2003 Vibe AWD Rear Carrier Replacement

[ancientmariner]

Hello, I need your collective wisdom on a maintenance issue I'm facing.My 03 AWD Vibe (~52,000 miles/83,685 km) was towed front end up. Upon retrieving the car, there was a loud noise coming from the rear, so the car was taken to a Pontiac dealership. The verdict is the rear carrier needed to be replaced. When the rear carrier was opened up to replace it, the mechanics noted the fluid inside was "burnt," and the damage was more severe--the "front half of carrier" also needed to be replaced.My questions:-do you believe the carrier damage could be due to the towing?-is the carrier in multiple parts (is there a front half as well?)As you can imaging, the repair bill is getting quite high, and I need some expertise on this topic.Thanks!

[Kamikaze]

So let me get this right... you have an AWD car and it was towed where the back two tires where on the ground, only the front tires were off the ground?Who towed it? was it a company? b/c if it was they should be held accountable for not towing it on a flatbed, they should have checked to see if it was AWD.

[engineertwin2]

Towing an AWD with the front end up (really, towing it without it being on a flat bed) will absolutely ruin the front and rear carriers, as you are seeing now.Yes it was very likely due to the manner in which it was towed. I'm surprised, though, that you didn't throw up a red flag when they tried to haul it off front end up anyways.I'd say, regardless of front-wheel drive, rear-wheel drive, all-wheel drive, four-wheel drive or some other derivation, when you call for a tow truck, insist that you get a flatbed to tow it. Very few tow companies will deny you that and few of them have trucks that aren't flatbeds.

[ancientmariner]

Quick clarification...The car was towed by NYC Police, using their wrecker due to a parking ticket--the ticket was written at 7:01a (for no parking 7a-7p), and the car was gone just as fast. There was no say in the type of wrecker used.

[lovemyraffe]

Wow, that sucks. I would definitely fight it as much as possible. Even if it was for a parking ticket, they did serious damage to your car by towing it like that.

[keithvibe]

the problem would be to prove that towing it the way they did was what caused the problem. find a witness to help and if needed get sworn statements from the dealership about how to properly tow a AWD.

[Kamikaze]

That isn't right... just b/c of a parking ticket they tow your vehicle... they should be held accountable if they towed your vehicle wrong. Their insurance should have to cover the expense since they should know how to tow vehicles. regardless the reason. (Ticket, DWI, a normal accident, etc)When I had to have my bike towed once the idiot that strapped down the back of my bike thought it was a good idea to use the seat and not the frame, or swingarm. He cracked my plastics under my seat and it tore my seat. Their insurance had to cover the damages b/c they did not tow it properly.

[Digger]

In Ohio they would be held responsible for the damage.

[engineertwin2]

Quote, originally posted by Kamikaze »That isn't right... just b/c of a parking ticket they tow your vehicle... they should be held accountable if they towed your vehicle wrong. Their insurance should have to cover the expense since they should know how to tow vehicles. regardless the reason. (Ticket, DWI, a normal accident, etc)Their insurance may cover it, but you have to prove negligence. And it is right - the city is well within their rights to enforce the traffic and parking laws.