The other day, after installing my e-codes, the urge to clean my car hits me. It is the usual, weekly routine that qualifies as a mini inspection for the outside of my 1990 240. During the cleaning I discover water inside the brake light section of my tail lights on both sides of the car. If I didn't just have problem with my DJAuto ecodes, I MIGHT have been relaxed about it but that wasnt the case.

Now, these are not just some cheap a$$, Scan Tech lights (of which I have had 3 pairs on my car). These lights are a brand new set of OEM, Valeo tail lights which I purchased from FCP Groton about 24 days ago. I felt that 2 years of wet trunks, blown bulbs, crappy wiring, bulb out warnings, and all the other drama you guys can relate to with a cheap set of light would be a thing of the past. Wrong!

No big problem. I call FCP in order to straighten everything out. Always great service. They tell me that the OEM lights don’t leak (in a way that implies they KNOW the cheap lights DO leak) and that the water in my lights came through the trunk. My assertion: my car is a 9 on a scale of 1-10 and the trunk on this car is bone dry and perfect. Nick, after hearing that, tells me to ship them back and a new set will be on the way. My problem: it’s my only car and with no lights in the back I can’t drive to work (?!) for 3 or 4 days.

Our conversation shifts to OEM quality and warranties. He tells me that the lights are going back to the Volvo dealer in CT. Wait a minute. There is a Volvo dealer 5 minutes from my house in Cherry Hill, NJ. He relates the warranty is good to go at any Volvo dealership, so taking them back to my spot is fine. In my mind, I can be up and running in no time.

New problem: the “head” of the parts department at my local dealership is trying everything to say 1) the lights aren’t OEM, 2) the tail lights are aftermarket, 3) the lights were installed wrong, 4) the lights weren’t bought through an authorized dealer, 5) my receipt is forged, 6) I did pay enough for the lights, 7) the part numbers don’t match his, and soooooooooo much more.

Now, I have the receipt from FCP in my hand which denotes the price I paid, the type of light (OE), and the same part numbers this parts guy has on microfiche. He AGAIN claims they aren’t the same, checks, and sees I am right. He is starting to feel stupid but his stubbornness, due to his time spent as a coorporate tool, forces him to stick to his assertion: no warranty for me. I am to the point of obvious rage after spending nearly $800 of new lights all the way around my car and begin to loose it. He calls FCP and starts railing them. Techs come out from the shop to provide "protection" and I have been there for over an hour and a half trying to get a new set of lights.

Some time later, after secretive, closed door, high level discussions between management and parts and factory reps, there is a stale mate. The head of service come out and says, “drill a hole in the lights.” Unacceptable. The 16 year old lights were removed with no holes and no holes will be put in the new ones. I say, “is that how you solve mechanical problems on customer cars?” Silence followed by more closed door discussion. People in the sales area are are taking an interst and gathering like ants. The techs providing protection to the part's guy look nervous.

After another 30 minutes, we (a group of us) are standing out by my ride and the evidence is clear: water inside two new OEM tail lights. The dealership concedes, if only to remove me from the sales area, that they have to call the big, big head of the Reps in order to give me new lights. Okay, I’ll be back the same way the Arnold Swartzenager, in the Terminator, drove through the police station window.

My question: in your mind, does an OEM light I bought from FCP have a factory warranty in my state?

The story goes further with me calling corporate offices in New Jersey and Sweden, but for the sake of post length we’ll leave it here.
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VX, adj. cam gear, new head, trans cooler, stainless brake lines, electric fan, fully braced, IpD sways, poly bushes, Bils, boxed front & rear arms, lowering springs, 16' Perfos, 25/32mm adapters, 100% zero mile-d, and much more