The word arrived in today’s mail. Chrysler applied the extended warranty on my 2000 Jeep Wrangler and covered the failure of the hydraulic slave cylinder that failed and left me stranded in Richmond last month.

I have to pay for the new clutch, pressure plate and throwout bearing because I opted to replace them even though there was no visible damage to any of the three parts. With 55,000 miles on the Wrangler replacing the parts while they had the transmission apart is a wise move.

But the $565 I owe Turman-Yeatts Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep in Floyd is far less than the $1,300-$1500 Haynes Jeep in Richmond wanted because they couldn’t be bothered to check with Chrysler to see if they would pay for the failed parts. Andrew Lewis at Turman-Yeatts went to bat for a customer and Chrysler picked up the rest of the tab. I will happily drop by Turman-Yeatts this week and pay my share of the bill.

This is the difference between local dealer that takes care of its customers and a big-city volume dealer who doesn’t give a damn when some yokel from the hills breaks down in their neck of the woods.

Let the consumer beware. Haynes Jeep in Richmond should change their name to Rip-Off City. When people ask me why we live in the country, this story will serve as another example.