Nope.... I said to the service guy: "so you are saying that even with the check hybrid warning light on you were not able to pull any codes from the computer?". And he said "no". They haven't been able to diagnose anything. Just like last week they simply "re-booted" the computer and are now out driving the car trying to re-create the problem.... One thing I'm going to be sure of is to have them document the work order showing all the miles they have put on it - so this doesn't count against my warranty.

Well I just called Toyota's
national customer service center 800 number. They took all my info and said a case manager would be calling me within 1-2 business days. I got my case # just in case they don't call me back. If they don't - well that will simply be pouring more gas on the fire. I made it clear to the national center that I've got nothing against this dealer, and that they have been cool. But this problem is simply above their head is all. Toyota needs to get a special TCH engineer to fly/drive in and figure out what is going on, like what they had to do with Norb's car. I think either the local service techs haven't been trained on the TCH, or else Toyota in general has some glitches going on that they are not aware of.

Bottom line is that I just want my TCH fixed! I love this car, but it has to be reliable!

 

skywagon has a point here. Many minds are greater than one, Grasshopper!

Let me clarify my prior suggestion. I still think that you should begin the process of talking to a lemon law lawyer about your problem. Get advice as to how to deal with Toyota so that, if you actually file a claim, you will have an excellent body of evidence to support your case. However, I would not have the lawyer represent you yet. If, for example, he/she writes a letter to Toyota, they will just lawyer up and then skywagon is right ...talking stops and allegations begin.

So YES talk to a lawyer now, but NO do not allow him/her to lead the parade. Raise this with the lawyer in your first meeting; they should be cool with your strategy, and beware of anyone who wants to dive in with nastygrams and instant complaints! After all, you don't have grounds for a claim at this moment, as I understand CA lemon law. You need to get there on the facts, and you need to build the case.

Oh, and check with the lawyer in the first phone call to make sure that they will analyse your case without charge. IMHO, there should be someone ethical enough to look at your situation and not hit you up for a retainer or advance fee before you know whether you are actually going forward with a lemon law claim.

 

Sensible advice, wcmack.

Good luck getting your issue resolved, charlesc (my San Diego brother-from-another-mother).

 

Thanks for your input again Bill. I'm not at the point of contacting a lawyer yet. Besides I've got too full a schedule this week to even think about that. I'm going to give them one more shot. If it breaks down a third time then yes I just may start looking into the whole lawyer/lemon law thing. I did take your previous advice and have been keeping a journal of everything going on. I've documented all dialogue as well as the dates and times of all the problems and interactions. This came in handy today when calling the national toyota customer service center - as I was able to give them the exact dates and times of everything for their documentation.

 

Charles,

No problem. Besides, my advice is probably worth about what you're paying for it!!!!!

 

Thanks! I hope it all works out too!

BTW I owe you a thanks as well for posting that toyota service 800 # in the oil change thread. That came in handy today. This forum has become one real good resource for TCH owners with all of our input and experiences.

 

Glad it helped you. For anyone starting to use this forum, the 'search' feature is an excellent way to find tidbits that are buried in now-ancient (months old) posts. As the forum matures, chances will increase that you can find your answer already documented in our small-but-growing community forum.

 

This just keeps getting worse. Today I learned from the dealer that they have put 30 miles on the car trying to re-create the problem and still cannot duplicate the issue - and they have been unable to diagnose the problem in the shop. The national toyota tech line authorized the dealer to replace the "inverter", which I was told is a $10,000 part. I could car less how much the parts are, I just want my *** **** car to run. And I don't understand why they are replacing a part when they still don't know what the problem is??? Why replace something if you don't even know what is wrong!?

Tomorrow I'll be speaking with the national toyota people again. I'm going to explain to them that any re-sale value of my vehicle just got flushed down the toilet and I'm not happy at all. They need to buy this vehicle back from me and do all the experimenting they want with it so this doesn't happen to any other TCH's.



Also – I have nothing against the local tech’s/service people as they have been nice. But this is just above their head and it is now time for some Toyota engineers to get involved.

 

Charles writes:The national toyota tech line authorized the dealer to replace the "inverter", which I was told is a $10,000 part

Ya Charles, they make it sound soooo expensive but they will take that inverter back and dysect it and find their weak link so it is worth around 1 miilion$$$ or maybe more to them to get it back and get this problem solved before people start turning them back in. lol

 

Personally, I think the techline is feeding you a load of crap. There is no way that inverter ACTUALLY costs $10k. They may charge that much for it, but if they are, I think they are robbing us blind. It's a good thing they are covered under warrany for as long as they are!