Car Problems

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I really need someone else's opinion. I'm having a bad situation with a brand new Jeep that I just recently purchased and I'm not sure how to handle it. We only had this brand new Jeep (2008) for a week and half when we realized all the oil had leaked out of it. So I'm not sure how long it was run with no oil, although we only had it for a week and a half so not extremely long. When we noticed spots on the driveway we thought it was the older car we have. But we checked the new Jeep and it was bone dry. No oil at all, and 2 hours after I drove it home the engine was still hot. We called the dealer and they came and towed it back and they're fixing it now. Something about a bad seal, although they had to take the whole thing apart to get to it and I just find that so unnerving, having to tear apart a brand new vehicle... The main reason we bought it is because right now Chrysler is offering a life-time powertrain warranty. Unlimited years, unlimited miles. As long as you keep records of your oil changes and take it in every five years for it's inspection you will be guaranteed a motor for it's lifetime. Sounds almost too good to be true! But that's what it says. Everyone in the car world is talking about how Chrysler has pushed the limits on this and it should help them tremendously to sell cars.
Before I go on and on, I've talked to many people now that said screw the warranty, I should get a new car from them because they sold me a lemon. I'm not sure I even understand the lemon law, it is basically written for attorneys to understand, not the layperson. At least, I have a tough time.
And I'm so non-confrontational. The thought of going down to the dealership where it's being fixed and refusing to take it back and demanding a new car is almost more than I can handle I think. But calling an attorney frightens me because I'm so flat broke it's not funny. I would appreciate you're advice. If I really thought it would be the best thing to do, and the right thing, I'll have to pluck up the courage to demand a new car. I know I have to do what I have to do because I can't let the world continually screw me over just because I'm a natural born wimp But I don't want to be a hothead who refuses to see reason either. I'm not a bully.
Advice appreciated here!

I thnk under the lemon law a new car has to break down at least twice withint the first..year maybe?

I kinda think you might be right on that. My husband keeps telling me he doesn't think it classifies as a lemon, but then I've talked to several other people, some who work for GM as engineers, and they also said I should demand a new car. My head is swimming. I'm technically supposed to pick it up tomorrow...so I'm a bundle of nerves! And just for the record, I don't think my husband is being very helpful (he's a wimp too) so I'm taking the bull by the horns on this.

Chrysler is so worried about image and sales right now, they'd probably give you a new one. It might be one of those "business decision" things. "Lemon law" is for people who have a demand their legal right. Chrysler wants a customer for life, you want a new car. Match made in heaven.

Goodess, you were lucky the engine didn't freeze. That's what happens when it has no oil. Good thing it didn't happen while you were driving it elsewhere or your car would have stopped running.

It would be better to demand a new one. The reason is, you don’t know how much damage running the engine without oil may have caused. Even if it wasn’t a lemon, it could eventually turn into one. What ever you decide to do make sure you get it in writing as to EXACTLY what happened, so that if you do have problems in the future you can refer to it as evidence.

Before I start throwing advice about, I will tell you that I am a certified auto tech, I have been in the business since the early eighties. I have worked for Ford, Chevy and Mazda...
Your problm, sucky as it is, isn't that bad. Nor is it a "lemon". They won't give you a whole new vehicle, only your engine is damaged (did they even determine that yet?)
Here is the problem...you saw there was no oil and you drove anyway. Did you tell them that? This information will certainly void your warranty. A dealership will (usually) do a lot to help a customer, but they aren't into giving away engines and labor. Sure the bad seal is their fault, but it took a week and half for the oil to leak out. Oil level is something the owner needs to be aware of. Even if you need to pay for the engine, they might help you out with labor costs.
It stinks, and I hope things work out for you.

That's the main thing. Keep obsessive records so that your options remain open. Get the correct spelling of people's names, everything you can. Start an official folder and don't put the receipt on the coffee table, even for a minute. Maybe even keep a backup copy at Mom's house, just in case.

I don't know anything about cars, but legal issues in general go by the "reasonable person" standard. A "reasonable person" would not think to check the oil before driving out of the lot.
It sounds like nettiespaghetti did what any reasonable person would do. Now that you are aware of a possible problem, you should be paying more attention, keeping records and writing lots of note-to-self.

That's one angle that I've seen work in other areas (not related to the lemon law). Even when you don't have a legal case, sometimes they're eager to give you a break for PR reasons. But you need chutspa to pull it off. I would never try something like that by myself. Do you have an obnoxious friend who is willing to tag along?

Thanks for the advice, because I agree it probably doesn't qualify as a lemon yet, HOWEVER... When I saw the oil in my driveway, I had no idea it was coming from my brand new car! Or I wouldn't have driven it. In fact, when we found out by checking the dipstick, we didn't drive it. We immediately called them and then they came and towed it. I never knowingly drove it without oil.

Obsessive records are definitely the best idea if I do keep the car. I've already discussed with my scatterbrained husband that he has to keep the receipts (although he has never kept a receipt in his life so I hope I can drill this into his head). I think I'm going to google a search for Jeep and see if there isn't a customer service phone number I can call. Maybe I can at least talk to someone that has dealt with this in the past and just see what they have to say. I just hate the fact that I've now driven a car with no oil. My father in law called me last night and said "it's already been damaged". I just hope he's exaggerating

Sorry I keep posting on this but I was thinking more about what blamo wrote and it rather upset me. The fact that anyone from Chrysler even "might" insinuate that I would have to pay for a new engine on a car that I've had for a week and half that came with a factory defect is ludicrous. I would definitely get an attorney over that one! I don't believe there's any way they could possibly make me pay for an engine when they've determined it was a factory defect now - bent seal. But if they try that avenue they will get sued, period. I'm not playing games with them, that's for sure. I might be a self-defined wimp sometimes, but I'm not going to let them completely snowball me. When we noticed the oil spot we first thought it was because we had the air conditioner turned on. But then the next reasonable idea that occurred to my husband was that we had just had the oil changed in the older car. So we took it back to the oil change place immediately and they checked it over. After that was determined to be ok, we immediately checked the new Jeep. I know I'm repeating myself but I never knowingly drove it without oil! This is all so upsetting.

I misunderstood, I thought you drove the car AFTER checking the oil, if not that makes a big difference. Firstly and hopefully you did no damage whatsoever and everybody will be happy. (and for the record one can run SOME engines a surprisingly long time before it does damage..I have done it on purpose)
If you checked the oil, found none in the crankcase, then had it towed, you did as you should and the responsiblity now lies on Chrysler. The is little reason they should not take care of you.
Sorry that you are upset, I deal with similar things everyday and it tends to be routine for me. I hope all works out for you. If you have any other technical questions feel free to ask...it's what I do.

Thanks, I appreciate that. I hope you don't think I was upset with you, just the idea of buying a new engine. We've talked to the maintenance guy today and all four cylinders are running at 140 (I think that's what he said, I'm a moron with cars) and it didn't leak out any oil over the weekend. So yay for that I suppose. I did have someone tell me that new engines can be run without oil for awhile, but then my father-in-law who was an engineer for GM said I shouldn't accept the car back because it probably already damaged it. But then, I think he is just trying to help us in case it did. He knows me and my hubby suck when it comes to cars, he always has to help us with one if there's any issue at all. Poor guy lol

Glad to hear. Stuff like this can be, obviously, upsetting. I certainly can understand that.
140 represents the pressure in the combustion chamber. As long as 1. they are all mostly the same 2. those numbers aren't too low.
Now, if a bunch of Negative Nancys start telling you "They just are telling you that so they don't have to put in a new engine!" know this; the auto maker pays for the warranty, not the dealer. And they pay well, it is more profitable for warranty work than it is for you to pay them. If they thought you needed work under warranty, you'd get it. I have repeatedly repaired cars under warranty that...uhm... didn't need so much repair. (the customer got nice shiney new parts so...)

A given problem y ITSELF doesnt qualify t car as a lemon unless you have 3 attempts with no success within a reasonable timeframe, which I think is about a year.

I agree with everyone in that losing the oil is ******BAD******! Luckily, this is DEFINITELY part of the powertrain. Usually, people try to slip out on stupidity, etc... but NONE attempt it here. AND, as bad as this is, there are a LOT of ways this could happen. A bad gasket, bent pan, stripped plug, improper torque, improper assembly, poor design, a bad bump and/or a low pan and/or high terrain, etc.... You should probably show concern, and ask for a new engine, but they may not give it to you. On the bright side, most problems will show up in failure or a poorly running engine within the first year or two. They have 2 more chances to fix it. If they don't fix it, you can tell them that you want to claim your rights under the lemon law.

And don't let them talk to you about "normal wear and tear". I am on my third car. The first one STILL had a good engine after 10 years.(primarily, the seats and the rubber parts were worn) The second one STILL had a good engine after 10 years(primarily the Constant Velocity joint is worn) The third one is 7 years old, and it is still like new. The part of the engine that the oil helps is surprisingly durable. Everything else is likely to fall apart before IT does, as long as it has things like OIL.