Ok... Be prepared for a long read. It's a long story, but I need to vent it out somewhere!

So, back in February, my truck developed a vibration/shudder on acceleration AND on decelleration. The truck has a 7yr 70k mile warranty, and I was still under that, so I took it to the dealer. Turns out the issue was the carrier bearing on the 2 piece driveshaft. It had torn out of it's rubber housing, causing the driveshaft to flop around basically... So.. It was replaced, and the vibes went away.

Fast forward to last saturday Oct 9th. I took the truck BACK to the dealer because the vibrations had come back, and I saw that they have a 12 month 12k mile parts warranty, and I figured that the carrier bearing had blown apart again. So.. I leave the truck with the dealer, and get a call 3 days later. (way to work quickly guys!). They tell me first that the carrier bearing is fine, but the tech did feel the vibration on acceleration, but it is normal for these trucks to have some form of launch shudder. He then tells me that there is a cure for this, but it would be a new one piece driveshaft, to the tune of $1100, and it would not be covered under warranty. I then asked the service advisor, did the tech feel the vibration on decelleration as well? He informed me that he would find out and call me back. So, I hang up.. I wait for about 3 hours, and get no call, so I call back. I ask if the tech had felt the vibes on decelleration. He said yes, the tech did feel it. I asked if he thought that was normal... He said, no, it's not normal. At this point I say, well, if it's doing something that it shouldn't be, and I am still under the 7 year 70k mile warranty, shouldn't the truck be fixed back to NORMAL under warranty? He said these exact words.....

"You would think so, wouldn't you?"

I flipped at that point. I said, well, you guys aren't going to cover it under warranty, and why is that? He said it was for two reasons.

Reason #1: The fix for this problem is a new one piece driveshaft, which did not come on this truck from the factory.

Reason #2: There is not an actual failed part YET, so we have nothing to warranty.

At this point, I said, "So what you are telling me is, in order to get this vibration issue fixed under warranty, I need to have you guys put this truck back together, then I have to drive it around until something breaks, possibly endangering other people or vehicles, as well as possibly breaking more things on this truck, then you guys will cover the driveshaft fix under warranty?"

The service writer said " Yeah, basically, that's the only way it would be covered."

At that point, I told him to have them put the truck back together, and I'd be there in the morning.

When I got there, I got the keys to my truck, got the number for the GM of the dealership, as well as the number for the owner of the dealership. I plan on calling them both, as well as Chrysler Corporate.

I guess my question is, am I in the wrong in thinking that IF there is a problem with my truck, like this vibration, that they admitted was "not normal", AND the service writer told me that he has seen a lot of trucks in with this isssue, and that the fix is a new one piece driveshaft, why is the fix not covered under warranty? I could be totally off base here, but I don't think I am. I mean, regardless, I won't have them put in the driveshaft, since they gouge you on it... I can buy the driveshaft for around $450 and put it in myself rather than pay them $1100 to do it... Anyway.. needed to get that off my chest. I don't want to mention the name of the dealership yet, until things start to get resolved, but if they don't get resolved, I'll be dragging them through the mud, even though they had been good to me up to this point.

Scott

 

First, the dealership will almost never replace a part that has not failed yet. Why would they?

Second, the service manager told you the real fix, not the Dodge Corporate fix. The warrenty repair is to R&R the bad part. The service manager was kind enough to tell you how to get it repaired, but that the repair will also eventually fail. What you do with that info is up to you.

You can yell at the owner and GM of the dealership until you're blue in the face. But don't ever expect them to cough $1,100 for a one piece drive shaft. Not going to happen.

But, that's just m opinion. I could be wrong.

 

I understand where you are coming from, but it also seems to me that if something is going on with the truck that is not normal according to what the service writer said, there MUST be another fix for it.. not necessarily a whole new driveshaft.. I have owned this truck for 6 years, and it's never vibrated like this, aside from when the carrier bearing went bad the first time. If the carrier bearing is not bad now, then something else is wrong with the truck. My thinking is they just dismissed it as needing a whole new driveshaft, and didn't investigate any further.

 

I would think that if they agree there is a problem, then they should solve the problem, under warranty. I would approach the owner/GM in that way. Sounds like the carrier bearing may be going out again.
I don't think they would put in a one-piece drive shaft because it is not a part that is prescribed for your truck, and so would not be covered by warranty. Having said that, I put in a one-piece 50k miles ago and am happy I did. Also, there are heavier duty options for the carrier bearing. Of course, either of these options would be out of your pocket...

Do you have a lift? Some have been successful shimming the carrier bearing, both with and without a lift.
Any chance those bigger tires are contributing to the vibration?

 

Good question MQ... I don't know.. I have been running bigger tires for a LONG time now, and the tires haven't ever been the issue of the vibration before. I don't have an issue with the dealer just replacing the carrier bearing one more time, but they won't do that either, since it hasn't officially failed. I don't expect them to put in a new 1 piece driveshaft in under warranty... but I would like them to solve this vibe problem.

 

Scott,

I understand your frustration with the warranty they would rather kill someone putting defective parts back on the road and wait for them to fail than to eat a little labor.. Vibration on acceleration / deceleration 99% of the time is bearing and or slip yoke related. The carrier bearing going out put undue strain on the u-joints and slip yoke.

Set the parking brake(chalk the wheels for added safety), put the truck in neutral and get under there and check things out..
Shake the u-joints slip yokes ect. make sure the companion flanges at the differential are tight as well..

I'll bet you a buck it is a u-joint going bad.. is lake arrowhead in the mtns. and do they use road salts? That is notoriously bad on anything metal especial if it moves..

 

Colo_River_Ram, They actually use cinders and not salts in the winter... I had all the ujoints checked, and one replaced recently that was going bad... I had them check the rest of the joints, and according to them, they were all fine... I think I will do what you say and check them on my own as well.

 

That being said, I read over the warranty last night, and it looks as though Ujoints should be covered under warranty up to 70k as well.. so why would they NOT check that while the truck was at the dealer?

 

U-joints can be tricky they may feel tight but the bearings can be dry. when one goes it is a safe bet that they all need replaced.

 

I did have the rear one at the pumpkin go south... Wondering if others did as well.. Makes me wonder if I should take it BACK to the dealer and have the joints inspected, since they SHOULD be covered under warranty..

 

Scott,

Depending on how the vehicle was checked over they may have missed a thing or two.. If they used a frame hoist that allows the springs to extend to the end of the shocks, this will allow sip yokes to retract to a non worn area.

If you don't' have a creeper use some cardboard or park it on the grass and crawl under there and check it out. won't take but a minute or two..

 

I checked it out, and there is no slop in the driveshaft. Ujoints all look fine and operate as needed..
Hmmmm

 

Wouldn't it be hard to tell if any or all of the joints were dry and tight with the shaft installed in the truck? You might be getting some cumulative vibration from a couple of joints binding without enough wear on them to be able to shuck them. Nonetheless, I've seen a few joints that you have to pry with a pretty good sized bar to get them to shuck even when they are severely worn, there's a lot of weight in that driveshaft which is often coupled with a little applied torque, even at rest.

 

I would replace all the driveline u-joints. your truck is about 6 years old and one joint has already failed, just do it so you can have another 6 years of worry free service. If it wasn't vibrating before, then it should be able to be fixed with the factory driveline. The dealership has already made their decision, so they probably wont do anything else unless you allow them to gig you for 1100 bucks...
I would not let the dealership do the work, nor would I use dealership parts. Purchase a set of Spicer heavy duty u-joints that have grease zerks. I'm sure there are other quality brands, Spicer is just the one I know of. Stay away from anything NOT made in the U.S., any find some that have grease zerks.
Forget your warranty, they are only somewhat useful for a major failure. For the most part, dealerships are becoming a bad joke anymore... I gave up on my local dealership due to their inability to tie their own shoes..
Good luck...

 

I don't think I'd write the dealer and the warranty off just yet. The Service Manager will have a lot of leeway with whether to replace his u-joints or not and the shop gets paid if Scott persuades them to do the work.

I think that I'd bring some coffee and donuts or something over to the SM, extend the olive branch if you will, and see if some sort of agreement couldn't be reached. I think that if Scott or any customer stomps around it immediately makes the shop people defensive and less likely to do anything. Irate behavior by a customer also tends to reinforce that there won't be any relationship going forward, ie; no customer paid for repairs. Even if this is true there is no point in showing your hand while you still have a warranty in effect, who knows what else he may need coverage for and there is probably no benefit in making the shop feel like they have already lost the customer.

If all that fails and he does the joints himself and the problem is cured, then he can take that up with the Dodge district guys and the dealership owner/manager. He might as well try to save himself a buck and a few hours work before he adopts the scorched earth mentality.