Car Servicing

The driver's door handle on my 2010 Mercedes C220 CDI has broken and I am unable to open the door from the inside. After many phone calls to Mercedes and the dealer, the best quote is $2700 from the dealer with free fitting. The poor design means the whole door trim must be replaced.

In September we headed off on a road trip from Victoria to the Gold Coast in our 2011 Nissan Murano.

We have owned the Murano for four years and have maintained it meticulously. We have never had a problem, and even had it serviced early prior to the trip, with no issues reported.

On the way the engine light came on, so we attended a Nissan service centre in NSW.

A diagnostic check reported that there was a problem with the torque converter. As the light had gone off we were told that the car should be fine to drive, but if the light came back on we were told to take it back to a service centre.

It came back on while we were at the Gold Coast and the car completely failed while we were in traffic with our two children on board, which was frightening.

We managed to get it to the Gold Coast Nissan service centre, where we were told it had to have the CVT replaced, at a cost of $11,000. As you can imagine, this was devastating to hear while on a holiday we had saved and worked towards for a year.

We were left stranded in Queensland, with no option but to fork out $1300 on one-way flights and another $300 on a hire car to get us to our country Victorian home, leaving the car behind and the Gold Coast service centre putting in a good will claim for us. We have just been told this claim has been rejected.

We are aware that Nissan has had major issues with CVTs in the USA, resulting in a 10-year warranty extension to cover the issue.

How on earth they could leave us high and dry is mind-boggling. They had no concern about how we were going to get home, or the fact that the car failed in a way that seems ridiculous for a car that has only just clicked over 100,000 km. We are now left with only one car to get our children to school and kinder, and ourselves to work, and are paying off a car we no longer have and is basically worthless.

Can you help?

The auto transmission in my 2001 Holden Berlina V8 has collapsed. Is it possible to change this and how much would it cost?

I bought a 2007 Kia Carnival that I think is a lemon. I was driving it from Melbourne to Mildura on the day I got it and it broke down on the way. The car is under 10 years, but over 160,000 km, so it isn't required to have a statutory warranty. I'm not sure what my rights are under the ACL lemon laws. Could you help me with what I can or should do as I only had it for less than a day before it broke down? Seems unfair that I bought it and it stops working after less than a day and I can't return it or have the dealer fix it because he's not legally required to give a warranty. Please help.

I recently hired a 2013 Toyota Prado diesel in Darwin for a month's holiday in the top-end. It had about 120,000 km on it, and seemed in reasonable condition, however it broke down day before the car was due back. The company claimed we filled it with contaminated fuel, and they are harassing us for the $7500 engine repairs (two new pistons and four injectors). BP tested the fuel and it was all clear, and we did close to 900 km on those two tanks of fuel without any problems, and there have been no other complaints from anyone else at their Kununurra depot. If it is not poor diesel, what is the most likely cause of the car breaking down? Their mechanics report indicated a hole in no. 3 piston and wear on no. 2 piston. Any advice would be appreciated, as we have received court documents from their company solicitor, and need to act soon.

My 2007 Nissan X-Trail is overheating, very fast. I skimmed the head and block, replaced the gasket, but when I accelerate the water gushes out of my radiator cap and my fan does not go on. When I turn the AC on the fan goes on. Both pipes get hot just after a few minutes of idling, not sure if it can be the thermostat.

My differential in my 2013 D22 Nissan Navara has just failed. The car is still under warranty, but Nissan is stating that it is due to shock loading. Do you have any information regarding differential failures in this car?

After experiencing the problem with the VW DSG transmission, and VW's "head in sand" attitude to it, I got rid of my Passat. But I bought a BMW X3 diesel and find myself with a problem with the 2.0-litre diesel engine in that. It failed catastrophically at 158,772 km and only 600 km after the BMW dealer carried out a "timing chain campaign". The engine dropped an intake valve and then the other intake valve head came off and they jammed in the piston crown seizing the engine. BMW are denying any responsibility, despite the fact that in Europe and UK, this engine is failing frequently due to timing chain wear and "extension". The repairs are very expensive. It looks as though BMW and VW both attended the same "deny everything" course and are hoping they will not be seriously challenged. I will never ever recommend the purchase of either a BMW or a car that is part of the VW Group, because their total lack of product support and unwillingness to admit to a design problem.

My 2016 Hyundai Accent SR has twice lost power to the radio and clock in about three months. It would be good to hear any outcome from Hyundai.

I have to replace the headlights on my 2009 Hyundai i30 CRDI at least twice a year. Is this common, or could there be something causing them to blow?