Are you ready, because here's a novel:
I am the owner of a 2012 Chevrolet Cruze LS 1.8 liter with a new automatic transmission that was replaced in October 2019 with around 46,000 miles on the clock. Incidentally two days after that one's ATF had been changed there was a wave plate fracture. When I looked under the hood, the AT valve relief cap sitting on top of the battery. But the fluid change was claimed to have been done properly by way of the drain plug on the side, never by the top. I digress. This May the car failed to shift past 3rd gear when coming off a highway ramp from a dead stop. It had 55,262 on it. It was still under warranty so I had it towed to the dealer I had the AT replaced at. They took a few days to look at it and drive it around and found that it drove fine and threw no codes. They told me that the ATF was 3/4 of a quart low and topped it off, and that the AT only took around 1 quart total. I have a couple questions that they would only answer with "we don't know": was the tranny filled properly when installed, and where did the ATF go if it was? Does this tranny really only take 1 quart and if so, how much damage could 10,000 miles running it like that do? I was told that 1/4 was still a "normal operating amount" which seems like baloney. I think that they are trying to cover their heinies, because the service manager and transmission tech has been replaced in the time since my tranny was replaced. The new manager stated that they had 3-4 drivetrains they were working on this past week. Seems fishy to me. The service tech tried to blame it on my tire which admittedly does loose air over time, it has since it was new, for an unknown reason but not drastically. In their report they said the right front tire was at 15 PSI. I have never allowed it to go under the normal PSI. They have multiple records of me complaining about it too. Anyway, I always check my PSI and fluids before a highway journey. And they were all fine, and they are holding air now. I keep meticulous records of every service and have never had any problems up until now. My car has never been worked on anywhere else in it's life and is very well maintained. It still jerks and bucks from time to time, especially from 1st to 2nd, but am told this is normal, even the first one did this. Am I being paranoid or am I dealing with some nefarious mechanics? Who wants to help me solve the case of...
The Vanishing ATF?
I'm not familiar with that vehicle, does it have some kind of dual-clutch automated transmission with fluid just used in the clutches? I don't think one quart of fluid would even start to fill the torque converter on a conventional trans or even a CVT. The fact that the transmission cratered at 46K miles tells you the kind of quality you're dealing with in the first place. It sure sounds like the dealer is jerking you around to get you past the warranty period with a poorly-designed transmission so it and you are out of their hair. Might want to take it to a different dealer or even a good independent mechanic to get a second opinion.
Well it sure as shootin' has to take more than 1 quart of ATF! (I just looked it up and the capacity is listed as 7.6 liters.) That dealer is lying through his teeth. Who would have thought?
https://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gm-transmissions/mh9/
Thanks for the replies and info. I knew they were lying or just mistaken, but needed some validation to reenforce my suspicions. I am amazed at the level of incompetence at this location, since I have been taking my car there since I bought it in 2014 and had never had any reason to distrust them, until the first tranny issue. Then I believed them when they told me it was just bad luck. Cruzes are generally junky as I have found, even if they are babied like mine is. Like Scotty says, they're Mickey Mouse cars. Of course they probably want me to trade it in since it is older. They are messing with the wrong person if they are lying though.
The dealer is either lying or totally incompetent. Either way you can't trust them. And yes, unfortunately those cars just don't hold up well over time.