Lemon Law - Head Gasket Leak

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Wed Jul 09, 2008 8:26 pm

My radiator leak has now turned into a combustion leak, and the dealer has to tear down my engine to try and figure out where it's coming from.

I think I no longer fall under the lemon law of Oregon.
They say the problem must occur within 1 year or 12,000 miles whichever comes earlier.

My problem started at 11 months, but 16,469 miles.
This is the 5th time I've had the jeep at the dealer for this, and it will take at least a week before they can figure it out or fix it.

Does anyone know if there is anything I can do to get a replacement vehicle or money or something? The jeep only has 21,000 miles on it, and chances are it will never run right once they take it apart, plus who know what other damage was caused by combustion gases being where they weren't supposed to be.

jason thompson · **Posted:** Wed Jul 09, 2008 8:43 pm

JohnnyCash wrote:

My radiator leak has now turned into a combustion leak, and the dealer has to tear down my engine to try and figure out where it's coming from.

I think I no longer fall under the lemon law of Oregon.
They say the problem must occur within 1 year or 12,000 miles whichever comes earlier.

My problem started at 11 months, but 16,469 miles.
This is the 5th time I've had the jeep at the dealer for this, and it will take at least a week before they can figure it out or fix it.

Does anyone know if there is anything I can do to get a replacement vehicle or money or something? The jeep only has 21,000 miles on it

The problem is that it varies by state
lady at work had a car that she bought new and with in a year she had to have 3 transmissions put it
all under warranty
after the 3rd one went out she managed to get a 100% refund
bought a Toyota and has had it for 5 years with out a single problem

I would take a real close look at the states law
or contact the BBB and maybe they can help you

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Wed Jul 09, 2008 8:47 pm

Just so you know the dealer said Liberty's are very reliable, and they have never had a problem like mine. Just bad luck.

I'd gladly take another one. I like it, but just not after it's been torn apart by a dealership, and polluted by acidic combustion gases, and I guarantee they ran the hell out of my engine trying to get it to leak..............probably on each visit............especially the last visit.

USPLibby · **Joined:** Thu Jul 28, 2005 12:29 am **Posts:** 377

Well you should at least should be well under the manufacturers warrantee.

Did your Jeep ever over heat because of the leaking radiator? Once an engine over heats and if you keep driving for a while, the head gaskets start to disintegrate. This means pulling off the heads, check them for warping and replacing the gaskets. It's a big job.

Make sure that the cooling problems are fixed 100%. I always add Prestone rust-inhibitors to my cars and trucks and have never had a problem with leaks, rust or bearings going out.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Wed Jul 09, 2008 9:17 pm

It never overheated. The little temp gauge never ever went past 1/2 way. It always seemed to run fine. It's just that every time I opened the hood there was fluid spit all over the place.

I just contacted 2 lemon laywers. One called back and said they think I have a case under the lemon law or under the magnuson-moss warranty act, but the person who called wasn't an actual lawyer, just the person they pay to contact people, so who knows?

They said to wait until I get the jeep back and get the next repair order, and then to fax them all of the repair orders and my purchase contract.

I asked well what if they give it back to me and it's fixed? But she said it doesn't matter.........it still qualifies as a lemon. We'll see. I'm not so sure.

sleeve84028 · **Posted:** Thu Jul 10, 2008 6:54 am

Call Chrysler directly and have them buy the vehicle back. If they won't you should at least be in touch with a lawyer to help guide you through your legal options. You don't have to sue or anything but see if there's someone that can offer you some professional advice.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 3:10 pm

My jeep is still at the dealer. Been there since Monday. Now they said I have a head gasket leak, and they sent the head to a machine shop to shave part of it off.

So I"m pretty bummed. My new jeep doesn't seem too new anymore. And I realized that since I bought the jeep under the employee purchase plan I agreed not to sue them, and to go thru arbitration..........whatever that is.

I've read that driving with a head gasket leak for thousands of miles may have done other damage also. And I read that shaving the head is not the greatest thing for a vehicle either. I'm depressed.

ATXKJ · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 3:54 pm

Actually shaving the head is a standard way to increase the compression ratio.
Although I'd prefer to do both sides - it would be more balanced.

Actually I'd argue that they need to just swap in a crate engine - that would replace everything - on a dealer rebuild - you're depending on the dealer mechanics to do a nonstandard job well - some of their guys are really good - some aren't - you'd need another warranty just for their work.

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 3:55 pm

JohnnyCash wrote:

My jeep is still at the dealer. Been there since Monday. Now they said I have a head gasket leak, and they sent the head to a machine shop to shave part of it off.

So I"m pretty bummed. My new jeep doesn't seem too new anymore. And I realized that since I bought the jeep under the employee purchase plan I agreed not to sue them, and to go thru arbitration..........whatever that is.

I've read that driving with a head gasket leak for thousands of miles may have done other damage also. And I read that shaving the head is not the greatest thing for a vehicle either. I'm depressed.

Don't be depressed. Life could be much worse. Once you get the KJ back, you’ll be happy. The dealership will make sure everything is done right. In the future, look at it this way. You can buy used replacement motors for the KJ with under 5,000 miles for pretty cheap. I've seen 3.7 motors with less than 5,000 miles sell for as little as $1,300. I'll be swapping my 3.7L for a 2.8 CRD in the future. Heck, I just bought a CRD engine with all the wiring for $2,000 for my JK engine swap. Enjoy your Jeep and let the frustrations pass. Life has it's way of throwing curve balls, but it's how we deal with those curve balls is what determines our happiness. Life is a self-reflection of the choices we make.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 7:29 pm

Dealer just called.
They can't give my vehicle back. Put it all back together and there is still a leak. Ha !!!! I'm going to lose my mind.

I spoke to the svc manager and asked if he could get me a new vehicle. It was no to that because I'm over 12,000 miles. No to a new engine, because jeep has a rule where 70% of engine must be destroyed or something like that, no to giving me another used 2007 Liberty off of their lot. Maybe he could get me an extended warranty...........that's it.

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 7:35 pm

You just got unlucky and had a head gasket let go early,it happens,get over it.Depends on if a experianced tech did the daignostics in the first place or the leak was not that bad to show up on the early tests which can happen(most likely not since it had no symptoms of a head gasket leak from the start),and know that they have found the true cause if it is fixed right you will not have any problems.Just make sure you change the oil after the fix at about 500 miles(at least 2 times like this) with a very good full synthetic oil to flush all the coolant out of the engine.There is no case for a lemon in your case,your problem is very fixeable.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Fri Jul 11, 2008 7:41 pm

Well if nothing else they could at least give me the lifetime warranty.
That would be sort of fair I guess.

I just have a really, really bad feeling about a dealership mechanic taking my engine apart........TWICE now, and putting it back together within all specifications. (not that all delaership mechanics are bad. I know there are some good ones)

It also bothers me a lot that I thought there might be a head gasket leak before they even thought to test for it. I took it to a radiator shop and had a block test done after I received a new radiator on my 4th visit. I know nothing about cars, and yet I knew to check for that. They didn't check for it until they called some experts on my 5th visit.

USPLibby · **Joined:** Thu Jul 28, 2005 12:29 am **Posts:** 377

It sounds like maybe a flaw in the castings. And not just the head but the short block or cylinder inserts. :cry:

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Sat Jul 12, 2008 12:08 am

USPLibby wrote:

It sounds like maybe a flaw in the castings. And not just the head but the short block or cylinder inserts. :cry:

I hope it turns out to be something really bad, so they will give me a new engine. Gotta have a goal.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 1:54 pm

My jeep is finally done after 7 days. The dealer said there was a head gasket leak and it had something to do with the #4 and #5 cylinders. I asked if they knew what caused the head gasket to go bad, and they did not know. So I don't see why it won't just happen again, if the underlying cause was not fixed. Something must have caused it to go bad.

sleeve84028 · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:25 pm

The gasket could have been bad or there could have been a robot that was having a bad assebly day.

Chances are that the fix will be permanent but there is always that small bit of risk.

Did you call a laywer yet? Talk to Chrysler about a buy back?

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:34 pm

sleeve84028 wrote:

The gasket could have been bad or there could have been a robot that was having a bad assebly day.

Chances are that the fix will be permanent but there is always that small bit of risk.

Did you call a laywer yet? Talk to Chrysler about a buy back?

I bought the jeep using the employee purchase plan and it says I'm not allowed to sue, and I must go thru arbitration, so that plan fell apart. I would at least like the lifetime warranty. I'm going to bug a few more people to see if I can get something.
(Well the svc manager just called, and he said the district svc mgr won't even agree to an extended wty. So once I go over 36,000 miles and it breaks again I guess I'm just stuck). I don't understand that decision at all. What's the cost of an extended wty to jeep........probably close to zero. I highly doubt if I'll ever buy another chrysler product.

dieselenthusiast · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 3:14 pm

JohnnyCash wrote:

My jeep is finally done after 7 days. The dealer said there was a head gasket leak and it had something to do with the #4 and #5 cylinders. I asked if they knew what caused the head gasket to go bad, and they did not know. So I don't see why it won't just happen again, if the underlying cause was not fixed. Something must have caused it to go bad.

Most likely in your case there was a flaw with the engine or gasket. Maybe even a factory installation error such as the head or block wasn’t clean or smooth. Something as simple as not using the correct bolt sequence and torque when tightening the head bolts. I wouldn’t worry about it, you are good to go.

JohnnyCash · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 3:41 pm

I am really concerned that more damage was done.
Because the dealer misdiagnosed the problem on my 1st visit, 2nd visit, 3rd visit, and 4th visit I drove around for thousands of miles with a head gasket leak.

Who knows what kind of progressive damage that may have caused which will just not show up until my warranty expires. They owe me an extended warranty at the least.

I'm going to keep bugging them until I get it.

sleeve84028 · **Posted:** Mon Jul 14, 2008 4:10 pm

I don't mean to contact a laywer to sue. I mean to get some professional advice about having Chrysler buy the vehicle back from you or at least having Chrysler give you some sort of warranty on the engine. (Lifetime Powertrain was the thing last year... Where'd that go?)

I'm sure the engine will be fine, but that risk should have some insurance against it.

Lemon Law - Head Gasket Leak

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