Mahindra Warranty

[madmax28]

I want to hear other's experience with their warranty work if anyone out there has had any performed. I bought a 4025 4wd last July. It developed a leak at the left rear axle seal about a month ago. I hauled it to the dealer two weeks ago for it to be repaired. They called yesterday saying it was fixed and that I would have to pay $48 for "freight and shop charges". Needless to say, I don't agree with having to pay any amount toward a repair covered under warranty. I have a call in with a Mahindra rep so hopefully I will get a call back from them today about it. I'm wondering if this is a common practice for some dealers or am I the only lucky guy out there that has to deal with this sort of thing from my dealer?

 

[burzynsr]

Ask them to "clarify" freight and shop charges. Parts delivery rush faster than standard delivery, dispossal of old lubricants, etc.

 

[Sysop]

Ask them to "clarify" freight and shop charges. Parts delivery rush faster than standard delivery, dispossal of old lubricants, etc.

Agreed. It could be something totally out of the hands of MUSA or the dealer. Locally we have a city "street use" tax the city has started charging all the businesses and folk who work in town to help improve our poor street conditions. Several businesses moved out of city limits because their competition in the towns nearby don't have that additional cost that needs passed on to the customer.

 

[madmax28]

I was told it was for the freight for the parts needed for the repair. I called a Mahindra customer service rep this morning. They are going to talk to the dealer about it. They said I should not have to pay for anything. We'll see how it works out. I will post an update when this is resolved.

 

[linuxman51]

Only thing I've fo-sho had replaced under warranty was the seat on my Max28, about a month or so after I bought it. Really the only reason it got replaced was because they don't list the operator sensor (weight switch) as a separate entity, and mine broke at the connector. So, new seat it was. They did all the work at my house, no charges or paperwork on my end. (FWIW tho, my house is only a couple miles from the dealer).

 

[madmax28]

The dealer just called me and said that the charges were $8 for freight and $40 for brake clean and rtv lol. I told him that wasn't going to work. A Mahindra rep called me and said I shouldn't pay for either and that they were going to call the dealer again. So it looks like so far my problems will be resolved with the help of a factory rep.

 

[DavesTractor]

A little background information, not specific to this particular situation, is that in some states the dealers cannot collect back from Mahindra for freight charges. If the part is on the shelf already, previously ordered in as a stock order, they likely will have no freight charges. But if they had to place an order for the part to be shipped outside the normal stock order, they would have freight.

I think for all brands, the manufacturer likes to pay as little as they can deem to be reasonable on warranty repairs. It is not a profit center for a dealer, the allowable labor is really tight, and they often do not want to pay for all the shop supplies. I can understand the OEM keeping a tight lid on costs, I'd do the same if I ran the warranty department. But know that a warranty repair is a little bit of a loser for the dealer. I've heard auto repair guys say how warranty is a profit center, but we have not seen that on tractors. It is a similar deal, but the tractor world is years behind the auto world in this regard.

Having said that, this sort of issue between dealer and OEM needs to be behind the scenes and the customer should not feel it. The warranty is clear that parts and labor are covered, and it seems that associated costs like RTV, rags, brake cleaner, electricity to turn on the lights or whatever needs to be factored into the shop labor rate or recovered from Mahindra as best as possible. And perhaps in a non-freight state the dealer needs to add $100 to the initial price of the tractor and just figure he will consume that extra $100 over 5 years on freight.

California requires the OEM to pay the dealer freight on warranty claims, so that is not an issue here.

$8 in freight is a small amount to quibble over to make a customer unhappy. And $40 in brake clean and RTV is not reasonable. You can spread a lot of RTV for under $10.

I suspect the dealer is just trying to break even on the job, but that really isn't the customers problem. If it is the dealer I think it is, they are a really good dealer. I'd have a talk with the GM or owner and I bet things get resolved. Happy customers come back regularly and tell their friends good things. That has a ton of value.

 

[madmax28]

A little background information, not specific to this particular situation, is that in some states the dealers cannot collect back from Mahindra for freight charges. If the part is on the shelf already, previously ordered in as a stock order, they likely will have no freight charges. But if they had to place an order for the part to be shipped outside the normal stock order, they would have freight.

I think for all brands, the manufacturer likes to pay as little as they can deem to be reasonable on warranty repairs. It is not a profit center for a dealer, the allowable labor is really tight, and they often do not want to pay for all the shop supplies. I can understand the OEM keeping a tight lid on costs, I'd do the same if I ran the warranty department. But know that a warranty repair is a little bit of a loser for the dealer. I've heard auto repair guys say how warranty is a profit center, but we have not seen that on tractors. It is a similar deal, but the tractor world is years behind the auto world in this regard.

Having said that, this sort of issue between dealer and OEM needs to be behind the scenes and the customer should not feel it. The warranty is clear that parts and labor are covered, and it seems that associated costs like RTV, rags, brake cleaner, electricity to turn on the lights or whatever needs to be factored into the shop labor rate or recovered from Mahindra as best as possible. And perhaps in a non-freight state the dealer needs to add $100 to the initial price of the tractor and just figure he will consume that extra $100 over 5 years on freight.

California requires the OEM to pay the dealer freight on warranty claims, so that is not an issue here.

$8 in freight is a small amount to quibble over to make a customer unhappy. And $40 in brake clean and RTV is not reasonable. You can spread a lot of RTV for under $10.

I suspect the dealer is just trying to break even on the job, but that really isn't the customers problem. If it is the dealer I think it is, they are a really good dealer. I'd have a talk with the GM or owner and I bet things get resolved. Happy customers come back regularly and tell their friends good things. That has a ton of value.

I agree with you Dave. Had I been told up front when I bought the machine that I would be responsible for certain charges, I would have been prepared for it. Nothing is worse than being blind-sided by a cost and then treated like a piece of gum on a shoe for questioning it. I can understand they may be frustrated with Mahindra for not reimbursing them for shop supplies and frieght, but I am not the source of the frustration and I should not be treated as such. I believe the area Mahindra rep has taken care of it for me so hopefully I won't have any more issues with the tractor.

I am a natural gas compressor specialist. We work with large Cat engines as drivers for the compressors. I buy ALOT of rtv and brake clean. I can tell you for a fact that if you pay $40 for a 12 can case of brake clean and 2 tubes of rtv you got ripped.

Anyway, I believe my problem is resolved. I appreciate everyone's input.

 

[oldpilgrim]

I was told it was for the freight for the parts needed for the repair.

that's BS. Within 6 months of my getting my 3016 last summer, one of my main lift cylinders sprung a leak..bad weld I guess.

I told the dealer about it and they ordered a new one and exchanged it..... no questions asked and no charges at all.

 

[John Dougherty]

that's BS. Within 6 months of my getting my 3016 last summer, one of my main lift cylinders sprung a leak..bad weld I guess.

I told the dealer about it and they ordered a new one and exchanged it..... no questions asked and no charges at all.

As always, service is no better than the dealer that we bought our tractor from. I now know this now, but didn't in the beginning. According to this site I am not supposed to mention the dealer that I bought my tractor from since I have had zero correspondence from them concerning my problem. Having said that, this is pretty much a FUBAR in my opinion. I agree with Madmax28, O.P. and Dave. This is not how people are supposed to be treated. This industry will continue to shake out a lot of dealers. Unfortunately it will hurt the brand, which I believe to be solid. Like Dave said, this is not the car industry with established dealers with a profit center for warranty work. It will continue to be this way until MUSA gets on board with the American market.