Car dealerships are in the business to make money, not to provide complimentary repairs. While dealerships do repair their vehicles and provide manufacturer quality repair services, you may have a difficult time convincing a car dealership to foot the bill for a repair if the vehicle is no longer under dealer warranty. Fortunately for car owners, there are some legitimate ways to get dealerships to cover part of or all of the costs of a non-warrantied repair, providing the situation meets certain criteria.
Check for recalls. Research the specific problem in relation to the car's year, make and model. If you get a lot of hits after typing "2010 Brand X Car Y Transmission Problems and Recalls" into an Internet search engine, chances are that the problem may have been caused by a factory defect or design flaw. If this is the case, go through manufacturer recall information. If you can find a recall notice for the car's problem, the dealership is obligated to fix it for free, regardless of its warranty status.
Prove the problem was caused by a defective part or service. Even if there is not a recall, if the problem is unusual or has occurred far earlier in the car's useful life than it should have, you may be able to get the dealership to pay for the repairs. For example, if you have your car's oil changed at the dealership, and two weeks later the engine blows up because the technician forgot to refill the oil, the dealership is liable to pay for the repairs.
Your dealership's parts and service department may be willing to admit to a defective part, but if they do not, you can always get a second opinion from a local mechanics shop and approach the dealership with it.
Check local and federal laws. Some parts are warrantied for a certain amount of time, by law. Primarily, these are parts such as catalytic converters and emissions components, but some other parts are covered as well.
Talk to the dealership. You may be able to negotiate with the local dealership about repairs. Some vehicle repairs may be common enough to be replaced by the dealership for a fraction of the cost or even for free, even though an actual recall has not been issued.
Take the dealership to court. If you can prove the problem was caused by the dealership, or that the dealership committed an act of fraud in how they represented the car, you may be able to get recourse or your money refunded in court.
