NHTSA Complaint #10082626 — 1996 MITSUBISHI ECLIPSE

MAINTAINED REGULAR OIL CHANGES AND WAS NOTIFIED THAT I HAD AN OIL LEAK IN MY ENGINE. I SAVED ENOUGH MONEY TO HAVE THE HEAD GASKET REPLACED TO FIX THE OIL LEAK. THE HEAD GASKET WAS REPLACED (NEW) IN MARCH OF 2000. 4 MONTHS LATER MY CAR STARTED TO SMOKE FROM THE EXHAUST WHEN STANDING STILL IN TRAFFIC. I CONTACTED THE DEALERSHIP ABOUT THE PROBLEM BECAUSE I THOUGHT THAT THIS WAS DUE TO THE WORK THAT THEY DID. I WAS THEN INFORMED THAT I NEED MY VALUE GUIDES REPLACED. I WAS GOING TO HAVE THIS WORK DONE UNTIL I WAS INFORMED THAT IN ORDER TO REPLACE THE VALUE GUIDES IN THE ENGINE, I MUST PURCHASE ANOTHER NEW HEAD GASKET. I ASKED WHY THIS WAS NOT INSPECTED AT THE TIME THAT THE HEAD GASKET WAS REPLACED. MY ANSWER WAS THAT I DID NOT ASK THEM TO CHECK THE VALUE GUIDES. IF THIS WOULD OF BEEN CORRECTED AT THIS TIME, I WOULD NOT BE SPENDING TONS OF MONEY ON OIL FOR MY VEHICLE. SINCE 2000, I CHECK THE OIL IN MY CAR EVERY OTHER DAY AND ADD OIL TO THE ENGINE. THIS HAS BEEN A MAJOR PROBLEM FOR ME. I DO NOT HAVE ANOTHER $1000 PLUS TO FIX THIS. I'VE SPOKE WITH OTHER FRIENDS AND PEOPLE WHO OWN THE SAME TYPE OF VEHICLE AND THEY AS WELL HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THEIR LEAKING HEAD GASKET AND VALUE GUIDES, MAKING THE CAR SMOKE.*AK