RE: 2003 Suburban DEFECT - rear glass hinge
Update -
The Area Service Manager Mr. Talmadge Mason (Phone number 800-823-0055 X 8140) called me finally. He is saying that he denied the claim due to the vehicles mileage (60K miles) and due to the fact that I am the second owner, even though I bought it from a Chevy dealer and it was a GM certified Vehicle.
GM's customer assistance hotline has told me that he denied the claim due to the fact that something had been lodged in between the glass and hatch, or that "wind" had caught the window and broke the hatch.
While I was speaking with him he "said" that he had only seen the hinge separate from the glass 3 previous times, which I found pretty strange since he is the Area Service Manager. He stated that one of the hinges had some material lodged in it, and the other had been caught by the wind. I asked how wind had caught the window and caused the hinge to hyperextend and break since the gas shocks would stop the window from blowing up. Quick as he was, he replied that the customer told him that he removed the gas shocks and then a gust of wind blew the glass up and broke the hinge. I asked if any of these 3 hinges were covered under warranty (he already told me all 3 were within the warranty period), he said that all 3 went through their insurance agencies. When I asked him why he was involved with this problem if it was an insurance claim, he told me that they all "tried" to have their warranty cover it, and he denied all 3. He said that he physically inspected all of them and personally determined that the customer was responsible. When I asked him if he inspected my vehicle, he told me that the service manager at my dealership had inspected it and relayed the information to him. He made the determination that I caused the damage without inspecting the vehicle!
When I asked him about all the other vehicles that have been repaired under warranty or under a "customer satisfaction" initiative, he told me that he was unaware of any other vehicles having this problem. I told him that I spoke with a tech (GM Tech) and he said that his dealership does about 2 of these per month. He again replied that he was unaware of any defect in the hinge/adhesive/glass, and that there were no service bulletins on it.
I had told him that I did not believe him, and that it was a little too convenient that he only has seen this 3 times, and all 3 were the customers fault. When I asked for the name of his immediate supervisor, he refused to give me the information. I asked him if he was concerned about me filing a complaint, and his only response was to refer me to the Customer Service Hotline.
Anyone have any advice on where to take this? Small claims court?
Brad
