under warranty.

Exflyboy

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #3 on: February 15, 2016, 10:01:34 PM »
If you know where the mouse has chewed through you could very easily DIY pull out the harness at one end and solder in replacement sections of wires to replace the damaged wires.

In the Dodge Neon the wires always melt together where it passes under the exhaust manifold. It takes 10 mins or so to pull out the harness and about two hours to strip out all the wires and solder in new sections.. and thats to replace ALL the wires.

The wires are colour coded so you can't make a mistake.


Parizade

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #4 on: February 16, 2016, 03:30:50 AM »
1. No rodent damage is not a warranty issue. It's an insurance issue, make an insurance claim.

What a good idea, that would not have occurred to me. Thank you!

Quote from: Exflyboy
It takes 10 mins or so to pull out the harness and about two hours to strip out all the wires and solder in new sections.. and thats to replace ALL the wires.

I worked my way through college assembling cables, this would probably be a piece of cake for me. Unfortunately I don't have garage space to work in and it is winter here, I will definitely file that away for future reference.

Thank you Mustachians for your perpetually good advice!

Parizade

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #5 on: February 16, 2016, 08:59:08 AM »
Just spoke with my insurance company, rodent damage is covered but the repair estimate is less than my deductible so I will be paying anyway.

Exflyboy

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #6 on: February 16, 2016, 09:41:40 AM »
1. No rodent damage is not a warranty issue. It's an insurance issue, make an insurance claim.

What a good idea, that would not have occurred to me. Thank you!

Quote from: Exflyboy
It takes 10 mins or so to pull out the harness and about two hours to strip out all the wires and solder in new sections.. and thats to replace ALL the wires.

I worked my way through college assembling cables, this would probably be a piece of cake for me. Unfortunately I don't have garage space to work in and it is winter here, I will definitely file that away for future reference.

Thank you Mustachians for your perpetually good advice!

Thats what the kitchen table is for...:)

chemistk

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #7 on: February 16, 2016, 10:22:11 AM »
I've heard a little about this issue with the Accords. FWIW, the stance that Honda is taking is that something like a rat chewing through wires is considered an "Act of God" and therefore not covered under warranty. I assume all other manufacturers see this similarly.

Parizade

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #8 on: February 16, 2016, 10:25:40 AM »
The insurance guy told me about a recall Mazda had to do on one of their models, apparently the new environmentally-friendly lining attracted spiders by the thousands. Now I can't get that image out of my head, thousands of spiders crawling through the fuel line.

bobechs

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Re: Car repair not covered by warranty, should it be?
« Reply #9 on: February 16, 2016, 11:33:48 AM »
I've heard a little about this issue with the Accords. FWIW, the stance that Honda is taking is that something like a rat chewing through wires is considered an "Act of God" and therefore not covered under warranty. I assume all other manufacturers see this similarly.

All hail the mighty RATGOD!

 

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