Thinkpads Forum

About 6 months ago some water spilled into one of my T60s. I turned it off, dried it out and it worked fine for 5 months, then it started turning off and going into standby on its own. By that time I forgot about the spill.

I sent it to EasyServ who said that there was spill damage, voiding the warranty. They said the planar board and keyboard needed to be replaced at a cost of $750 plus tax. Perhaps there was an underlying problem with the planar board, but the keyboard worked fine and didn't need replacing.

I put it into "dispute" to buy time in order to figure out whether I would have them fix it (and have no future warranty) or just let it go. For a few C-notes more I could just buy a new machine.

I suppose I could ask to have the machine returned unrepaired but think they've tossed the bad parts. I asked for the bad parts back (the same way IBM asks for their bad part backs for a consumer replaceable part like a HD) but they said no.

So you're implying the current state of your machine is unrepaired and is in IBM (Lenovo) hands and refuse to give your laptop back unless you pay for it?

They've repaired it by replacing the planar board and keyboard, and are now requesting payment.

I'm not sure if what I signed to get the unit fixed allows them to fix it out of warranty, but I forgot all about any spillage as I've used the machine plenty since so figured this was an in-warranty repair.

I'd like to get the unit back unfixed, sell it for scrap and buy a new X61 tablet with the proceeds, but that's not going to happen as they've already fixed the unit. I am now waiting for the "dispute" department to render their verdict. An advantage there is that they will send photos of any damage to parts they're not sending back.

I'm on the fence about buying the unit back for half the cost of a new machine.

Did you authorize the repair by phone or by sending them a letter?

If not then you owe nothing; and they owe you a fixed laptop –period–

Normally they will call you prior to repairing it and tell you that the laptop has liquid spill damage. At that point they will tell you the repair cost and you have to say fix it or do not fix it.

I would assume that after they fix it the warranty would be back to normal.

Chris

If you didn't authorize it, it sounds like someone got overly eager and already repaired it -- and tossed the old parts. If that's the case, at the minimum you should be able to negotiate down the cost of the repair to something significantly lower than $750.

If you did authorize it, though, you are probably out of luck.

lenovo won't repair anything unless you authorize them to do so. If you did not say "yes" to them at this at some point then you should be the winner of that dispute...

Thanks for all the replies! OK, so when I get the call I can just say 'no-go' and get my T60 back as-is. Perhaps I misunderstood the state of the repair. For some reason they didn't mention the option of sending it back as-is. Has anyone else here declined a repair?

Thanks, all. I'll let you know how it goes...

DavidNY wrote:OK, so when I get the call I can just say 'no-go' and get my T60 back as-is. Perhaps I misunderstood the state of the repair. For some reason they didn't mention the option of sending it back as-is. Has anyone else here declined a repair?

Yes, Just tell them NOT to fix the laptop and send it back to you. I have declined numerous repairs and they ship the laptop back to you.

I would assume that if you want warranty service in the future you might have to show proof that the liquid spill damage was repaired.

Thanks, Chris.

I can probably grab a planar board off ebay if I want to fix it, the keyboard is fine.

BTW, when I sent in my other T60 for servicing, they replaced the keyboard (I managed to break a key off it).

They didn't ask anything for that , but they did replace it with a different mfrs keyboard. It doesn't feel as nice as the one I sent out.

pay the $750 then sell on ebay. They are selling for more than that.

I bet I could beat their price. Even if you just want to resell it, $750 is steep. To be fair, some of those boards are hard to get under $600, but buying directly through lenovo will cost you lots of extra $$$.

PM me for a quote if you want one. I work for an authorized service center, but we rarely buy non-warranty parts directly through lenovo due to their stupidly high prices.

OK, T60 is coming back as is. If anyone has a new/used T60 planar (incuding mitchellst) please PM me with a quote. The FRU# is 41V9916.

TPA -- I was looking at closed auctions for used T60s on eBay, the whole enchilada was going for around 700-800.

Hmm, they don't wrap it in the pink bag on the way back.

Going to mitchellst for the final fix! Thanks everyone!