Broken Jack - warranty issue?

[Energy_AZ]

I got a flat on my 93 sometime Friday night, but wasnt noticed until Saturday afternoon when the tire had gone completely flat.

This was not a suprise as time has come to get the PZeros replaced. I must have hit something that didnt cause a blow out, but a slow leak over night.

I have changed plenty of flat tires in my day, but this being the 1st time in the 93 I made sure to follow directions as stated in the manual.

Placed the jack exactly where I needed to under indicator arrows and respective flat spot area, I untightened the lug nuts and proceeded to jack the car up. When I got the car almost high enough off the ground I heard a loud CRUNCH - the car slipped off the jack because the jack itself busted.

As a result, there is some damage to the side skirt as well as a hole punched under the car where the jack saddle was supposed to rest. And obviously the jack is destroyed.

2nd look at this jack, and the saddle of the jack is PLASTIC. Jeez - no wonder the sucker broke on its 1st try! One of the two steel prongs that support the saddle had pushed up into the bottom of the car. I needed to use 2 ton floor jack to lift the car and then forcefully tug the broken jack out from the under carrage

I would like for the body damage to the car to be repaired, and the jack kit replaced via warranty. I imagine this is a warranty claim due to damage caused from factory equiped jack?


I have learned to visit this site 1st before visiting dealers because I would like some kind of resource that would support this being a legitimate warranty claim before arguing with dealers who dont seem to want to put forth much effort when it comes to post-sales issues.


(Side note - will be replacing the PZeros with Falken Azenis ST115, cant wait!)

[MarkJ]

My jack broke as well, I was lucky and it buckled to the side. Sorry to hear about your body damage, I was lucky and somehow avoided it.

My dealer replaced the broken jack with a new one of a different more sturdy design. I would absolutely pursue this as a warranty issue and if your dealer isn't responsive take to Saab USA and reference this forum, they wouldn't have changed the jack design coincidentally.

If you need support, I’d be happy to back up your claim of a faulty design. It scared the crap out of me when my car fell!!

[scottscott]

my jack collapsed also!! There was no damage to the underside of the car or the skirt, but I was afraid because the tire was off and the exposed area did hit the driveway, but there was no damage. I was so pissed off, but never got to the dealer out of sheer disgust. Its lucky you weren't clipped yourself... i barely got my foot out of the way when it happened to me!

[Aero_adam]

Never used the jack - I will think twice if I get a flat. Could just ring the support helpline and get them to do it

[Viscouse]

Here's a theoretical question.

I assume if you have a faulty jack, and do sustain damage to the car, the damage will be fixed under warranty.
If you are out of warranty, and the same thing happens, are you SOL? If that's the case, everyone should use their jack once before going out of warranty, take the hit, get repaired & a new redesigned jack, no?

I think I have like 5K miles left til warranty is out, so all of a sudden this becomes important to me.

Imagine if the wheel had been all the way off when the jack busted. I wonder what havoc that would have wreaked.

[Viscouse]

Back on track...

More info. BTW, this kinda upsets me, seeing as how someone could get really, really hurt. This is a known issue for Saab. They changed designs, and where's the recall? Or even a TSB?

I looked for a part number on my jack, and could not find one. After talking to a dealer, I found out that the old one is 12794626, and the new one is 13162852.

There is one part number on my jack 12791408, but that's for the label. Speaking of which, it states a max load of 900kg.

Max gross weight as specified on saabusa's website is 4450 lbs, or 2018 kg.
Weight distribution front & rear is 60% & 40% respectively.
So weight in the front is 1211kg, and the rear is 807kg. Take worst case front. Since there are 2 front tires, load must be cut in half (606kg).

So a 900kg jack should be able to handle 606kg, right? I guess not.

C'mon Saab. That would just be too much if after all of this great press about being one of the safest cars in the world, the 6:00 news reports the death of someone who ended up having a car fall on their foot only to be found 3 days later.

[allhwydriving]

Originally Posted by Viscouse

the 6:00 news reports the death of someone who ended up having a car fall on their foot only to be found 3 days later.

Have you ever seen the movie "Saw"?

[Energy_AZ]

Cant believe it has been almost 6 weeks, but after some scheduling conflicts and loaner availablity I finally dropped the car off to the dealer this morning.

The dealer had ordered a new jack kit and will replace the damaged color matched side skirt - covered under warranty. I would advise owners of 2003's to check thier jacks and ensure the jack-saddles are made of steel and not plastic. I dont know if there is a TSB, but the dealer I visited had no reservation in replacing it.


While the car is in the shop I decided to have a couple door dings and a scratch touched up and finally got around to the window tint. Surprisingly reasonably priced (for a dealership) window tint was $240 including felt, and the cosmetic touch-ups $150. This being the dealer who quoted me nearly $400 for tint in the past, I am glad they are using a new tinting contractor!

[SwizzDrums]

But i didnt think it was covered under warranty so I just left it in the trunk, always scheming to swap it with one from a loaner vehichle. Well now imma tell my dealer...

[Mead]

Thanks for your post Energy AZ. I've just been out to look at my jack since I've got an 03 model and it has got the plastic saddle top. I'll certainly be following that up with my dealer.

[Viscouse]

Originally Posted by Mead

Thanks for your post Energy AZ. I've just been out to look at my jack since I've got an 03 model and it has got the plastic saddle top. I'll certainly be following that up with my dealer.

I'm interested to know if they are willing to just swap them out if there has been no sign of it being broken.

[mbodo]

my jack managed to "unspin" itself once.. it was definitly a scarey event ... the handle was still inserted in the jack, and was flailing around. I was more worried the handle was going to come flying out and whack me.

[Cojoroh]

when you guys are talking about the plastic saddle top, what exactly are you referring to?...the plate on the jack that actually contacts the underside of the car? if this is the case, that square/rectangle plate is actually plastic?!?! i guess i never noticed it on my '03, but i know my '04 has a metal contact plate...so does this mean i'm ok??? i have no reservations about pitching a fit for something like this because i'll be dammed if i'm crawling under my car with a jack that might collapse.

[Energy_AZ]

Originally Posted by Cojoroh

when you guys are talking about the plastic saddle top, what exactly are you referring to?...the plate on the jack that actually contacts the underside of the car? if this is the case, that square/rectangle plate is actually plastic?!?!

That would be the case, but it would appear to be limited to some of the earlier build 93ss. The plastic is a strong plastic like in football helmets, but obviously not strong enough to bear the weight of an automobile.

If you have a metal saddle on your jack you should be good to go

[Cojoroh]

oh ok...so nobody has had the entire jack buckle?

[dz]

Why would you crawl under your car with just a litte jack holding it up anyway

On a related note, how would you go about lifting the car with a "real" jack, without damaging the side skirts? It would be easier to just get one of those for changing winter / summer tires.

[Energy_AZ]

Originally Posted by dz

Why would you crawl under your car with just a litte jack holding it up anyway

On a related note, how would you go about lifting the car with a "real" jack, without damaging the side skirts? It would be easier to just get one of those for changing winter / summer tires.

I have had no problem lifting the car with 2 ton floor jack. I would just place the floor jack under the car as close to the jack placement indicator arrows as I could - no problems

[scottgf]

Glad to hear the dealer resolved your problem (see we arent all bad are we) :-)

Just for information....
Its always best when something like this happens, to talk to someone at the dealer in a nice way and see if they are able to help you out..I dont have the Warranty policy and procedure book in front of me now, but I am pretty sure that Saab Cars USA didnt HAVE to cover this. They did it as a goodwill gesture, and possibly they have heard of jack problems of other cars (I have never heard of this before myself).
If you go in all huffy and puffy and making threats and all they are more likely to tell you to "pound sand".

Cheers,

[Energy_AZ]

Originally Posted by scottgf

Glad to hear the dealer resolved your problem (see we arent all bad are we) :-)

Just for information....
Its always best when something like this happens, to talk to someone at the dealer in a nice way and see if they are able to help you out..I dont have the Warranty policy and procedure book in front of me now, but I am pretty sure that Saab Cars USA didnt HAVE to cover this. They did it as a goodwill gesture, and possibly they have heard of jack problems of other cars (I have never heard of this before myself).
If you go in all huffy and puffy and making threats and all they are more likely to tell you to "pound sand".

Cheers,

Obviously one should approach any problems with any company in a professional and courteous manner. But that wont change my desire to consult on this site before approaching my local dealers with a service question/issue.

Honestly - the members of this message board in majority of cases have a better, more in-depth understanding of the cars than the dealers I have visited do.

In my area, Saab almost appears as an afterthought to Caddy and Hummer sales. I am frequently suprised at the lack of knowledge about the products they are selling. Lack of knowledge about available features, specifications, service intervals, etc

Members of this site are Saab enthusiasts - and apparently the dealers in my area are not.

Until that changes - I will always come here for a quick chat before approaching a dealer with a service issue. This does not reflect negatively on the customer service I may receive - but a credit to the people who hang out at this site.

[scottgf]

Originally Posted by Energy_AZ

Obviously one should approach any problems with any company in a professional and courteous manner. But that wont change my desire to consult on this site before approaching my local dealers with a service question/issue.

Honestly - the members of this message board in majority of cases have a better, more in-depth understanding of the cars than the dealers I have visited do.

In my area, Saab almost appears as an afterthought to Caddy and Hummer sales. I am frequently suprised at the lack of knowledge about the products they are selling. Lack of knowledge about available features, specifications, service intervals, etc

Members of this site are Saab enthusiasts - and apparently the dealers in my area are not.

Until that changes - I will always come here for a quick chat before approaching a dealer with a service issue. This does not reflect negatively on the customer service I may receive - but a credit to the people who hang out at this site.

Very well said.

I feel you are right on regarding many Saab dealers with your remark about being an afterthought.
Even at the dealer I work at (Familly owned Cadillac dealer for over 50 years, Saab dealer for 4 years) most of the people here know much more about Caddys than Saabs....We do have a few Saab people scattered through the dealership, but its hard to find good Saab people (there just arent that many to go around) and if you have been selling and servicing Caddys since the 50's you tend to know more about them.
Even I use this website for information, since I have only owned 2 Saabs
(87 SPG, 05 9-2x aero) ...(ok 1 and a half )
The people on this site combined have more knowledge about Saabs than any dealer ever will...
Cheers,