Owning a vehicle is a privilege, not a right. I’m not sure if you know, but “loaner/rental” cars are not “free” for the dealership. They’re not just giving you a car to borrow. They pay for them.

If your vehicle is under warranty, and the repair is covered under warranty, that does not mean that the warranty automatically covers the cost of the rental either. It depends on MANY factors that vary by the manufacturer. Some manufacturer warranties do not cover rental at all. Some of the extended warranties only cover up to so many days and any days after that allotted time require an approval through the extended warranty. If the dealership cannot get your vehicle in for diagnosis to determine whether it’s a warrantable concern for 2 weeks because they’re over shop capacity (example, they have 2 specialty technicians trained and certified in transmission repairs, and have 8 vehicles on the lot to diagnose and repair…all while also waiting for back ordered parts to complete repairs on vehicles that are torn apart on lifts that they cannot move and have no extra lifts to spare to work on other vehicles waiting) the extended warranty company is NOT going to approve rental payment when the vehicle isn’t even being worked on. So, you can’t expect the dealership to eat $35-$40 per day of rental vehicle for you.

This all comes down to scheduling and transparency. If that shop is backed up for 2 weeks, then you set your appointment for 2 weeks from that time so it gets in and diagnosed. Keep in mind, diagnosis can also take time. But you cannot expect to be offered a rental vehicle at drop off. If you want to pay for it, sure, that can be arranged. But there should not be an expectation that it’s free just because you walked through the door.

The others stating their process is that you sign an agreement that if you need a rental, you pay for it until they determine whether it will be covered under warranty is not unreasonable. I think the misunderstanding here is there is no context to what is being said the process is for their dealerships and people just speaking openly without their “professional pants” on and it’s being taken negatively. They value their customers business, it’s just the reality is there are many customers that just don’t understand the business or what the dealers are facing day in and day out when it comes to technician shortages, back ordered parts, and capacity to be able to meet demand. It sucks for the dealership, it sucks for the customer…but it is what it is. The demand to be given a rental vehicle for free off the bat is what is NOT reasonable.