Hey guys,
So, I've had my 2011 MT CRZ for 3 weeks now, and on Monday a sparkplug blew out of the engine taking the coilpack with it. There was a bit of a squealing sound I could hear a day prior, that got a bit louder the day of. I figured it sounded like a belt, so I just needed to get some conditioner. A few days before all of this I noticed the engine was very 'ticky' but it drove fine so I told myself I should check the spark plugs eventually, then remember I just bought the car a couple weeks ago, so the sparkplugs should be fine. Anyway, the day of the squealing noise got a bit louder as I drove, specifically when the car was accelerating. Eventually I lost most power in the engine, and had to pull over on the highway on the way to work. Called AAA and with all the issues I had with the little dealer I bought from (3 weeks after 'buying' the car the paperwork is still messed up and not in my name), I had it towed to the Honda Dealer.
Honda dealer has been very helpful. They told me the same day that my sparkplug blew out of the engine and took the coilpack with it. I figured the squealing I heard wasnt a belt, it was the sound of the combustion gases escaping around the sparkplug as it got worse and worse until it finally broke free from the threads of the cylinder head. The dealer mechanic said that was likely. They told me it looked like someone stripped the sparkplug threads on the clyinder head and tried to repair it, but that they still should be able to retap the head, but they'd have to get a better look at it first. I asked them if they could give the car a full once-over to look out for any other issues like this and they said no problem. The next day they call me and say that the damage around the threads on the head is worse than they expected and that the price would jump by a lot for them to send it to a machine shop (the dealer doesnt do head replacements, only engine replacements). They said it was time to get the original dealer involved to fix their mistake and that they'd go to bat for me if needed. They sent me pics of the sparkplug/coilpack and said it would be obvious to anyone looking at the damage to see that it was a failed repair job. They also didnt charge me for the spark plug/coil pack ordered, or the labor to mess around with everything. Just the flat 'diagnostic' cost. They also told me they looked over the rest of the car and couldn't find any lingering/potential issues, and that everything else looked solid. So, TY Herb Chambers Honda of Burlington.
The mechanic from the dealer I bought from has been super defensive. He says the Honda dealer is lying, that they make stuff up all the time to make more money, that he wouldnt be suprised if the photos were staged, that he knows their lying because he personally checked the spark plugs on my car and there was no problem, no damage, no repair or evidence of old repair, and finally that "You know what I think, I think this is just one of those freak mechanical failures."
So they have the car now and are 're-diagnosing it'. I have no idea what to expect from these guys, and am pretty worried that they'll try to put the bill on me, cancel the original sale of the car to me (because then I'd be without a car for a very demanding work schedule, whole reason I sold my old volvo to buy something 'more reliable'), try to do another shitty repair and hope it holds long enough to not be liable, etc etc etc.
I guess my final questions would be if this was a common thing at all on these cars, has anyone dealt with this before, or any general advice. Honestly I just feel real shitty about all of this, and am worried on how it might affect my ability to get to work and a bunch of other stuff. I live in MA so we have good Lemon Laws but I think I'm screwed either way unless miraculously the mechanic from the dealer I bought from decides to do a fully proper repair.
Thanks for any help or comments or anything!
