| Components - Details | |
|---|---|
| NHTSA Complaint Number: 003230175 | Incident Date: Aug, 07 2003 |
| Consumer's City: SHELTON | Consumer's State: CT |
| Vehicle Transmission Type: MAN | Manufacturers Name: Toyota Motor Corporation |
| Model Name: CELICA | Model Year: 2000 |
| Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No | Component's Description: Engine and engine cooling:engine:gasoline:belts and associated pulleys |
| Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No | Persons Injured: 0 |
| Vehicle's VIN#: JTDDY32TXY0 | Date added to File: May, 25 2021 |
| Date Complaint Received: Aug, 09 2003 | Complaint Type: IVOQ |
| Incident Reported To Police: No | Purchase Date: Jan, 03 2000 |
| Was Original Owner: Yes | Anti-lock Brakes: Yes |
| Number of Cylinders: 4 | Date of Manufacturer: - |
| Was Vehicle Towed: - | Description of the Complaints: On 8/8/03 i brought my 2000 toyota celica gt-s w/ 33k miles to the service department at a-1 toyota, 50 amity rd, new haven, ct for a problem regarding some very loud continuous squealing originating from the engine compartment, especially during engine idle. at 4:20pm, a service technician (ken) called to inform me that a part called a 'belt tensioner' would have to be ordered, and the estimated cost for this part and installation would be $485.00. ken asked me if i'd like him to order the part and schedule an appointment, i said i'd let him know monday. then i did some research, and found a nhtsa technical service bulletin #628669 (toyota tsb #eg01401) pertaining to my specific complaint, and how to remedy it. i also read a very good article on edmunds.com about tsb's, and how they are regarded by the industry as 'secret warranties'...if the customer's vehicle is exhibiting a problem specifically identified in a nhtsa tsb, the manufacturer wants the dealership to fix the problem free of charge, even if the vehicle is over it's warranty period (mine is by 7 months) so that customers complaints are resolved before it turns into a recall issue. i then called a-1 toyota's service manager (mike), explaining that i had a nhtsa tsb in my hand for the very same problem my vehicle was exhibiting, and was not happy that i'd have to pay $485.00 to have it fixed, even though there was a tsb issued about my vehicle's problem. i found mike extremely uncooperative regarding this issue, telling me toyota would not fix my problem since i was over my warranty period by 7 months. again, according to the edmunds.com article pertaining to tsb's, whether the vehicle is over or under the warranty, manufacturers want the problem fixed by their dealerships before too many customers complain about the same defect and are forced by nhtsa to issue a recall. consider this my formal complaint in getting this problem one step closer to a recall. *nlm |
