Dealership won't fix intermittent issue under warranty
Dealerships often refuse warranty repairs when an intermittent problem fails to replicate on-site, even if diagnostic codes are stored in the vehicle's system. This leaves owners stuck wondering what steps to take next, unsure whether to try a different brand-certified dealer or how to secure third-party warranty approval without active symptoms.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Leaving the vehicle at the dealership longer
- 2Trying a different dealership
- 3taking the car to a direct brand dealer for inspection
- 4seeking approval from a third-party warranty provider
- 5Showing videos of the sounds to the dealership
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Now it’s not doing it at the dealership (of course) and even though they can see the codes, they don’t want to work on it any further.”source ↗
“Not sure what to do next.”source ↗
“im debating if I should go to a direct Mazda dealer to inspect it.”source ↗
“I have a third party warranty but they got to make sure that it is that specific issue so that I can get an approval for a repair cause I really don’t what to pay for anything”source ↗
“have a 2016 Honda civic with less than 30 k miles. I’ve been having issues with my A/c and have taken it to the Honda dealership where they changed my evaporator and the compressor seal which was cover under extended warrant.”source ↗
“I’ve taken back about 6/7 times and they say they can’t replicate the noice and are unable to do anything I have shown them videos of the sounds yet they don’t do anything.”source ↗
“How would I get the dealership to actually work on this ? Since they keep saying they don’t hear anything”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 15How to handle random car error codes and weird driving feelings
- 8Which mechanic diagnosis do I trust when they completely disagree?