The cpo inspection form typically requires the mechanic to check the battery with a capacitance tester. And the printout is to be attached to the inspection form. The printout will have a code, which changes with every test. The tester requires you to enter the capacity of the battery (typically entered in ccas, but there are other choices), and whether the test is being conducted “in-vehicle” or “out of vehicle”
In my opinion, the dealership should be paying for the cost of the new battery, because it failed so soon after the vehicle was sold. Consider it good will. The fact that no inspection sheet was included with the sale of the vehicle is quite disturbing. It raises many unpleasant questions
The inspection sheet is supposed to be included with the paperwork the new owner receives. It’s a selling point
I live in a small town where crime is almost non-existent. I lock my car and house. Why take the chance? My post concerned the 1950s and early 1960s. Drug use has changed that.
During our short summer season I play golf on 3 leagues at the course in town. I play with and against doctors, lawyers, a judge, care salesmen, car dealership owners, restaurant owners, greens keepers, former State police trooper/diver/Navy seal, teachers, a school superintendent, a preacher, lots of guys retired from the Air Force, you name it… a mechanic, and a parts guy from a local Car Quest (He was running late one evening and didn’t have time to change clothes and played with a Car Quest costume. I made fun of the pens in his pocket until he noticed and removed them.
The local dealers have new trucks an SUVs parked at the course all the time (not locked) for different tournaments nearly every week-end. About a month ago, a teacher/athletic director I know got a hole-in-one (his first one) during a “touch-down club” tournament and he won a $32,000 Chevy Equinox on display!
He wanted a truck, instead and the dealer owner, who was in the tournament, let him put the money toward a $45,000 (- lucrative rebate) P/U truck that he special ordered to his liking. He loves his new truck, by the way. I played golf against him last week and when we got to hole 17 I asked him to show me how to get an ace!
In a small town people work with one and other, not against anybody or they won’t have a job.
I generally don’t lock our cars. I prefer to take the keys out and remove valuables. When I managed a body shop, I saw first-hand the damage done by thieves breaking into locked vehicles. It seemed apparent to us which thieves were pros and which ones were amateurs. The pros damaged cars the least. The rookies tore the _ _ _ _ out of them.
We lock our house if we are going away for an extended time and I lock-up at night. CSA
LOL, I’ve thought of that!
At least the pros check to see if the car is locked before breaking a window.
A broken window is a best-case scenario.
I’ve seen amateur punks total out a car door trying to open it. Then they try another door or two. Next they tear apart the dashboard to steal a radio, but damage the radio so badly that they take off without stealing anything.
I’ve seen cars like that with thousands of $$$ in damage and owners inconvenienced for days/weeks waiting for insurance adjusters, parts orders, and repairs. CSA
db4690: Very helpful info. Now Here is the update my friends. All good news (for me). Honda USA contacted the dealership, and then the service director from the dealerships contacted me first thing Saturday morning. They apologized profusely, offered to send someone over to my home ASAP to pick up the car personally, drive it themselves to their (closer) dealership, replace the battery with a new one for free, emailed me a copy of the prior inspection checklist, but planned to do another full inspection (including a few additional higher level tests) and give me a copy of that new testing report as well, fix a few other cosmetic things I mentioned over the phone for free (one involved ordering a part), and drive the car back to my home after this was completed. And he gave me his cell phone number and told me to call him personally if had any problems going forward and he would take care of it. The battery had already been jumped 3 days ago, but when their driver showed up on Saturday, the battery was dead again. The service director continued to inquire on the progress of the car pickup via via text through all of this, and then sent a second person to come to jump start the battery for his driver. The salesperson also called to check in with us. All this to say— Wow. VIP service. Replacing the battery problem (remember it failed twice one week after purchase!) was a nice, appropriate action. The rest of the service though I think was solely because they messed up by not giving (?having) the inspection checklist. I expect this new inspection will be done very well. And I expect that ours was the last car that will leave the dealership without a inspection checklist for awhile. I am a very happy customer.
Agreed. Actually, my chat online with Honda USA a few days ago lasted only about 5 minutes. I probably spent more time posting and checking responses here, lol. Seriously though, I drove the car quite a bit last weekend and do really love it. And I am very impressed with how responsive Honda USA was.
The dealer is bending over backwards because they got caught and are trying to paint a happy face on everything now.
For what it’s worth, the car manufacturers (all of them…) do not trust their dealers. That’s why they ride herd on them all the time from sales issues to parts to service and warranty, etc.
BillRussell: I doubt it. I focused (repeatedly) on the lack of the inspection checklist despite my asking repeatedly for it from the dealership (and how the dealership misled me by telling me to go the the Honda website to download it directly myself). I think that was the nail in the coffin. After reading the rules of the Honda CPO program, it’s clear that this 182point inspection is the key to the whole certification (well, that and the 12month warranty). I’m sure Honda USA did not like the dead battery after 1 week, but the missing proof of inspection was indefensible.
Perhaps the valet service but it is standard practice to replace a failed battery for free if it fails shortly after the sale. There is no reason for a customer to fear returning to the selling dealer to ask for the battery to be replaced.
Ditto!
Crime is almost non-existent in my neck of the woods, but even if I am just going to be doing yardwork in back of my house, I always lock the doors. Similarly, I lock my car doors when the garage door is open. Why would I want to take a chance on losing my Valentine-1 Radar Detector when it takes just a fraction of a second to lock the vehicle’s doors?
Just because crime has not yet taken place in someone’s neighborhood, that is not a very good guarantee that crime will never take place.
