[2fast4u2013]

I am going to the dealership on Monday to have my vehicle checked out. My head unit trimming has popped off and doesn't seem to want to go back on and I am afraid of breaking it so I decided to let the dealership mess with it and one of my 20 inch chrome rims is peeling the chrome near the lug nut. None of this should be a problem but I am worried the dealership will try to hassle me and say it isn't covered under bumper to bumper warranty. It is a 2012 Charger R/T Max and has 31k miles on it. I am not concerned about the miles cause it's not over the 36k number they set up but since it is technically 2015 and the car was built in 2012 can they say the 3 year, 36k mile bumper to bumper warranty is no more?

 

[PokeydadsRT]

I believe your warranty ends on the day that you bought it, so if it was, say June 15, 2012 when you purchased it, it ends June 15, 2015.

 

[2fast4u2013]

I bought it used. I am the second owner of it.

 

[Shots]

Yes, the warranty starts on the original purchase date. So a 2012 could be a year old while the calendar still reads the same as the model year of 2012 if the original owner bought it Nov/Dec of 2011. Similarly it could still be under a year old if they bought it Jan/Feb of 2013 even though the model year is the previous year on the calendar.

As for the work. Assuming the warranty is still within the covered time/mileage, I doubt they'll give you any trouble over the bezel. I suspect they won't cover the rim though. They'll fault that to wear/tear (road damage) or user damage while removing the lug nuts. I don't want to be negative, but I also don't want to give you false hope. The warranty covers manufacturer defects, so if it looks like it was damaged rather than defective they'll likely decline it. I don't know though, I could be wrong. Just trying to be objective.

 

[Shots]

For a little more clarification on where I'm coming from on my guess about those rims. On the 3rd gen Ram (02-08) there was a batch of bad chrome on the bumpers right around 07-08. A lot of guys were getting rust near the exhaust pipes. My '07 had it within months of purchasing the truck, so it was clearly defective. They replaced it with no issues. Other guys on Dodgetalk who developed rust after a few years tried to get theirs covered while still under warranty and it was declined. The biggest difference was that those of us who had bad coatings were getting rust very early on. The others who had a few years on them, likely had fine scratches, or even easily visible scratches, which lead a lot of their dealerships to say the finish had been damaged, and was not flawed.
Could they have fought it and won? Maybe I don't know. And I'm not saying your rims will look damaged either, so maybe you won't have any issues. Again, just trying to be objective, and make you aware of possible scenarios.

 

[2fast4u2013]

I haven't heard that yet Shots. I hope they just replace them one rim with no fuss cause it is literally inside the lug nut area and it kinda looks like a banana peel or like someone was peeling a potato. There is no hit/impact marks on the rim either. The car came from Michigan which gets A LOT of snow and salt on the roads so I am thinking that is why I am having this issue with the rim. There is more things I am thinking about mentioning such as the front door speakers sound very very bad...almost like you put a thick blanket over them...granted it is a stock audio set-up but it is the MAX addition with the Alpine premium..I wasn't expecting the best thing I've ever heard but this sounds worst than the normal sound system. Also I am getting an unbearable squeaking noise on the driver side dash near where the dash speaker is (under the windshield). Sometimes if I tap the dash it'll stop and sometimes there is no stopping it and sometimes it doesn't even make a sound...The dealership said they'd need my car for a few hours to drive it around but I absolutely HATE the thought of them driving my car around...kinda like getting it valeted so I will probably tell them to forget about that and try to find a way to fix it myself. I know of waaayyyy too many dealership story's where they get their car back with barely any rubber left on it or the car was just beaten and unless you have a dash-cam that is password protected or a hidden camera/audio recorder you'll never know. I know I sound like I am paranoid and to be honest I am when it comes to my Charger.

 

[Shots]

It sounds like the previous owner did some custom audio. Speakers are messed up, squeak in the dash near a speaker, and the radio bezel isn't tight. I wonder if they took the custom stuff out when they traded it in, and didn't put it back together correctly. The good news is, if that's the case it should be relatively easy to fix your audio/trim issues.

 

[DodgeCares]

I bought it used. I am the second owner of it.

Hi 2fast4u2013,

If you PM me the VIN, I can try to pinpoint the original purchase date to check if it still falls within three years.

 

[2fast4u2013]

I was able to get the dealership to look it up. I still have 1 month left lol.

 

[Shots]

Yikes that was close, eh? So did they tell you if they're going to cover any or all of it?

 

[2fast4u2013]

Yikes that was close, eh? So did they tell you if they're going to cover any or all of it?

I just left the dealership and they said they would not cover the rim because they claimed it had impact damage even though I clearly told them there was none. I just brushed it off because it is on the inside where the lug nuts go and they reassured me that it would not peel further down into visibility unless I hit it and to be careful when putting the lug nuts back on. Also I had them check out my front door speakers and the giant piece that goes over the speedo, 8.4" screen and it has the vents built into it cause it was popped out and I couldn't get it to snap back into place and they said the clips on that piece was broken and the door speakers were no good so they ordered a new dash piece and speakers. Now I just have to wait until they get there. I am kinda disappointed they didn't change the rim but as long as it doesn't spread I'll be happy.

 

[Shots]

Unfortunately it doesn't really surprise me that they didn't cover the rim. I understand you told them there was no contact, but they have no way to verify that. Not that you're lying, but people lie about warranty items all the time so they can't take someone's word for it. With the amount of miles you have on the car, and the fact that the other 3 rims aren't flawed, they can reasonably assume that somewhere along the way a lug wrench, rock, etc has hit the rim causing the damage, not that it's a manufacturer defect that took 2-3 years to develop. Obviously not the news you wanted to hear, but not an unexpected response considering the details.

Good to hear they're taking care of the dash issues though. That trim piece isn't exactly cheap, so it's a good thing you asked them about it before you warranty ran out. On that note, they shouldn't have your car long to replace it. It should be a matter of about a few screws and a bunch of snaps. Not a hard swap at all so you won't be down long.

 

[2fast4u2013]

I was in the waiting room for roughly 45mins when they came out and told me that stuff. They said they'd call me back in a few days to bring it back in to install the stuff when it gets there so hopefully you're right Shots and it doesn't take too long.

 

[Shots]

So are they fixing the speakers and dash too, or just the radio bezel?

 

[2fast4u2013]

So are they fixing the speakers and dash too, or just the radio bezel?

They're replacing the speakers and the piece that is on the dash. They ordered new parts and I take her in on Wednesday to get it installed.

 

[Shots]

That's great news. Sounds like they're taking good care of you.