Dealership Couldn't Fix a Problem They Caused! Made Owner Drive 750 Miles to Fix it.

A Toyota dealership could fix a problem with this Toyota Sienna that ended up being something they caused with previous work. Which made the customer seek an alternative shop and driving 750 miles to get it diagnosed.

TCCN Automotive Inc.
Toyota and Lexus Specialist Repair

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#thecarcarenut #toyota #lexus

[pappajohn]

To the owner of the van, thank you for your service. To TCCN, thank you for everything you do and for saving the owner of the van thousands of dollars…

[JLR]

I was in TCCN last week for an oil change. There was one customer who drove from New York city to have
an LS that he just bought used for an inspection - he also had a selfie taken with AMD. There was another customer who drove from Sheboygan, WI to have his GX inspected! AMD - world wide celebrity and still very humble!

[reggieburris]

I’m in Northern Virginia and a vet. Hope the multiple Toyota dealers in the DMV don’t screw me over like this. Glad they are making it right!

[LeanaR]

This is actually a crazy story. I am glad the dealership acknowledged their mistake and honored the repair. It does not happen often. Best of luck to him!

[gnawty]

I love that we have a Veteran driving a practical car and seeking a professional to extend the life of his vehicle. 👏

[kryvor]

I’m glad it worked out for the customer.

I have had a similar “Toyota dealership horror story” but it didn’t work as well for me. My local Toyota dealership installed a (warranty recalled) fuel pump incorrectly, which caused my 2019 RAV4 to occasionally (and dangerously) fail during acceleration. For 2 years, we asked and paid them to diagnose the problem — each time being “gaslit”. We were actually told that it was “normal” for RAV4s (to abruptly fail and have service engine warnings when accelerating) and that we had to maintain 50% fuel in our tank at all times to avoid this.

Finally, we took the vehicle to a different local Toyota/Lexus dealership; they believed us, didn’t write us off, and diagnosed the problem in 20 minutes.

We ended up being out of pocket ~$700, but escalated the problem to Toyota Canada, who recognized our concerns and forced the first dealership to compensate us for not only the repair but the additional diagnoses for which we had been gaslit.

(It’s worth noting that the service manager at the first dealership was rather displeased that we had gone to Toyota Canada. But at that point, we’d been ignored for years, and there was no resolution that would likely come from continuing the discussion with them. Not too surprisingly, the service manager tried to “pass the buck”, claiming that it happened “before his time”, which is rather unfortunate since there was no effort to own my problem or rectify the conditions that led to it.)

[brucewayne]

Bravo for original dealership who installed the rack and pinion to replaced bad rack and pinion 👍

[davidsauls]

This is like watching Sherlock Holmes at work !!!! Always an interesting mystery. Thank You

[joeschlepp]

this why you are the most respected, knowledgeable, honest and awesome Toyota tech on youtube

[moussakouzrit]

I had the exact same thing in my 2007 LEXUS RX350, and my random neighbourhood mechanic found it right away and replaced the bushing only, which fixed the loose steering and VSC problem. Another symptom is that the car will become very sensitive to the road ramp imperfections and start to go left and right whenever the road is not dead flat

[HotRod-wvvm]

Unfortunately I think the issue is that the dealerships employ novice technicians and usually concentrate on getting the vehicles out of the repair shop as quickly as possible. I had a valve adjustment done at my Honda dealer and they broke one of the bolts and never mentioned it to me. Lucky for me I noticed it a few days later and the dealership took care of it at no cost as I have a good relationship with the service manager.

[HoodsGlobal]

***I hope the dealership pays for your time in solving their rack/pinion problem.

[khoayeuha]

wow. 2k labor. just got mine replaced under 400. Purchased new aftermarket rack. Car was throwing VSC TRAC off light. Performed zero point calibration so far it hasn't come back for 2 weeks now. Flushed with idemitsu PS fluid. Alignment. Steering is stable. Heavier, no more loosey goosey. Life is good.

[gkuykmw]

VERY nice job figuring out the source of the problem! You sir, are an absolute genius. As a delivery driver currently earning scraps for a living, you have made my life A LOT easier with your very thorough, informative videos and I thank you very much for that! I could not be more grateful. Hopefully someday I'll be able to somehow return the favor. To the owner of the Sienna, I wish you a very safe travel back home with that thing and I hope the issue is solved promptly!

[jdub]

This is the problem today. The steering was that far off driving and they could't figure this out? No they did't care to investigate further. Thank you for helping this person out.

[CherrySquishee]

As for any case, the customer did the proper thing by sticking with his preferred shop, routine maintenance with documents to show history, and taking it back to the same shop when there was an issue. The odds are that Toyota warranty wouldn't have covered it if they never brought it to their attention before the warranty ran out.

Kudos to them for taking care of it since they are currently under hot water with the TT V6 and engine fires.

[bubba]

These "dealership couldn't fix" videos are my absolute favorite! AMD and TCCN Automotive, you're awesome 👏👏👏👏👍

[RobsNeighbor]

I have 3 of these!! I love the Sienna! Look how clean it is!! The best vehicle I have seen in my 25 years of being a Mechanic.

[mfharper]

I'm glad the dealer is stepping up, but I sure hope the owner isn't driving it back to Virginia like that!

[bdcochran]

Excellent video.

Permit me to explain to your listeners how to make the most out of your dreaded visit to the Toyota dealership. I was in the air bag recall situation.
1. I made an appointment for when an air bag would be available if it were needed.
2. I took a couple of books, a newspaper, a pad and pen and cash. I knew that the visit to the dealership would be like going to the doctor or the dentist with an appointment and I could use the wait time (6 hours) productively.
3. Not too surprisingly, the dealership came up with a list of $1400 in recommended repairs. Unfortunately, they did not have a replacement air bag available and I should come back another day.
4. I got in the car, drove a mile south to my mechanic and we went under the car. The necessary repairs would be done for about $300.
5. When I went back to the dealership with another appointment, I was in and out in less than 20 minutes. Someone determined that I didn't need an air bag replacement. Did some one inspect? I don't know!
6. I do want to mention, take a photograph of your car before you have work done at the dealership. A friend at the gym bought a new Toyota at another dealership. When he took the car in for the recommended first oil change at 500 miles, he wondered why he was waiting hours. It turned out that the mechanic had crashed the car and now was claiming that it was damaged when brought in. The friend was a tough, tattooed administrative law judge who got the problem resolved after he threatened to put the car through the show case window.
7. Every one makes mistakes. Just prepare for the dealership visit like you should.