Worst Fear- Car Slipped off Jack

glopez5 · 04-28-2019, 11:20 AM

So, worst fear, it appears that my car must have slipped off the jack at the dealership and they did not mention it to me. 2 weeks later (today) I'm jacking up the car to fix some brake squeal and i look up and find that they had it mounted it on the cross member and it must have slipped off. Causing some damage.

First time I brought it in I was very anal about how to jack the car, from the pinch welds, I made a point to tell her 10x not to jack it from crossmember because it was aluminum only from pinch welds.

What is my next step? What can really be done at this point other than replacing cross member? I'm going to contact the dealer Monday.

Deputy Dog · 04-28-2019, 11:28 AM

They'll deny it. The mgr probably as no clue it happened. The mechanic will never admit it. Unless the she shop has video monitoring it can never be proven. I would call them up and first pretend to be a new customer and just ask if the have video monitors. If so then find out how long they hold the video. If the hold it back to the date of the incident you may be able to prove it.

SnakeEyeSS · 04-28-2019, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deputy Dog

They'll deny it. The mgr probably as no clue it happened. The mechanic will never admit it. Unless the she shop has video monitoring it can never be proven. I would call them up and first pretend to be a new customer and just ask if the have video monitors. If so then find out how long they hold the video. If the hold it back to the date of the incident you may be able to prove it.

Don't even have to pretend "hey, I had a dealer damage my car and now I want to make sure the dealers I use have in shop cameras, and how long the videos are kept in case I don't catch the damage at first, like if it was the underbody"

""Yes, we do"

"Oh, by the way, you are the ones that damaged it".

DaveC113 · 04-28-2019, 06:09 PM

Looks like there is damage. I'd go directly to a lawyer, because Deputy Dog is right... dealers can be expected to lie and deny.

If the car has never been to another service center I think you have a very good chance of proving they are liable. 2 weeks isn't very long. Good luck!

VinnAY · 04-29-2019, 10:07 AM

You might consider getting on with your life. Two weeks later, you can't prove anything, they won't admit it, talking about camera's and this knuckle head mentions a lawyer...you need to just get on with your life. There's every reason to be disappointed about this.

MackSteelPrivateEye · 04-29-2019, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VinnAY

You might consider getting on with your life. Two weeks later, you can't prove anything, they won't admit it, talking about camera's and this knuckle head mentions a lawyer...you need to just get on with your life. There's every reason to be disappointed about this.

This is part of his life.

glopez5 · 04-29-2019, 10:59 AM

Update spoke to service manager today. Guess what? He said maybe it was like that from factory lmao. We dont jack our cars from subframe. So he asked me to forward him pictures. Its pretty clear they jack from subframe as its the only place that services my car. That and you can see rubber jack pad stains on the subframe.

I'm waiting to hear back. They do not have cameras, but i plan to go by and want them to prove they dont.

MackSteelPrivateEye · 04-29-2019, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by glopez5

Update spoke to service manager today. Guess what? He said maybe it was like that from factory lmao. We dont jack our cars from subframe. So he asked me to forward him pictures. Its pretty clear they jack from subframe as its the only place that services my car. That and you can see rubber jack pad stains on the subframe.

I'm waiting to hear back. They do not have cameras, but i plan to go by and want them to prove they dont.

Most modern dealerships service centers use cameras now. Find out who owns or manages the whole store, not the service mgr. Just ask if they have cameras as you only use shops with cameras. See if the service mgr is lying or not.

sengli · 04-29-2019, 11:30 AM

Man that sucks.

I have gone to three different dealers to buy my camaros, and not one of them had any idea how to properly lift a one. When I used my free oil changes, I stood right there watching. The car never left my sight.

TheWiseWolf · 04-30-2019, 09:47 AM

This is why I plan to put in a go pro camera in my car at all times.

For accident events and these types of situations.

I also go to body shops where I have some view of my vehicle.

People saying just ask for the video feed that day.

They wont give it out. If anything they would probably delete it and say the cameras weren't working that day. Those cameras there are to see if the dealerships employees arnt just messing around or stealing equipment. Not for you.

mrgoodbytes · 04-30-2019, 10:30 AM

That really sucks. This is the main reason I'm afraid about taking my car to the shop. They just don't care about it the same we do.

However, it doesn't look like there are any structural damage. The worst part is of course the bent sheet metal, but it shouldn't really affect the integrity of the body. But it should get re-painted where the paint fell off, so it won't start rusting out. That would be a lot worse.

mrgoodbytes · 04-30-2019, 10:33 AM

One more thing, it should be okay to lift from the sheet metal in your picture (with the two holes) when using a 2 point lift instead of using the pinch welds. When the load is distributed more evenly that shouldn't be a problem. These holes are AFAIK used to transport the body around during the assembly process.

I think we all agree, that GM could have done a much better job with the lift points.

glopez5 · 04-30-2019, 09:46 PM

Update, i drove up to the dealer pretty much had back and forth w/ them. They jacked it in a different area this time, and cleaned off the jack marks on the side before letting me in. I pointed that out becaue i had pictures. As you can guess, they failed to take any of the responsibility, and I walked around the shop I couldn't find any cameras. I tried to figure out where it could of happened but It's a crap shoot.

The foreman was a smart ass, even tried to ask me how I found out about it, kind of insinuating that it was me who did it. Then another mechanic jumped saying yeah that looks like someone else tried to hide it. Then like 5-6 mechanics came over all pointing out BS that they would never do that. Then they came up w/ story that maybe I hit something, to which i pointed out, how could I hit something so high yet have no damage anywhere else on the body. Also, they kept telling me lifting it from the aluminum is ok it's safe, i kept arguing the contrary, but guy would roll his eyes saying he's a gm mechanic he knows.

So all in all, I can't prove anything definitively, I wish I had taken pictures before. But like someone said, there isn't any real frame damage I even found the part online: https://www.gmpartsonline.net/oem-pa...Y4LWdhcw%3D%3D

so what can you do? I bought the car slightly used w/ 6k miles I could swear up and down that it wasn't there and It has been the only shop doing service on my car. But in the end it's not worth my time for a $200 part. I will just use another dealer in the area and just do better job of watching them jack it.

Lesson learned.

clanky · 05-01-2019, 10:36 AM

"so what can you do? I bought the car slightly used w/ 6k miles"
What are the chances it was there when you bought it?

04-28-2019, 11:20 AM	#1
glopez5 Drives: 2018 SS 1LE Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Tampa Posts: 105	Worst Fear- Car Slipped off Jack So, worst fear, it appears that my car must have slipped off the jack at the dealership and they did not mention it to me. 2 weeks later (today) I'm jacking up the car to fix some brake squeal and i look up and find that they had it mounted it on the cross member and it must have slipped off. Causing some damage. First time I brought it in I was very anal about how to jack the car, from the pinch welds, I made a point to tell her 10x not to jack it from crossmember because it was aluminum only from pinch welds. What is my next step? What can really be done at this point other than replacing cross member? I'm going to contact the dealer Monday. Attached Images

04-29-2019, 11:30 AM	#9
sengli Drives: 2015commemorative vert 2SS Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: northern Indiana Posts: 948	Man that sucks. I have gone to three different dealers to buy my camaros, and not one of them had any idea how to properly lift a one. When I used my free oil changes, I stood right there watching. The car never left my sight. __________________ 2018 ZL1 Bright Yellow, A10, PDR, sunroof, carbon hood, and dash- sold 2020 2SS A10 sunroof..shock and steel special-traded 2015 commemorative vert 2ss

04-28-2019, 11:28 AM	#2
Deputy Dog Banned Drives: 2017 Super Sport Cam. Join Date: Feb 2018 Location: US Posts: 893	They'll deny it. The mgr probably as no clue it happened. The mechanic will never admit it. Unless the she shop has video monitoring it can never be proven. I would call them up and first pretend to be a new customer and just ask if the have video monitors. If so then find out how long they hold the video. If the hold it back to the date of the incident you may be able to prove it.

04-28-2019, 06:09 PM	#4
DaveC113 Drives: 2018 Camaro 1SS 1LE Join Date: Sep 2018 Location: Front Range, CO Posts: 1,866	Looks like there is damage. I'd go directly to a lawyer, because Deputy Dog is right... dealers can be expected to lie and deny. If the car has never been to another service center I think you have a very good chance of proving they are liable. 2 weeks isn't very long. Good luck!

04-29-2019, 10:07 AM	#5
VinnAY Account Suspended Drives: 18 1SS/1LE Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Missouri Posts: 939	You might consider getting on with your life. Two weeks later, you can't prove anything, they won't admit it, talking about camera's and this knuckle head mentions a lawyer...you need to just get on with your life. There's every reason to be disappointed about this.

04-29-2019, 10:59 AM	#7
glopez5 Drives: 2018 SS 1LE Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Tampa Posts: 105	Update spoke to service manager today. Guess what? He said maybe it was like that from factory lmao. We dont jack our cars from subframe. So he asked me to forward him pictures. Its pretty clear they jack from subframe as its the only place that services my car. That and you can see rubber jack pad stains on the subframe. I'm waiting to hear back. They do not have cameras, but i plan to go by and want them to prove they dont.

04-30-2019, 09:47 AM	#10
TheWiseWolf Drives: Camaro Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Virginia Posts: 138	This is why I plan to put in a go pro camera in my car at all times. For accident events and these types of situations. I also go to body shops where I have some view of my vehicle. People saying just ask for the video feed that day. They wont give it out. If anything they would probably delete it and say the cameras weren't working that day. Those cameras there are to see if the dealerships employees arnt just messing around or stealing equipment. Not for you.

04-30-2019, 10:30 AM	#11
mrgoodbytes Drives: '18 2SS/EU (+Recaros) M6 Red Hot Join Date: Nov 2018 Location: Sweden Posts: 260	That really sucks. This is the main reason I'm afraid about taking my car to the shop. They just don't care about it the same we do. However, it doesn't look like there are any structural damage. The worst part is of course the bent sheet metal, but it shouldn't really affect the integrity of the body. But it should get re-painted where the paint fell off, so it won't start rusting out. That would be a lot worse.

04-30-2019, 10:33 AM	#12
mrgoodbytes Drives: '18 2SS/EU (+Recaros) M6 Red Hot Join Date: Nov 2018 Location: Sweden Posts: 260	One more thing, it should be okay to lift from the sheet metal in your picture (with the two holes) when using a 2 point lift instead of using the pinch welds. When the load is distributed more evenly that shouldn't be a problem. These holes are AFAIK used to transport the body around during the assembly process. I think we all agree, that GM could have done a much better job with the lift points.

04-30-2019, 09:46 PM	#13
glopez5 Drives: 2018 SS 1LE Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: Tampa Posts: 105	Update, i drove up to the dealer pretty much had back and forth w/ them. They jacked it in a different area this time, and cleaned off the jack marks on the side before letting me in. I pointed that out becaue i had pictures. As you can guess, they failed to take any of the responsibility, and I walked around the shop I couldn't find any cameras. I tried to figure out where it could of happened but It's a crap shoot. The foreman was a smart ass, even tried to ask me how I found out about it, kind of insinuating that it was me who did it. Then another mechanic jumped saying yeah that looks like someone else tried to hide it. Then like 5-6 mechanics came over all pointing out BS that they would never do that. Then they came up w/ story that maybe I hit something, to which i pointed out, how could I hit something so high yet have no damage anywhere else on the body. Also, they kept telling me lifting it from the aluminum is ok it's safe, i kept arguing the contrary, but guy would roll his eyes saying he's a gm mechanic he knows. So all in all, I can't prove anything definitively, I wish I had taken pictures before. But like someone said, there isn't any real frame damage I even found the part online: https://www.gmpartsonline.net/oem-pa...Y4LWdhcw%3D%3D so what can you do? I bought the car slightly used w/ 6k miles I could swear up and down that it wasn't there and It has been the only shop doing service on my car. But in the end it's not worth my time for a $200 part. I will just use another dealer in the area and just do better job of watching them jack it. Lesson learned.

05-01-2019, 10:36 AM	#14
clanky Hyper Blue 2016 Camaro 2S Drives: 16 Hyper Blue2SS NPP MagRide 6M NAV Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: east texas Posts: 655	"so what can you do? I bought the car slightly used w/ 6k miles" What are the chances it was there when you bought it?

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