Air Con and Warranty - Beware !

[Lin1952]

Just had a bad experience that reinforces the bad reputation that dealerships and Mitsubishi have in relation to warranty claims.

I have a 2006 GLXR which still has 4 months remaining on the warranty. Exactly two years ago, I had an aircon failure while travelling interstate and the aircon was promptly fixed under warranty at the Cairns Dealership.

In July of this year, the aircon failed again while interstate. I booked the vehicle into the Alice Springs dealership who charged $272.60 for checking and regassing the system. I protested and the dealer rep stated that the vehicle was almost 5 years old and that the air con was not covered under warranty. I paid up and advised them that I would be contacting Mitsubishi Customer Service upon my return home.

I have just done that and after investigating the matter with the dealership, Mitsubishi Customer Service contacted me within 2 hours to advise that they had spoken with the Alice Springs Service Manager who had advised them that they had only regassed the system and did not do any tests or checks and therefore they did not consider it a warranty claim as they had not undertaken any testing as to the cause. I then advised The Mitsubishi Motors Customer Service Officer that I had the account in front of me which stated the following:

'Checked and found no pressure in system so pressurised the system and observed the gauges found no drop in the system, checked for leaks and could not find any. Gassed the system 575GMSR134A checked and found all okay'.

The Customer Service Officer agreed that this was the complete opposite to what she had been advised by the Alice Springs dealership. I offered to send a copy of the account and could they send me a copy of what the Alice Springs Rep had advised them. I was told that there was not a facility to do that, but she offered to transfer me to the Alice Springs Rep. I pointed out that this would achieve nothing and that their warranty stood for nothing. I was then advised to take the vehicle to my local dealership (in Hobart) who would recheck the aircon in the vehicle at my expense.

I declined this and am now going to Consumer Affairs. I will keep you posted.

[mad992]

booooooooo that story sucks

[aiden71]

I agree the waranty is crap. I just paid to have a rear wheel bearing replaced I did not even bother with Darwin Mitsubishi as the last time I was there I almost punched the service manager out.
Don't even bother with the Mitsubishi call centre they just pass the buck and want nothing to do with any of it.

At the end of the day....if you want a car with waranty...don't but a Mitsubishi full stop.

[Cowboy Dave]

There are plenty of nightmare stories out there, and I'm sure plenty with other makes of vehicle as well. Spend some time over on NewHilux and you'll find similar scenarios.

I'm not saying you aren't justified in having a whinge but there are other members on here who've had very good warranty results without too much grief at all. I can think of at least 4 members who've had CVs replaced under warranty with no questions asked.

One even got a whole replacement vehicle as I recall it. Plenty of grief to get there, but a decent result in the end.

So let's not go writing off a whole manufacturer just yet. In the end MMAL is only as good as the dealers out there representing the company, and there are good and bad out there. Sometimes more bad than good maybe, but there are some decent dealers around if you look hard enough.

Anyway I'd best stop sounding like an MMAL apologist before I provoke some sort of warranty flame war.

[variflex]

Just out of interest how is your A/C now? has it failed again or still running without a problem since the regas?

[Blue]

There are plenty of nightmare stories out there, and I'm sure plenty with other makes of vehicle as well. Spend some time over on NewHilux and you'll find similar scenarios.

ZD30 - grenade...
Navara front diffs...
Ford(Mazda) transfer cases a few years back...
I think it was toyota who had cracked chassis where the factory bullbar mounted and tried to blame offroading...
Pathfinder rotors unserviceable after as little as 25,000km with a 'they are a consumable' retort from Nissan...

You could go on all day...

[NTBB]

Aiden's problem is that there is 2 dealers in NT...... NT auto group who are woeful and kittles who are a close second...

[biggibbo]

I wouldn't be whinging too much about it. Sounds like it needed regassing, and they regassed it. I'm no fridgy, but had to have plenty of vehicles regassed over the yrs, and never had it done under warranty.

It's like brake pads and clutches. They wear out and you replace them. For some reason the gas sometimes loses its effectiveness over the yrs, and it is significanly more noticable in hotter climates.

Reckon you may just have to cop the cost and be grateful they regassed it 2 yrs ago for nuthin.

[aiden71]

Yeah but $272 for aircon regas is a bit much, I got one done this year for $65 and they checked for leaks as well.
Thank goodness I only have to deal with the twits at the Darwin dealership once a year all the other services are done else where.
Anyone want to open a Mits dealership in Darwin???? You would wipe the floor with the clowns here

[CALMAN09GLXR]

I am a fridgey and can say that in a sealed atmosphere with no contaminants, refrigerants are totally stable and will not degrade.
It is illegal to add refrigerant to any system with any known leaks. Regassing is a quick way to grab your cash and get you out the door. While no leak checks performed.

[CALMAN09GLXR]

Sealed atmosphere I.E. your car aircon system.

[fridgie]

Car air con uses the oil in the system to lubricated the seals , if the seals dry out the system can leak which is why car air con can need regassing without having a 'leak' in the system.

If you need it or not it is best to run the air con fairly frequently to keep the seals moist and thus enadle them to seal.

[Homer]

I am a fridgey and can say that in a sealed atmosphere with no contaminants, refrigerants are totally stable and will not degrade.
It is illegal to add refrigerant to any system with any known leaks. Regassing is a quick way to grab your cash and get you out the door. While no leak checks performed.

Car air con uses the oil in the system to lubricated the seals , if the seals dry out the system can leak which is why car air con can need regassing without having a 'leak' in the system.

If you need it or not it is best to run the air con fairly frequently to keep the seals moist and thus enadle them to seal.

Both good posts.

IMO aircon re-gassing is certainly a warranty issue as there has been a leak/defect in the system - as stated the gas lasts forever (well nearly). I also believe it is illegal to just give it a squirt and go
I would hazzard a guess that in Darwin the AC would be used quite regularly so compressor seals etc should be well used and lubricated - although using rubber hoses is also a problem for leakage.

You have been dudded mate. It's too bad you are in a no win situation with the dealers up there.

If the dealer hadn't written down that they'd checked for leaks they would be in a whole mess of trouble....still could be with no repair

[Longranger1]

Re: Mitsubishi warranty and service.

Up here all of the major dealerships have bad report cards... The Mitsubishi dealership is no exception.

I am in the process of trying to resolve an issue with my truck (resulted from poor pre delivery). I am being stuffed around continually so now it is time to become Mr. Nasty .

This hasn't been resolved over a year and it is the dealership's fault and they acknowledge this, but are too lazy, apathetic, stupid to realize that by resolving the issue it will precent a lot of agro and future lost sales. It isn't a big ticket item pricewise either.

They appear to be proactive but can't deliver - and that's what counts. Customer service? What a sad joke. That finished once the funds transfer on purchasing went through.

At least the issue isn't a reliability related one, luckily.

[Desert Brewer]

I dont know alot about Air Cons, but i know enough about Peter Kittles after living here for 10 years and having to deal with them because our work vehicles are Toyota, that if you have the choice take your vehicle elsewhere - which is what i will be doing for "inbetween " services - i will only take it to the stealers to keep the warranty valid.

There are some excellent mechanics in Alice - people who actually know what it means to drive in remote areas and service your vehicle accordingly - that comes at a price though - but also provides piece of mind. I hope Kittles didnt leave to bad a taste in your mouth Lin, if they did, beer helps to wash it down.

[Blue]

Aiden's problem is that there is 2 dealers in NT...... NT auto group who are woeful and kittles who are a close second...

Ahhh yes, Darwin, where collusion is standard business practice... 500Gb portable HDD at Officeworks Melb - $79, same drive at Officeworks Darwin - $149 with a cheery 'oh we are officeworks but we aren't represented in the national brochures as freight determines our pricing" And I got bearing for the DRZ airbagged from Adelaide at 30% of the cost of just the bearings in Darwin, including shipping... Beautiful part of the world but retail extortionists...

[Steane]

Beautiful part of the world but retail extortionists...

And I thought the rest of the country was bad enough in that regard.

[Lin1952]

The aircon is working ok since the regas.

[Homer]

Until it again leaks out of the unrepaired hole in your system

[trickydevil]

What a mission. I always have my aircon on, if it gets to cold i just turn the temp up. Is this good or bad? I don't know. My baby is 4 1/2 now and hasn't had any issues with it so far, just the kids when traveling as it gets a lot colder in the back seats than the front

[variflex]

It's quite possible the dealer has done you a favour, Given the system is still working without a problem I would suggest that the A/C isnt being run regularly and the seals have dried out allowing the gas to slowly escape, The dealer could have regassed the system and put in a dye and performed a leak test, if no leak is found you would have been charged even more for the testing, Perhaps his experience has shown that 9 times out of 10 A/C systems just require a regass and all is fine. Given your located in Hobart it is possible you havent run your A/C over winter, I know i too am guily of not running my A/C regularly and I should know better.
I'm certainly not trying to start an argument here or defend the dealer or customer but trying to look at it from another angle

[Homer]

Whoops I assumed he was in the NT...

[Lin1952]

Thanks for your input Variflex. I have always been aware of the need to run aircon on a regular basis and have done so at least twice a month since I have had the truck. I also spend most Tassie winters in the centre and up North.

My one question that I am about to put to to Mitsubishi is:

I have a vehicle that is under warranty, the aircon has failed for the second time, there is no mention of any aircon exclusions in your warranty, there is obviously a problem. Why are you not responsible to do the repair under warranty ?. Especially as mentioned elsewhere in this forum that this is a recurring problem in many ML's.

[Lin1952]

Mitsubishi Motors Australia have now honoured the air con warranty and will be undertaking the necessary repairs when the parts arrive.

They requested to me to deliver the car to the Hobart Dealership (DJ Motors), who, after testing (dye) discovered faults in the system. This was far better (and efficient) service than I received from the dealership in Alice Springs.

Mitsubishi Customer Relations have notified me that ' Purely as a gesture of goodwill' (their words), Mitsubishi Motors Australia Limited (MMAL) Senior Management has agreed to reimburse the amount of $272.80 for the repairs carried out at the Mitsubishi dealer in Alice Springs'

Obviously no testing was carried out in Alice Springs and they attempted to charge me $272.80 for a regas. Avoid them if you can.

[Hymie]

Good result it is amazing how many would have had the CBF attitude and kissed the $272 goodbye.

And a win is a win but when you get them to do their job right that is the biggest win. and just quietly you probably would have been far happier if they had done the job right in the first place, found the faulty components and fixed it first go.