The BIG Leak, and the Ensuing "Mess"

Monday, May 10, 2004
This afternoon, my wife was going out to pick up my eldest son from school. When she opened the van door, she saw water everywhere. The roof had leaked again and she called me outside to take a look. Water was completely covering the following areas - roof, front dash, front seats, entire floor as far back as behind the middle seats, middle seats, center console, and front doors. The water overflowed the pant-saver floor mats that we have in the front and it filled a coffee mug that was sitting in the front cup holder.

We immediately called MacIVER Dodge and we were told that they would get us in for a service appointment as quickly as possible. We were to wait for a call back. They did call back an hour later and told us that the soonest we could come in was Wednesday morning - over 2 days from now. Nice! So they expect us to drive around in a soaked vehicle for 2 days. They didn't even offer to give us a loaner vehicle. They told us to dry it out and to come in on Wednesday. Now that's customer service for you!!!

We did our best to dry up the water and to let the van dry out.

Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Today I noticed the same hardened, coffee colored substance as I did on April 4. It was in the same spot as last time, but on the passenger side of the van. There is no way that this is coffee. And, based on how it has hardened the carpet - even after wiping it up - I believe that this is some kind of adhesive that is leaking down the beams separating the front and sliding doors.

Wednesday, May 12, 2004
Upon troubleshooting the leak, the service department found that the roof seams in our van were falling apart, the drainage tubes for the moonroof were directed improperly, and the seals around both sliding doors were not installed properly. I was fairly upset that it took six months to find these problems, but I was also happy that the problems have been found this time and that we're not being given the brush off again.

They again looked into the problems with our power sliding doors and rear lift-gate. Intermittently, the power open and/or close feature on these doors refuses to work. In some cases, the door will make a grinding or clicking noise instead of opening/closing. They replaced a door module to attempt to resolve this.

We complained again about the still un-resolved front defrost issue. No attempt was made to look into this again.

We have been hearing a low-pitched grinding noise coming from the heating system. They looked into this and... no fault found.

We have been having intermittent problems with the volume knob on our stereo. It would, on occasion, turn the volume down, but not up. If we cycled the power on the stereo a couple of times, it would start working again. They looked at this and replaced the whole stereo to try to deal with this issue.

The seal on the right sliding door was continually becoming unglued and falling down. They re-installed this.

We were still experiencing a clicking sound coming from the front wheels. This has been occurring since December 19, 2003, when we were told that this is normal operation. This time when they looked into it, they found that they needed to replace an axle shaft

The tire pressure indicator, the temperature indicator, and the windshield washer fluid indicator were all acting a bit odd. They looked into these and re-calibrated them to try and resolve these issues.

Our rear interior lights would turn on randomly. They looked into this and... no fault found.

We have had numerous problems starting our van. It starts extremely rough and on one occasion we had to call Roadside Assistance to get a boost. We were told then that the alternator needs to be replaced. MacIVER Dodge replaced the alternator and the battery.

When driving, there is a louder than normal wind noise coming through the left sliding door. They replaced the seal and reset the door to achieve a better seal.

The vehicle was sent to a body shop to repair the roof seams. New seals were installed around both sliding doors, and they re-routed the drainage tubes for the moonroof. Great - now our van should no longer leak.

However, our van has already leaked multiple times and, on at least one occasion, a large quantity of water soaked most of the interior. Nothing has been done to deal with the water and moisture that's been in there, and our van is really starting to smell bad. According to our mechanic, the fact that the roof seams fell apart means that there could be water anywhere in the vehicle. Wires would have got wet and will start to corrode. The weird electrical problems that we're experiencing are more-than-likely a result of corrosion already starting. The fact that the dealership is replacing entire components, like the whole stereo, to deal with weird issues, like the volume knob, means that they are not really finding the cause of the problems. The cause of every one of our issues is the same thing - water in the vehicle!!!

Monday, May 17, 2004
MacIVER Dodge is unwilling to admit that there is potentially mold and mildew growth in our vehicle. They are also unwilling to admit that there may be corrosion on wires leading to the number of electrical issues we are experiencing. We want the van examined for these issues, but they refuse. We contact Daimler Chrysler Customer Service to see what our next step is. We are told to have the dealership ask for the district manager to come, open a case, and review our vehicle. MacIVER Dodge seems reluctant to do this, but the arrangements are finally made.

Tuesday, May 18, 2004
I request to be notified when the district manager is coming because I would like to be present for his review of our vehicle. I am told that this is not normal practice, but that it should not be a problem. I am told that Phil, the district manager, is supposed to be coming on Thursday - but that this is to be confirmed later in the week.

Wednesday, May 19, 2004
The work day is almost over and I have not heard on whether Phil is coming to examine my vehicle tomorrow. I call MacIVER Dodge and speak with Frank. Frank is unsure on whether Phil has confirmed. He talks to Bill, the service manager, and finds out that Phil has postponed until next week. I will be called when they know what day Phil will be visiting.

Thursday, May 20, 2004
We were finally given a decent loaner vehicle to use - and just in time for the long weekend. We were loaned an almost new Chrysler Sebring convertible. It only had 2000km on it.

We drove this vehicle up north to visit family in Petawawa and it was not the type of experience that I would expect from a new car. The brakes were making weird noises and the interior is extremely noisy (compared to any other convertible that I've ever been in). I thought that my Caravan was poorly built. I'm glad that I didn't lease a Sebring.

Tuesday, May 25, 2004
I call MacIVER Dodge, just to check if they've heard from Phil on when he plans to visit. I'm told by Bill that Phil is no longer coming. I ask why not and Bill tells me that Frank knows. I call Frank and Frank tells me that it was Bill who had talked to Phil and that I need to call Bill back.

Enough of this - I drive to MacIVER Dodge to confront them in person. I march down into Bill's office and ask him what's going on. He tells me that Frank spoke with Phil just after I called and that Phil doesn't feel the need to review our vehicle. Just then, Frank happens to come down the stairs. I pull him into Bill's office and question him re: his conversation with Phil. Frank claims that he spoke with Phil just shortly after I called and that Phil is going to try and visit later in the week. What!?!?! If you're going to lie and make up stories for me, at least try to coordinate with each other so you don't sound so stupid! As I'm explaining to Frank what Bill has already told me and questioning him on why their stories conflict, Bill gets a big smile on his face and starts chuckling. I guess he finds something humorous in lying to customers.

I've had enough at this point. I demand that Frank call Phil, make sure he's coming, find out when that will be, and to call me to let me know so that I can be there. Frank agrees. Later this afternoon, Frank calls me to say that Phil should be coming in on Friday and that he will call me as soon as he knows what time.

Thursday, May 27, 2004
I have still not heard from Frank on when Phil is expected to arrive. I call Frank to ask. Frank informs me that Phil has already been there and has already completed the review on my vehicle. Of course he has! I am told that I should call Daimler Chrysler Customer Service to find the results of Phil's review.

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