My Car Doc, The MOBILE Mechanic!

Have that pesky car question that's been bothering you? Or want to know more about how to keep the wheels spinning on your car for years to come?

I'm here to help answer your car questions or if you want to know anything about the man behind MCD. :) Every weekday we post a car article at 10 am, an auto tip at 2pm, and fun stuff in between.

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Check Up Chart Ask me anything Submissions by My Car Doc friends & fans!

January112012

My Car Doc: Auto 101 Tip: Do I HAVE to return to the dealership for service?

Dear My Car Doc,

My dealership strongly advises me against taking my car somewhere else, even threatening to void my warranty. Those dealership prices kill my budget but I can’t afford to lose my warranty! What do I do?

—Busted car, busted warranty

Dear Busted,

I get asked this quite often. The quick and short answer is NO, the dealership CANNOT require you to return your car there for repairs to honor your warranty. Now, they will imply you need to take it there exclusively and I’ve even heard of dealerships out and out lying to customers telling them to return or it would void the car’s warranty.

If this is wrong, why do dealerships do this? One reason: MONEY. If you come back over and over again even for warranty repairs, it will do three things:

Gets you in the habit of always going to that dealership for repairs,
Lets the dealership earn money on repairs that are not covered by warranty,
Gets you very comfortable spending money with the dealership so that when it’s time for a major repair or a new vehicle, you’re accustomed to writing checks to that dealership already.

See? It’s a behavioral training technique. They’re training you like you’ve trained your dog.

Here is the link to the FTC Consumer Alert post online about this very same issue: Click here to see what the FTC says about your dealership warranty.

For more tips and help with your four wheeled friends, follow My Car Doc on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr!

—John

my car doc john cannon mycardoc www.mycardoc.com dealership warranty aftermarket parts

January92012

My Car Doc: Auto 101 Tip: Secret Warranties?!

Dear My Car Doc,

I’ve heard whispers about Secret Warranties. Is there a secret club I need to be in or a decoder ring I need to order? What is this all about?

—Waiting by the mailbox

Dear Waiting,

Nope, no decoder ring, secret knock, secret handshake, or private club to join….but there ARE secret warranties.

Here’s the scoop: When a part has a high failure rate, a car manufacturer will sometimes notify its dealers that it will pay for certain repairs even after the original warranty expires. However, manufacturers do not notify car owners about these secret warranties, sometimes called goodwill adjustments, service campaigns or other names. To find out about secret warranties or technical service bulletins that might apply to your vehicle, contact the Center for Auto Safety. Call (202) 328-7700 or send a letter with a self- addressed, stamped envelope to: Center for Auto Safety, Suite 410, 2001 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20009-1160. Be sure to list the make, model and year of your car and describe the specific problem you are experiencing. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also has information about recalls and technical service bulletins, which you can obtain by calling their hotline at 800-424-9393, or visiting NHTSA’s website.

This has been a not-so-secret Auto 101 Tip from My Car Doc! Find us online on Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook and the web!

—John

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