Over Torqued Wheels - snapped wheel stud:

After taking delivery of a 2009 Chev Impala LS, I decided to install OEM mud flaps all around.  At the rear, you have to remove the wheels, trouble is they where so tight, that the first wheel nut tried, snapped off - stud and all!! Returning to the Dealer on
Feb 24 2012, Service Advisor Stephen Johnson blamed me!!  The fact is, a wheel stud must never snap off when the nut is turned counterclockwise.  This means it was ready to fail from over torquing by the dealer!! 
>> REF:  Invoice # GMCS313358

It turns out GM in it's monthly GM Techlink Publications to all GM dealers in Nov 2010 on Page 1 & 2, they stated Dealers are not to use 'Torque Sticks' when installing wheels on GM cars!!!  GM calls for the use of Torque Wrenches used by hand!! The big scam is that Torque Sticks never actually worked!! A 100 Ft/Lb Torque Stick used with a typical impact wrench actually puts 250 to just over 300 Ft/Lb on each nut holding on your wheels!! This means you can never change a flat tire using the GM tire wrench in the trunk because you would have to put 300Lbs of force on that tiny GM wrench !!  You'd need instead a 2 foot long Johnson wrench and you'd still have to apply at least 150 Lbs, (68Kg), you know, just the weight of an average person,  to get just one nut off and you'll have 5 to do!!!

Over torquing wheel studs was an issue 3 times in 2012: Feb 24 2012,  June 19 2012,  Oct 17 2012, each time Wilson Niblett staff including Jim Wilson (on Oct 17) lied through their teeth about how wheels where handled in the shop, all the while ignoring GM specs, GM directions and GM Techlink on the use of Torque Wrenches and that Torque Sticks where no longer to be used!!!         

Oh, and those wheel studs that your life depends on? They're made for just under 3 cents each! When they were made in America, the steel used was a recognized SAE alloy!  If they're made in China or India they're made from a steel alloy that is 'close' to the SAE equivalent!!  Nice to know isn't it?  These are the same parts routinely abused by Wilson Niblett's service department time and again!!  
Additional problems from over-torquing is:
   -  possible warped Brake Rotors!
   -  stretched wheel studs, wheel nuts bind before wheels are secure with correct torque.
   -  Brake Rotors may be seized to the hubs requiring extra force to remove!
   -  Possible damage to ABS wheel sensors when seized brake rotors are forced off hubs!
   -  Can't change a flat tire with small GM tire wrench! - stranded on the side of the road!
   -  Injury to hands when tiny GM tire wrench slips off/breaks during attempted tire change!

How do I know Torque Sticks don't work?  A simple experiment: Use a 100 Ft/Lb Torque Stick, a socket, a typical air gun and tighten a wheel nut down til it stops moving.  Then get a large 350Ft/Lb click type Torque Wrench and set it for 150 Ft/Lb and turn Counterclockwise, does the nut move before the torque wrench clicks? NO!  Now repeat the test, setting the Torque wrench higher by 20 Ft/Lb increments and try again!!  Eventually you will see a release torque of 250 to just over 300 Ft/Lb to remove any of the wheel nuts tightened with a 100 Ft/Lb Torque Stick!!  What's the GM spec for  a 2009 Chev Impala ? = 100Ft/Lb!!  GM midsize to full size sedans are 100 Ft/Lb.  GM Vans and SUVs max out at 140 Ft/Lb.  There's no reason to be over 200 Ft/Lb!!!!

> See the 5 pics on the Photo Page.  At the bottom, is the Tools picture, Item 'A' is the GM tire wrench from the trunk, item 'B' is a torque wrench for applying 100Ft/lb by hand, item 'C' is a large torque wrench needed to measure the release torque after Torque Sticks where used, item 'D' is the size of wrench you would need (+150Lbs of force) to remove a wheel improperly torqued by Wilson Niblett, item 'E' is the socket and extension you'd need to use with item 'D' to change a flat tire because the GM wrench is useless after botching by Wilson Niblett.

 
Damage during Oil Change!

After getting a Dealer oil change on May 23 2012,  I came in for the semi-annual Inspection on June 19 2012 only to find the Technician repeated the oil change from the month before and get this - damaged the oil plug so bad it had to be replaced !    The surly Service Advisor, Stephen Johnson claimed I didn't need to know why or how since it was free!! Wait! since 1976 I did oil changes* without busting parts on any car!!  What kind of careless Technician does it take at Wilson Niblett to bugger-up an oil Change????    Think about it, your $30,000 to $80,000 vehicle investment could be damaged by the same ding-dong technician!! (Technician # 7635)  See Download Page for Invoice for Botched Oil Change and 'extra parts' highlighted!!!   (* This GM car is still under warranty, so a customer can't do their own oil changes.)
>> REF:  Invoice GMCS319134

Even the Tires don't match!

Watch out when buying a late model used car, since the tires may not match!!  The summer tires where fine but the Winter tires and rims where 3 tires sized 225/60R16 and one tire sized 215/60R16!!!  ABS and traction control work best when all tires are the same size, make and tread condition!  Anything else defeats these systems at least in part!  Another Wilson Niblett screw-up! 
>  See the 4 Pics on the Photo Page!!

Attempted Fraud - Transmission Cooler Lines 'Leaking'!

On Jan 8 2013 while in for the 'semi-annual inspection' they claimed I needed new Transmission Oil Cooler Lines! I said, 'hey I have no oil spots where I park and my oil level is steady, so I don't think we'll do that !'  So they wrote up the invoice saying oil cooler lines 'declined' This can have the affect of jeopardizing the warranty on the drive train because of a fake repair!!  Turns out when I checked the lines and took pictures, they had road dirt and grime from 4 years and 120,000Kms of use since new, but no actual oil leak!!  What a ripoff!! 

>  The Pics on the Photos Page show the condition of the cooler lines after ~120,000kms and some road dirt.  What is missing is oil staining on the transmission case and the oil pan immediately behind the would-be leak!! An actual loss of transmission fluid would leave a large stain, a trail of oil along the underside of any car, but there was none!  Other pictures show the dirt cleaned from the lines so any real oil leak, if any, can be spotted. 
>> REF:  Invoice GMCS 328735

Wilson Niblett Rips Off Senior Citizens !!!
After connecting the dots from recent service records and disclosed GM service records/Billings, it is reasonably clear on the evidence that Wilson Niblett service department ripped off a senior citizen customer Anthony Pamment when he brought in a car for a transmission service.  Anthony used his GM car to tow a trailer, he knew that the service interval for transmissions is 80,000Kms not 160,000 Kms as stated in the owners manual. On May 2 2011 at 75,273 Kms he is billed for work that likely never occurred.  In December 2011 he trades the car in at 96,675 Kms. When the car is resold in Jan 2012 the car had an odd habit of harsh or delayed shifts from a stop that is intermittent and unpredicable.  At ~122,000 Kms the transmission is rebuilt at another GM dealer under warranty, but the transmission filter is still not replaced. In a few days the harsh shifts returns with a vengeance.  It's at this point it's realized that Wilson Niblett never replaced the transmission filter in 2011.  So the pan was removed and the filter replaced.  Now the hash and delayed shifts are history! The old filter was saved and the stamped filter lot number was photographed.  On the Balance of Probabilities and the evidence collected and observations, Wilson Niblett service department, management or an individual Tech decided individually or as a group to rip off a senior citizen, likely knowing he would trade in the vehicle!  Rotten or what ? !
Since then, we have found that all GM 4T65E transmissions are designed to require service on-time or they immediately begin to malfunction just outside the service interval !!! In the past GM, Ford and Chrysler transmissions had a generous service margin that did not make any money for the dealer network.  Since then, transmission designs have been changed to ensure that filters plug 'on time' and shift malfunctions would occur! Nice eh ? ! This means that these GM transmissions and all newer models are now 'service critical' without customers ever knowing how badly their interests have been compromised.   See our Downloads Page for our How To Guides on transmission service.

Wilson Niblett Blackballs it's own Customers!!!

After the Jan 8 2013 dealer visit and the fake transmission oil cooler repair issue, I received a GM Canada email Survey. I thought about the issues at hand and looked at the car again and inserted a factual reply.  As I did, I screen captured the survey content, check the Downloads Page and see!  Trouble is, (Jim Wilson) and Steve Plumley, Service Manager at Wilson Niblett didn't like it, so they sent a email telling me to get lost!!!  They refuse to service the car!!  See the email on the Download Page!!  Even though they lied the entire time, they piss on their Customers and they screw up the cars too!!!!

Why do I complain?  "It ain't that bad"!    But it is,... here's why:

You see, if a GM dealer screws up simple things that can get you killed when the wheels fall off, then the complicated service that gets rushed
while Technicians are forced to beat the book rate more and more will be worse.  You can be stranded on the side of the road or hurt and face a huge bill for complicated work done incorrectly or sloppily.  While Wilson Niblett tried to rob me with an unnecessary Transmission Cooler Line replacement job worth maybe $400 all in, the point is, that's just the beginning! How much should each of us be robbed by, before we say enough is enough? 

Remember, if they insist on robbing Customers with GM Tier I supplier experience, what do you think they'll do to you and your car???

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