GMC Sierra CPO saga

VetteDreamin3 · April 14, 2020

Hello all. Long time lurker, first time poster here. I wanted to share a recent experience I had at Newport Chevrolet GMC with a CPO vehicle. My hope is to gather your thoughts and maybe prevent somebody from making a similar mistake.

A little background first. I've owned many GM trucks through the years and I'm am ASE Master Tech. I am still active in the automotive field, just not turning wrenches.

So... After regretting selling my 16 Silverado, I decided to purchase a 17 Sierra SLT CPO truck from Newport Chevy GMC in NH. I live over 3 hours away so I was adamant they take several pictures and explain any and all defects before I get there. Long story short, salesman claims vehicle is mint. I drive 3.5 hours and pick it up in the pouring rain. On the way home I notice a brake shimmy when stepping in the pedal. I get home and go through it with a fine tooth comb. Rotors are grooved and warped, tires are starting to dry rot, oil is overfilled, paint rubbed off and rust starting at 2 spots and a cabin air filter they claim was changed is dirty as hell.

My main concern is brakes and tires. My family's safety is paramount. I reached out to GM and the dealer with photographic evidence (see below). Dealer is refusing to work with me ( I offered to split cost) and I'm waiting to hear from GM. How these things passed the CPO check and an inspection is beyond me!

I'm tossed between fighting an uphill battle it spending another $1k to fix it right. What do you guys think?

diyer2 · April 14, 2020

Spend the 1 K and learn from it.

Edited April 14, 2020 by diyer2

VetteDreamin3 · April 14, 2020

5 minutes ago, diyer2 said:

Spend the 1 K and learn from it.

Learn what? This GM dealer is full of it? I have high expectations!

davester · April 14, 2020

"used car salemen will say anything to make a sale".

Buying a vehicle, particularly a used one, without even examining it first is a recipe for regret.

VetteDreamin3 · April 14, 2020

59 minutes ago, davester said:

"used car salemen will say anything to make a sale".

Buying a vehicle, particularly a used one, without even examining it first is a recipe for regret.

I did as thorough of an inspection as I could during torrential downpours. Even the keenest of eyes can't see past rust on rotors and water on tires.

JimCost2014 · April 14, 2020

53 minutes ago, VetteDreamin3 said:

I did as thorough of an inspection as I could during torrential downpours. Even the keenest of eyes can't see past rust on rotors and water on tires.

Open a claim with GM, call out the dealer for making this a CPO, when it was not.

You have nothing to loose, and a lot to gain. You could also file a claim with the BBB for how they are selling their cars.

Not like you are ever going to deal with them again, so I would make a point to return the favor, for what they did to you.

VetteDreamin3 · April 14, 2020

20 minutes ago, JimCost2014 said:

Open a claim with GM, call out the dealer for making this a CPO, when it was not.

You have nothing to loose, and a lot to gain. You could also file a claim with the BBB for how they are selling their cars.

Not like you are ever going to deal with them again, so I would make a point to return the favor, for what they did to you.

Didn't think of the BBB. Good idea!

Bob2C · April 14, 2020

Rip them on social media. Many companies are very responsive to that these days. I reached out to a company for something and got no response. I told them I would blast them on all social media sites I could find. Sure enough got a quick response and problem solved.

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rav3 · April 14, 2020

@ VetteDreamin3....

I feel for you on this purchase gong bad. I will assume since this Truck is a '17, that it just came off lease & the dealer bought it from GM. I just did the same thing in Feb just before are the Stay-at -home orders here in NC. I too was wondering about the CPO warranty and guess it's only as good as the Dealership. I would call the General Manager myself & talk to him about the things you found. You have good pictures as evidence to show him. Unfortunately, it will depend on what kind of guy the GM is. But I would try. If that doesn't get you anywhere, I'd ask to speak to a GM district manager and see what he can do for you.

I bought a '17 Silverado LTZ with all options. After I got it home I found several items:

1. Was missing front floor matt retainer

2. The new style gas nozzle was broken

3. The chrome running boards had corrosion marks on the lower edges.

I went to the service manager about these items and they fixed all (3) under the CPO warranty. Maybe I was lucky.

Obviously your cabin filter wasn't changed and that's a small fix but is covered.

The brakes pads are considered a wear item (I think) but they are suppose to measure the thickness & replace if below a certain thickness; but the warped rotors should be covered under the CPO (which is a bumper to bumper coverage) due to the warp.

The tires, well, that becomes a sticky issue. They are to measure the tread depth & replace the tires if below a certain amount but the cracking that I see is probably pretty normal for a 3 year old tire. Maybe talk to a tire guy on this one before going to the dealer.

I purchased the CPO to start with as an "insurance" policy. If I bought this as a truly used car, I would have no warranty to speak of. This one is from General Motors for 12month/12,000 miles, bumper to bumper, just like a new car. I think GM picks up the tab on these CPO warranties not the dealer. The bad is that you live so far away. I would pursue it with the "boss".

Good luck & keep us posted.

paumat · April 15, 2020

CPO is a euphemism for used. It means nothing.

Steve Lehto is a lemon law attorney in Michigan. Search his YouTube channel for CPO and you will be amazed what dealers claim regarding CPO.

JimCost2014 · April 15, 2020

3 hours ago, VetteDreamin3 said:

Didn't think of the BBB. Good idea!

2 hours ago, Bob2C said:

Rip them on social media. Many companies are very responsive to that these days. I reached out to a company for something and got no response. I told them I would blast them on all social media sites I could find. Sure enough got a quick response and problem solved.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Pretty sure you will receive a CSI from GM too, that is a great revenge tool, especially if you return it with (electronically/mail) every questioned answered with completely dissatisfied.

That baby will find it's way to the owners desk as a failing grade with GM, they do not like to ever see those.

Waffle34 · April 15, 2020

As a master tech i would hope you know cpo means absolutely nothing... means they got it in on trade, some tech had 20 minutes to write up a list of everything wrong with it, submit to lead service manager who then decides what actually gets fixed, what gets shaken out, and what just gets pencil whipped or ignored. CPO is merely a marketing term to give people a warm fuzzy.

Yes you did fail on not inspecting it downpour or not - id have requested them bring it inside somewhere dry for you to examine it or the sale is off. Simple as that. Not like these trucks are rare or anything so walk away and find another.

Your course of action now is send a sternly worded but polite email to their customer relations manager or owner of the dealership. Go straight to the top without question. See where that goes and if it doesnt go anywhere attempt to call them and leave messages. If that doesnt go anywhere they go to BBB and states attourney outlining what happened, what you found, and evidence they refuse to talk to you via no email or phone call responses. Post dates and times of attempted contact. See how that goes - they HAVE to respond to BBB complaints and states attourneys are never happy. Best of luck but most likely your gonna have to eat it as its a used car its your problem.

Aspeness · April 15, 2020

5 hours ago, VetteDreamin3 said:

I did as thorough of an inspection as I could during torrential downpours. Even the keenest of eyes can't see past rust on rotors and water on tires.

Also, if you have a copy of the CPO guidelines you can point out each standard the vehicle failed to meet. Seems like you have a lot of picture evidence to support your claim. Then, just work your way up the chain, documenting each attempt at communication to resolve the issue. If the dealership still refuses to work with you, definitely file a report with the BBB. That is, if it is worth it to you, may be on principle alone.

davester · April 15, 2020

I already read CPO as meaning they certify that the vehicle was previously owned.

diyer2 · April 15, 2020

15 hours ago, davester said:

"used car salemen will say anything to make a sale".

Buying a vehicle, particularly a used one, without even examining it first is a recipe for regret.

14 hours ago, VetteDreamin3 said:

I did as thorough of an inspection as I could during torrential downpours. Even the keenest of eyes can't see past rust on rotors and water on tires.

My point was the situation at hand when buying this truck were not ideal.

I agree you got a rotten deal but distance and rain are factors that need to be considered.

GOOD LUCK

:)