Car Servicing

It looks like Manfred Hansen (Carsguide, February 7, 2013) was right to be concerned about the burst oil line on his Toyota Aurion. Toyota and Lexus owners in the US with the same engine have had the replacement rubber hoses fail. It's hot oil in rubber, I'm sure you can work out what happens!

Last year the check engine light in my 2010 Mitsubishi Outlander came on and the engine stopped while driving. Since then I have taken the car more than five times to a dealer for repair. I once even got charged for it. They had the car for a month once and when I collected it, it only took five minutes for the check engine light to come on again. They provided a hire car for last time, but nothing like mine. I took the matter to consumer affairs and they advised me to go to VCAT. I am frustrated with the lengthy delay and their poor customer service. Can you please guide me what I need to do.

I have a 2010 Holden Cruze that I purchased one-year-old at 20,000 km. Since that time I have had a range of problems as follows: engine just "cuts out" for no reason, engine "misses" whilst cruising, engine stalls when reversing from a park, engine will not start at all. It has been into Holden a number of times, but the "problems" could not be found. After a recent spike in the range of problems I have finally convinced Holden on a number of levels of their responsibility in this matter and they are going to replace a wiring loom, in the hope that it fixes all problems. If it doesn't, I will be taking the matter as far as I have to to get them to buy the car back. It is a dog, and I believe a genuine lemon. A three-year-old car should be running like a dream. I am not a happy camper.

Hazel Price contacted us regarding a problem with the starter motor on her 2013 Mitsubishi Mirage. She had been told that replacement starters were not available in Australia.

In the last month my 2006 Mitsubishi Triton GLX-R 3.2-litre diesel has begun to surge around 2500 rpm - especially from second to fourth gear. Driving to Ballarat from Melbourne recently, when going uphill doing 110km/h on cruise control, it only could manage 80-100km/h! It was struggling to do 80km/h at one stage, and I thought it was going to die on me. My dealer said it's likely to be carbon build-up in the inlet manifold and EGR valve and they would need a few days to repair it. What do you think?

Subaru says it is close to introducing a capped-price servicing scheme across its model range by the end of this year. The Japanese carmaker is now conspicuous among the Top 10 brands for being the only one not to offer transparent pricing for routine maintenance. At the moment, Subaru customers wanting a service quote need to fill out a detailed online form or call a dealership."It’s still under consideration, we are looking at," said Subaru Australia boss Nick Senior. "One of the advantages is that we have been able to see what everyone else is doing. We’ll sit down and we’ll have a look at it. Stay tuned."Capped price servicing has been welcomed by car buyers and copied by the rest of the industry after Toyota introduced it across its 200-plus dealer network in 2008. Mitsubishi was next, offering capped price servicing from January 2010, followed by Nissan (December 2010), Ford (July 2011), Holden (April 2012), Kia (July 2012) and Hyundai (August 2012).Volkswagen’s and Suzuki’s full range has had capped price servicing since May 2013, Honda introduced it in October 2013, while Mazda finally joined the fray in January 2014. This week, Ford extended its fixed price servicing coverage to seven years and 135,000km.This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling

Ford says their capped price service offer, MyFord, has been successful in bringing thousands of owners back to the brand -- 13,000 in 2013 alone. So they're taking the offer further, raising it to seven years and 135,000km from the six years/105,000km that rolled out in 2011.The revised program -- available on vehicles built from 2007 -- has been extended to cover brake pad replacements and rotor machining across the range except the sporty FPV, ST and XR5 variants and the light commercial Transit van. All eligible models will have front pads capped at $259 and rear ones at $219, except the rear-wheel drive Falcon and Territory rear pads, which will be capped at $259. Machining is capped at $88.Ford has also announced a year's free membership and roadside assistance with state motoring organisations -- NRMA, RACV, RACT, RACQ, AANT, RAA and RAC -- at participating dealers with the sale of any new car, except FPV and Transit.“The addition of the Auto Club Program is another customer-focused offering that Ford owners will enjoy,” Ford Australia general manager, customer service division, Stephen Kruk, says. “Customers expect this level of certainty from their dealers and we’re happy to say that since it was introduced in July 2011, the program has been very well received by our customers.”Owners can check the maximum price for a service, and all terms and conditions at www.ford.com.au/myfordcps.  MyFord Capped Price Servicing is available on the following vehicles.Ford Fiesta – WQ, WS, WTFord Focus – LS, LT, LV, LVIIFord Mondeo – MA, MB, MCFord Falcon – BF, BF FPV, BF MkII, BF MkII FPV, BF MkIII, FG, FG FPV, FG MkII, FG MkII FPVFord Escape – ZD, ZCFord Econovan - JHFord EcoSport - BKFord Kuga - TE, TFFord Territory – SY, SY F6X, SY MkII, SZFord Ranger – PJ, PK, PXFord Transit – VM, VNThis reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

My 8th Gen Honda Civic has recently had its 100,000km service and automatic flush. Now, when first used in the morning, after sitting overnight, or for sometime, the engine seems to vibrate more and the steering is stiffer than normal. There is also some drag when I step on the gas, but more so when I don't push on the gas. It occurs when in reverse and in drive. The problem goes away when after driving a short distance. My mechanic has informed me it was overfilled during the auto flush, and has since drained and refilled it, but the problem is still there. What could be causing it?

A month after buying my new Mitsubishi Mirage in September it was diagnosed with a starter motor problem. My dealer has told me that there are no starter motors available in Australia for my make of car and that I will have to wait indefinitely until one arrives. I am now in the situation whereby the car will not always start. The dealer that I bought the car from will not give me a temporary car until my car breaks down totally, which could be anywhere at any time. I am struggling to come to terms with the fact that Mitsubishi does not have any starter motors in Australia for a car like the Mirage. Can you help?

The gearbox in my new Ford Ranger 3.2 diesel automatic dual-cab has been very rough from the outset, and seemed to be overrunning, especially first gear. It is completely disengaging when it changes down. Is this is a common problem?