[omw41]

2008 Solstice Base Premium
34673 miles

I went to the store for smokes and it happened. The water pump threw up coolant all over the parking lot. I bought the car used and have an extended warranty. The company will let me suggest a mechanic. I live in Portsmouth(Norfolk) VA. Can anyone tell me a Gm Dealer or shop in my area that will do the job right the first time? :willy:

Thanks

 

[bobbob160]

Check with Perry Buick. They were a Pontiac dealer and they seem to have a good reputation in town.

 

[The_Ghost]

Just make sure that they follow the procedure. Explain to them that there is a specific procedure with a tool to hold the waterpump sprocket in place so the timing chain tensioner doesn't ratchet itself....

 

[GMCustomerSvc]

2008 Solstice Base Premium
34673 miles

I went to the store for smokes and it happened. The water pump threw up coolant all over the parking lot. I bought the car used and have an extended warranty. The company will let me suggest a mechanic. I live in Portsmouth(Norfolk) VA. Can anyone tell me a Gm Dealer or shop in my area that will do the job right the first time? :willy:

Thanks

Hello,

I am sorry to hear that you are experiencing an issue with your vehicle. Private message me if I can be of any assistance locating a dealer near your location.

Safe travels,

Jennifer T.
GM Customer Care

 

[omw41]

Just make sure that they follow the procedure. Explain to them that there is a specific procedure with a tool to hold the waterpump sprocket in place so the timing chain tensioner doesn't ratchet itself....

Right. I called Performance Buick (ex Pontiac) in Chesapeake. I spoke with John. He was hip to fender crunching and also hip to the water-pump sprocket. Whether his techs will be or not remains to be seen.

Now. Towing. Oh My God. I call the extended warranty company. They contract for a flat bed. This kid from the towing company calls me on the phone. I ask, "You're bringing a flatbed right?"
He answers, "Ah well..no..but...blah...blah...blah..."
I said, "No way you're doing the tow."
The kid says, "Well, if it's a low car the flatbed man won't even touch it."
I said, "Look, it's over. You are not doing the tow."
He says, "Do you just want to wait until the flatbed is available?"
I hang up. I call the warranty company back and cancel the tow.
The kid starts burning up my phone and I won't answer.
He shows up anyway with a regular truck and dollies.
He says, "Your car is no lower to the ground than any other car."
He starts arguing with me in my driveway, tow truck running at the curb. Young kid. Looked like he had a rough night.
I had to say, "Look, get outta my driveway before I call the cops."

So, I call the warranty place back. They admit they had it contracted for a flatbed. I told them I want another company out here. Not those last guys. They said Okay. So now I wait for a flatbed. :yesnod:

 

[omw41]

Check with Perry Buick. They were a Pontiac dealer and they seem to have a good reputation in town.

Thanks. I am going to go with Performance Buick (ex Pontiac) in Chesapeake. I'll post results when all is said and done.

 

[chickenwire]

Stick to your guns!!!

:kick:

 

[omw41]

I don't want to violate forum rules and if this does that, I will understand if moderators delete it. If you need a Solstice towed in the Portsmouth Chesapeake Area call "West Service Center." 757 area code. Ask for Billy. This guy came, took his time, used one of his own boards, borrowed one from my swimming pool setup, used straps not chains and did this all without being told to do it. :yesnod:

 

[omw41]

Update:

The car went to Performance Buick yesterday. It was the water pump and they found that the thermostat was half closed. They replaced the pump and the thermostat. The repairs are fully covered under GM Warranty, so no need to use my aftermarket provider. The dealer told me to come and pick it up anytime.

They stay open until 7;30-Service leaves at 5:30. I got the message at 5:40. I go up there. I get in the car and...sounds like I have a supercharger in there. :banghead:

That's right...it whines like a turbo. So, I printed out a Solstice Forum Post with another 2008, same issue, and a Pontiac Service Bulletin was included in the post. I return to the dealer tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. Since the car has not been driven except for any road test they did, will they have to replace the balance shaft chain tensioner and the chain or can they get away with an adjustment? This reminds me of my job. When I go to my Dean, she often says, "What do you think we should do?" :lol:

Chickenwire said it best, "Stick to your guns." :thumbs:

 

[idkfa]

Sooo nice it's covered under warranty

I still find it amazing that something like that will pass a road test after it's been 'fixed.'

edit: nvm. Thinking about it a little more, obviously they'd let something like that pass with the effort of a WP replacement compared to re-adjusting the tensioner.

 

[omw41]

Sooo nice it's covered under warranty

I still find it amazing that something like that will pass a road test after it's been 'fixed.'

edit: nvm. Thinking about it a little more, obviously they'd let something like that pass with the effort of a WP replacement compared to re-adjusting the tensioner.

I agree. Gm standing behind the car was a real nice surprise. And really, I don't see why a dealer would mind doing the tensioner adjustment, if he can charge GM- unless he cannot.

I thought about the road test thing too. My wife said they wouldn't do that. My philosophy is much more like your final line.

My wife says to be cool and that the Service Manager most likely took his tech's word for it that it was fixed. Also, I have the XM in there. The guy might have hit the tunes and hit the road. Who knows?

 

[The_Ghost]

I agree. Gm standing behind the car was a real nice surprise. And really, I don't see why a dealer would mind doing the tensioner adjustment, if he can charge GM- unless he cannot.

I thought about the road test thing too. My wife said they wouldn't do that. My philosophy is much more like your final line.

My wife says to be cool and that the Service Manager most likely took his tech's word for it that it was fixed. Also, I have the XM in there. The guy might have hit the tunes and hit the road. Who knows?

If it's like Ford, it's on his time and his dime. Although I'm not sure about GM. I know if a tech didn't follow a TSB with Ford (Lincoln) the dealer and tech were responsible to fix the issue that was created. The only reason I know this is I wrote for about 6 months and we had one tech that would NEVER follow TSBs. It never failed...he averaged only turning 25/week because he was constantly fixing his screw ups.

As far as not test driving it, it's very possible. So many dealers are afraid of the liability now. And especially with our cars. They are literally "one of a kinds" now. And most understand that most of the Kappa owners are VERY anal about anyone driving their vehicles. But, we warned you.... Should have printed off the TSB and taken it in like I did....and my service advisor is a friend!!!! We've been out for beers together!!! But I still made him staple the TSB to the RO!!!! He was pissed, but oh well. He literally said to me, "don't trust me?" I responded, "I trust you, I don't trust your tech because this was the same tech that failed to find the rear diff TSB!!!" He laughed and said, "Good point..."

So next time, you find a new dealer. That's what I'm doing after this same tech that did my waterpump put 2 1/2 quarts too much oil in my car! I looked at my friend and said, "Now you understand why I gave you the procedures for the waterpump for your tech!"

 

[omw41]

If it's like Ford, it's on his time and his dime. Although I'm not sure about GM. I know if a tech didn't follow a TSB with Ford (Lincoln) the dealer and tech were responsible to fix the issue that was created. The only reason I know this is I wrote for about 6 months and we had one tech that would NEVER follow TSBs. It never failed...he averaged only turning 25/week because he was constantly fixing his screw ups.

As far as not test driving it, it's very possible. So many dealers are afraid of the liability now. And especially with our cars. They are literally "one of a kinds" now. And most understand that most of the Kappa owners are VERY anal about anyone driving their vehicles. But, we warned you.... Should have printed off the TSB and taken it in like I did....and my service advisor is a friend!!!! We've been out for beers together!!! But I still made him staple the TSB to the RO!!!! He was pissed, but oh well. He literally said to me, "don't trust me?" I responded, "I trust you, I don't trust your tech because this was the same tech that failed to find the rear diff TSB!!!" He laughed and said, "Good point..."

So next time, you find a new dealer. That's what I'm doing after this same tech that did my waterpump put 2 1/2 quarts too much oil in my car! I looked at my friend and said, "Now you understand why I gave you the procedures for the waterpump for your tech!":agree:

I could not agree more. I let my guard down. The TSB you reference is PIP3535A right? What does PIP mean?

 

[The_Ghost]

I will find out tomorrow at work. I will get several TSBs and have admin create a spot for them. That way people can have them to print and give to their service advisors right away....

 

[omw41]

I will find out tomorrow at work. I will get several TSBs and have admin create a spot for them. That way people can have them to print and give to their service advisors right away....

That would be great!

Is there any interest in creating Solstice Water Pump Failure Club T Shirts? :lol:

If they refuse to fix the whine, my next step is GM Customer Service, right? Also, will it hurt the engine if it is driven (even home 5 miles) with the whine? I know this question has been asked before, but I did not see an answer in that thread.

Every used car I have ever bought needs a water pump, battery, and timing belt adjustment. 32k for a water pump seems a little soon though, although clearly it is well documented. By the way, our cars have timing chains, right?

 

[chickenwire]

Timing chain drives the water pump. You might get away with driving it for a while but I wouldn't. When the dealer (who will never see me again) cocked mine up it was discovered literally at the end of the day on a Friday. The service manager knew it was wrong but they didn't have the time to fix it. Probably the same thing that happened to yours.

I believe Ghost is correct - the warranty work is charged back to the manufacturer. If the dealer dicked it, the correction is his expense.

As for turning this over to GM customer service? Only if the dealer refuses to fix it. I would NOT take the car off his property! (I really don't believe you'll have a problem getting it fixed and seeing a red faced service manager over doing exactly what you told him not to do.)

 

[The_Ghost]

That would be great!

Is there any interest in creating Solstice Water Pump Failure Club T Shirts? :lol:

If they refuse to fix the whine, my next step is GM Customer Service, right? Also, will it hurt the engine if it is driven (even home 5 miles) with the whine? I know this question has been asked before, but I did not see an answer in that thread.

Every used car I have ever bought needs a water pump, battery, and timing belt adjustment. 32k for a water pump seems a little soon though, although clearly it is well documented. By the way, our cars have timing chains, right?

I'll order a t-shirt! It puts a lot of pressure on your bearings when it's whining. When you go back, tell them flat out, the car didn't make the noise before it came in and if they would have followed the TSB for waterpump replacement, it wouldn't be whining now! Tell them you are not happy and that if the tech had taken the time to look up the procedure for the WP, you wouldn't be back. Let me know if you need any other advice (15+ years in dealership world).

We have chains and the tensioner gets out of adjustment when they don't follow the procedure to fix the WP. It's designed to take up the slack in the chain as it wears, and when they don't hold it in place, the tensioner ratchets itself tighter. Thus causing the excessive pressure on all of the bearings the timing chain touches, causing the whine.

Now that your WP has been replaced, try to change the coolant about every 20k according to a GM engineer. What happesn is the coolant starts to "gum up" with age and starts to gum up on the seals, thus causing the leak. Look for the disscussion, "What technically causes a waterpump to fail" on the forums...or I'll post a link later.

Oh....and for everyone out there...the Chevy HHR SS has the WP issue too....so I the Cobalt is the only LNF that doesn't have this issue!

 

[GMCustomerSvc]

Remember that we are here to assist you if you would like for us to document any issue and/or call your dealer. Whenever you need assistance send us a private message and we will do whatever we can to assist you. Just let us know.

Jackie
GM Customer Care

 

[omw41]

Remember that we are here to assist you if you would like for us to document any issue and/or call your dealer. Whenever you need assistance send us a private message and we will do whatever we can to assist you. Just let us know.

Jackie
GM Customer Care

Thanks to everyone. As it stands now the car is still at the dealer, and Chickenwire I have not driven it off the lot and will not drive it off the lot until it is fixed.

This morning 7:30 a.m I had my wife go up there armed with the TSB and several Solstice Forum posts on the issue. Why send her? For the same reason I married her. She is good looking, sweet, and knows when to wear something that shows some cleavage. Anyhow, she talked to the Service Manager, asked him to come hear the whine; he goes out and says, "What noise are you hearing?"

Then the guy who worked on the car came out. My wife sweet talked him. He heard the noise and agreed something was wrong. The mechanic said, "Yeah. You got a noise here." He broke out the stethoscope. Then she got the mechanic to read (in front of her) the TSB and all of the forum posts I had printed out. He said "I'm sorry about that." I'm going to take care of that."

So, no phone call today, but that could be a good sign. Since they have to eat the repair they may be doing it "when they can get to it," and we can live with that. We want it fixed. We want it fixed right. And, we are willing to give them the time that they need to do that. My wife says the mechanic told her, "These really are sensitive cars."

BTW, I made the mistake of letting my wife take the Solstice out of state for three weeks about six weeks ago. She's home now, but I can't get the car away from her. :lol:

That's Okay. She earned it today. :yesnod:

 

[GMCustomerSvc]

Thanks for the update. Hope you get a call soon. Please keep me posted!

Jackie
GM Customer Care