Helpline Helpers

Should you be following up on a vehicle's status through the SOA Tech Helpline and receive the answering machine during a busy period, please leave the last eight (8) digits of the VIN and the name of the Technical Representative you were working with. This will allow us to route your call to the original Technical Representative you were communicating with. When he returns your call he can then be prepared with the necessary information at hand.

In addition, we suspect that when most Technicians contact us on the Helpline, they come to the phone with only the Repair Order (R.O.) in hand. The R.O. usually never provides information such as the vehicle production date, engine or transmission number. As you are aware, this type of information is used to track product changes. The SOA Technical Representative is responsible for not only assisting you with your problem vehicle, but also for analyzing and passing along information regarding the effectiveness of production changes.

Production changes are frequently tracked by production date, engine or transmission number, necessitating a need for this type of information. If the condition reported is a recognized project and the vehicle or component was built before a production change, we can probably recommend a field fix. If the condition reported is affecting a vehicle or component built after a production change, we need to collect all the details and report to FHI that either another condition exists or that their production change was perhaps not 100% effective. In any event, it's easy to understand why this information is important to FHI in helping them build a better vehicle.

You can use the Vehicle Information Section of the QMR as a worksheet for recording this information.

For those of you who know where this information is accessed, move on. For those of you who would like a refresher, read on:

Production Date - Available on the certification plate located in the driver's door jamb area. P/D is given in month, year. Example: 7/91.

Engine Number - Six (6) digits, no letters. Exception is replacement short block which will have the letter "M" stamped after six (6) digits. See applicable Service Manual for exact location. The number is always stamped onto a flat machined area of the engine block.

Transmission Number - This is the one most people get confused. Again, it's a six (6) digit affair with all numbers. It will be on an adhesive sticker on the bell housing near the starter area.

Even if, at some time in the future, all this information is available through a computer or bar code system, we will still need to confirm what is actually in the vehicle. Get in the habit of jotting down these particulars on the back of your R.O. Thanks to SOA Technical Representative Mark Russo for this reminder, who feels the field should understand why we ask for this information. It is needed to increase the efficiency of the Tech Helpline, which will make Mark more efficient.