Transmission replaced under warranty but charged for TCM

Tiny
OREVERGREEN
  • MEMBER
  • HYUNDAI
We are the original owners of a 2000 Sonata GLS. At 69,906 miles, the transmission failed (no reverse and would drop into neutral at 60 MPH) and was replaced by a dealer, under warranty. This was in May '06. In Jul '06 at 71,273 miles, a "check engine light" came on and the tranmission felt like it started out in too high a gear. Back to the dealer, who told us the "transmission control module 95440-39014" and "bank 1 sensor 1 oxygen sensor 39210-3712A" needed to be replaced. We were charged for these parts ($658.69 for TCM and $48.40 for oxygen sensor) and labor to install them. My question is: should the TCM have been covered under warranty when the transmission was replaced? Wouldn't the TCM be considered part of a transmission replacement if it had to be done within 1365 miles of the replacement? Just concerned, as the transmission was just replaced (again!) Under warranty. This time because there was a leak that couldn't be fixed. The dealer says the TCM is not a warranty item. To their credit, they loaned us a car to drive while the Sonata was in their shop, but I need to know if I should pursue reimbursement from Hyundai's National Consumer Assistance Center for the previous TCM replacement. Thanks for your advice!
Wednesday, January 10th, 2007 AT 8:06 PM

2 Replies

Tiny
BRUCE HUNT
  • MECHANIC
  • 3,754 POSTS
I would tend to agree with Hyundaie that it is not part of the tranny and would not be covered. But it's failing and the second tranny failing would give me ammunition to have them eat the costs for my inconvenience. It is your fight. Lucky at the mileage to have a warranty to cover any of it. That would have been an atroshous (sp) bill.
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Wednesday, January 10th, 2007 AT 8:19 PM
Tiny
OREVERGREEN
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Thank you for your reply, Bruce. Yes, we are fortunate to have the warranty, but that is one of the reasons we took a chance on buying the Hyundai in 2000. By reading this site and Edmonds, we can see that many Sonata owners have experienced problems of one sort or another with the automatic transmission. If I was looking to buy a used Sonata, I would be very cautious, based on these reports.
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Thursday, January 11th, 2007 AT 10:42 PM

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