Product Quality Center (PQC) for Engine, Transmission Assembly and Transfer Case Replacement

This bulletin is being revised to add the 2009 model year. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 02-07-30-029K (Section 07 - Transmission/Transaxle).

Important: There may be situations where an assembly can be repaired, but due to customer satisfaction reasons, an assembly replacement should be considered. The dealership should still be prepared to provide the PQC with the information on the diagnosis. In these cases, the dealer Service Management should contact PQC. PQC will contact the dealer's District Service Manager (DVM) (in Canada, the District Service Manager (DSM)). The DVM/DSM then should communicate back to the PQC that they have approved the assembly replacement. Then the PQC can contact the dealership to advise them of the DVM's/DSM's decision and to approve the warranty claim.

The servicing technician must provide detailed customer complaint, conditions, diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) and other useful information with each assembly replacement. Only the service technician has the detailed information required for proper root cause analysis and product concerns correction. This information is very valuable in ensuring that the replacement assemblies and current production parts help to continually improve our products. Therefore, the assembly replacement templates have been modified to capture and record the dealership service technician's diagnosis notes/comments in detail.

We are requesting ALL service technicians use this opportunity to help GM better understand how and why a given component failed. For us, this is an opportunity to have direct and thorough feedback from our technicians to engineering and thus improve the reliability and durability of both OEM and Goodwrench® assemblies.

Changes to the Assembly Replacement Templates

This bulletin will incorporate numerous changes to the assembly replacement authorization template which will minimize technician time spent on the phone with the PQC, while also assisting Engineering with more detailed information on a given component failure. The changes are listed below.

The templates for Engine, Transmission and Transfer Case replacement have been shortened. The PQC should only be contacted when the new templates have been completed and an assembly replacement detail is obtained.

Lastly, we are requesting that all assemblies are completely and properly reassembled in their correct and proper orientation. Many times assemblies are returned and analysis is incomplete because the components are improperly assembled and GM is not able to completely root cause a particular concern.

Important: Incomplete or improper reassembly or documentation within this process will result in GM taking action with the dealer if a thorough root cause analysis is not obtained.

Included are all OEM assemblies replaced under warranty and policy, service assemblies (B and N claims) and over the counter assembly replacements beginning with repair orders written on July 1, 2002 for engines and automatic transmissions, repair orders written on January 20, 2003 for transfer cases and repair orders written on October 5, 2005 for manual transmissions. Dealer empowerment regarding policy adjustments remains in effect, however, the need to replace an engine, transfer case or transmission must be reviewed with the PQC. Assemblies replaced under a GMPP extended service contract are not included. Dealers should continue to contact GMPP in these cases. When servicing engines and transmissions covered under an exchange program, contact TAC as described in the Exchange Bulletin.

Prior to replacing an assembly, dealers will need to call the PQC at 1-866-654-7654. The Center will be available Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 5:00 p.m. in each time zone in the continental U.S. (in Canada, Eastern to Pacific Time). Prior to calling, please refer to the engine, transfer case or transmission template found at the end of this bulletin.

The PQC will follow these templates in order to acquire information for GM use during assembly teardowns and root cause determination. Use of the templates will minimize the time spent on the telephone and avoid the need of a second call to the PQC. Copy the templates as required. Refer to Corporate Bulletin Number 02-06-01-026 and 02-07-30-028 for engine and transmission unit number locations.

Any of these assemblies sold "over the counter" and then considered for an assembly replacement MUST have the unit serial number attached to be considered by the PQC. If an assembly is returned without a legible serial number, dealers will need to contact their District Service Manager (DVM) (in Canada, the District Service Manager (DSM)) who will determine if the assembly is the same unit sold over the counter. Dealers are encouraged to record the unit serial number on the original counter sales invoice.

If normal engine, transfer case or transmission diagnostic assistance is needed, dealers should still call the GM Technical Assistance Center.

Important: TAC does not have the ability to authorize payment of unit replacement claims. Please do not call TAC to authorize unit replacement. TAC can only offer technical recommendations based on the diagnostic information that the technician provides.

Here are answers to some frequently asked questions:

Q: Who should I call if an exchange bulletin applies to the engine, transmission or transfer case?

A: Follow the instructions in the exchange bulletin.

Q: What should I do if a bulletin or PI suggests assembly replacement?

A: Estimate what it will cost to replace the assembly, fill out the necessary replacement template below and contact the PQC.

Q: What should I do if the cause of an internal engine, transfer case or transmission concern is not repairable (block damage, etc.)?

A: Estimate what it will cost to replace the assembly, fill out the necessary replacement template below, and contact the PQC.

Q: What should I do if the cause of an internal engine, transfer case or transmission concern is repairable?

A: Estimate what it will cost to repair the assembly, estimate what it will cost to replace the assembly, and repair the assembly in the most effective manner. If the estimates are similar, or if it is more cost effective to replace the assembly, fill out the necessary replacement template below and contact PQC for review. If it is obviously more cost effective to repair the assembly, the repairs can be made without contacting the PQC.

Q: What should I do if an assembly is repairable but replacement is preferred because of low mileage, an out of box concern, being a new stock unit, related to customer satisfaction issues, etc.?

A: Estimate what it will cost to replace the assembly, fill out the necessary replacement template below, and contact PQC. The PQC will review this preference with your DVM (in Canada, DSM) to determine whether the assembly should be repaired or replaced.

Q: What should I do if the root cause of an internal engine, transfer case or transmission concern can not be isolated after following SI diagnostics, TAC suggestions an disassembling for inspection?

A: Estimate what it will cost to replace the assembly, fill out the necessary replacement template below, and contact the PQC.

In the case of an over the counter replacement, the dealer will be expected to obtain as much failure information as possible before the PQC will approve a replacement. This may include involving the purchaser in the call along with a representative of the dealership. Dealers should not provide the phone number to purchasers.

The PQC will review the diagnosis, offer additional direction, and when needed, authorize replacement of the assembly. The PQC will also pre-authorize the warranty claim. Dealers will need to provide the total claim expense, including a breakdown of the assembly cost and parts mark-up, labor cost (hours X warranty labor rate) with any additional hours. The Center can authorize a reasonable and customary amount of additional time to disassemble and reassemble the unit in order to determine if an assembly is required.

In many cases, the technician may not have all the necessary claim information during the initial call. In these instances, the assembly will be authorized and the technician provided with a case number. A second call will be needed at a later time to pre-authorize the claim which can be made by the Warranty Administrator once the claim information has been collected.

If an assembly needs to be replaced and the PQC is not available (after hours, on the weekend), dealers should use their own discretion, including a repair vs. replace analysis. On the next business day, please call the PQC with all the required information (refer to the templates) and the claim will be pre-approved.

The following five labor operation numbers will require either pre-approval from the Call Center or approval from the DVM/DSM:

Dealer authorization will not approve these labor operation numbers.

When returning a core assembly, a readable copy of the repair order and completed feedback form shipped with the new assembly must be attached to the shipping container per the instructions supplied with the new assembly. Refer to Corporate Bulletin Number 01-07-30-029 for transmission return information. DEALERS MUST RETAIN ALL ENGINE, TRANSFER CASE AND TRANSMISSION CORES UNTIL EITHER THE CLAIM IS PAID OR THE WARRANTY PARTS CENTER HAS SENT A REQUEST FOR THAT CORE.

1. If dealer diagnosis indicates a need for either an engine, transfer case or transmission replacement, then complete the appropriate engine, transfer case or transmission call template in this bulletin. Accurate repair and replace estimates are essential to eliminating a second PQC contact.
2. Call the PQC at 1-866-654-7654 prior to replacing the assembly.

•	If assembly replacement is NOT authorized, then proceed with repair of the assembly. If agreement on repairs cannot be reached, contact your DVM (in Canada, DSM) for a final review of the case.

•	If assembly replacement is approved, then proceed with the replacement and ATTACH the call template to the repair order.

3. When the repair order is closed, compare the warranty claim line total to the replace cost estimate on the call template (Engine = line 11, Transfer Case = line 12, Transmission = line 13). If the final claim amount does NOT exceed $50.00 more than the estimate, then submit the claim. If the claim amount DOES exceed $50.00 more than the estimate, then continue with Step 4.
4. Complete the last section of the call template and contact the PQC either by phone at 1-866-654-7654 making sure that the PQC case number field is filled in. If the PQC is unable to approve the difference, they will contact the dealer as indicated on the fax.

Repair vs Replace Comparison Template