[Frankefx]

Hey all ... Just stopping by to talk about an issue I just noticed today in my Brand New 2011 Sonata SE. I was cleaning my car inside and out and wanted to take a peek inside the engine when I noticed something very alarming.

I seen oil on the bolts, Firewall and pretty much on the engines passenger side. I was looking and looking to see where the **** this was coming from and there it was.

I noticed a hair line crack in what I believe is the Manifold (Correct me if I am wrong).

I don't know if this is a know issue or possibly a manufacturing assembly line error. Either way I thought I should share my story and pictures.

 

[Mike Eckman]

Holy bleepity bleep! Thats not good. It looks to me like its the valve cover and having a leak there isnt the end of the world, but still, if that were my car, I would call a tow truck immediately and have it towed straight to the dealer and then hand them the bill from the towing company.

Tell them this crack shakes your confidence in the car and you want a written statement from the service manager stating that your engine is in good shape and safe to drive, just in case you run into problems farther down the road!

 

[Smeech]

QUOTE (Mike Eckman @ Oct 11 2010, 04:04 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362789

Holy bleepity bleep! Thats not good. It looks to me like its the valve cover and having a leak there isnt the end of the world, but still, if that were my car, I would call a tow truck immediately and have it towed straight to the dealer and then hand them the bill from the towing company.

Tell them this crack shakes your confidence in the car and you want a written statement from the service manager stating that your engine is in good shape and safe to drive, just in case you run into problems farther down the road!

Agreed. That looks like the valve cover, not the intake manifold. If the engine isn't making some God-awful noises (suggesting something came apart and tried to shoot its way through the valve cover), it's probably just a manufacturing error.

 

[Blue07]

I agree with Mike and Smeech that it is your valve cover. SE2011, relax. It is easily replaced and has nothing to do with how the engine operates. Unless your oil level dropped well below the "low" level on the dip stick, it did nothing to your engine. NOTHING. But, make sure your oil level is okay. You can probably cover the crack with duct tape for the short drive to the dealership. I can't imagine them giving you any resistance to fix it. In light of the oil residue on the engine, I do not think it is unreasonable for you to ask the dealership to detail your engine, compliments of corporate Hyundai.

 

[sbr711]

Cam cover gots crack... looks like something push against it from inside, plastic looks deformed.... unless the mold did not fill out fully when injected ?

 

[Frankefx]

Well I will tell you this .... I also notice a humming sound coming from the engine recently. I noticed it when turning on the air conditioning or maybe it was a coincidence. But I hope the crack in this Valve cover didn't cause other issues with my engine. I have only 400 miles on this **** car ... WTF.

I also checked the oil and noticed it reached the LOW indicator on the stick. So I this also causes me concern for possible damage to the engine considering there wasn't a sufficient amount of oil in the car.

Can someone please help me and tell me how I should handle this when my car goes in tomorrow morning.


Thank you all

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (sbr711 @ Oct 11 2010, 07:22 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362795

Cam cover gots crack... looks like something push against it from inside, plastic looks deformed.... unless the mold did not fill out fully when injected ?

SBR ... Exactly


When I rubbed my fingers over the crack it seemed to be protruding outward a bit. Also in the outlined circle I highlighted in the picture there are two cracks running parallel (North & South).

I have no idea ... what have caused this. I am very lucky to have looked under the hood to look around today.

 

[Mike Eckman]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 11 2010, 06:22 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362796

Well I will tell you this .... I also notice a humming sound coming from the engine recently. I noticed it when turning on the air conditioning or maybe it was a coincidence. But I hope the crack in this Valve cover didn't cause other issues with my engine. I have only 400 miles on this **** car ... WTF.

I also checked the oil and noticed it reached the LOW indicator on the stick. So I this also causes me concern for possible damage to the engine considering there wasn't a sufficient amount of oil in the car.

Can someone please help me and tell me how I should handle this when my car goes in tomorrow morning.

Thank you all

Like I said, have it towed. What others are saying about a valve cover crack not being a big deal is true, but only if you knew that was the only problem. Like you said, you are hearing strange noises and your oil is low. If it were me, I would have it towed.

As for what to do, I would just wait and see what the dealer says. Give them a chance to make it right. Theres some stories on this board about really awful dealers, but there are a lot out there that are good and they will make this right.

As long as they are willing to fix it and guarantee you your engine is good, with no questions asked, theres nothing more for you to do. Sh*t happens, as long as people own up to it and, like Mike Holmes says, "Make It Right", then you will be OK.

 

[Byron007]

Stop over reacting:

1. Drive it to the dealer
2. The dealer is not going to give you a letter saying the car is ok
3. Its just a crack they will replace it

It's not the end of the world.

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (Big B @ Oct 12 2010, 12:17 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362888

Stop over reacting:

1. Drive it to the dealer
2. The dealer is not going to give you a letter saying the car is ok
3. Its just a crack they will replace it

It's not the end of the world.

LOL ... I am not over reacting, I am a bit aggravated that this happened that's all.

 

[Mike Eckman]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 12 2010, 09:27 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362954

LOL ... I am not over reacting, I am a bit aggravated that this happened that's all.

So, did you take it in today? What happened?

 

[matt317]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 12 2010, 10:27 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362954

LOL ... I am not over reacting, I am a bit aggravated that this happened that's all.

I agree. I'd be quite perturbed.

What ever happened to that 165 point inspection? Could this have been done after the delivery to the dealer?

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (Mike Eckman @ Oct 12 2010, 11:57 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362970

So, did you take it in today? What happened?

Yeah I took it in this morning and was told I had to leave the car. I was told this was a unique situation and they have to take pictures and send them to corporate. They said they would call me by afternoon sometime to let me know whats going on. I wont wait for a callback, I will be calling them fairly soon to get answers!

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (matt317 @ Oct 12 2010, 12:08 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362972

I agree. I'd be quite perturbed.

What ever happened to that 165 point inspection? Could this have been done after the delivery to the dealer?

Hey Matt,

I know what you mean and I agree 100%. I believe this was missed totally on the dealers part. It was kinda hard for me to notice the cracked valve cover also. I guess the initial damage was very small and was easily overlooked. But either way I told them to fix the problem, detail the engine and get rid of any oil and fluid residue and do a full diagnostics test on the engine. That way we can see if any other issues happened because of this.

 

[Mike Eckman]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 12 2010, 12:16 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362985

Hey Matt,

I know what you mean and I agree 100%. I believe this was missed totally on the dealers part. It was kinda hard for me to notice the cracked valve cover also. I guess the initial damage was very small and was easily overlooked. But either way I told them to fix the problem, detail the engine and get rid of any oil and fluid residue and do a full diagnostics test on the engine. That way we can see if any other issues happened because of this.

I think thats all very reasonable to ask. I would assume corporate wants to see this in case theres other cars that might have the same problem.

Hopefully they handle this well and you can move on from this situation with a positive feeling towards your dealer and your car!

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (Mike Eckman @ Oct 12 2010, 01:38 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=362988

I think thats all very reasonable to ask. I would assume corporate wants to see this in case theres other cars that might have the same problem.

Hopefully they handle this well and you can move on from this situation with a positive feeling towards your dealer and your car!

Mike,

I just got off the phone with them. They said that they needed to order the valve cover because they didn't have it in stock. They said they will have it first thing in the morning and I will have the car by noon. I told them after replacing the new cover to clean the engine and run a full engine diagnostics.

We will see what happens, I am crossing my fingers

 

[Bearcats]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 12 2010, 02:53 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=363007

Mike,

I just got off the phone with them. They said that they needed to order the valve cover because they didn't have it in stock. They said they will have it first thing in the morning and I will have the car by noon. I told them after replacing the new cover to clean the engine and run a full engine diagnostics.

We will see what happens, I am crossing my fingers

Unless your engine was COATED in oil, I have a feeling yous should be fine. The pictures included in this thread show what cant amount to more than a few ounces at best of lost oil. The only other thing that might have happened was oil pressure deviation. If it didn't kick on an idiot light I doubt the ECU will pop a code.

While a crack in the valve cover seems unnerving, its no different than a leaking valve cover seal. This is all based on the pictures supplied on this thread.

 

[Frankefx]

QUOTE (Bearcats @ Oct 12 2010, 02:57 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=363009

Unless your engine was COATED in oil, I have a feeling yous should be fine. The pictures included in this thread show what cant amount to more than a few ounces at best of lost oil. The only other thing that might have happened was oil pressure deviation. If it didn't kick on an idiot light I doubt the ECU will pop a code.

While a crack in the valve cover seems unnerving, its no different than a leaking valve cover seal. This is all based on the pictures supplied on this thread.

HI Bear,

I can only say what I seen and there was oil that did coat that passenger side of the engine. enough had to be lost for the oil stick to read "low". I just hope nothing serious actually happened because of that. Then again, no oil light came on to indicate any problems. So I might have caught this in the nick of time.

 

[sbr711]

QUOTE (SE2011 @ Oct 12 2010, 08:34 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=363078

HI Bear,

enough had to be lost for the oil stick to read "low". I just hope nothing serious actually happened because of that. Then again, no oil light came on to indicate any problems. So I might have caught this in the nick of time.

People all over and all the time drive a qt low (and more) for lots of miles... I'm quilty as H E double toothpicks for running 2 qt low,,, I gots 329,000 on my daily drive, and the rear crank seal leaks oil pretty good.. longer story why I not bother to replace it..

They likely took pics and e-mail them to their DPSM to help document the replacement of cover and aid them getting paid for an off the wall claim for a cracked cam cover on such a new car, can see Hyundai initially denying claim and put in DPSM itinerary to look at the situation when next dealer visit comes up, usually bi-weekly...

Nobody keeps cam covers in stock,, not a everyday sale item. As long as Hyundai part depot has 1 on hand, should be overnight, unless it come from different depot, or on intergalactic back order.. get that some times with new off the wall parts.

I'd be interested as to the reason for the crack.. maybe you can talk them into letting you look at the part, see if it looks like injection mold not fill, or impcat from inside that pushed out.

 

[jjthykiooghndghm]

QUOTE (sbr711 @ Oct 12 2010, 09:05 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=363084

People all over and all the time drive a qt low (and more) for lots of miles... I'm quilty as H E double toothpicks for running 2 qt low,,, I gots 329,000 on my daily drive, and the rear crank seal leaks oil pretty good.. longer story why I not bother to replace it..

They likely took pics and e-mail them to their DPSM to help document the replacement of cover and aid them getting paid for an off the wall claim for a cracked cam cover on such a new car, can see Hyundai initially denying claim and put in DPSM itinerary to look at the situation when next dealer visit comes up, usually bi-weekly...

Nobody keeps cam covers in stock,, not a everyday sale item. As long as Hyundai part depot has 1 on hand, should be overnight, unless it come from different depot, or on intergalactic back order.. get that some times with new off the wall parts.

I'd be interested as to the reason for the crack.. maybe you can talk them into letting you look at the part, see if it looks like injection mold not fill, or impcat from inside that pushed out.

I find this fascinating and you sound like you have experience. Were you serious when you said you would not be surprised if Hyundai initially denied the claim submitted on a new car for a covered part unless pictures and extra support documentation is supplied? Are other car brands the same way? Which car brands would you say are the quickest to approve legitimate claims?