Not honoring Recall notice

My car, which is a 1998 Dodge Neon broke down and I was informed by my
mechanic that the problem would be covered by the dealer because it
was a recall. The radiator fan relay is not turning on the radiator
cooling fans. I called the Dodge dealer where I bought the car and
they said that the car was manufactured one month after the recall
time. It's the same make and same year for the recall but a different
month. Am I wasting my time trying to get help with this ? I have the
very same problem as the recall. Who will I contact now ?

 

Double check at the Chrysler 800 # in your car manual.

 

It is much easier to go on the Chrysler, Dodge or Jeep website and find out ALL
of the recall info for YOUR specific vehicle.

 

Thanks for your responses.
I have already called them and gave them the number. They told me
that this car was manufactured one month after the date of the
vehicles that they recalled.
But my mechanic said that this was the same problem as what was
recalled. I was wondering if there was anything else I could do to
get them to honor this car under the recall notice? It is a very
expensive part plus labour to fix it.

Thanks again
JustMe

 

Nope.

 

I suppose you could write to the government agency which orders recalls. If
they got enuf complaints outside the official date they might eventually
order a wider recall and you would get reimbursed for the repair eventually.

 

Contact the regional service manager.

 

You have called them and that is what they told you. Have you gone to the "For
Owners" link on the website, as I suggested, to verify for yourself? When I did
this for my '96 T&C LXi the response came back "No Incomplete Recalls or
Customer Satisfaction Notifications Exist" which is true as they have all been
performed. For my '93 GC Laredo the response was "Floor Shifter Secondary
Detent System" - Incomplete. This was performed at a dealer I no longer do
business with but they did not enter it into the system. For my '04 Pacifica
AWD the response is "Reprogram PCM" and "PCM ElectricalConnector Seals" - both
Incomplete but are being done now as the vehicle is in for a couple of warranty
items and to have the right front fender repainted as someone "keyed" it at the
Mall!!! :-(

 

Any chance that the part was previously replaced with the old version of the
part. If you could convince Chrysler that that might have happened they
should install the new version. Are the version marked somehow?

 

I don't think so, the problem isn't a safety issue. This recall isn't
something that
was ordered because people were dying on the highways, it is a recall that
was ordered because Chrysler found some supplier was cutting corners and
manufacturing substandard parts, which are now all coming back to the
factory.

The thing is though that this part is an item that should be available in
the
wrecking yards, and for that matter it is a part that most likely could be
substituted with an off-the-shelf generic relay, such as the kind of relays
sold
for operating high power headlamps. It might look a little funny but if his
mechanic is competent he should be able to make a substitution.

Ted

 

You say you car broke down because of the recall not being done. What
do you mean by 'broke down'? Did it over heat? Didn't you see that the
engine was overheating? WHY did you drive it while the car was HOT. I
can understand that you are frustrated about the recall, but you need
to realize that YOU need to be smart about your car also.
Good luck with your problem. Even if they fix/replace the fan, they
really don't have to do anything else, per the recall.

 

Here's an update on what happened to my car that did overheat while
driving because the fan would not work. I had to pull over and call a
tow truck.
I called the dealer after I found out that it was a recall issue. They
informed me that my car was manufactured a month after tha recall so I
do not qualify for this.
I called Crysler head office to request " goodwill" coverage and
denied again.
So I then called the dealer again and asked for all the information
sent by fax including the price quote to fix it.
They asked why I would want so much information and I told them that
it's a paper trail for small claims court.
In the meantime , I contacted Transport Canada and they had very
little information of the specifics of this recall.
I received the price quote from the dealer and it was much lower than
the original quote so I called and they said because it was a recall
that they would give me a good deal. But they would not sell me the
part for that low price - i'd have to get it installed there as well.
I agreed because this was sooooo much cheaper.
I still have a paper trail in case I want to go to court.
I'm very pleased with the dealer and how they handled it.
My Neon and I have cooled down quite a bit !!!!!!!

 

Great! And the lesson to be learned here is don't take no for an answer
the first time!! ;-)

Ted