nascaddy Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Well This morning my husband contacted the machine shop to stop the repairs on my heads (any repairs without resolving this dispute would relieve the warranty co. from having to pay) They cleaned the heads though and checked for warpage for us. Not surprisingly the heads were not warped. I won't bore you with the heated discussion that I had with the warranty co. about the idiot they paid to inspect my car and I am cautiously optimistic that they will now authorize the repair, I expect to have an answer tomorrow morning. Thank you all for your advice and words of wisdom. It certainly helped me convince the warranty co that they needed to reconsider their position. I sure sparked a nerve with most of you and I certainly agree with all of you who truly enjoy their cadillacs. I would have paid to have the repairs done myself if I had to. But that was not the point. I paid for the warranty because I knew that any repairs that might arise would not be cheap. I simply wanted this co. to honor what I paid for. I didn't purchase this warranty so they could pay someone to find reasons to deny claims, and I didn't look for an excuse to make them pay either. It 's just dumb luck. This is the second cadillac I have owned. The first one was a 1978 Seville, I put 297,000 miles on it before the water pump went out while on the freeway in 107 degree weather and the engine seized. My husband and brother put a rebuilt engine in it and I drove it for another 50,000 miles before I sold it. I sold it because it was old and some of the electrical and cosmetics were more than I wanted to deal with. I then drove a Buick regal for a couple of years. Unfortunately nothing handles and runs quite like a cadillac. My husband probably drove my regal 10 times. (he hated it) So when we decided to look for another car we knew it would be a cadillac. True to form my STS looks and drives like no other car. Even with the blown head gasket this car never missed a beat. Its just dumb luck and I have no qualms or desire to consider getting rid of this car. I think the northstar is a great engine and I can't wait to get it back. Driving my 17 year old daughters 82 Honda accord or my husbands 78 chevy pickup takes effort and I can tell you where every bump on every road from home to work and back are. Nothing drives quite like my cadillac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob D Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 Well Nadeen, you seem to have verified one of my fundamental beliefs.."Knowledge is power". Coming here gave you some points that the opposition could not deny. I hope it ultimately ends in your favor. Be sure to let us know how it turns out. '93 STS.. opened, dropped, wide...fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 I sure sparked a nerve with most of you and I certainly agree with all of you who truly enjoy their cadillacs. I would have paid to have the repairs done myself if I had to. But that was not the point. I paid for the warranty because I knew that any repairs that might arise would not be cheap. I simply wanted this co. to honor what I paid for. I didn't purchase this warranty so they could pay someone to find reasons to deny claims, and I didn't look for an excuse to make them pay either. nascaddy, Well with such an eloquent and informative response I wish you good luck. Seems like you did your homework. I hope this turns out well for you. Too bad you didn't continue this on the original post you started so people later on could follow the events as they unfold. We all like a happy ending and this might just turn out that way. "Burns" rubber " I've never considered myself to be all that conservative, but it seems the more liberal some people get the more conservative I become. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted August 5, 2005 Report Share Posted August 5, 2005 As Kger2 said you are a sharp lady, we may have given you the bullets but you pulled the trigger! Good Luck, I am glad we could help with facts and details for you! Like us, you are definately a Cadillac lover, let us know how this turns out! Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nascaddy Posted October 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 Hi everyone, Thought I should give you all an update on my blown head gasket saga. It would take numerous pages to give the whole story but this is the condensed version. The warranty co. finally authorized payment to replace the head gaskets including all new time certs. So parts were ordered and repairs began. Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, I get a call from the cadillac dealership with more bad news. ARE YOU READY. While in the process of time serting my engine part of the engine block broke and guess what I now need a new engine. Dealership calls warranty co. who denies payment, they say dealership broke my engine block. Dealership says they are not responsible because the integrity of the engine let go. Truth is I was not responsible and all I wanted was for someone to fess up and replace my engine. I agreed that the warranty co. was responsible for paying for a used engine. Since I did not want a used engine, I was willing to pay the difference because I wanted a new engine. Warranty Co. didn't care because they were not paying for any of it. They said they are not responsible for something the dealership broke. They wouldn't even send an inspector out and didn't know where or what part of the engine block broke. In order to protect myself and protect the integrity of the evidence, I had to contact the State Bureau of Auto Repair. They were very helpful and moved quickly. They conducted an investigation took many pictures and concluded that the dealership was not at fault that it was most likely a porosity problem. The warranty co. still denied the claim based on the original inspection stating that the engine block was not part of the original repair but that they would pay the 2500.00 for the original repair. They're right the engine block was not part of the original repair IT WAS THE REPAIR. The stripped threads were in the engine block and the heads would not bolt back on without repairing the stripped threads. My Warranty covers any part that is part of a covered break down due to a defect in workmanship or material. So what's the problem????? Problem is the warranty co. doesn't want to pay for anything over $1000.00. Any time you go over that magic number they send inspectors out not to confirm if the repair is needed but to look for any reason that can be used to deny the claim under one of the exclusions. There favorites are rust or corrossion or lack of proper lubricants, and they are very good at drawing conclusions. There next tactic is to wear you down, by not cooperating, not responding, not letting you speak to management or any one who has the authority to respond to your claim. Refusing to respond in writing. They find that if they do this long enough most people will simply give up because they can't take them to court. Contract calls for binding arbitration at your expense which can be quite costly under the terms of this contract. What they do is unfair claims settlement practices. They are very unscrupulous. This company makes there money off poor consumers like me. Well not this one without a fight. In the state of California they are regulated by the Department of Insurance, who conducts investigations when they receive complaints from consumers on non-payment of claims. I filed a complaint with the Dept of Insurance who is currently investigating my claim. In the mean time I had a new GM engine put in my car which I paid for less 2500.00. My cost 5631.00 which includes a 100,000 mile warranty. I brought the old engine block home where it will remain until I no longer need the evidence. I have a Nice looking set of cylinder heads since I had to pay the machine shop for the work they did. My new engine came with a new set of heads. If anyone needs a set of heads let me know, maybe I can recoup some of my money. In the meantime I can only hope that when the Dept of Ins. finishes the investigation the Warranty Co. will owe me some money. I was without my car for 3 months, I got it back a week ago and it's like having a brand new car. It took longer than expected because the engine was on back order (an issue I had to take up with Cadillac Customer Care) which they claimed could have taken 2 days to a year to get. I am glad the nightmare is over and I hope that my claim with the Dept of Ins. sheds some light on the lack of integrity and the unscrupulous way this company conducts business so that other consumers are not treated so unfairly. I went to ripoff.com and found that this company makes it a habit of taking advantage of poor unsuspecting consumers. You can bet I sent copies of each and every complaint they had right along with mine. There were more than 50 in the last 18 months. I hope that something is done about this company who's name is Wynns Extended Care located in Brea California. Buyer beware. When I figure out how to use my digital camera I'll post a picture of my brand new 2000 STS. Thanks Nadeen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 WOW! You beat them once Nadeen, I suspect you'll beat them again. Best of luck to you and keep us posted. That is one reason I never buy extended warranties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevyorange Posted October 17, 2005 Report Share Posted October 17, 2005 I was kinda surprised at the expense of rebuilding my STS engine. I shopped around and got a 7 year, 100,000 mile warranty for $2850 engine rebuild, $1300 labor for R&R. I had them replace some front suspension parts since it was out, as well as the alternator and starter since they were nearing 100k miles. Good job on your fight, never lie down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjtjwdad Posted October 18, 2005 Report Share Posted October 18, 2005 Glad to hear you came out on top. I know it's hard but as someone once said ..."patience is a virtue". Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greggyc Posted October 18, 2005 Report Share Posted October 18, 2005 Amazing all this happened at 63,000 miles. At any rate, I'm glad you have a new engine and your car back. I've been told by former car dealer salesmen that those extended warranties are not worth the paper they are printed on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keith_99_sts Posted October 18, 2005 Report Share Posted October 18, 2005 In a nutshell: Insurer - collect as much money as possible, pay out as little as possible. They will go to great lengths to deny claims, even valid claims. I guess that's one of the reasons why we have so many lawyers. Good luck with your 'new' Cadillac. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chevyorange Posted October 18, 2005 Report Share Posted October 18, 2005 Man, if you have to take it to the insurance commissioner. I'm not sure about your state but Washington State is pretty good on those things. DO NOT GIVE UP! You can fight these guys! Adam (I am tingling/bristling at even the thought of a fight) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
an01sts Posted October 21, 2005 Report Share Posted October 21, 2005 Mine has 83k on it, and it runs better now than it did when it was new. You hear people say to do an occasional wot to the engine to keep it healty. From 0 to 20 to 25k, I would let the engine have gentle stretches. After that, with it all loaded up with the black smoke syndrome, I didn't give it occasional wots; rather, I have ran the dogshit out of it, ending the black smoke syndrome quickly. Now, it doesn't even dust. I'm a firm beliver that running the dogshit out of it is the best thing you can do to a n/s. After all, the engines are used in marine racing applications, whereby the engine spends its whold life operating at wot. These engines don't have all this blowing up-stuff as grandpop's engine does in a few thousand miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
an01sts Posted October 21, 2005 Report Share Posted October 21, 2005 Oh yeah, I did have one problem, but not with the engine: the left outer tie rod became loose as a goose at about 55k. I was told that this was caused by exessive torque--gee, I wonder how that happened?--creating premature wear on the left tie rod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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