I purchased an S2000 recently from a large dealer in Chicago (not a honda dealer). The purchase came with a 60 day warranty which I am still within. I took the car to a honda dealer based on some issues I had and they told me I need a new rear diff.

The dealer I bought it from says the rear diff isn't covered which is what my question is about... The warranty states that any part or system not listed is not covered. It does however list the following:

Under rear wheel drive- rear axle housing and all internal parts and drive shaft assemblies

Is there an argument to be made that the rear diff should fall under that category or am I wasting my time pursuing this?

 

Rear diff should be covered by powertrain warranty. Plus they sold you a car with a bad diff already so you should push back or tell them to take it back.

 

If your warranty paperwork specifically states the differential or they might use other terminology. You might see ring and pinion,rear end housing, and maybe some other names they could call it. If you don,t see anything of the like, then it should be covered.

 

Get a letter: if you know a lawyer, (or if not, pay the $50 for one to be generated ) have them make up a letter on their letterhead that states the warranty is clear the diff is covered. That alone will make them think hard about blowing you off. In all likelihood they will give you a jingle and say bring it in.

 

Thanks for the responses!

Turns out this was more interesting than even I first thought... The Mazda dealer I bought the car from agreed they would cover the work- which I give them credit for. I took the car there and they assigned a former Honda tech to the car.

Turns out, the noise that caused me to bring the car into the shop in the first place was actually a loose axle nut which is a common problem on the S2000. He fixed it in 5 minutes then looked at the rear diff and said it was 100% fine. Afterwards I did a search here and found several posts on the topic- lesson learned!

So I went back to the Honda service department and played a little dumb- telling them that I needed further proof that the car needed a new rear diff in order for the warranty to cover the part and work. They told me they had no real proof and they were just suggesting the work because they wanted to rule it out.

I about lost it... Who suggests a $5000 repair job in order to rule something out? Absolute crooks.

Needless to say I won't be going there again! Alls well that ends well though- my car is driving great and is noise free.