Misbuilt Vehicle - Opinions Appreciated

[RMO]

I'll try to keep this short. About two months ago I purchased a new 2023 limited longhorn 1500 and a couple weeks later I found that the fans/blowers for the rear ventilated seats would not turn on. I scheduled a dealer appointment and it turns out the necessary wires to the rear seats are missing, i.e., the truck was built with the wrong body wiring harness. The dealer said they would need to consult with the Ram engineers so I took the truck home. About a week later I was informed that the engineers instructed the dealer technician to start tearing the interior out and taking pictures so they can provide further direction. The dealer expected it would take 2 to 3 weeks and they will not provide a loaner vehicle, so I would need to pay for a rental out of pocket. I have no idea why they can't just confirm the wiring harness is wrong and order it in advance, but apparently they are required to follow the engineers' directions.

Replacing the body wiring harness basically requires removal of the entire interior of the vehicle and, due to prior bad experiences with damage caused during warranty work, I am really not comfortable with having the interior ripped out of a brand new truck and reinstalled. The dealer said they would try their best, but they can't guarantee everything will still look and fit like new. I was not thrilled with this proposed solution, so I opened a case with RAM Customer Care and told them I just wanted reasonable monetary reimbursement since I did not receive what I paid for. The case manager said he had to speak with his supervisor and I would hear back the following week. After almost a month of unreturned calls I received an email stating that my only option was to take the truck to a dealer and afterward I could submit a request for rental reimbursement. The rental reimbursement is limited to $40 dollars per day and they will not guarantee in advance that it will be approved.

Am I simply being unreasonable to worry about damage and future wiring issues if the vehicle interior is taken out and reinstalled? Obviously there is wear and tear over time, but this is a very expensive new truck and I want to be the one that causes it. Has anybody ever obtained compensation for not receiving what was listed on the window sticker? Should I just live with the seat functions not working? Any opinions are appreciated.

 

[JJRamTX]

That would **** me off! I would say that the sticker didn't match the vehicle and it was a fraudulent sale. Way not cool and I don't think you are being unreasonable. You didn't get what you paid for or was advertised on the sticker.

 

[TheWaterman83]

This sounds like something that should be lemon'd. I'd be looking to have the truck replaced with what you wanted, free of charge. Or at the very least go through the entire lemon law process.

 

[Dustin_Tarditi]

Your concerns are valid, but they are making just enough effort to not (yet) warrant a buy-back. Check your lemon law regulations in your state.
You can certainly press for full rental reimbursement or use of a demo while they rip apart your truck... putting it back together is on them, but may cause more frustration. Really, most dealers would likely just sell back the the factory and get you into something else - this must be a ton of bookable hours for their service dept.

Best of luck.

 

[JoyBoy]

Sorry this has happened to you OP. Hopefully it turns out favorable for you.

 

[John Jensen]

Time to get a lawyer

 

[HSKR R/T]

As mentioned, check your states lemon laws, or consult a lemon law attorney. Most states have 3 attempts to fix same issue, or a set amount of time the vehicle is allowed to be at dealer wlfor work. And 3 weeks at once is probably pretty close to hat in most states.

Escalate the issue to higher ups at dealership and regional manager. Don't rely on Ramcares to do much other than assist with the repairs. When I had to get a buy back on a previous vehicle, as soon as I mentioned lemon law the dealer had the regional rep contact me, and we worked out a buy back from Dodge with full reimbursement for any expenses incurred, such as sales tax, registration, and any aftermarket parts I had installed.

 

[RMO]

I really appreciate the feedback. It is reassuring to hear that others find my concerns are not completely unreasonable.

The state lemon law requires either four unsuccessful attempts at repair or 30 business days (effectively 6 weeks) out of service, so I do not foresee that threshold ever being reached.

I finally got the assigned case manager on the phone and he said all that customer care can do is help with arranging warranty work. Apparently it took almost a month for them to reach that conclusion. In my opinion a vehicle built wrong from the factory is not a warranty issue and rebuilding a vehicle correctly is not a repair. I agree with the comment that this is more akin to a fraud/breach of contract situation. The case manager also claims they are not allowed to provide information for any other contacts or departments, so customer care is pretty much a dead end. I will have to do some internet research and see if I can find a route to escalate.

 

[dannydyn]

They are playing games with you. Pick up the phone and tell them clear cut: either begin the process of a buyback/full vehicle replacement or I'm taking RAM to court. And it will cost RAM a lot more in court/legal fees + buybacks expenses, than to just buy it back. They are giving you the runarounds. Cut that 5hit immediately! At least that's what I would do.

 

[23RAM]

They are playing games with you. Pick up the phone and tell them clear cut: either begin the process of a buyback/full vehicle replacement or I'm taking RAM to court. And it will cost RAM a lot more in court/legal fees + buybacks expenses, than to just buy it back. They are giving you the runarounds. Cut that 5hit immediately! At least that's what I would do.

I concur...most of the time in situations where you did not receive what you paid for and the seller tries to avoid replacement/reimbursement, you need to threaten legal action to get results. And it usually works - you get results without the hassle of having to get a lawyer.

 

[Cbty2050]

What is missing exactly(if you know)? Does it have rear heated seats that work? Removing seats and checking for proper wiring isn't hard and not invasive at all, if the right person is doing it. The rear seat harness I believe plugs in under the carpet on the driver side. Then it's individual jumper harness for each seat. I assume there are all sorts of codes setting

 

[6of36]

Compensation is never a fair amount. During the pandemic, when they couldn't get parts, they would credit $50, for something missing on higher trims that included something, that the option on lower trims, would be $500. Not actual numbers, but you get the picture. A body harness to the back seat, should only involve removing the driver's seat, a couple trim pieces, and lifting that side of the carpet, not removing entire interior. This isn't even a normal warranty repair, so they should definitely give you a loaner of some kind for that long of a repair.

 

[Dewey]

Too be honest I would live without the rear ventilated seats before allowing them to tear apart the interior. They don’t work that great anyway and being in the backseat you’ll never miss them.

I do think they should compensate you in some way for not having an option you paid for. If they can’t at least do that tell them it’s the last RAM you’ll ever buy. That tends to cause most companies to reconsider and see it your way.

 

[HSKR R/T]

Compensation is never a fair amount. During the pandemic, when they couldn't get parts, they would credit $50, for something missing on higher trims that included something, that the option on lower trims, would be $500. Not actual numbers, but you get the picture. A body harness to the back seat, should only involve removing the driver's seat, a couple trim pieces, and lifting that side of the carpet, not removing entire interior. This isn't even a normal warranty repair, so they should definitely give you a loaner of some kind for that long of a repair.

Loaners are up to each individual dealer. Has nothing to do with warranty or not. RAM will reimburse you for rental cars but you have to pay then submit for reimbursement

 

[Cbty2050]

Loaners are up to each individual dealer. Has nothing to do with warranty or not. RAM will reimburse you for rental cars but you have to pay then submit for reimbursement

Rentals can be billed through the dealer, most dealers have a working relationship with a rental company or own their own vehicles and use as rental fleet or as a loaner. The rental bill is handled and paid by the warranty claim. "Loaners" from dealers are usually vehicles dealers use as rentals and bill warranty for, yet they can also be used to provide customers with transportation for no cost or reduced cost.

 

[RMO]

What is missing exactly(if you know)? Does it have rear heated seats that work? Removing seats and checking for proper wiring isn't hard and not invasive at all, if the right person is doing it. The rear seat harness I believe plugs in under the carpet on the driver side. Then it's individual jumper harness for each seat. I assume there are all sorts of codes setting

The rear seats have all necessary parts and wiring, it is the main body harness that goes throughout the entire vehicle that is missing wires. The wires for the heat function are present so it appears the factory accidentally installed the harness for a Laramie or Bighorn.

 

[RMO]

I concur...most of the time in situations where you did not receive what you paid for and the seller tries to avoid replacement/reimbursement, you need to threaten legal action to get results. And it usually works - you get results without the hassle of having to get a lawyer.

The difficult part is getting to the right level of person in the organization where such a threat can incentivize action.

 

[Cbty2050]

The rear seats have all necessary parts and wiring, it is the main body harness that goes throughout the entire vehicle that is missing wires. The wires for the heat function are present so it appears the factory accidentally installed the harness for a Laramie or Bighorn.

There are reports of missing wires on multiple trucks. If that is in our shop, you get 2 options, replace complete harness or let us run new wires from the rear seat to the module. Your choice, one requires complete gut of the truck, other is remove seats and lift carpet.

 

[Jimmy07]

I’ve seen pictures and verified OP is definitely missing the wires for the ventilated functions on just the body harness. Everything else is present.
This wouldn’t fall under any lemon law claims, or lawyering up like everyone on here with pitchforks is suggesting, because they have not even been given the chance by the OP for the dealership to remedy the situation under warranty (doesn’t like the fact that no loaner will be available, and that the interior has to come out to replace with the correct body harness).
Like @Cbty2050 said, they can either replace the body harness, or they can overlay in the three missing wires.
But to think that the entire truck should be replaced because the wrong plug n play body harness was installed at the factory is absurd. That is one of the very reasons for the use of the factory bumper to bumper warranty.
It’s also hard to ask for a refund for the missing feature because it’s hard to put a value on it since it’s bundles in with a package, and all the rest of the feature is present on the truck except for the correct body harness. The difference in price for the body harness that has the rear ventilated wires vs one that doesn’t is a few dollars.

 

[RMO]

I’ve seen pictures and verified OP is definitely missing the wires for the ventilated functions on just the body harness. Everything else is present.
This wouldn’t fall under any lemon law claims, or lawyering up like everyone on here with pitchforks is suggesting, because they have not even been given the chance by the OP for the dealership to remedy the situation under warranty (doesn’t like the fact that no loaner will be available, and that the interior has to come out to replace with the correct body harness).
Like @Cbty2050 said, they can either replace the body harness, or they can overlay in the three missing wires.
But to think that the entire truck should be replaced because the wrong plug n play body harness was installed at the factory is absurd. That is one of the very reasons for the use of the factory bumper to bumper warranty.
It’s also hard to ask for a refund for the missing feature because it’s hard to put a value on it since it’s bundles in with a package, and all the rest of the feature is present on the truck except for the correct body harness. The difference in price for the body harness that has the rear ventilated wires vs one that doesn’t is a few dollars.

I believe compensation could reasonably be valued at the cost of the correct wiring harness plus the cost of labor for installation. Obviously they would want a waiver of any future right to have the issue corrected. Just to be fair to those suggesting replacement with a new vehicle, I was actually told off the record by someone in a Ram dealership service department that since the vehicle was misbuilt from the factory I should push for total replacement. That person has way more experience with these matters than I do, but I am extremely skeptical about it ever happening.

I really don't see how this would be a warranty issue. For one thing, the warranty is expressly limited to "repair" of "any item on your vehicle when it left the manufacturing plant that is defective." The installed wires function as intended and are not defective. Adding items that were missing from the manufacturing plant is different than repair of existing items. Furthermore, even if I had already put 36,000 miles on the truck I would still have a handful of valid legal claims, subject only to the time limits of the applicable statutes of limitations. If it were a warranty issue, such as already existing wires failing, I would be SOL after 36,000 miles.