NHTSA Complaint #11001555 — 2005 JEEP WRANGLER

CATALYTIC CONVERTER: WAS DRIVING AND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON, VEHICLE BEGAN 'CHUGGING' AS THOUGH NOT GETTING ENOUGH FUEL. SMELLED GASOLINE. CALLED JEEP DEALER IN FLORIDA AND WAS ADVISED TO LET ENGINE COOL, THEN DRIVE TO LOCAL DEALER SINCE IT SOUNDED AS THOUGH THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. STATED THIS AS NORMAL FOR THE MILEAGE. EMISSIONS WARRANTY VALID. (WAS STATIONED IN NAPLES, ITALY.) JEEP DEALER IN NAPLES ADVISED HE WOULD NOT HONOR ANY WARRANTY AND WOULD NOT FIX UNTIL I PAID HIM 1K EUROS. OVERSEAS MILITARY CAR SALES GOT INVOLVED AND SAID NOT TO WORRY ABOUT IT: WORK WOULD BE DONE AND COVERED BY WARRANTY. DEALER PULLED ENTIRE EMISSIONS SYSTEM OUT AND REPLACED IT, THEN REFUSED TO RELEASE VEHICLE FOR 30 DAYS UNTIL I PAID THE 1K EUROS. DEALER STATED HE DID NOT HAVE TO HONOR WARRANTY ON A US-REGISTERED VEHICLE BECAUSE FIATCHRYSLER PAID HIM LESS THAN HE COULD GET FROM ME. THREATENED TO IMPOUND VEHICLE. FIATCHRYSLER REFUSED TO ASSIST ALTHOUGH DEALER WAS NOT AUTHORIZED TO PULL/REPLACE SYSTEM UNLESS COVERED BY WARRANTY. FLORIDA DEALER AND SELLING DEALER IN WA STATE ADVISED THAT IF WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN THE VEHICLE HOME, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A WARRANTY REPLACEMENT WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS BECAUSE IT WAS A COMMON ISSUE AT THIS MILEAGE (53K).