I only bring this up to stimulate some discussion.

If you order a car from Cadillac with your favorite factory options and it happens that any one of those options are installed by the dealer, instead of by the factory.........even if it is the genuine Cadillac part, part number, option, etc.......the only difference being that the dealer installed it........maybe because he had your desired car in stock with one option missing that he could install......

.....then if that option does not work properly, it is not covered under the lemon law (according to Cadillac) At best your dealer might be willing (and probably will) take back the option and refund your money for the option, but you will be left with a car that has less options on it than you wanted.

This is a real case and I won't bore you with details but would be willing if someone is interested.

Although I suppose that one could go to court and any outcome could happen, in general, Cadillac claims the law does not apply.

I only bring this up to stimulate some discussion.

If you order a car from Cadillac with your favorite factory options and it happens that any one of those options are installed by the dealer, instead of by the factory.........even if it is the genuine Cadillac part, part number, option, etc.......the only difference being that the dealer installed it........maybe because he had your desired car in stock with one option missing that he could install......

.....then if that option does not work properly, it is not covered under the lemon law (according to Cadillac) At best your dealer might be willing (and probably will) take back the option and refund your money for the option, but you will be left with a car that has less options on it than you wanted.

This is a real case and I won't bore you with details but would be willing if someone is interested.

Although I suppose that one could go to court and any outcome could happen, in general, Cadillac claims the law does not apply.

This option should not show on the factory window sticker, thus a buyer
should know that the dealer installed it.

This option should not show on the factory window sticker, thus a buyer
should know that the dealer installed it.

That's true.....but when we go in to buy a car with a list of options we want, and one particular option is one that a dealer CAN install, my attitude in the past is that I didn't care......as long as the delivered car had the options I wanted. In fact, we usually are thrilled that the dealer found a car in the local area with almost all the options we want and depending on the missing option, we are happy to let the dealer install it so that we can get the car sooner or even drive out that day with the car. The original message just pointed out that legally your options are limited in dealer installed items even if they are factory manufactured items and a duplicate of what the factory would have installed.

For instance, you want a 12 disc CD changer that can be ordered with a specific car, but it is not on the car so the dealer opens the box and plugs it in. Should it not function, or it cause the radio to not work half the time and should multiple replacements also not work, your only option is that hopefully the dealer will allow you to return the item and get a refund. Of course after removing the item your car is now healthy and the radio works ok, but you have a car that does not have all the original things you wanted when you laid out multiple dollars for the car.

You know from reading various sources that Cadillac has been plagued with electronic problems for years in various models......in fact, at the very beginning of a model year, sometimes they are still using the old harness from the previous year, with some adaptor modifications to make things work with the new options. And, in some cases there are quirky electronic problems possibly because of this and because of poor grounding or interacting cables that are running side by side, or especially, timing errors that cause things to lock up. If a most desired option is one of these that is causing a problem, it would be better if it were factory installed because then you have the most options to solve the problem.

What did you buy that was dealer installed and did not work? Cadillac does not have to do anything with a dealer installed item. Even if it could of been a ordered part from the division. Your only recourse is with the dealer.

There is no way for Cadillac to run the old wiring harness with a couple connector repairs. The Seville and the STS are completely different vehicles. The only thing they carried together was the Northstar.

I am very scared of dealer installed items. Always have, most of the time they have do not have factory trained techs installing the items. I know first hand of a DVD player being installed in a Suburban and when attached to the floor they drilled through the gas tank. Most of the time, a dealer sublets the work to aftermarket companies, who usually do a good job of hacking the wiring harness up. You are better off buying factory components.

What did you buy that was dealer installed and did not work? Cadillac does not have to do anything with a dealer installed item. Even if it could of been a ordered part from the division. Your only recourse is with the dealer.

You are saying exactly what I said....however there is a gray area here that I was adressing.

Look, you are ready to buy a new car, in this case, a Cadillac, and you get the books from the dealer and peruse the accessories available and you come in to the dealer to buy the car with a list of what you want on it. The dealers say that he has that exact car in the exact color but only the 12 disc CD player which is on your list is missing, but he can install the factory provided item himself.........which he does. You are happy with this outcome because youd don't have to wait 4-6 weeks for a factory car to be delivered. Please note that for this particular car a 12 disk CD player is listed as an option. No big deal.......it was just a matter of plugging in the plug to the harness in the trunk and screwing the player down according to factory profided specs.

To me, that CD player was an important item which I use all the time. Were it not available (or even a 6 cd player) I would have gotten a different NEW car. OK. So I drive out of the place and before I can get home, the car does not recognize the CD player is installed. Next time I turn on the car it is there but the next time it is not. Also, after a month or so, I discover that sometimes the radio won't even come on and even if I stop, shut down the motor and start up again, there is no radio recognition.

Cooperative dealer gets a new CD player from Cadillac and tries to install it but this time the plug is different because they have put a new harness in the new production cars.....but they did provide an adaptor.

No improvement in the symptoms. Now, if I didn't give a darn about the CD player I would have just had it taken out......but it was an important item to me and so I pressed Cadillac for a resolution.........The lemon law seems to apply and would have refunded the entire cost of the car minus some usage fee and I would have been able to get a different Cadillac that was not having that problem. However, Cadillac came back and said they were sorry that I couldn't invoke the lemon law because they did not install their CD player in my new car. They did suggest the dealer refund my money for the CD player, which they did. No more radio problems....but no CD player either.

I now had a new car that cost 50K or so and I felt that I had been short changed for that money in getting the car with the accesories I had bargained for. I didn't know it made difference as to whether the dealer installed the Cadillac CD player or the Factory did. Painful situation for me as it was my 12th or 13th Cadillac.

So, I repeat what I started with, if you are buying a new car and there are very important options you want, order the car from the factory, even though the dealer could install the same option.

BTW, the car in question was the 2002 Eldorado Classic Touring Coupe......and one of the added problems was that it was the last year of the Eldorado and Cadillac did not intend to invest any time or money in figuring out why the electroncs or the software was defective.

You are saying exactly what I said....however there is a gray area here that I was adressing.

Look, you are ready to buy a new car, in this case, a Cadillac, and you get the books from the dealer and peruse the accessories available and you come in to the dealer to buy the car with a list of what you want on it. The dealers say that he has that exact car in the exact color but only the 12 disc CD player which is on your list is missing, but he can install the factory provided item himself.........which he does. You are happy with this outcome because youd don't have to wait 4-6 weeks for a factory car to be delivered. Please note that for this particular car a 12 disk CD player is listed as an option. No big deal.......it was just a matter of plugging in the plug to the harness in the trunk and screwing the player down according to factory profided specs.

To me, that CD player was an important item which I use all the time. Were it not available (or even a 6 cd player) I would have gotten a different NEW car. OK. So I drive out of the place and before I can get home, the car does not recognize the CD player is installed. Next time I turn on the car it is there but the next time it is not. Also, after a month or so, I discover that sometimes the radio won't even come on and even if I stop, shut down the motor and start up again, there is no radio recognition.

Cooperative dealer gets a new CD player from Cadillac and tries to install it but this time the plug is different because they have put a new harness in the new production cars.....but they did provide an adaptor.

No improvement in the symptoms. Now, if I didn't give a darn about the CD player I would have just had it taken out......but it was an important item to me and so I pressed Cadillac for a resolution.........The lemon law seems to apply and would have refunded the entire cost of the car minus some usage fee and I would have been able to get a different Cadillac that was not having that problem. However, Cadillac came back and said they were sorry that I couldn't invoke the lemon law because they did not install their CD player in my new car. They did suggest the dealer refund my money for the CD player, which they did. No more radio problems....but no CD player either.

I now had a new car that cost 50K or so and I felt that I had been short changed for that money in getting the car with the accesories I had bargained for. I didn't know it made difference as to whether the dealer installed the Cadillac CD player or the Factory did. Painful situation for me as it was my 12th or 13th Cadillac.

So, I repeat what I started with, if you are buying a new car and there are very important options you want, order the car from the factory, even though the dealer could install the same option.

BTW, the car in question was the 2002 Eldorado Classic Touring Coupe......and one of the added problems was that it was the last year of the Eldorado and Cadillac did not intend to invest any time or money in figuring out why the electroncs or the software was defective.

Solution... ipod + ipod2car or other GM compatible adaptor OR Phatnoise Phatbox. 12 Disc changers are so 1996. :p

12 Disc changers are so 1996. :p


:histeric: . I wonder if you can intergrade a Phatbox into the cars. Holds 1000 mp3. Cant beat that.

:histeric: . I wonder if you can intergrade a Phatbox into the cars. Holds 1000 mp3. Cant beat that.
Yes you can. Make yourself a "carputer" and you'll have space for a bazillion mp3...

Barry, really it comes down to this. The division will not be held liable for dealer installed items. Even if they were offered from the factory.

Dropping coin? Beware......

Duh

AHAHAHAHHA