Beware the 36000 mile mark!

[GerryS]

Yikes. I feel that the dealer had every right to not only deny your claim, you should have paid every little bit of it out of pocket.

Here is why:

1. It’s a wear and tear item…like tires, and an oil change. It’s not suppose to last…and 3 years in this day and age with all of the extra features, is a decent number. Due to this, I bought a trickle storage charger for my battery, so I can recharge it any time I want… so far it’s great for my Charger after 5+ years. I’m still going to replace the battery at some point..it doesn’t last forever.

Show me where in the warranty it’s listed as a wear item like tires and oil. I’ve been around long enough to know how long batteries last. I’ve read on this forum that there were a bunch of defective batteries installed around the time my truck was built. So many that they had to change manufactures. Don’t know if mine was one of the bad ones or not
Oh, and I have 4 or 5 C-Tek trickle chargers for my vehicles

2. Did you leave on any interior lights on….and electrical Add-ones (like fog lights, dash cam, aux comments that can draw power from the engine when it’s off)? Dealer doesn’t know this because all you could have done is turn off the light that was on. You just complained about battery issues, where it could be another electrical issue that they were investigating. You didn’t give them the time of day.

Nothing was left on. Battery was dead (8volts) when I got home from vacation. I put the charger on it all night. In the morning I measured about 13.5v with the charger on. I took the charger off and tried to start. No go and the battery was then measured at 10 volts.

3. Did you even find out what the engine code was? Maybe you have a bigger issue, however “2 hours” isn’t good enough for you to look at other things besides the battery that can have an electrical drain. I would have asked what was that code, but you where extremely focus on only the battery.

I do not know what the code was. I assumed it was tied to a dead battery which I feel is a reasonable assumption. Two hours is an extremely long time to read codes and diagnose a dead battery. However, I’m sure they had other work to do and like everywhere else, a shortage of techs. I understand that they most likely didn’t have a tech waiting in the wings to jump on my truck.

4. While investigating your battery and the “check engine” light that they cleared because you didn’t give them the time to explain that, they also did a TSB on your truck with the floor matt. Another thing they didn’t have to do, but since it was there, they took care for you.

Well, they didn’t take the time to explain the codes, so I can assume it was because of the dead battery. Otherwise they would have said something, right?
They didn’t have to do the floor mat? Really?
The floor mat was replaced because of a recall. Most likely they had to do it

Look…I know stealerships have a bad name. I even bet some of that even comes from p!ssed off clients that complained about every little thing. Not all of them are like that, and some folks have a legit reason to be upset, however, I don’t think this one is something to be ticked off about.

2022 Big Horn Back Country
6/14…order placed
6/24…D status and Vin

2016 Dodge Charger scat pack and my wife 2021 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sahara

I’m not as ticked off as you seem to think, but thank you for your constructive post.
Gerry

 

[wallyuwl]

Ok, I guess I was going by these pages in my warranty.
View attachment 104961View attachment 104962
And yeah, I should have mentioned the mileage on the phone. Unfortunately I didn’t notice until after I jump started and started driving. I thought the picture was enough.
Gerry

I have been trying to determine if alignment is covered at all. Thx for posting these.

 

[Mister 4x4]

You got them to cover the battery so be happy with that. They didnt have to cover the battery and could've easily charged you for everything. You got "lucky" with a stock battery. Being its a 3 year old battery they dont usually hold up well to sitting unused for weeks at a time. Believe it or not you probably could gotten longer out of it if you drove the truck more. My suggestion would be to chill out about it and go have yourself a beer because the next time it's your dime that will cover the $300.

Sad thing is, the way things are going, by the time he needs a new battery, even they El Cheapo auto parts store house brand batteries will be pushing that $300 mark. I can certainly see the logic behind having it warrantied, if possible - ain't nothin' wrong with getting it for the best price possible ($0, in this case).

 

[Rlaf75]

Sad thing is, the way things are going, by the time he needs a new battery, even they El Cheapo auto parts store house brand batteries will be pushing that $300 mark. I can certainly see the logic behind having it warrantied, if possible - ain't nothin' wrong with getting it for the best price possible ($0, in this case).

I agree. He got it covered under warranty so he's good. No need for him to ***** about it. He'll be on the hook for the next battery. Nine times out of ten if you go in with guns blazing they will not budge. The old saying is, you catch more flies with honey.

 

[GerryS]

You got them to cover the battery so be happy with that. They didnt have to cover the battery and could've easily charged you for everything. You got "lucky" with a stock battery. Being its a 3 year old battery they dont usually hold up well to sitting unused for weeks at a time. Believe it or not you probably could gotten longer out of it if you drove the truck more. My suggestion would be to chill out about it and go have yourself a beer because the next time it's your dime that will cover the $300.

I got lucky with the stock battery?
I don’t see where you come up with it being a three year old battery. By my math it lasted just over two years from my delivery date.
I live in northern Illinois where it’s not nearly as hot as southern Arizona.
I would reasonably expect the battery to last longer than mine did unless it was defective.

Drive the truck more, you say. Well, I’ve got 36000 miles on it in just over two years. How much more would you suggest I drive it?

The truck doesn’t sit for weeks at a time, it was a week and a half while on vacation.

Cheers!
Gerry

 

[LaxDfns15]

All of you saying he's lucky he got it covered, it's a warranty item. 24 months from install date or covered under the 3 year/36k bumper to bumper, whichever is more favorable to the customer. I literally posted the warranty further up in the thread. So now, if the NEW battery fails within 24 months from installation, guess what? He gets another one for free! If those of you saying he should have just eaten the $200-300 cost for a non-OEM battery have that much cash to burn, I'll PM you my Venmo.

 

[Rlaf75]

I got lucky with the stock battery?
I don’t see where you come up with it being a three year old battery. By my math it lasted just over two years from my delivery date.
I live in northern Illinois where it’s not nearly as hot as southern Arizona.
I would reasonably expect the battery to last longer than mine did unless it was defective.

Drive the truck more, you say. Well, I’ve got 36000 miles on it in just over two years. How much more would you suggest I drive it?

The truck doesn’t sit for weeks at a time, it was a week and a half while on vacation.

Cheers!
Gerry

You got the battery covered under warranty right? Quit bitching about it. You know right well that if you have multiple quantities of the exact same item they will all fail at different times. I couldnt care any less why it was sitting for a week and a half but that did absolutely nothing good for the battery as it will drain fast with all of the draws on the electrical system and the older the item the worse it gets. The vehicle computers stay energized to maintain memory for various systems in the vehicle. If the alternator does not spin it will not rejuvenate that power loss.

 

[Mister 4x4]

All of you saying he's lucky he got it covered, it's a warranty item. 24 months from install date or covered under the 3 year/36k bumper to bumper, whichever is more favorable to the customer. I literally posted the warranty further up in the thread. So now, if the NEW battery fails within 24 months from installation, guess what? He gets another one for free! If those of you saying he should have just eaten the $200-300 cost for a non-OEM battery have that much cash to burn, I'll PM you my Venmo.

I was actually saying that I'm glad he got it covered - I don't have any faith in stealerships to honor anything that's in the customer's favor. That's the hard way to do it, and the stealership sounds kind of sketchy (or at least jerks, all things considered), but Hey - it worked... and I'm of the firm belief: "If it works even once, it's worth it."

My logic for simply getting a new non-OEM battery is two-fold: You don't wind up with a crap Mopar battery, which may or may not be covered going forward... and you'll get a warranty from the place it's purchased (keep your receipt). Swapping it out is too easy, and most definitely isn't worth the time it takes or the hourly rate [at minimum] the stealership charges (therefore, I do it myself).

 

[IvoryHemi]

I agree that 36k on the stock battery is lucky.

Mine only lasted 26k and then basically told me that the truck was going into self-destruct mode...

 

[ldoh]

Also, it doesn't hurt to occasionally check the battery water level.

 

[Rlaf75]

Also, it doesn't hurt to occasionally check the battery water level.

Most batteries are sealed so you cant check them. Some have a small "sight glass" that can assist in telling the health of the battery

 

[Mountain Whiskey]

Battery was dead after sitting in the garage for a week and a half. I called the dealer to see if they had a battery and if they were open. Yes to both so I jump started the truck and drove to the dealer. On the way the odometer rolled over 36k.
At the dealer I said I hope it’s covered since I’m at 3601 miles.
“Oh, that’s a problem, let me check with the manager”
He checks with the manager and comes back with, “The battery is only covered for 12 months/ 12000 miles”
Really?
As they are testing the battery and getting ready to charge me $290 for a new battery, I look over my warranty and argue with the manager. He says he will call and see what he can do.
Service writer comes back with “We are covering the battery, but there is still $50 for diagnosing and clearing codes”
By now I’ve been there for about two hours and getting impatient,so I bark out “REALLY!?” “Fine, just get me out of here!”
He comes back and says “No charge, I took took care of it personally”.
He said it as if he paid for it out of his own pocket.
Well, I got the battery covered, but I had to fight for it.
View attachment 104949
Here’s the mileage going to the dealer with the engine light on. I should have parked it and let them tow it from there. View attachment 104950Here is the mileage in at 36001. Notice that it was covered as a one time only goodwill policy and not under warranty.

Is that custom green powder crud finish on your interior covered by the warranty too?

 

[GerryS]

All of you saying he's lucky he got it covered, it's a warranty item. So now, if the NEW battery fails within 24 months from installation, guess what? He gets another one for free!

My logic for simply getting a new non-OEM battery is two-fold: You don't wind up with a crap Mopar battery, which may or may not be covered going forward...

At the time, I was not aware that the oem batteries are junk. In my last four vehicles, the original batteries lasted 4-6 years and the replacements barely made it through the warranty period.
If this new battery dies quickly, then that will be two strikes and I’ll get an aftermarket battery.
If it lasts a long time, then that’s great.
Cheers!
Gerry

 

[GerryS]

I agree that 36k on the stock battery is lucky.

Mine only lasted 26k and then basically told me that the truck was going into self-destruct mode..

Did you get an aftermarket battery or a warranty replacement?

Gerry

 

[IvoryHemi]

Did you get an aftermarket battery or a warranty replacement?

Gerry

Aftermarket.. went Duralast Platinum

 

[Mister 4x4]

At the time, I was not aware that the oem batteries are junk. In my last four vehicles, the original batteries lasted 4-6 years and the replacements barely made it through the warranty period.
If this new battery dies quickly, then that will be two strikes and I’ll get an aftermarket battery.
If it lasts a long time, then that’s great.
Cheers!
Gerry

One of my BFF mechanic friends told me it's unusual to get more than 3 years out of an OEM battery, to which most of the folks I've known over the years have more or less confirmed that. But then again, it's Hot AF in West Texas for 8-9 months out of the year, which tends to kill all batteries before their expected service life due to evaporation.

I hope yours lasts as long as possible, as they're not getting any cheaper no matter whose label is on the lid.

 

[ddharris]

I owe 50 bucks on a consumable! “ just get me outta here!”

 

[dwalme]

Your warranty is up after 36,000 miles since you bought it new from the dealer. You sign a mileage disclosure when you sign your paperwork.

My truck had 46 miles on it so my warranty is good until 36,046. But I need to keep the paperwork to prove it.

I drive past Sterling Heights assembly every day. Every RAM will have (at least) more than 1 mile on them before they get to the dealership. Many of them are individually driven down Mound Rd several miles to a staging lot in Detroit.

So technically you still had warranty if you have your original paperwork and with being 1 mile over 36k the dealer knows you were still covered anyway.

 

[Lungs414]

I for one are glad you started this thread. I personally look at it differently, I would use this if I run into the same situation. No way would I pay for this, and I back you telling your experience. You had no choice but to fight for your rights to be covered under warranty. Its outrageous to that some think you are bitching. Just because you can pay why should you, and why shouldn't you fight for it. You never should have had to fight for it.
I just don't understand some who like to spend other peoples money.
But that's just me.

 

[Mister 4x4]

Your warranty is up after 36,000 miles since you bought it new from the dealer. You sign a mileage disclosure when you sign your paperwork.

My truck had 46 miles on it so my warranty is good until 36,046. But I need to keep the paperwork to prove it.

I drive past Sterling Heights assembly every day. Every RAM will have (at least) more than 1 mile on them before they get to the dealership. Many of them are individually driven down Mound Rd several miles to a staging lot in Detroit.

So technically you still had warranty if you have your original paperwork and with being 1 mile over 36k the dealer knows you were still covered anyway.

That's a very good point, and one that's lost on buyer more often than not - I'm sure when the stealership writes everything up, they fail to mention that the warranty period is to start from the current mileage, and not zero, intentionally. If people don't realize this little detail, then they'll simply not take advantage of the 'extra' miles left in their warranty window when they hit 36K, and Mopar 'saves' money, thus increasing profit. The unfair and underhanded part by the stealership(s) is when they tout that the warranty window is from zero miles and won't honor it based off the mileage noted during the purchase contract - that's dishonest - whether by corporate or local policy, but it goes unchecked because people don't bother to check their paperwork.

Thank you for the reminder!