16 Feb, 2021 → by ClaimboUser657511
Repeated dead battery Dealership refuses to address the issue

2

I purchased a brand new 2019 Chevrolet Suburban in Apr of 2019 from Chevrolet of South Anchorage. In December I went on vacation and left the vehicle outside at a parking garage near the airport. While we were on our trip I received a notification 4 days after we left that my alarm was going off. I called the place the vehicle was parked at and they checked on the vehicle and they said everything looked fine. A few days later we returned to Alaska to dead battery on the vehicle. The temperature in Anchorage was single digits to sub zero. In February, we drove out to our cabin in Willow, Alaska. After being parked overnight in single digit temperatures, the alarm went off. I went out to vehicle and it looked fine. Then I recalled the alarm going off in Hawaii. I tried to start the car, the battery was dead again. We charged the battery and brought it into Chevrolet of South Anchorage. I was assured that the battery must be bad and not to worry they'll test it, replace it and I should be good to go. I got a call back from them saying they tested the battery and it's just fine. Come get your vehicle. My husband went down there and he was told that unless they can "catch it in the act, there is nothing they can do". So warmer temperatures came and we forgot about the issue as the car was not parked outside in the cold again. Then 12-24-20 we drove to our cabin, temps were again single digits. Two days later, the alarm goes off again, the battery died again! We charged it up and drove it home. Then on 12-31-20 we went out to our cabin and it was below zero. We decide we will get ahead of the issue and start the car every few hours to head off a dead battery. Approximately four to five hours after we got there and after we had already started the car to let it charge up the battery, the battery died. Again, we were alterted by the alarm. We were there for four days and it died every single day we were there. On day three the check engine light came on. But after charging it again on day four, the check engine light turned off. On Wednesday Jan 6th, I called Chevrolet of South Anchorage, I spoke to Shane. I filled him in on the situation. He said that I needed to bring it in right away so they can figure out what is going on. I told him that I waited to call because I was so angry and that the last time I brought it in nothing was done. On Thursday 1-7-21, I dropped off the Suburban to Shane. He said they will see what they can do to determine the cause of the dead battery. Monday January 11th I received a call from Shane. He said they left the car outside over the weekend and it started right up. They hooked up the computer and no codes. They tested the battery and it was fine. I told Shane that this was a bunch of *** and I hung up on him. My husband went down and spoke to Shane. Shane basically said he can't replicate the problem so their is nothing they can do. My husband asked even if the battery died while it was in the parking lot, what are they going to do? They would just do the same thing, which is recharge the battery and then hook it up to the computer. Clearly once the battery is charged it's not throwing a code. Obviously something in the computer/electronics is draining the battery in cold weather. The dealership apparently does not have anyone smart enough there to diagnose this issue. My husband requested to talk to a manager after dealing with Shane. On January 14th he talked to the Service Manager Kenny Walton. They had a long conversation and discussed the things they did to try and determine why the battery is draining. They also discussed some other things they could do to test the battery, like a bench test. They went ahead and replaced the battery and I believe the ground cable. We decided to leave it on their lot to see if it would replicate the issue. Kenny told Dean if the battery died on the lot that they would tow it into the shop and then he would get his two electrical guys on it to try and determine the cause. On January 25th, my husband went down to see if the vehicle would start and it started up. Then my husband went out of town. He went back down to the dealership when he returned on February 11th to see if the vehicle would start. The car was so dead the key fob would not unlock the doors. At this time Kenny was on vacation. Today Dean and Kenny talked and Kenny said since the car was left and hadn't been driven in two weeks that is reason the battery died. He said with these newer vehicles you can't let them sit for that long. My husband said how is someone expected to go on a trip and leave it at the airport? You have to have someone go out and start it up so when you come back from a vacation your car can start? That is absurd. I have left many different vehicles at the airport for 3-4 weeks in the winter and have never had issues with them starting. So now after Kenny said he would try to diagnose the issue he is refusing to even try. He said he is only going to replace the battery and that we need to come pick it up and drive it. We bought this vehicle specifically to drive out to our cabin as it holds the family, dogs, and extra stuff we need for the weekend. We were lucky that we had other people out at the cabin with better vehicles, a 2008 Dodge, a 2014 Audi, and a 2008 Jeep Compass, that all managed to have vehicles with operational batteries to give us a charge. At this point we can't even drive it to our cabin without a "support" vehicle to be there when the battery dies. This is unacceptable. If anyone else would have bought this vehicle, this issue would have been dealt with multiple times in the first year as most Alaskans can't fit this vehicle in their garage, if they even park a vehicle in their garage. This car has been parked in a heated garage since we purchased it. Every single time we have not parked it in the garage, the battery has died. This vehicle is still under factory warranty and I also purchased an extended warranty. At this point I can not, in good conscience, sell this vehicle to someone. So I am left to trade it in, back to Chevrolet of South Anchorage, at this point I am at a complete loss. This is the third GM vehicle I have purchased brand new. I would like to continue to be a loyal Chevrolet customer but in the mean time I'll just continue to drive my 2003 Hummer, that starts up everyday after sitting in cold temperatures, even after long periods of time. An extremely unsatisfied customer, Kelly Ford (Clearly the better brand I should have bought)
Helpfull? 0 votes

Post your comment:



Do you want to help? Probably you've just been in a similar situation, know the solution and want to help? Perhaps you are just a kind person who has advice on the merits. Please write your comment — you can do a good breed.

If you are actual Representative of Chevrolet of South Anchorage you can contact the user using the comment form and help resolve the situation. The user can always mark his complaint as "resolved". Maintain your brand image, it is FREE.

Copyright © 2023 CLAIMBO.COM. All rights reserved.