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Dealership remote-starts customer's car into pond

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It doesn't matter the mechanics of the remote start. Who pushed the button?

But really, you think the remote started cause this and not some teenager valet who didn't know how to drive a stick?
 
x_86 said:
It doesn't matter the mechanics of the remote start. Who pushed the button?

But really, you think the remote started cause this and not some teenager valet who didn't know how to drive a stick?
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I would say that if a garage had installed the starter that way they would be partially liable, so the owner could sue both the dealership and the install garage...

As a result of that the dealership could potentially counter sue the owner could they not?

This is why you dont F with other peoples toys that you arent familiar with.
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^this.. why the hell did the dealership try to remote start it in the first place?!?
 
Marlin1975 said:
From a former auto tech that had his own shop, NEVER assume anything is working correct. Never assume that a car will not lock itself, never assume it will not start on its own, etc... When I worked on anybodies car the window came down, parking brake on, in gear, never stand in front while its was being started, etc... Let alone anytime that never assume the wiring is grounded and/or not hacked up and so forth.

For someone at a dealership to do this is dumb and is there fault. The car was in for repairs. I don;t care if ti was a low level recall, tsb, or even a oil change.
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My Jeep has a factory remote start system. I assume it works. When I want to use it, I just push the start button twice. I never check to see if it's working properly. I just use it when I feel like using it. I have no idea how to check it anyway.

If this guy loaned me his car, and didn't say anything about the remote start being faulty, I would assume the remote start worked properly and would not start it in gear.

Typically, remote starts require two button pushes, not just one.

I'm going to go with 50/50 responsibility.
 
Legally, the dealership owes the customer slight care since the bailment is for the benefit of the customer. I don't see how any judge could view letting the car go into a pond as anything but a violation of slight care.

The dealership is fucked. They should have just cut their loses and paid for the damages.
 
rh71 said:
I've been wondering this for a while now, and I don't even visit everyday anymore. Why are every single one of your posts so nasty and hateful? Are you like that in real life or just behind a computer?
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Because the guy said "fucking"? It's perfectly situated there for emphasis tword an assclown that wont use his parking break to properly park their car for safety (safety of others mind you). Fuck those people. :thumbsdown:
 
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Zenmervolt said:
The only fail I see is in the dealership.

The purpose of a car is not to protect the driver from himself. As the owner of the car, the man who had the remote start installed, was able to safely operate the car I see no reason to deny him the right to modify it as he saw fit.

As far as leaving the car in gear with a manual transmission, that's a fail-safe and really should not be considered to be the primary holding mechanism. It's entirely possible for a car to overcome the compression resistance on steep hills and it should always be the parking brake that holds the car in place, not the transmission.

ZV
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It should be both actually. That's the way I was taught to drive a manual transmission car. I've owned 2 Mustang GT's, both of them manuals and always always always left the transmission in gear with the parking brake on. Hell, I use the parking brake in my automatic transmission cars to this day...even when parking on flat surfaces. It is just habit, and it's a good habit.

BTW-I always leave my motorcycle in gear when it is on the side stand. You'd be surprised how many people I talk to who ride leave their bike in neutral when they put it on the side stand...talk about stupid. You're just asking, hell begging, for a tip over.
 
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Remote starters will usually spin the starter for around 15 seconds or until it starts...which ever comes first before it cuts out. So this is quite possible, imagine the car lurching forward for 15 seconds, it can cover some ground.

I saw this happen at my local stereo install shop, guy hit the wrong button on his remote and his car bounced off the wall for around 15 seconds. One of the funniest things i have ever witnessed.
 
What would happen if the car was left in gear but the parking brake was engaged? Industrial motors will draw more than 6x the rated full load current while starting, and the current decreases as the motor spins faster. Holding the car in place with the park brake would mean the motor is always pulling locked rotor current. Wouldn't that totally destroy the car's electrical system?

I would love for my next car to be a manual but this whole thing about no starter sucks.
 
ShawnD1 said:
Sounds like bullshit. I want someone to find a car starter that is so powerful that it can start a car while it's in gear.
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My FJ does. There is even an over-ride button so you can use the starter with the vehicle in gear on purpose. It is designed to be used for moving the vehicle when it will not start.
 
JulesMaximus said:
It should be both actually. That's the way I was taught to drive a manual transmission car. I've owned 2 Mustang GT's, both of them manuals and always always always left the transmission in gear with the parking brake on. Hell, I use the parking brake in my automatic transmission cars to this day...even when parking on flat surfaces. It is just habit, and it's a good habit.
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yeah same here. i would always leave it in either 1st or reverse. with the E brake on.
 
Just looked it up. My Jeep will run the starter motor for up to 10 seconds, and two remote start attempts in a row. If it fails to remote start after that, I will have to insert the fobik in the slot to reset it before the remote start will work again.

With the diesel engine it will run the starter motor for up to 30 seconds. 😱

The starter for the diesel has been designed to crank for that long, according to the manual.
 
Reminds me of that scene in Ferris Bueler where cameron kicks his dad car off the the block, sending it to its death :awe:
 
venkman said:
typically sleazy car dealership. You're dealer totals your car while it's in service and they try to say it is the customers fault.
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this.

what the fuck, dealership?! you guys sell cars and make profit all the time. you drown this dude's car and won't own up and give him a new car?
 
ShawnD1 said:
Sounds like bullshit. I want someone to find a car starter that is so powerful that it can start a car while it's in gear.

My Honda Civic was incredibly hard to move in gear. I could push on it as hard as I'm capable of pushing and the car would not budge at all. A Mustang GT is heavier than a Civic, the engine is bigger and harder to turn over, and the transmission is a lot bigger. Unless the guy has some custom installed 5HP starter, there's no way in hell the car would start in gear.
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.. i watched an accord start and smash into the car in front of it.. narrow miss from the guy who had just tossed his hockey bag into the trunk and stepped towards his front door..

5 HP starter? Do you have any cllue how much torque an electric starter can provide?
 
ShawnD1 said:
Sounds like bullshit. I want someone to find a car starter that is so powerful that it can start a car while it's in gear.

My Honda Civic was incredibly hard to move in gear. I could push on it as hard as I'm capable of pushing and the car would not budge at all. A Mustang GT is heavier than a Civic, the engine is bigger and harder to turn over, and the transmission is a lot bigger. Unless the guy has some custom installed 5HP starter, there's no way in hell the car would start in gear.
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My old 1993 Audi 90CS would lurch the car forward about 3-5 feet if I tried starting it in gear. My 01 Audi A4 has a safety on it where I cant engage the starter without the clutch fully depressed. Now I guess with an auto-starter it is possible that thing just kept going and going and going until it hit the pond. I didnt know anybody would put an auto-starter on a manual. I remember asking back in the late 90s and everybody said no because of that exact problem. Also surprised the Mustang doesnt have the same safety feature as my A4.
 
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