13DODGE Posted June 1, 2013 Report Share Posted June 1, 2013 When we purchased our 2013 Journey early December 2012 our dealer, Pickering Chrysler ON, offered us Free Oil Changes for 3 years (2/yr). Hence our first visit!Drove the vehicle into their service reception building and talked to the lady about the following work at around 10:30 am:- Oil Change + Filter- Transmission Reflash (Feb 2013 TSB)- Fix rattle on front center armrest- Fix rattle on driver's side door panel- Exterior detailing (Train brake residue spots from Freight)- Coupon for free interior and exterior cleaningShe called up the service manager to speak to me about the requests. Although he's a nice guy, this is where the dealer bulls***ing started usually slated for those who know absolutely nothing about cars. 1) He claimed that the transmission in the Journey is already very good, that all Chrysler/Dodge transmissions hard shift the way the 6-Spd Journey tranny does, that I would know if I owned a prev Dodge AND that the reprogram actually makes the transmission worse than it is now.My answer, owned Dodges all my life and never had a brand new vehicle show signs of hard shifting, in fact my prev. Caravan did not until over 160K. He had to do the reflash as stated in TSB bulletin. 2) He checked the armrest, a rubber piece was in fact missing. The door panel however he would need to test drive to hear the noise.3) Could not find any of the little "rust" spots as I had done a very well job of scrubbing them off last month when washing the car. He would not do an exterior detailing for free unless there were visible signs and if there were, he would only do the portion where they were visible (usually front and back bumper). Although they were all over when I did the wash.Went home and got a call back pretty late around 5:30pm that my vehicle was ready for pick-up. Everything was supposedly done, and free of charge under warranty.Oil change was certainly done, service manager gratefully pulled a rubber stopper from his Journey and put into mine for the armrest. He said he adjusted the door panel but I am not quite sure what he did as he did not hear the noise. I believe the transmission flash was in fact done, needs more driving to verify but so far no hard shifts. I think they may have just took the Journey through a car wash and did a quick vacuum, but nevertheless it was cleaner.Got home, and what do ya know, found those spots.. this might call for another visit soon! Either way they are much better than my previous dealer, and I love our Journey! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biohazard Posted June 1, 2013 Report Share Posted June 1, 2013 (edited) We will be going for an oil change soon, gonna have to ask about the transmission reflash .. Another flash that may need to be done is the radio to increase the bass response, there was just an update posted last month about that if you feel your radio is lacking in sound, just an FYI Edited June 4, 2013 by biohazard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journeyman425 Posted June 4, 2013 Report Share Posted June 4, 2013 (edited) It sure irritates me to read stories like yours where you take the car to your dealer with a legitimate complaint and they counter your complaint with excuses. It's so unnecessary. Dealers are paid to do warranty work - and some receive the same hourly rate compensation from the factory as they would from a customer. Warranty work is a win-win in many ways - you get a repair free of charge, of which you are entitled under the terms of the basic warranty, and the dealer gets paid to satisfy you as such. Why a dealer would balk at this strategy is something I, as a service manager, will never understand. I am glad that most of your concerns have been addressed. In the U.S., any software flashes to the powertrain require an Authorized Modification Label under U.S. EPA law. Not sure if there are similar requirements in Canada. If so, take a look under the hood of your Journey for a modification label (ours are yellow) with a date written on it. Your service invoice should have a line item on it for the flash which shows No Charge and a "W" pay type for warranty. Of course, if the car is still shifting more smoothly then you know it was done Edited June 4, 2013 by Journeyman425 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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