Why do parts fail less than 2,000 miles out of warranty?

K

KyRaceFan

Member
:
03 MSP.
Bought my MSP July 16, 2003, rolled over 50k miles early in July and now that ive got a little over 52,000 miles on it my alternator is failing. Battery light started coming on friday and then going off, and I finally had a chance to look into it today.

Battery is good, its a 35/75 series Optima that is 15 months old, and under a 720cca load test hold solid at 11.4 volts. The connections are good, no corrorsion, and i removed and re-tightened them.

With the light on, the voltage reads 12.0- 12.5v
With the light off, the voltage reads 13.7 and holds there.

Its definitely something in the alternator brushes or the voltage regulator. Fantastic!

This car has been fairly reliable so far, and the only major problems are the ones I caused myself, but this is just annoying... (argh)
 
Talk to your dealer..your soo close in warranty that they may warranty it out of good faith..its been done before.
 
KyRaceFan said:
Bought my MSP July 16, 2003, rolled over 50k miles early in July and now that ive got a little over 52,000 miles on it my alternator is failing. Battery light started coming on friday and then going off, and I finally had a chance to look into it today.

Battery is good, its a 35/75 series Optima that is 15 months old, and under a 720cca load test hold solid at 11.4 volts. The connections are good, no corrorsion, and i removed and re-tightened them.

With the light on, the voltage reads 12.0- 12.5v
With the light off, the voltage reads 13.7 and holds there.

Its definitely something in the alternator brushes or the voltage regulator. Fantastic!

This car has been fairly reliable so far, and the only major problems are the ones I caused myself, but this is just annoying... (argh)
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Well if they dont fix it under warranty I have a brand new NAPA rebuilt alternator that I bought for my MSP when I thought I was having electrical issues. Turns out I never needed to install it. Rather than return it I thought I might use it in the future, but 30,000 miles later I still havent needed it. So if you end up needing one I could sell you the one I have for cheaper than you will get it anywhere else. Its just been in my apartment in the box since I bought it...i think it even has the receipt in it!
 
ForceFed said:
Talk to your dealer..your soo close in warranty that they may warranty it out of good faith..its been done before.
Click to expand...

I guess I will be calling them tomorrow... i did have the car at the dealer like 100 miles before the warranty was up to replace the rear sway bar bushings, and they were assholes about it, BUT, it wasnt the dealer i purchased it from, and that one is notorious from being pricks.
 
crashkelly said:
Well if they dont fix it under warranty I have a brand new NAPA rebuilt alternator that I bought for my MSP when I thought I was having electrical issues. Turns out I never needed to install it. Rather than return it I thought I might use it in the future, but 30,000 miles later I still havent needed it. So if you end up needing one I could sell you the one I have for cheaper than you will get it anywhere else. Its just been in my apartment in the box since I bought it...i think it even has the receipt in it!
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Thanks, I'll keep you in mind if I do end up doing it myself, but judging from where it is, Im not sure ive got the patience, and no easy access to a lift.
 
KyRaceFan said:
Thanks, I'll keep you in mind if I do end up doing it myself, but judging from where it is, Im not sure ive got the patience, and no easy access to a lift.
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yeah its a real b**** to get to and you have to take off the passenger side wheel to access it. I just mean if you know someone who will install parts that arent bought at the dealer. Like I use a mechanic who does side work. So I buy the parts and bring them to him and he gives me a flat rate for labor.
 
thats usually the way things work. minor stuff breaks right after warranty, then the major stuff comes later.
 
crashkelly said:
yeah its a real b**** to get to and you have to take off the passenger side wheel to access it. I just mean if you know someone who will install parts that arent bought at the dealer. Like I use a mechanic who does side work. So I buy the parts and bring them to him and he gives me a flat rate for labor.
Click to expand...

Well if you only have to take the wheel well out, thats not as bad as I thought...
 
I bet its your optima. I've never owned one but many of my friends have and they never last.

Believe it or not, I still have my oem battery. It reads as follows: 12.39 volts cold engine off and 14.22 volts with the engine on with the lights and a/c running. 65,664 miles on it.

Doubt that you have to remove the tire to pull it out. But more than likely you'll have to drop the exhaust at the turbo and remove a couple of hangers, inorder to get the alternator past the cv shaft. At least that is how it was when I did on my 90 Probe GT which is essentially the identical set up as our MSP's.
 
I had a proble with the car not wanting to hold a charge. I thought it was the alternator or a bad battery. Luckilly it was something simple. There is a ground near the fuse box I thik it is that had corrosion and wouldn't allow voltage to go through. My friend pointed it out to me. I cleaned that off and from then on I haven't had any issues.
 
things failing out of warranty sucks. my LSD died 1400 miles out of warranty. tried to argue with the dealership, but in the end they said they can't do anything. MSP Curse!
 
DAWIV said:
I bet its your optima. I've never owned one but many of my friends have and they never last.

Believe it or not, I still have my oem battery. It reads as follows: 12.39 volts cold engine off and 14.22 volts with the engine on with the lights and a/c running. 65,664 miles on it.

Doubt that you have to remove the tire to pull it out. But more than likely you'll have to drop the exhaust at the turbo and remove a couple of hangers, inorder to get the alternator past the cv shaft. At least that is how it was when I did on my 90 Probe GT which is essentially the identical set up as our MSP's.
Click to expand...

The battery is fine as far as I can tell from a few different tests. When the battery light comes on with the car running, the voltage at the battery shows ~12. When its off, it shows 13.7.
 
ChopstickHero said:
things failing out of warranty sucks. my LSD died 1400 miles out of warranty. tried to argue with the dealership, but in the end they said they can't do anything. MSP Curse!
Click to expand...

That's just bull, they even know there is a flaw. They wouldn't make a revised LSD if it was good. Point the guy out and I'll go punch him for you.
 
Mine had the same sort of problem after my engine got replaced.. The battery light was coming on and it wasnt getting enough voltage.. Turns out it was the battery.. They put a new battery in it and its done fine ever since..
 
Changing the alternator wasn't all that bad. I didn't have to take the tire off. I pulled mine out from the top. I had to jack the car up a little to get underneath but it was easier than I anticipated.
 
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