Well now, here's a horror story that'll be right up your alley, even though it's for an EV.
Electric car shock: Ontario man told new battery would cost more than $50,000“The first one I had was very reliable,” said Sooch, so he didn’t hesitate to trade up.
He bought a 2017 Ioniq made by Hyundai. Sooch was its second owner. The vehicle had already been driven 69,000 kilometres but the warranty covering the electric charging system and battery was good for 160,000 kilometres..
The quoted cost, including the battery, installation and taxes came to more than $50,000.
The battery failure happened at 172,345 kilometres. The 160,000-kilometre warranty had recently run out.
“I felt like I got kicked in the privates,” Sooch said in an interview. He said he had two choices: pay to repair the vehicle or scrap it.
Sooch chose the latter because the cost of repairs exceeded the value of the vehicle.
The reply from Hyundai's PR division (!!) was typical boilerplate BS. (IMHO, the CEO of Hyundai Canada should have addressed this personally):
Jennifer McCarthy, Hyundai Canada’s national manager of public relations, said that “comprehensive diagnostic tests were not completed on the vehicle … (and the vehicle) … was scrapped by the customer before these diagnostic procedures could be completed, precluding a definitive assessment of the required service.”
She said the estimate provided to Sooch “was not representative of the likely actual cost in this case.”
McCarthy said the case “should have been escalated immediately for additional review.”
“We sincerely apologize to Mr. Sooch for these lapses in communication and service,” she said.
...the company is prepared to “resolve this situation by paying fair market value for his vehicle either in cash or towards a new Hyundai, as part of our commitment to our customers.”
This is likely atypical, but I jave read a few stories of sticker shock when replacing EV batteries. Cost should be lower for a hybrid, but it shows that you need to get "all the T's crossed and I's dotted" before signing, especially with relatively new technology like this.
Like you, I keep my vehicles for as long as possible. My 2012 Ranger could very well outlive my remaining driving life, although at only 71, I'll probably want to go hybrid when I feel I no longer need to schlep as much stuff.
