this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2023
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Mechanic Advice
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Damn. That sucks man. The curse of the Theta II strikes again.
Dealers can be hit or miss on whether they'll do the warranty work. For a while the Theta II warranty calls have just been super easy to do, even with no service history they'll just do it and let Kia pick up the bill. But some dealers push back because they don't get paid well for it.
I'd guess as long as you have most of the oil change records it'll be just fine if you're comfortably inside the warranty period.
Got a call earlier and the dealership is saying they think the engine is fine and it's just the starter that shorted out. At this point I'll believe it when I see it running. I don't think it's very likely it would stop while driving from a bad starter, do you? Everything I am reading says that a shorted starter would have drained the battery, which wasn't the case.
If this is true the first shop seems to have not actually diagnosed anything or they just wanted to get $8.5k for an engine replacement from me. Wasting my $130 tow costs either way.
Correct, it would not have just stopped driving from a bad starter. The starter is not used at all while in motion. Even if you have automatic stop/start which is only used at stoplights. I don't know why they're investigating that first when it's not relevant to your symptoms, unless it's a corporate level requirement to do some level of "diagnosis" before going straight to long-block replacement. (Warranty TSB's do have certain requirements that have to be verified before a warranty R&R can be approved.)
It's super easy to verify an engine lockup- you just put a breaker bar on the crank pulley bolt and turn the engine, it should move relatively easily. Without having to R&R the starter, something they might try to make you pay dor out of warranty. But dealership first-line techs are not often the brightest.
They say they were able to turn it over, so either they are lying or the first shop is lying. This is why I never trust auto shops. I always feel like I being jerked around and overcharged.
I just hope I can have my car back by Monday so I don't miss more work. They wont even give me a loaner until its verified as a warranty repair by Kia.
Yeah. Such is the problem of needing work done when you are illiterate in the subject. It's a problem that always leaves you vulnerable.
I just read your OP edit. Glad it was covered. I'd probably hold onto it for another year to break in, since the new engine will come with its own dedicated warranty, then sell it once the market can accept that the new engine isn't going to fail prematurely.
But absolutely, jump ship to a Toyota. I can't recommend Subaru these days unfortunately, but Honda is still good too.