Warranty Answers

I am still here - sorry for the late response. I don't get notifications except to one e-mail, which I don't check often due to not many responses to this thread. I come by every so often to check it.

Here's my answers, as best as I can

Which do you see the most warranty work for?: Cummins, but I would say this is likely because there are far more Cummins engines in use than Paccar. I also much prefer to do warranty work on a Cummins engine because the overall process for a warranty manager is easier. This isn't to say that Cummins engines are down more, but I think it's because more companies / drivers run Cummins.

What are some of the common failures of each engine other than emissions related?: Turbos fail on both. Fuel pump heads fail on Cummins so frequently lately that they've published an official bulletin for requesting policy on it. This one is big because the ceramic would break apart and go through the system. If that happens you're going to be wanting the rods dropped to inspect for damage. I've seen several $7,000+ bills as a result. The fuel unit injectors were failing on the MXs so much that they pushed a campaign for them to replace them prior to them failing. On the emission side, they both have the same issues, SCR/DOC/DPF failures.

If I understand correctly the ISX was improved greatly from the cm2250 to the cm2350. Any comments?: Sorry, unfortunately I can't comment on that. I don't see very many CM2350 and my knowledge of them is pretty limited. My knowledge is primarily in the warranty area, and less technical.

If there was such an improvement to the Paccar engines, which year?: I'm not sure there was a year, but I'd say the engine has been steadily improving since its release. I've seen some trucks that come in to the shop constantly and I've seen some that are never down. However I've also seen the campaigns, recalls and bulletins that the engine has gone through as it's aged. I think a lot of the early problems have been sorted out, but there are still bound to be some until they get everything 100% figured out.

Along those same lines, I can tell you that when it comes to asking Peterbilt / Paccar for policy assistance on a MX failure versus asking Cummins for policy assistance...Peterbilt & Paccar tend to be more forgiving and offer more, while making you jump through less hoops. The Pete/Paccar side is up to the district service representatives for that dealership, whereas the Cummins side goes to the local distributor, and they have different "Tiers" of policy assistance, with restrictions (time / mileage) on assistance. If the failure is somehow maintenance related, it's an automatic rejection unless you have approval of a Tier 3 rep. There's a lot more hoops involved.

They're both good engines, really it's just a matter of what one is going to offer you, if there's enough dealerships with Paccar techs in your route area. I've heard people complain about that. At my dealership, we have more than enough, and most should. If your route has a lot of certified techs, and you're getting what you want out of the engine (specs, etc), a MX may be for you.

The MX13-11 is also right around the corner, so that might be something of interest for people. January 2016 for availability.

 

Not a problem at all. Good luck with your truck shopping, if there are any other warranty questions you have feel free to let me know. I'll answer them to the best of my ability.

 

Sorry for the delay.

Paint warranty is a bit of an oddball, it depends on the location and the color, as well as the vocation.


Cab, hood & sleeper paint - 12 months / 100,000 miles
Frame paint, black only - 12 months / 100,000 miles
Frame paint, all colors other than black - 6 months / 50,000 miles
Frame paint, logger, mixer, dump, refuse, oil field or construction application - 3 month / 25,000 miles

If you fall within those parameters, you really need to take your truck to your dealership to have them look at the pain in question. Not all paint issues are warrantable and they'll be able to look at it and tell you if they can help out.

 

Hi Rocky,

Glad I checked this to see if someone had posted. I have had people come in with vibration issues. They can be different causes.

What are the electrical problems you are having?

If you're having a vibration issue, your transmission and clutch warranty should last longer than your truck warranty, assuming you haven't purchased extended coverage. However that only assumes that the problem actually lies with the transmission/clutch. Eaton transmission / clutch warranty can be 5 years or longer. However you want to get that in there ASAP because if it is determined that the issue is on the chassis side, you want them in prior to the end of the warranty.

Let your dealership know your concerns. I'm not sure how many trucks you buy from there, or how many parts you buy from there. If you're a one time customer or you do a lot of business there. I know it's bad to say, but bigger customers get better treatment, because bigger customers keep us alive. That's not to say that all dealerships are going to ignore your concerns just because you're a 1 time truck purchaser, but it IS a possibility. At my dealership, we own our sales. Doesn't matter if you bought 60 or 1 truck, you bought it from us and it's our responsibility.

But, if they're not hearing your concerns, don't be afraid to take it elsewhere. Keep in mind the only one who will get burned in the end is yourself. Dealerships don't make any money on warranty - more often than not, we lose money (quite a bit). Transmission replacements might pay us 7 hours of labor, but it took us 23 hours to do the job. Some dealerships might be hesitant to pull the trans as a result if they know they can't bill you for the remainder.

But remember, its your truck and your warranty. If they aren't helping you, go elsewhere. You shouldn't have to pay for the repair at all assuming you haven't done anything outside of the warranty parameters.

Let me know what type of electrical problems you're having as well, please.