Car Servicing

Like Manfred Hansen (Carsguide, February 7) we too had a problem with a burst oil line in our 2006 Toyota Aurion. Our mechanics were advised by Toyota that the later metal pipe is not interchangeable with 2006/7 models. Dealers were replacing the rubber hoses with a new rubber one as part of an "in-house recall" not a nationwide recall as we thought should have happened. We were lucky that we were close to home when it went.

About four months ago I experienced a very similar gear slippage problem with my 2000 Mercedes-Benz CLK 230 cabriolet when changing from third to fourth. I steered clear of the Mercedes dealers and took it to a local auto guy. He stated that it could be either a $10 return spring - apparently a common fault - or third gear has gone. Unfortunately it was the latter, but he fixed it for reasonable $1700, and car goes great. I would suggest Bernie (Carsguide, February 7) steers clear of the dealer and go to a reputable automatic transmission place, and save heaps.

In March last year our Hyundai i30 diesel was towed to the dealership where it was found that the injection circuit number three was open. It has been back numerous times with the same complaint over the next nine months, until, finally, in December, they found that the ECU unit had an internal fault and was replaced. Since then, the engine warning light has illuminated almost weekly, necessitating more visits to the workshop. The service advisor has now told us that we had the "wrong car and that we should sell it"! Would welcome your thoughts.

Our CVT-equipped 2013 Nissan Pulsar TI is jerking on over-run at slow speeds. It has had the dealer idle fix, but it still has the problem. Any ideas?

With the vast number of diesels appearing on our roads, do you have any information on which manufacturer has the best lifespan on their injectors. I have heard that some of the replacement injectors cost up to $1000 each! This sort of expense is a bit hard to swallow if it happens every 100,000 km. Or are the injectors now listed as 'consumables', and not covered by warranties, the same as the brakes, clutches, etc.? The extra fuel efficiency of the new CRD's is negated if you have to pay a few grand extra to buy the diesel in the first place, and then have to buy new injectors every few years on top of that. Not to mention that the diesels seem to cost a bit more to service as well. How many kilometers could we drive our petrol guzzlers on the $6000 it costs us to drive these new 'fuel efficient' diesels? Many motoring writers are pushing the move to diesels, but at what cost to the average driver? I am trying to work out if it's worth getting a diesel SUV, or sticking with a new petrol one. Any advice?

In November last year the automatic transmission in my 2008 Mercedes-Benz 200 Kompressor began revving before engaging third when shifting up from second. I took the car back to the dealer who advised that there were metal filings in the transmission. The quote for the repairs was $11,000, which was reduced down to $9250. Mercedes-Benz Customer Relations told me they would not help, nor would they explain how this could have occurred. The car has done 60,000km, it has never been thrashed or abused, and has been serviced by the dealer. I was told that it has never happened before, but I have since found another person who has had the same problem. I find it very unreasonable and frustrating that having purchased a Mercedes for $90,000 that this could have happened in such a short period of time. I have had no choice, but to pay the $9250, or have no car. Your opinion?

With reference to the complaint from Jodie and Nick about their Triton in Carsguide, January 17, 2014 I would like to say that we have had ongoing contact with the customer, as per the customer's correspondence to Ask Smithy, and we've made every effort to reasonably address the customer's concerns. A Mitsubishi technical representative previously met with Mrs. Delahunty and together they evaluated the vehicle. The vehicle operation was considered normal by our representative on the test drive, he was not able to reproduce the complaint condition, the customer agreed with this assessment. The vehicle was driven in an unladen condition on the test drive, however, we understand from the customer that the vehicle is often driven in a fully loaded condition. In an attempt to allay the customer's concerns, our representative offered to replace the differential, however, and stated there may be little or no difference to any operation noise as their vehicle is operating within normal acceptable levels. The customer declined the offer as could not guarantee total elimination of the noise when fully laden.

I noticed feathering and wear on the rear tyres on my 2012 VE Commodore Equipe after 19,000km. An alignment check was done at Holden and all four wheels were outside specs. Their response to my tyre claim was that the alignment was my responsibility. The 3000km and 15,000km services were done at Holden, what more am I expected to do? Where to from here?

I have a 2009 Suzuki Grand Vitara with the same problem as described in Carsguide (January 18). Mine went back half a dozen times without being fixed. I gave up talking to dealers. I took it to a mate who used to be a mechanic, but is now a bus driver, and after 10 min he determined that the "clunking" was coming from where the bottom of the spring was seated on the right-hand side. This could be easily fixed by sliding a piece of garden hose over the end of the spring for about 200 mm. Haven't had a problem since, so much for the "experts" at Suzuki.

I wrote to you last year about a whine in my 2013 Toyota Atara SL that comes in at 1900 to 2000 rpm. You said it could be the gears in the gearbox, which means the car has to be moving, but if you can hear it when you rev the engine in Park. Two dealers I have taken it to don't know what is causing it, one said it could be a characteristic of the car, but that does not solve the problem. It is a good car, but on a long trip it is a pain hearing it all the time. Your help on this would be much appreciated, as it is driving me nuts.