I agree that it's a good idea. It's too bad GM loaded the car with so many BAD ideas.
And yet we both liked that car…What’s wrong with us?
I had a 98 Intrigue that also shut off the engine if the oil pressure dropped. It also sat pretty low, had wide tires and a pretty good suspension.
However if you took a long sweeping curve at a high rate of speed it plastered all the oil against one side of the pan and that also shut off the engine (and also the power steering).
So I would say it was a good idea, if GM wasn’t too cheap to put baffles in the oil pan.
oldtimer
Did this Intrigue have a stamped steel oil pan, or an aluminum oil pan?
UPDATE#2: Ok, so Carmax had the car towed to their service garage and gave me a service vehicle while they inspect it. At exactly 5pm I got a call but couldn’t pick it up as I was on the other line. I listened to the voice message after my call and it was from the service rep who stated that “GOOD NEWS” "no damage was done to the vehicle and the mechanics replaced the oil and filter, now it runs fine. She stated that the only bad news was all the oil underneath left a mess and they are keeping it to clean it up.
This was exactly what I was afraid of and honestly why I posted here. I figured that they would just put oil in the car, it would run fine, and they would call it a day. Now for the next step. I have been thinking about this a good deal and listening to your suggestions as to how to proceed. I have two thoughts and one of them is to have Carmax find me a car with a similar package/mileage and or (the less of the two) provide me with an extended warranty that would cover any future related damages.
Your thoughts?? and again thanks for all the support.
All you said is “recently purchased.” How long ago was it?
I would tell them that it is completely impossible a) that no damage was done to the engine and b) that’s there is no way they can know anything about the damage unless the engine was disassembled - and see what they say about that.
I would go have a long talk with the manager. I would probably go with photos (internet searches are your friend) of oil starved engine parts.
They’re blowing you off and buying for time in the hope that the car will get wrecked or enough time will lapse that they can lay the blame off on you or another facility. What they’re telling you is a quite common tactic and what I referenced earlier.
I have no problem saying that engine is damaged and with a 99+ % certainty. Odds are if the engine were torn into any oil starvation issues would be apparent.
What happens if the engine goes belly-up 2 years from now? Do you think that Carmax will step in after that amount of time has passed and provide a new engine? No; they will lay the blame off on you.
Agree with cigroller. Good idea about the photos. Tell the manager they have two choices: either disassemble the engine to prove their claim that no damage was done, or replace the engine.
Just because the engine runs now means almost nothing.
@DiconnectedRAV4
Here’s what I would do . . .
Call Carmax and tell them to find you another 2011 RAV4, even if it means you have to wait for some reason (transferring it from another carmax location, etc.)
Tell them to clean up the mess in your driveway and garage. It’s not good enough to just mop it up. Tell them they have to make the stain disappear, no matter what it takes
You paid for a 2011 RAV4. The way I see it, they owe you one
Here’s a sobering thought . . . even if Carmax gets you a different 2011 RAV4, I’ll bet you any amount of money, your current RAV4 that lost the drain plug, will be sold to another customer. And he won’t be told about this unfortunate incident.
We’re human.
I’m not
Update#3:
Speaking with the Service Rep and the Manager at CarMax I have expressed my concerns regarding the damage already done to the car as well as the desire to have another car of similar make and model to replace this one. The manager said that he will coordinate with his sales department and figure out how to make this happen. He will give me a call back this evening and stated that my request was not unreasonable in this circumstance. So far CarMax has taken responsibility for their mistake and I have not had to even think about legal action or further escalation. I will update as soon as I hear back from the manager.
Despite the circumstances and the mistake made by Carmax they have been excellent as far as communication and customer service. All of them express the importance of “making this right” which they should. I am certainly not going to celebrate yet until the process is complete but am happy as to progress. Again I believe a lot can be learned about a company by the way they handle these situations so we will see how it ends up.
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Wow, that’s impressive! Especially considering they could easily brush you off. A lot has been said about damage and compensation. If you were forced to litigate, the onus would be on you to; 1. prove there was damage and 2. prove you suffered a loss because of it. Right now, the engine is running fine (from the user perspective) and not burning excessive amount of oil. There’s no visible or measurable impact to the viability of the car meeting normal expectations. Courts don’t typically award compensation for what MIGHT happen down the road…
Prior to your last post, I saw the offer of extended coverage related to this event and thought, Great! but as you say, they are standing behind you as a customer even though this will cost them a lot to do so. That speaks volumes…
this doesn’t surprise me, as it will be easy for them to get you into another vehicle and send you on your way…and sell this vehicle as undamaged. win win.
Or, win-win-lose…for the next person who buys the car.
Be careful with Carmax extended warranties, they will use junkyard parts for things like engine and transmission replacement. They owe you a different vehicle.