Took my '09 Panel 77k km on it in to have the LT front wheel bearing done.


"your warranty expired in April".

"As a goodwill gesture we will only charge you 168.18 + HST"

Is this "normal"?
Since the only other warranty issue experiences I've had were no charge ignition replacements after they locked up I was kind of surprised at being charged at all for a warranty issue.

 

It's an "Apples to Oranges" deal really, ignition lock cylinder vs. a hub. One is a part that has been proven to be defective, hence the Recall(s), and the other is a part that is considered a "wearing part", and they do wear out and fail.

77,000km is a bit premature, but HHR hubs are known for premature failure, so even though you had to dig out your cash. It sounds like the dealer just charged you for the part, while they "ate" the labor.

You can talk to the service manager, but in my opinion, they did what they could to lessen the sting.

 

To be clear I haven't been in for the ignition recall yet. Both of my ignitions had the locked up won't shut off with out pulling fuses issue.

Not knocking on the dealer for the charge. Just found it "funny" that the bearings being covered under the 5yr/160k km warranty being only a couple of months past that they charged me at all.

 

That's a matter to discuss with the service manager or dealership general manager. A few minutes spent explaining your concerns may get them to eat the entire repair. GM dealers are running scared of late, sales are off, and recall related labor expenses are off the scale.

 

Nothing unusual about that. Many dealers wouldn't even provide a "courtesy repair" and charge about $300-400 instead.

 

HUH? You expect things that are "a couple months" out of warranty to be covered? Maybe I just can't read Canadian and you meant you are surprised that they gave you ANY discount? Is there a different warranty in Canada? The US Bumper-to-Bumper is 3Yr/36,000 miles.

Out of warranty means it is your problem. They are being very nice to you, like by about half price. I think the part actually runs in the $260 range and labor at least 1 hour.

I am so confused. I admit it. Maybe it is that different in Canada. I will admit to being wrong, if I am.

 

Power train is 5 /160k . Everything I've read showed the bearings as covered.
Never had anything "warranted " cost anything so was trying to find out if my experience was "normal"
Was hoping there was a "grace" period. By the dealer being very good to to me in my opinion they earned a few good points.

 

Your previous warranty work was performed while your warranty was still valid thus you were not charged at all.

The hub was replaced while your warranty was expired thus you should have had to pay full price.

BUT your dealership want's to keep you happy and retain you as a customer so they decided to offer you a "goodwill" gesture. That "goodwill" gesture has you paying the $168.18 + HST while they or GM pay for the rest. Typically it is GM paying for the rest and is usually done for cars recently out of warranty coverage like yourself.

This "goodwill" gesture is done all the time. When I was a GM Tech, our dealership would do this quite often.

 

Wheel bearings are not considered 'power train'. Here's an excerpt from the Chevrolet Warranty Information page:

 

db/sb: Depends on the year. Some years they were covered under the powertrain warranty.

There was a thread a while back where ChevyMgr posted the difference in coverage pertaining to year model.