3.3 and 3.8 V6's, MUST READ FOR ALL!

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krabysniper

Guest
Hey all of you guys and gals that own a mopar product with a 3.3L or a 3.8L (sales codes EGA, EGB,EGH,EGM,EGP)
1993-2003, Intrepid, Concorde,Vision, Town & Country, Caravan, Voyager

If your camshaft breaks in half (YES THIS REALLY DOES HAPPEN) and it has to be replaced, they are supposed to inspect the bearings for wear or damage. Problem is that if the cam breaks, the bearings already have what????? ANYBODY?????

THATS RIGHT, they have wear. PERIOD.

What is the proper fix for worn or damaged bearings in these engines???? ANYBODY????

REPLACE THE SHORT BLOCK.

Every dealership I have talked to and every ASE certified mechanic that has had to deal with one of these has told me the same thing, replace the short block!

EXCEPT FOR MUSCATEL Dodge JEEP, in Moorhead Mn.
www.muscatell.com for any one who would like to send them bash mail for their crappy service to their customers.

Took my van to them last Sept. would chug and sputter and ran like ****. I knew walking in the door what the problem was (anybody read some of my other posts knows I DO RESEARCH FIRST when dealing with large chunks of cash.) They take it and say ok we will look at your van that made noise and dosn't run well. Whatever. Call me latter that day, Mister K, your van has a broken cam shaft (DUHHHHH!), we'll have to replace that and it will be a few days. I say "Replace it? You mean the engine short block as is stated IN THE TSB, right?" Oh no, are mechanic has looked it over and it will be fine with a new cam and lifters." "I say BULL ****!" I inform their service rep that they WILL install a new engine or they will be in deep cow dung! I talk to Ward Muscatel on the phone personaly (he be the owner of course really has NO clue what really goes on with the vehicles)I state to him how would he feel if someone said they wernt going to repair your vehicle the WAY THE MANUFACTURER SAY'S IT MUST BE DONE, and that my wife and kids could become stranded and their lives placed in danger with this band aided vehicle (It gets down to 45 to 55 degrees below zero in the winter up here, if you in the boonies when your stuff breaks YOU CAN DIE), I talk to all the service REPS, they all insist that their mech knows his crap blah blah blah, I point out it say's REPLACE THE SHORT BLOCK if ANY cam wear. Now my main reason for getting heated and hot with these jerk offs is because I know what their game is, "we'll do a band aid fix that should get him by till his warranty is expired, we'll bilk the warranty company and this guy {you realize purchased extended warranties are like insurance, you have to pay a deductible} doing a half assed repair, and then we'll kill him with a huge engine replacement bill when he has to come back again because IT WILL FAIL."

So I argue with them, and argue with them and finally (I need my fk'n van back) say ok, I wanted a SEPERATE written statement stating that if this fails again it aint costing me a dime, they give me a signed paper says that they warranty the fix from the repair date for 1 year or 12,000 miles. They make their bandaid fix.

Fast forward to today. My wife leaves to take my daughter to camp, about an hour and 15 minute drive from here, and then was going to return home. I am on the PC doing my typical pc stuff, posting here and at other sites and bookwork for my biz, etc, when my phone rings. GUESS WHAT. YUP, wife calling "The van is chugging and running like crap and can hardly move." I tell her I'll be there shortly. She only made it 30 miles or so.

There is 5000 plus miles yet on their written statement to me regarding their warranty and yet another half month to go, IT JUST BIT THEM IN THE A$$ BIG TIME! Although, they should be glad, had it happened after their little time distance period within a 3 or 4 month period or 10000 miles, I might have ended up going to jail because I would have gone in and beat the ever luvin snot out of the sob's, all of them. As it stands, I WILL BE GETTING A NEW ENGINE. I will contact my attorney, and all the mechs I talked to about this last fall and the manufacturer, and if I can have my way I will get the dealership license pulled, and they are paying for it IN FULL. I AM PISSED! :cussing: :cussing:

Something the dealerships won't tell you about as they are trying to dig every last penny out of your pocket is technical service bulletin's. The TSB number is 09-007-02 Dated Oct. 21, 2002 for anyone who needs it or just wants to read it for themselves, as they copyrighted it or something and claim your not supposed to retransmit copy blah blah blah. SO if you wanna read it in their words get a copy from your local stealership (they will give you copies if you ask, but with a shocked/dumb look on their face because you know about it). It states replace the short block if the cam breaks PERIOD. So don't ever let any dealership jerk you off or cheese out on you, stick it to them theives if at all possible. Don't let them BS you, and research research research a problem before you spend dough to fix it.
 
As the employee of a dealership I must say, You are 1000% correct. They will stick it to you any way they can. Makes me sick.

My dealerships latest scam is with there used cars (wich are over priced to begin with). They put stickers in the window stating the car is equipped with lojack and tell you its not included in the price but you have to buy it for $1500. After you agree they tell you it needs programing and send it to the service department to have the lojack installed.

On the bright side, since they started this scam used cars sales are way down. We have a policy that used cars can not stay on the lot for more then 60 days. After that its off to the auction. Last week 70 out of 100 cars went to auction.
 
Amazing. I wonder how many people they already got away with stickin' it to...
 
I bought a Chrysler Town & Country mini van in 2002 and just traded it in this summer for a 2002 Chrysler Concorde with the 3.5 litre. I hated my mini van the whole time and will not ever get another one. Only 19 mpg, not very powerfull, had to down shift out of OD every hill. Now that I hear this about the engine I am even happier that I got rid of it. Save the other stuff, I think that sucks that you have to replace the short block just because the cam broke. I will definitely stay away from the 3.3 & 3.8 V6 powered rigs.
That 3.5 in my wifes Concorde is sweet. Last road trip 29 mpg, drove up over a mountain pass in OD with cruise & a/c on. If you need to pass on a two lane road, goes from 60 to 100 in short order. Good car.

Good info Krabysniper
 
I have a 93 Intrepid with a 3.3 in it, but with 197k on it I suppose if it was gonna break it already would have :)

Scott
 
It may have been broke before you ever got it and had a proper repair done to it. If you have that many miles on it and it is still going, your doing well, don't jinx yourself. Will keep ya all informed of the out come.
 
When I was working at the machine shop I did alot of the 3.3's. Another big thing is the heads: they use a rocker shaft setup like the old LA's but one of the pedestools on the alluminum heads snap right off. Sometimes it seams related to the cam breaking but sometimes the head will be broken and the cam will still be one peice.
 
The pick & pull where I go for parts always has a lot of later model cars with 3.3's in them there. Maybe now I know why. I have had experience with 2 cars with 3.5's in them, and other than the water pump to block leakage and timing belts, the 3.5's have been good. Glad I never bit on a car with a 3.3.
 
Hey, I just got off the phone with the service manager. (Side note to this story, Muscatel's dealership, at the location that I had taken the van to last fall and which is where I brought it back to thinking that was where it had to go, had been bought out about 2 weeks ago. So it is no longer Muscatel, it is Corwin Chrysler now, but the same service manager is still working there. Muscatel purchased a different car lot at a different location in town and has/had moved. He is still in buisness as a Dodge dealership.) Anyway, he (the service manager) had called me to tell me that he and all the big wigs and whoever else is involved (I have a feeling there were some calls made to the daimler/crysler warranty crooks, they controlled the money when this was fixed last fall, and were who the Muscatel people claimed had said to only fix the cam shaft because the block wasn't "broke") had just got done with a long meeting this morning about my vehicles problem, and that they (corwin's) are going to fix it, this is in his words "THE WAY THE TSB STATES TO FIX IT", brand new bottom end is on it's way :grin: I say to him "And this IS NOT going to cost me one single penny?" He says "Nope, they are going to fix it NO COST to you (me)".
WOOOOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Now granted, I am a pessimist by nature due to events of my overall life, so I await the return of my van before I call this a closed case (I WILL know if they are jerkin my chain when I get it back, so I truly hope they arn't being dumb enough to lie to me) But as it stands at this moment, I am much happier now. I just really wish a person in this world didn't have to go thru the stress or headache to get something done the RIGHT WAY the FIRST TIME, instead of having to come back and fight them tooth and nail to get it fixed. They would find that the people of the US would tend to stay with a US manufacturer when buying there goods instead of the current trend of thinking "Hey, US companies just screw everybody so to hell with them I'll buy foriegn. It would help keep jobs in this damn country too.

Overall moral to my story, when you have a warranty covered vehicle break down, research the problem before you even bother with the stealership. Go to a difrent dealership and look up TSB's and recall paperwork (not all recalls occur in the form of TV news reports telling you there is a huge safety issue, some are internal manufacturer stuff that tells dealerships "hey if this problem comes in this is a fix we need to do to it) and definatly talk to ASE certified mechanics at several locations, and not just stealerships, to see if it is a problem that happens alot. AND DON'T BACK DOWN WHEN YOU KNOW YOU ARE RIGHT! If you do your research first, you will have "ammo for a legal cannon" to go to court with. My grandfather always said it best (May he rest in peace) in regards to life and machinery "The squeeky wheel gets the grease" no truer words were ever spoken. If the sheeple of this counrty just stand around with their thumbs up their butts not standing up for themselves then nothing will ever happen, but get enough people squakin and stuff will change.

I will update when I get the van back. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! ;)
 
I have been a tech at my Dodge dealership for over 20 years and to be honest I have only seen 3 cars in our shop that ever broke a camshaft. And that is the truth as I am the shop foreman also so I see all jobs that come in our shop. I have seen a few 3.3's that have a cam bearing turn in the block and then they loose oil pressure to the back head. You will usually start to hear the rear head rockers start to actually squeak from no oil. I have also seen them break the rocker arm stand because of this. But in all honesty I see propably at least 10 to 15 Caravan's every day and most never have a problem with that. I had a 92 Caravan with a 3.3 and 185k miles on it and the eng was never apart other then the timing chain I put in it. Now I have the wife in a 2000 Carvan with the 3.3 and it has about 70k miles on it. I actually like the 3.3 as it's not bad to work on and has alot less oil leaks then the 3.0. I hope you get your situation solved and good luck. Ron
 
And as a tech for a dealership for 20 years, you have access to the tsb's. Like I said, you can look it up. Only repair for a broken camshaft in a 3.3 or 3.8 with any significant wear (I consider 88 thousand miles to be wear and a camshaft that has failed is damage) is to replace the short block. As per chryslers own documents. Correct?

What was the fix for the turned cam bearings? What was the repair for the 3 you have seen that broke the cams?

I really would like to hear your thoughts on this as you would be an educated by expierence type of person (I am certain plenty of schooling too) who works for "them" so to speak.

Hope you bought the extended warranty, or I suppose you workin for a dealership you get the VIP treatment and get cut a break on parts or labour?

I highly doubt that they came up with this particular TSB based upon something that only occured rarely. Your shop may not have seen many but the shops around here seem to have seen quite a few from what I have learned.

Personaly I wouldn't have wished this headache on anybody, it is just plain inconvenient, so I truly hope you never have a problem with yours.
 
Hi Kraby,

I was driving past Corwin's (I live near there) yesterday and I was sure I saw your car going the opposite way....if it was...nice looking ride!

Scott
 
No I never buy extended warranty's as I fix all my own cars and like I said I have owned many 3.3's as alot of people I know and none have ever broke a camshaft. Like I also said I have only seen 3 in 20 years so just because some do fail doesn't make the 3.3 a bad eng. Just count how many have never had a problem. The TSB says if the cam bearings show wear signs to replace the shortblock. And when the cam bearings turn 99 % of the time we replace the shortblock as in the long run it's cheaper then a complete overhaul. But this is why I wont help anyone on any boards because so many bad mouth all dealers because they feel they were ripped off and I get so sick of hearing how all dealers are rippoffs. Some are just as in any kind of work but not all. And yet after we get badmouthed I see post where people are asking for dealer techs help. Yea they want my free help but then turn around and call me a ripoff. If they want my profesional help they can pay me 1 hr of diagnosis time. I have worked hard for over 35 years to be the best I can and I know most people could never do my job so I guess I get sick of hearing all this stuff about dealer tech from people who make more then me but could never do my job. I also take great pride to treat all people fair and do a good job. And I get harassed at times by other techs for taking to long on a job I want to do right.

So thats what I see on this side every day. The guy who has an attitude before he walks in the door. You may have gotten ripped of I dont know but please dont judge all dealer techs from what 1 dealer did to you. Ron
 
krabysniper said:
And as a tech for a dealership for 20 years, you have access to the tsb's. Like I said, you can look it up. Only repair for a broken camshaft in a 3.3 or 3.8 with any significant wear (I consider 88 thousand miles to be wear and a camshaft that has failed is damage) is to replace the short block. As per chryslers own documents. Correct?

Not necessarily. Cam bearings typically wear very little in a properly maintained engine, that is why most engine overhaul kits do not include the cam bearings. There would be no reason to expect cam bearings at 88k miles to be worn anywhere near the service limit. Also, depending on how the cam broke there may not be any damage to the bearings or the block.

I have no knowledge of the compentence or business practices of the dealership you took your van to but if the TSB told them to look for wear and damage and a competent mechanic measured the bearings and they were with in their service limits and no damage was detected, replacing just the cam was exactly the right thing to do.

You have to remember if the dealer goes outside the limits of what the factory has authorized them to do they eat the additional cost. It's not resonable to expect them to make repairs based on what you think they should do if it's being done under warranty.
 
383man, As I said, I was interested to hear your viewpoint, was not in anyway bashing you for being a dealer tech.

I am also glad that you work hard to do a good job for a customer, to many dealerships are to worried about maximizing profits as opposed to developing long term customer relationships by making for a happy satisfied customer, seems most have that same attitude towards all customers in that they think the customers have no clue when they come for repairs and have a "bad attitude when they come in the door" which I assure you was not the case the first time I had to go there for this problem, I went in KNOWING what was wrong and what the fix for it was and merely stated what was wrong and what I was aware the fix for it was, they gave attitude and said that they would "figure out what was wrong and and let me know" and then proceeded to do a band aid repair that as the TSB states can lead to failure of the new camshaft. Now I am right, and they are WRONG, and they know it or they wouldn't be fixing it on their dime, simple. Had they fixed as per TSB, I would have no complaints. Of course we know why they don't want the average person who knows little about cars to know about this TSB because they would have lost tons of dough on all those customers that got the same treatment but were s.o.l. when the problem re-occured out side of their warranty coverage, and they knew nothing of the common occurance of this problem.

You state that you have only seen it a few times where you are, but maybe that is a factor of tempeture or fuels or whatever, up here we regularly see -20/-30 degrees in the wintertime, so maybe it is a cold weather problem and thats why they see it more up here. I just don't know, I do know it IS a problem, or they wouldn't have come up with the Technical Service Bulletin for it.

I could have "fixed it myself" also, I do know how to work on vehicles, problem is factory warranties will only pay to dealerships to do the work, so I wouldn't have been able to get the parts or labour costs re-imbursed. I bought extended warranty because I know FROM expierence that used vehicles can and generally do become a mechanical expense costing in the thousands and in the long run I have always been saved money by doing so.

But can you blame a person for getting mad? You pay 15, 20, 30k for a car, a couple k more for extend FACTORY warranty, and you get poor service and treatment when you come in to get a "covered" problem fixed within that warranty period.

Maybe the 3.3 is a better engine, I can't say, mine is the 3.8 and those that I have spoke with on the subject say it's generally the 3.8 they have seen it occur in, but the TSB lists the 3.3 as having the same problem so I made sure to include it in this post.

In regards to "helping others on the boards, why come here and respond at all then? You want to be "paid" for your time, so why bother waisting time replying to my complaint against a dealership who by chryslers own documents failed to do the job correctly? I ain't going to pay you anything, don't think anybody else here will either. The fact that you state "you never buy a warranty because you do your own work." Leads me to believe you get cut a HUGE break on the cost of your parts because "you aint getting paid for your time" by fixing it yourself (are you?) when it could be covered under an extended warranty and be "free" (complete misnomer as you pay a deductible for the factory extended "warranty" each time your in for a repair.)

As to bashing "all dealerships" I did no such thing, re read, I am only complaing about Muscatel, as I stated the other dealerships I talked to all said they would have replaced the short block "BASED ON MILAGE, THE PROBLEM AND WHAT THE TSB STATES IS THE FIX" Of course maybe they were giving lip service as a way of bashing Muscatel's and they may have pulled the same crap, I do not know and will never give them a chance demonstrate to me as I will sell this piece of crap in the next year and buy foriegn, as the japs seem to do a better job of producing a long living low maintanance vehicle then the so called "american companies" do, at least in respect to econo vehicles.

And again, do not take this as a bash on you, I aksed your opinion, you gave, don't be offended by what I think.
 
DGC333, in a V8 engine you are probably correct, but the fact is this vehicle recieved regular maintanance and oil and filter changes, And yet the cam failed twice in 7,000 miles. Sorry, but sounds like a problem with the engine that obviously has been known about by the factory, otherwise they wouldn't have come out with the bulletin on it. Fixing it, in the manor described in the TSB, would not have been outside of the warranty coverage, so there was no reason to not fix it correctly. If my posting this saves ONE person money and headache by either avoiding these vehicles or by at least knowing what they are getting into before hand when they try to get one fixed, I will be happy. Thats why I post to SHARE THE KNOWLEDGE :thumbup:
 
sdolsay, most likely was, by saying you live by Corwins, you mean the old Muscatel's? I do not believe there are ANY other 73 Swingers with the same wheel and rim bombo anywhere in these parts so it is a very huge likely hood it was me. Thanks for the compliment, but really it only looks good at 30/50 (30 mph at 50 feet, LOL) more just a purpose built vehicle, I am working on it though.

Yours ain't to shabby either. Ever get it out to Interstate to see what it can do?
 
Sorry as I didn't mean to sound so angry and I was not saying it to you. I understand what you are going thru as like I said I have been on both sides of that one. Even in our dealer we have great techs who care and go out of their way to help people and others who I wouldn't want to touch my car. But glad to hear they are taking care of it. I did a trans overhaul about a year ago and about 3 months ago it came back with a low line pressure problem. It looked as if the convertor clutch came apart and stuck the press reg valve in the valve body. But he had a 12 & 12 warranty (our replacement trans are 3 & 36) but he was actually about a monht out of the warranty. But I remember my service manager and I both agreed this guy should not have to pay anything. And my service manager paid me 10 hrs out of shop policy money because we could not get any waranty help and our factory rep would not help the cust so we the dealer stepped up because this man should not have paid and we new it. Bottom line was he got the trans repaired at no charge as it should have been and I told my service manager that will give us more bussiness and money then if he had paid because when he is at a party or whatever and someone ask's him about his truck trans he won't be cursing the dealer and might even say someting nice about us and to me that is where you get your customers from good word of mouth. Good uck with your 3.3 and I hope all goes well with it. Ron
 
Actualy, mine is the 3.8, but no worries and like I said, I am glad to hear there are some out there who still care to do what is right, and not what is going to make them more quick cash :thumbup:
 
Kraby,

Ya I live close by the old muscatels, no I'm laying low until I get a few bugs ironed out in the suspension, hopefully I'll have it all worked out before the snow flies! :) Mine is a 20 footer also, but I just want a good driver, I'm not a show car person, gotta drive them :)

Scott
 
Another option (if you don't feel you're getting anywhere with a particular dealer) is to bump it up the food chain. There will be a regional manufacturers representative that oversees all the franchises for a state or several states.

They don't have to defend the original diagnosis, but are supposed to keep customers happy. Don't start there, or they'll just send you back, but if you think you've taken all reasonable steps with the dealer and aren't getting satisfaction, it's an option.

My sister-in-law was having problems with a local Ford dealer (I know, I know...no snide jokes about that's the problem) and wound up with the West Coast Sales Manager telling the dealer to give her a new car to replace the one they couldn't seem to fix the transmission on.

I call it the Plumbing Rule of Bureaucracy - S**t rolls downhill!

Jay
 
318 5.2 has no such problem.

Rear wheel drive rules. ;)

FWD is a royal pain to work on, for me anyway.

Good luck with your under warranty stuff.

krabysniper said:
Hey all of you guys and gals that own a mopar product with a 3.3L or a 3.8L (sales codes EGA, EGB,EGH,EGM,EGP)
1993-2003, Intrepid, Concorde,Vision, Town & Country, Caravan, Voyager

If your camshaft breaks in half (YES THIS REALLY DOES HAPPEN) and it has to be replaced, they are supposed to inspect the bearings for wear or damage. Problem is that if the cam breaks, the bearings already have what????? ANYBODY?????

THATS RIGHT, they have wear. PERIOD.

What is the proper fix for worn or damaged bearings in these engines???? ANYBODY????

REPLACE THE SHORT BLOCK.

Every dealership I have talked to and every ASE certified mechanic that has had to deal with one of these has told me the same thing, replace the short block!

EXCEPT FOR MUSCATEL Dodge JEEP, in Moorhead Mn.
www.muscatell.com for any one who would like to send them bash mail for their crappy service to their customers.

Took my van to them last Sept. would chug and sputter and ran like ****. I knew walking in the door what the problem was (anybody read some of my other posts knows I DO RESEARCH FIRST when dealing with large chunks of cash.) They take it and say ok we will look at your van that made noise and dosn't run well. Whatever. Call me latter that day, Mister K, your van has a broken cam shaft (DUHHHHH!), we'll have to replace that and it will be a few days. I say "Replace it? You mean the engine short block as is stated IN THE TSB, right?" Oh no, are mechanic has looked it over and it will be fine with a new cam and lifters." "I say BULL ****!" I inform their service rep that they WILL install a new engine or they will be in deep cow dung! I talk to Ward Muscatel on the phone personaly (he be the owner of course really has NO clue what really goes on with the vehicles)I state to him how would he feel if someone said they wernt going to repair your vehicle the WAY THE MANUFACTURER SAY'S IT MUST BE DONE, and that my wife and kids could become stranded and their lives placed in danger with this band aided vehicle (It gets down to 45 to 55 degrees below zero in the winter up here, if you in the boonies when your stuff breaks YOU CAN DIE), I talk to all the service REPS, they all insist that their mech knows his crap blah blah blah, I point out it say's REPLACE THE SHORT BLOCK if ANY cam wear. Now my main reason for getting heated and hot with these jerk offs is because I know what their game is, "we'll do a band aid fix that should get him by till his warranty is expired, we'll bilk the warranty company and this guy {you realize purchased extended warranties are like insurance, you have to pay a deductible} doing a half assed repair, and then we'll kill him with a huge engine replacement bill when he has to come back again because IT WILL FAIL."

So I argue with them, and argue with them and finally (I need my fk'n van back) say ok, I wanted a SEPERATE written statement stating that if this fails again it aint costing me a dime, they give me a signed paper says that they warranty the fix from the repair date for 1 year or 12,000 miles. They make their bandaid fix.

Fast forward to today. My wife leaves to take my daughter to camp, about an hour and 15 minute drive from here, and then was going to return home. I am on the PC doing my typical pc stuff, posting here and at other sites and bookwork for my biz, etc, when my phone rings. GUESS WHAT. YUP, wife calling "The van is chugging and running like crap and can hardly move." I tell her I'll be there shortly. She only made it 30 miles or so.

There is 5000 plus miles yet on their written statement to me regarding their warranty and yet another half month to go, IT JUST BIT THEM IN THE A$$ BIG TIME! Although, they should be glad, had it happened after their little time distance period within a 3 or 4 month period or 10000 miles, I might have ended up going to jail because I would have gone in and beat the ever luvin snot out of the sob's, all of them. As it stands, I WILL BE GETTING A NEW ENGINE. I will contact my attorney, and all the mechs I talked to about this last fall and the manufacturer, and if I can have my way I will get the dealership license pulled, and they are paying for it IN FULL. I AM PISSED! :cussing: :cussing:

Something the dealerships won't tell you about as they are trying to dig every last penny out of your pocket is technical service bulletin's. The TSB number is 09-007-02 Dated Oct. 21, 2002 for anyone who needs it or just wants to read it for themselves, as they copyrighted it or something and claim your not supposed to retransmit copy blah blah blah. SO if you wanna read it in their words get a copy from your local stealership (they will give you copies if you ask, but with a shocked/dumb look on their face because you know about it). It states replace the short block if the cam breaks PERIOD. So don't ever let any dealership jerk you off or cheese out on you, stick it to them theives if at all possible. Don't let them BS you, and research research research a problem before you spend dough to fix it.
 
Actually Kraby, what you fail to realize is that the factory or warranty company dictates the repair when they are paying for it. You actually don't have a legal recourse to that, TSB or not. The TSB may not have applied in your case. I don't know though I'm just saying. Things aren't always as they appear.

Of course if you are paying for the repair then you can dictate how you want it done. So don't be so fast to blame the dealer or the techs. They may have been doing what they were told to do.

I agree with Ron though, so many people think dealers are ripoffs and the techs are bad. The facts are quite different. In my 30 years of the business I have never met a tech that woke up and one day and decided he wanted to be a bad tech, or even just mediocre. All the techs I know try really hard to do the best they can with what they have to work with. In fact in this day and age DCX won't even pay the dealer for many warranty repairs if they aren't done by a DCX trained tech. And I'm not talking some generic training either. This stuff is complex and it's thorough. I just spent 4 hours doing a test on a CD after 2 days of classroom training and it was tough. You have to pass in order to be credited for the course.

Also DCX has the STAR hotline (they won't even talk to a level 1 or less tech) where you may have to call to get parts because they are restricted. STAR may have you do numerous diagnostic steps and/or measurements before allowing the parts to be released. Many short blocks are on restriction and there is a recent growing trend to have us techs repair them instead of replace them if possible. This may have been the case with yours, I don't know.

I've personally only seen one 3.3 that needed to be replaced and that was because of an imbalance condition it came from the factory with. They are good engines.

So in conclusion I'd like to say that, although you think you may know something, you may actually not. Something to think about before you go bad mouthing people, products, or an industry.

Here is a list of courses techs have to take in order to be certified to level 4 in engine repair. And this is just one skill catagory, there are 12 skill catagories so you get the idea how many course have to be taken.

Rule Name: 2006 Curriculum Level 1 All Skill Areas

Requirement Details: Completion of all of the following.

0010908 INTRODUCTION TO DAIMLERCHRYSLER-TECH WBT
0011008 Introduction Techconnect and SCANTools WBT
0010808 NEW VEHICLE PREPARATION - Rev. 1 WBT
0610408 Fundamentals of Electrical Part 1 (Web) WBT


Rule Name: 2006 Curriculum Skill Area 1 Level 2

Requirement Details: Completion of all of the following.

0120308 Fundamentals of Gasoline Engines WBT


Rule Name: 2006 Curriculum Skill Area 1 Level 3

Requirement Details: Completion of all of the following.

0030116 NOISE VIBRATION and HARSHNESS PHS 1 of 2 WBT
0030116 NOISE VIBRATION and HARSHNESS PHS 2 of 2 Class Room
0130808 Cam In Block Engines Includes 6.1/8.3 L (Phase 1)
0130816 Cam In Block Engines Includes 6.1/8.3 L (Phase 2) Class Room
0130908 Cam In Head Engines Phase 1 CDROM
0130916 Cam In Head Engines Phase 2 Class Room
0150608 Cam In Block Engines Includes 6.1/8.3 L Update



Rule Name: 2006 Curriculum Skill Area 1 Level 4

Requirement Details: Completion of all of the following.

0141508 ENGINE DIAGNOSIS Class Room - On Demand
 
Got the wifes van back today. Paper work stated at the top "Cust states engine quit running while driving, thinks cam shaft broke again check over"
The reality is that I told them, when I cwlaked in the door to get them to send a flatbed tow rig out to pick it up, that the van started chugging and was coasted to the side of the road where it ran ragged and had no power (how they run when the cam breaks because it is only able to run on a few cylinders) I stated clearly that the camshaft WAS broke.

Their description of CAUSE: Camshaft Broke

They (Corwins, the people who bought Muscatels lot in North Moorhead) picked up the ball that Muscatel dropped, and may well have earned a new customer in the future. They replaced the long block assembly, which is actually more than the TSB stated needed replacing in this situation and is more than I actually expected, which IS a good thing. Did not cost me one single penny. There is refrence to the mopar warranty claim # from the prior camshaft failure so I would have to assume the warranty side of this is eating the cost or the manufacturer is, but it aint me and that makes me very very happy, because this would have been over $4,500 dollars. How many of you got that laying around, I sure don't.

Looks pretty cut and dry to me, cam broke, service bulletin says replace short block, service center dosn't, cam breaks again (FORTUNATLY) while still covered under 12 12 coverage, different dealership fixes above and beyond what is called for in servicebulletin, no charge to customer. I will leave it for all future readers to decide what the problem really was. I have laid out the facts, nothing more.

I give them credit (Corwins) they restored some of my faith in being brand loyal. Only time will tell but I have no complaint against a brand new engine, the rest of it that isn't covered I am able to fix as need be so I won't have to worry about future deallings with a dealership unless I decide to get a newer vehicle.


Now to respond to you Jones. I do blame the dealership and the techs, Muscatel failed. I came there KNOWING what the problem was and what the recomended repair was BASED upon talking to many service tech's at many dealerships (we have several chrysler dealerships localy) and ASE certified Techs at just basic shops around town, all said replace the short block. They did not do what EVERYONE else said should be done, and it DID do exactly what the TSB said would happen if you didn't replace it, it broke the cam. This is not hypothetical, it is the fact. I got very very lucky it failed again under the 12 12. I would have had a hell of a battle if it had happened at 13 months or 12, 500 miles, but I would have prevailed because it was not fixed as it should have been. As far as servicing the short block instead of replacing, they have made it quite clear it is cheaper to just replace it than to service it, why I do not know, but it is.

I stated nowhere that "all techs, or dealershipes for that matter" are bad. But if you feel the industry has a bad image, it must be because more people than I have had complaints, eh. I am sure "I am not, and will not" be the end all for an industry, but as they say, bad word of mouth travels faster than fire. But to be fair and balanced, Corwins has done right by me so far and they have come thru where others failed me. Sounds like a good word for the "industry" if you ask me. So you see I do praise where apropriate, not just gripe when I feel a need.

I am aware of the schooling and training chrysler techs are put through and that is why when a majority say "Do this" and an individual say's "No I will do it this way" I see a failure by that tech and that dealership. And if they want to pass the buck (typical big bizness) to the warranty or manufacturer and say "They said not to do it that way" then the people of that industry, or products, or industry itself are failing, and people need to know. I have had other disputes with this dealership before and this was the straw that broke the camels back so to speak.

My warning to all owners of these vehicles with these engines is merely to share the knowledge that their IS a problem that the factory saw fit to advise it's dealerships thru a TSB, warning of this type of situation. But they do not share that info with the people who buy these and have to live with them daily, and so when a dealership pulls a $h!ty like this they may get taken, like they woulda tried to do to me if I hadn't known in advance just wtf. I am sharing the info so the next person who searches for info will know what the heck is going on and where they need to look to see if they are suffering the same kinda problems and how to get them dealt with.

Big bizz tries to push the little peeps around, some of us will stand and fight, others will "bah bah" on there way to the next anal probing. As you can see I do not bahhhh like a sheep.

"The squeeky wheel gets the grease"
 
I looked at the service bulliten and all that it says is if the camshaft bearings are worn then replace the short block as the cam bearings are only serviced in a short block assembly. It is for information only and is not an authorization to replace a short block.

My original statement stands as a truth as to how the system works. I don't care if you believe it or not, your reasoning doesn't change the facts.

Glad you got it fixed.
 
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