Date: Tue, 20 Jul 2004 15:11:51 -0500
Reply-To: Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stan Wilder <wilden1-1@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Subject: Re: CV Joint failure - New or Rebuilt?
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Here is how NAPA handled my lifetime warranty on a NEW GM Air Conditioner
Compressor:
1) $330.00 for the compressor
2) Returned the whole car the next day to let them evaluate the compressor
.............. they said it was bad.
3) I removed the compressor and placed it on their pasrts counter.
4) I had the option of buying another compressor or waiting for the rebuild
factory to validate my warranty and could get the replacement compressor
with their validation.
5) After much hagling I got the compressor that same day and since I paid to
have the first unit installed and charged the compressor MFG was supposed to
repay me for those expenses. (They said if the MFG refused the warranty
they'd be charging my credit card with it.)
6) After a 6 month wait and 60 phone calls to the local NAPA store I sent a
certifioed letter to NAPA home office with copies of all my documentation
and they decided they didn't want a small claims lawsuit for the few hundred
$ involved.
7) I finally got 1/2 of the install and freeon expenses back at about the 12
month mark from my purchase date.
8) If you buy anything with a warranty and you'll be needing the receipt I'd
suggest that you Xerox the receipt when it's new, put the receipt and the
Xerox copy in a brown envelope and keep it in a drawer out of anykind of
light. That's because the carbon fades out within a week and you just have a
pice of colored or blank paper with some minor hint that something had ever
been printe there. My Sams club receipts for batteries on a half doven cars
all faded out because I had them loose in the glove boxes and I missed out
on my warranties for a full three year battery cycle on several faulty
batteries. (Champion batteries only last about 2 years on any battery no
matter if it's a 24 month or a 60 month warranty thery have all failed at
short of 2 years for me).
9) If you expect a warranty try stapling a copy of the warranty to your
receipt so you'll have documentation.
10) The automotive rebuilders are now multi-national and world wide. Your
rebuilt part could have been rebuilt anywhere in the world and through a
series of shipments arrived with the wrong country of manufacture on it.
Stan Wilder
www.engineceramics.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Scott Walker" <swalker72@KNOLOGY.NET>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Tuesday, July 20, 2004 1:25 PM
Subject: Re: CV Joint failure - New or Rebuilt?
> It seems like there are two main schools of thought on this among owners
who
> keep their vans for many years/miles:
>
> School 1: The owner demands only the highest quality parts available and
> often has a severe case of paranoid maintenance syndrome. This owner buys
> OEM new CV's and fastidiously cleans them and repacks them.
>
> School 2: The owner uses OEM new parts for some things, and re-built or
> used parts elsewhere. Economy and safety rate higher than authenticity.
> This owner buys re-built driveshafts once at the local FLAPS and takes
full
> advantage of the limited lifetime warranty by doing no maintenance and
> replacing when they wear/fail.
>
> just one man's opinion
>
> Scott
> Augusta, GA
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jim Kennedy" <JK@PROJECTDESIGN.COM>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 20, 2004 2:00 PM
> Subject: Re: CV Joint failure - New or Rebuilt?
>
>
> > I recently tried remanufactured CVs in my '87 and it was a nightmare.
> I'll
> > spare the details (quality issues). As we know, swapping CV's is not
too
> > much fun. Buy new. This is money well spent.
> >
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