2005 Hyundai Santa Fe CATALYTIC CONVERTOR

Tiny
CTRAMANTAN
  • MEMBER
  • 2005 HYUNDAI SANTA FE
  • 6 CYL
  • AWD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 35,000 MILES
6 months ago, the "engine malfunction" light came on. My mechanic diagnosed the problem - said it needed coil assembly replaced and recommended I take car to dealer since it should be covered under warranty. Dealer said that the number 2 cylinder was misfiring due to spark plug leaks and replaced spark plug at no charge. Said it did not need coil assembly replaced. One month ago the malfunction light came on again. My mechanic could not find any problem and reset the light. About 10 days later, the car ran rough for a short period of time one day. This happened 2 more times over the next week or two (on rainy days when first starting in the morning). But then the car ran fine for about 2 weeks. Three days ago the car lost power while I was driving it (check engine light never came on as a warning). I had the car towed to my mechanic. He checked it and said that the catalytic convertors were clogged and that it should be covered under my Hyundai warranty. I had the car towed to a Hyundai dealer service dept. They ran a diagnostic test and said that the internal clogs in both convertors were due to the engine misfiring and therefore it was not covered by warranty. They also said that one of the coil assemblies was not original Hyundai part (although my mechanic never replaced a coil assembly) My question is: should I dispute their decision not to do the work under warranty?
Friday, April 9th, 2010 AT 10:34 AM

1 Reply

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
Yes, you should dispute it. There is nothing that indicates that all replacement parts have to be factory parts. If that was demanded by the manufacturer, they would have to supply the parts for free.

Your vehicle has a 5 year 50K mile emissions warranty. It covers all emissions components 100% for that period of time, even if you are not the original owner. The dealer is the one who "fixed" the spark plug problem. Therefore, if there was a misfire, it's their fault.

If you get no satisfaction from the dealer, look in your owner's manual for the zone rep from the manufacturer and tell him what has happened and the repair should be under warranty. Also, explaine that there was a misfire that was immediately taken care of by the dealer and no other check engine light came on to warn you of a problem.

Let me know if you have other questions.

Joe
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Saturday, May 22nd, 2010 AT 11:28 PM

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