Car Servicing

Several months ago I bought a 2008 Kia Sorento from a Ford dealer. During the 3-month warranty period I raised an issue of the ESP light coming on. The dealer asked Kia what to do and cleared the fault codes. This temporarily fixed the problem, but since then I had a service at Kia and they too cleared the codes. Then recently I took it back and found out that it needs both an ABS and 4WD module, which are causing the code issue. As this issue was first identified within the 3-month and 5000 km period under Queensland statutory warranty law do I have any recourse with the Ford dealer I bought it from given its now out of warranty period and it's been serviced elsewhere albeit with the manufacturer?

Re comments on service intervals, particularly for the Toyota LandCruiser diesel. I think the car originally was intended to have 20,000km intervals — that’s how early service books were printed. I think oil consumption issues meant Toyota had to shorten intervals to ensure cars got oil and you will see Toyota stickers on interleaving 10,000km service pages. I think Toyota over-services for little reason.

My son is having an issue with a 2007 Toyota Yaris manual he bought second-hand recently. A week after taking possession he drove for about 15 minutes when he was caught for some time in a stationary traffic jam. The car started idling rough, then when he put it in gear the engine shuddered violently and had very little momentum. It was towed to a mechanic who replaced the fuel pump and spark plugs. But it is still occurring when the car is stationary in traffic for long periods. The fuel has been tested and was considered fine.

Could please answer the following questions or get answers from Mazda about oil from my BT50. I'm worried about synthetic oil, which is 'preferred' in the owner's manual and 'recommended' in the warranty. If these synthetic oils are so good, why does Mazda recommend 10,000-kilometre service intervals? And, since synthetic oils are more than twice the price of normal HD diesel oils, is this just dealers trying ramp up their profits by selling more expensive oils? I got told at the dealership "If I did not want your engine to blow up, you had better use synthetic oil."

I have a 2012 Holden Cruze Hatch SRi and recently took it for some warranty repair items. A couple of weeks ago my wife was cleaning the car and brought to my attention what appears to be a ‘bodgy' repair on the window moulding where it appears to have been broken and glued back.
I'm really disappointed with the dealership to cover this up and wonder what to do.

Roadside assist services could be turning us into a nation of slackers.

My partner and I are experiencing issues with the gearbox in her 2012 VW Golf TDi manual when changing from 3rd to 2nd. You can enter 2nd gear, but not fully engage it. The result is that you are grasping again and again at it or you need to release the clutch, put it back into neutral and then into 2nd again. This happens at random, but usually once a day. Numerous times it's caused us both to be in dangerous situations crossing highways. Volkswagen has finally acknowledged the problem and has explained there is a fault with the synchromesh. The car is out of warranty, but VW has records of us telling them about the issue from its first service. VW has agreed to look at the car, but has been extremely reluctant to do so and not great to deal with. Do you have any advice on how to proceed or have heard of this issues occurring before?

A few weeks after buying a new Mercedes-Benz SLK250 in 2013 a vibration/rattle would happen while I was driving. It was intermittent, but I noticed that it would happen around 2200rpm and at varying range of speeds, 40, 65 or 110km/h, and it would last a few seconds. The dealer couldn't replicate the noise, as the conditions around the city in peak hour were not the same as when I would've heard the noise. I left it with them on another occasion and they said they drove it but still couldn't replicate the noise. Basically, they didn't believe me there was a noise.

I left the car with them on another occasion and they said they drove the car for two hours and couldn't replicate the noise. However, when I picked up the car there was only an additional 15 km on the odometer from when I left it with them in the morning. The noise still happened and over time got louder and longer in duration. On another occasion I took it to them and a technician sat with me in the car and briefly heard the noise. The service agent said to me 'well if it is a problem, it will get worse over time.' It did. Sometimes the noise lasts for about 20 seconds and is very annoying.

I went back to them a few months later when the noise was more frequent and had another technician drive with me. He heard it. They decided that the noise was caused by the vacuum pump and replaced it, but after about two weeks I faintly heard the noise again. Again, it got louder and longer over a few weeks. I took it back to them and this time they decided it had something to do with the air-conditioning and they replaced more parts. As soon as I drove out of the dealership I heard the noise again.

I took it back again and they replaced more parts. Now the noise is happening again. I took it back to them a few days ago, and the technician said that three other similar models have the same problem and that the noise is 'standard' and ' normal' for this car. The service manager also gave me that same spiel. What a load of rubbish! I've never had a car with a rattle. If had been told that this car would rattle under certain conditions I definitely would not have spent about $100,000 on it. The service manager wanted to close the matter but I said I would not accept his conclusion. I do not accept that Mercedes-Benz would design a car with this characteristic. I feel that they don't know or want to fix it and are trying to fob me off. After much insistence on my part that I would not accept their conclusion, they have said they will look into it further, but I fear they will wait until the warranty expires and then come up with an expensive fix option. I feel powerless as one person against a large company. This is my first ever Merc and I was so happy at the time to be fortunate enough to be able to afford this car. I would appreciate your help.

Can you advise if you are aware of any issue to the driveline or driveshaft in Isuzu D-Max 4x4 vehicles? I purchased mine in December 2012 and at around the 30,000km mark I started to hear a knock when coming to a halt and moving off. Isuzu Australia has advised that this is a characteristic of the vehicle and not a defect. I am aware that my servicing dealer has four other vehicles with the same issue. It is now 12 months since this has occurred and Isuzu appear to be unwilling to rectify the issues.

Shorter days mean more time driving in the dark of night or the semi-darkness of dawn or dusk, which limits visibility. Throw in rain, hail, snow and fog, and it's even harder to see.To combat it we need to do everything we can within our power to enhance our visibility.The first barrier to good visibility is the windscreen and windows through which we view the road ahead and what is around us.It's fundamentally important to regularly clean the windscreen as well as the side and rear windows to enhance our visibility in all directions.Don't just clean them on the outside; also clean them on the inside to remove the accumulation of plasticisers and cigarette smoke and other airborne contaminants that clouds our view of the outside world.Using hot water on a cold windscreen will almost certainly crack itOn really cold winter mornings we often wake to find our windows covered with ice and in our rush to get on the road we're tempted to clear it away using hot water.Using hot water on a cold windscreen will almost certainly crack it. Use cold water straight from the tap, it's warm enough to melt the ice and you won't damage your windscreen.Make sure your wipers are operating correctly, that's on low speed, high speed, and intermittent settings.Also check the wiper blades and replace them if they're showing signs of wear. Consider replacing them even if they're not, they're cheap and can be replaced in a matter of minutes.Also make sure the windscreen washers are working, that there are no blockages in the nozzles, and they're aimed correctly at the wiped area of the windscreen.Make it a routine to check the windscreen washer reservoir and keep it topped up with a mix of water and anti-freeze as per the carmaker's recommendations. If you're not sure check your owner's manual.Don't forget to check the wipers and washers on the headlights.We rely even more on our lights in the winter months, so it's a good time to check they're all working.Switch on the lights and walk around the car checking the headlights – on low and high beam – the parking lights, tail lights and turn indicators, including the side repeater lamps.With the engine turned off, but the ignition switched on, place the transmission into reverse and check that the reversing lamps are operating.Check the emergency warning flashers are all operating, they will be of vital importance if you're stuck on the side of the road.Finally, check that all brake lights are working. You might need someone else to check the lights for you while you apply the brakes from the driver's seat, but if you can't find anyone to help out the reflection in a shop window can be useful.Repair any lights that are not working, replacing a globe is a simple job that only takes a few minutes.Keeping the windscreen and other windows clear of mist is the job of the heater/demister or air-conditioner so make sure they're working and efficiently demisting the windows.The air-conditioning system is more effective at demisting the windows than the heater/demister because it removes the moisture from the air that actually causes the misting.While you're at it check the rear window wiper, washer and demister to make sure they are all in good working order.Batteries come under extra strain during winter when they have to power the lights, wipers and washers, heaters and air-conditioners, and have enough left over to turn over a cranky engine on cold mornings.It's usually on those freezing cold mornings deep in winter when batteries call it quits.Before it gets to that check the battery. Remove any build-up on the battery posts terminals to ensure there is good contact.If you need to replace the battery do it with one that has sufficient cold cranking power to handle the load in your car.The tread on our tyres plays a vital role when the roads are wet. The function of the tread is to pump water away from the contact patch where the tyre contacts the road.As the tread wears down its efficiency to remove water from the contact patch is reduced, and beyond the legal tread depth limit it's virtually useless.Before winter takes hold inspect your tyres for tread wear and measure the depth of the tread. If they're heavily worn replace them.Don't forget the spare.It's also important to maintain the correct inflation pressure in the tyres. By doing that you'll ensure that the tread area in contact with the road is at its most effective.