Car Servicing

What will happen to Holden after they shutdown? If I buy a Holden in 2017, will there be any drawbacks? Will it be difficult to get the parts in next few years, or will the service quality drop? I don't want to invest my money on hopeless company.

Ford has recalled half a million cars in the USA and Europe for problems with the electric steering rack, but here in Australia they have not. I rang Ford and they told me that they are not recalling this. I have just had to pay $2768 including labor to have this replaced on my 2012 Ford Territory. I cannot see why this has not been recalled in Australia.

I engaged the child lock on the driver's side rear passenger door of our 2008 Toyota Kluger Grande, and now the switch is stuck and will not disengage, leaving rear passengers locked in until released from outside. I called a Toyota dealer who claimed this is a known issue and will cost me $650 to fix. I would consider this a safety issue that Toyota should cover, but the dealer mechanic said I was wrong. Who is correct here, and what are my options?

I have recently experienced trouble changing down from 4th to 3rd gear when driving my 2011 Mitsubishi Triton. The other gear changes seem to be fine. What could be the problem?

Further to my earlier e-mail to you and you providing details as received from Ateco, I write to advise that contrary to the position offered by Ateco, my vehicle remains off the road awaiting parts. It has now been with the dealership since March 20 and we are now into May.

I understand not only has Ateco put SsangYong into a “sales hiatus” but the current SsangYong-Ateco partnership is being ended. Could you revisit this issue with Ateco to get their revised timescale?

My Nissan X-trail fails to start even after I have replaced the battery. I took it for a computer diagnostic test, but no error was detected. What could be the problem with it?

I bought a used 2010 Hyundai ix35 diesel from a dealership in St Mary's. Before paying for it they verbally told me that it does not come with a warranty, but I could purchase a warranty for an extra $2000, which would cover me for a year. I declined the offer for warranty, but now only six months after purchasing the car it is sitting in the mechanic’s who is puzzled as to why it won’t start. It’s beginning to cost me more and more as they replace one thing after another to figure out what the problem is. A colleague of mine from work told me that even though I did not purchase warranty I should be covered by some sort as I have only had the car for 6 months? Just wondering if there is any truth to this.

My 2010 VW Golf has had loss of power/shuddering issues over several years and now the transmission has failed completely. It only has only done 70,000 km, but the transmission is out of warranty. Given its history I'm not sure if it’s worth fixing, or whether the manufacturer will do anything about it. Any advice?

I Purchased my Isuzu D-Max new in 2013. The diff disintegrated after only 58,310 road km, the fuel pump was replaced at 40,924 km, the replacement pump only travelled 17,386 km, but Isuzu dishonored the warranty of the second pump. Have I bought a Lemon?

I booked my 2010 Great Wall in with my dealer to look at an overheating issue. I also asked for a service to be done at the same time, but the dealer completed the service before looking into and fixing my overheating problem. It also appears that I have a cracked head. I asked the service department what is the worst-case scenario, and was given a price of about $5000. The issue I have is my 2010 model isn't worth very much, so if the price tag to fix it was high I just wouldn't bother fixing it, I'd just go buy another car. The other issue is they are saying that I'm stuck with the service fee and that it's my fault that they serviced the car first and didn't fix the possible major issue. What advice can you give me?