CharlesD
Expert Expediter
I'll try to make a long story blessedly shorter if I can. I'm here in Orlando. I was idling in a parking lot yesterday afternoon when I heard a noise in the engine and then the AC started blowing warm air. Then when I went to drive, the steering was really stiff. It appeared that the battery was losing juice and when I popped the hood, it looked like a belt had broken.
So I called Chrysler roadside assistance and asked for a tow to the dealer. Now of course Dodge dealers never have Sprinter techs in on weekends, so I figured on getting it fixed and running today. How long can it take to replace a belt, right? That's when the fun started. The wrecker showed up to tow me and the darn thing couldn't handle the Sprinter. The guy said, "They told me I was towing a van. I didn't expect one this big." He had to call back in and they had to send another truck out with one of those dollies that they put under your back wheels. Finally, seven hours later, the vehicle is hooked up to the wrecker and we're heading to the dealer. They dropped me in the front of the lot and took off. By then it's after midnight and the dealer opens at 7:30.
Luckily it was cool enough last night and sleeping with no power wasn't a hardship. I crawled into the sleeper and set the alarm on my cell phone for 7:00. A knock on my window woke me at 6:10. Some of the service techs were in early. Allright, good deal. They'll get it done quicker. I take the computer into the waiting area, plug it in, and start hoping I can find an afternoon pickup. Then the guy comes back in around 7:30 and tells me that two belts broke, the serpentine belt and some other belt that they don't have in stock. It's going to be tomorrow morning before they can get the part in and they should have me rolling by noon. He also tells me it's going to cost me $300. That part didn't make much sense because I have an extensive service contract with Chrysler that's good for 250,000 miles and I only have 146,000 on it at the moment.
I go to the van and grab enough things to keep myself occupied and come back to the waiting area where there is already someone there from Enterprise to pick me up and take me to get my rental. I ask the guy if they have any vans and he says they do, but nothing as big as what I have. So I figured I'd get some 3/4 ton thing and maybe I can do some intrastate freight for a day. I get to Enterprise and they give me a minivan. I asked for a van, not some kid taxi with three rows of seats. I specifically told the guy at Enterprise that if I could find any freight that will fit in it I was going to haul it and he said that's ok, as long as I don't leave the state. Great, so if I find a small package going up to Georgia, I can't take it?
I leave Enterprise in my kid taxi and pick up a 12 volt inverter that will run my computer and I go hit a parking lot to see if I can get lucky and grab a mini that's not bigger than a large box. Nothing going. I get some lunch and then the phone rings. It's the dealer. Now he's telling me that when one of the belts broke, it got sucked up into some other part of the engine and did $1500 worth of damage, which also is not covered on my service contract. I told him not to do anything until he heard back from me and I called Chrysler. At this point, I'm not the most cordial person to deal with, and I'm normally as meek as a lamb. After getting transferred three times I finally get a person on the phone who actually speaks and understands English, and apparently the first person able to read it as well. It turns out that not only are all those belts covered on my contract, but also any subsequent damage that resulted from the belt having broken. I asked him to call the dealer and relay that information, which he did. A couple minutes later I get a call from a very penitent service rep at the dealer telling me that he just "found" in my contract where that work is indeed covered and it won't cost me a thing. He is acting like he is giving me such great news, when in reality he only "found" that information because someone from Chrysler had to call him with it.
So now I'm getting all the work done for no money out of my pocket, but it might take a couple days longer because of some other part that has to be ordered. A few phone calls verified that the other part is not in stock at any local auto parts places either. So it would appear that I have at least a couple more days to enjoy sunny Orlando, but without the use of a vehicle that can handle any reasonable amount of freight. Oh joy. But at least I'm not going to be paying $1500 to the dealer for work that is covered in the first place.
So I called Chrysler roadside assistance and asked for a tow to the dealer. Now of course Dodge dealers never have Sprinter techs in on weekends, so I figured on getting it fixed and running today. How long can it take to replace a belt, right? That's when the fun started. The wrecker showed up to tow me and the darn thing couldn't handle the Sprinter. The guy said, "They told me I was towing a van. I didn't expect one this big." He had to call back in and they had to send another truck out with one of those dollies that they put under your back wheels. Finally, seven hours later, the vehicle is hooked up to the wrecker and we're heading to the dealer. They dropped me in the front of the lot and took off. By then it's after midnight and the dealer opens at 7:30.
Luckily it was cool enough last night and sleeping with no power wasn't a hardship. I crawled into the sleeper and set the alarm on my cell phone for 7:00. A knock on my window woke me at 6:10. Some of the service techs were in early. Allright, good deal. They'll get it done quicker. I take the computer into the waiting area, plug it in, and start hoping I can find an afternoon pickup. Then the guy comes back in around 7:30 and tells me that two belts broke, the serpentine belt and some other belt that they don't have in stock. It's going to be tomorrow morning before they can get the part in and they should have me rolling by noon. He also tells me it's going to cost me $300. That part didn't make much sense because I have an extensive service contract with Chrysler that's good for 250,000 miles and I only have 146,000 on it at the moment.
I go to the van and grab enough things to keep myself occupied and come back to the waiting area where there is already someone there from Enterprise to pick me up and take me to get my rental. I ask the guy if they have any vans and he says they do, but nothing as big as what I have. So I figured I'd get some 3/4 ton thing and maybe I can do some intrastate freight for a day. I get to Enterprise and they give me a minivan. I asked for a van, not some kid taxi with three rows of seats. I specifically told the guy at Enterprise that if I could find any freight that will fit in it I was going to haul it and he said that's ok, as long as I don't leave the state. Great, so if I find a small package going up to Georgia, I can't take it?
I leave Enterprise in my kid taxi and pick up a 12 volt inverter that will run my computer and I go hit a parking lot to see if I can get lucky and grab a mini that's not bigger than a large box. Nothing going. I get some lunch and then the phone rings. It's the dealer. Now he's telling me that when one of the belts broke, it got sucked up into some other part of the engine and did $1500 worth of damage, which also is not covered on my service contract. I told him not to do anything until he heard back from me and I called Chrysler. At this point, I'm not the most cordial person to deal with, and I'm normally as meek as a lamb. After getting transferred three times I finally get a person on the phone who actually speaks and understands English, and apparently the first person able to read it as well. It turns out that not only are all those belts covered on my contract, but also any subsequent damage that resulted from the belt having broken. I asked him to call the dealer and relay that information, which he did. A couple minutes later I get a call from a very penitent service rep at the dealer telling me that he just "found" in my contract where that work is indeed covered and it won't cost me a thing. He is acting like he is giving me such great news, when in reality he only "found" that information because someone from Chrysler had to call him with it.
So now I'm getting all the work done for no money out of my pocket, but it might take a couple days longer because of some other part that has to be ordered. A few phone calls verified that the other part is not in stock at any local auto parts places either. So it would appear that I have at least a couple more days to enjoy sunny Orlando, but without the use of a vehicle that can handle any reasonable amount of freight. Oh joy. But at least I'm not going to be paying $1500 to the dealer for work that is covered in the first place.
