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Conference terri::cars_uk

Title:	Cars in the UK
Notice:	Please read new conference charter 1.70
Moderator:	COMICS::SHELLEYELD

Created:	Sun Mar 06 1994
Last Modified:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	2584
Total number of notes:	63384

2260.0. "Vauxhall Parts Supply Problems" by LARVAE::SMITH_JON (JONATHAN SMITH) Wed May 04 1994 18:58

In December I took delivery of a new Calibra 16v (cloth) with Air conditioning.

Hertz are the lease company.

On 11th April the air conditioning stopped working. I booked the car into J Davy
in Basingstoke for the following Monday (18th April) for 2 days. (Any air
con fault requires that the car goes in over night!) Hertz delivered me a 
rental car. 

J Davy returned the car to me without fixing the air conditioning, stating that
it needed a new condenser, which was out of stock at Vauxhall. They could not
even give me an estimated date of when the part would arrive.

I contacted the Vauxhall Customer Care line in Luton, they said that there was
some parts 'in transit' from the air con manufacturer in Germany and that they
would try to allocate one of these to my car and that they should arrive in this
country by the end of the week.

By the beginning of the following week I had still heard nothing, so I contacted
both J Davy and Vauxhall, and was told that the parts were still 'in transit',
but no date could be given as to when they would arrive. It also became clear that
only 14 of the particular part were arriving and J Davy alone have 3 on order!

This morning I contacted Hertz, who are now chasing both Vauxhall and J Davy.

I have now been given an estimated date of 'end of May' for delivery of the part.
'Every effort' will be made to ensure that one of the parts being imported would
be allocated to me, but it could not be guaranteed.

In the same conversation the technical guy at Hertz told me that Vauxhall are having
serious difficulties with parts supply in general and that it is not unknown for
cars to be off the road for as much as six weeks waiting for parts as simple as 
headlamps!

I consider a six week wait for a part completely unnacceptable and have demanded
that the cost of the air con be deducted from my lease cost.

Has anybody else come up against a similar situation, and if so, what have you
done about it, and what result did you get?

Jonathan

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
2260.1		WELSWS::HILLN	It's OK, it'll be dark by nightfall	`Wed May 04 1994 19:02`	4
	We've probably all had equally frustrating delivery experiences... ...trying to get deliveries for our customers.
2260.2		COMICS::SHELLEY	Bugs B Gone	`Wed May 04 1994 20:20`	13
	I think the words "barrel" and "over a" come to mind as Angus Deayton might say. I had a replacement air temp sensor on order for a while but wasn't worried as it was only a minor thing. When they told me it had come in I said could it wait til my next service (This is a Cavalier by the way) but was advised they couldn't keep it in stock that long as they were in short supply. Did you say got a reduction of lease cost ? Thats pretty good going. Royston
2260.3	ME TO!!!	BRUMMY::BRACEY	There ain't no sanity clause	`Thu May 05 1994 21:30`	26
	I took delivery of my Calibra early March, the air con deterioated and eventually stopped working. It took a week to get it into a garage, I waited for a verdict befor phoning the office for a lift. Befor I had drank my coffee they told me it was definetly broken and I would have to bring it back as they had to get an air con engineer in. A week later the air con man said it needed a new compresser and it was on order ETA mon/tues. It finally arrived last Friday and is being fitted today by the air con eng who again had to be called in. I don't have it back yet but it is supposed to be fixed. This episode has taken a month and three visits to (probably) get it fixed. I have heard serveral stories of a similar nature that lead me to believe that vauxhall build/parts/service quality has gone completley down the pan. Is any one in Fleet etc talking to Vauxhall about this or are we just accepting it?? Guy
2260.4		COMICS::PARRY	Trevor Parry	`Tue May 10 1994 17:07`	8
	My Astra GSi is in the garage for a new exhaust after 18 months/30000 miles. It will be about 3 days to get a replacement middle box ! However, Hertz will be paying for a hire car. ATS aren't even able to supply the exhaust at all, it has to be done at a dealer. tmp
2260.5	It yer baffles mate, there shot!	PAKORA::AGIBSON	Alan Gibson	`Tue May 10 1994 19:36`	16
	Hi, My GSi suffered the same fate about three weeks ago. The baffles went in the middle box and Lex Vauxhall Quote 110 pounds inclusive of vat and fitting to replace, no problems with availability though!! Seems that Vauxhall have a known problem with these 'cos the gave me a 50% discount in the form of a Vauxhall warranty claim. The cars only done 22k in 2 years. I would ask a few questions if I were you. Alan.
2260.6	Regular bits?	BLKPUD::ROWEM	Frank Gamballi's Trousers!	`Mon May 16 1994 15:03`	10
	I've had the air mass sensor on my 16vCavalier SRI fail twice,each time it took around 2 weeks to get the bit,and it's going again! If mine's failing maybe others are ? DEC field service would be crucified if we didn't keep often needed bits in stock. I believe Vauxhall are ISO 9000? pehaps a customer complaint might help? Matt.
2260.7	Alarming story	FUTURS::CROSSLEY	For internal use only	`Wed Jun 22 1994 17:29`	20
	Calibra 2.0 ~~~~~~~~~~~ 1) Both the internal Alarm sensors replaced 2) Radio replaced (intermittent fault on the volume nob) 3) Both the internal Alarm sensors replaced 4) Both the internal Alarm sensors replaced 6) Covers on the alarm sensors have now both fallen off It's only 5 months old. Ian.
2260.8	new isn't necessarily reliable!	BHAJI::BHAILE		`Wed Jun 22 1994 18:27`	16
	Nice to see I wasn't the only one.My Company cavalier sri 16v broke down on me 6 times in 3 months and in between used to regularly cut out on hard acceleration (normally while overaking a large lorry in the fast lane). Even though it spent about 3 weeks on and off in the garage it was never fixed when I left my old company to join digital. i now have a 6 year old bmw 525ise and it has never cost me a penny in the last six months.it hasn,t quite got the performance the sri had but at least my wife isn't too frightened to drive it in case it breaks down. Given the choice I would take the older bmw anyday. As an aside I also had a ford orion 1.6glsi before this. in two years it seized the gearbox blew the alternator water pump failed, needed six new valves at 50,000 miles, melted the catalytic converter and regularly didnt start leaving me locked out of the car one time when the central locking went haywire. I could break into the car in 15 secs armed with a plastic ruler! Give me a second hand bmw anyday... brian.
2260.9	Orions suck	BRUMMY::WALLACE_J		`Wed Jun 22 1994 23:47`	3
	I had an Orion like that too. Bet the garage said "normally a very reliable car sir". Off road on numerous occasions due to oil leak, water leak, dead alternator, etc.
2260.10	Get a car...	PEKING::SMITHR1	Cracking toast, Gromit!	`Thu Jun 23 1994 17:29`	7
	re -1 Ford reliability, like Rover unreliability, is 9 parts urban legend. Nowadays, I tend to yearn for my Beetle of a decade or so ago.... Richard
2260.11	empirical data	BLKPUD::WILLIAMSH	Flat tank Sunbeam rider	`Thu Jun 23 1994 17:48`	6
	You chaps must knacker your cars. Calibra 2.0 28K miles so far, 1 replaced door catch , no breakdowns Sierra 2.0 GLS 59K miles, replaced discs and fan belt. no breakdowns. Huw.
2260.12		VANGA::KERRELL	Handle with care - aging fast	`Thu Jun 23 1994 18:23`	10
	Astra GTE 54K - 1 breakdown due to alternator earth lead failing, fixed by RAC. Cavalier SRi 32K - No breakdowns Cavalier Cdi 39K - 1 breakdown because garage did not replace corroded HT lead during service. Cavalier TD 5K - No breakdowns so far. That's one breakdown every 65K miles. Is that good or bad? Dave.
2260.13		RIOT01::SUMMERFIELD	Blood on the rooftops, Venice in the Spring	`Thu Jun 23 1994 20:39`	12
	Calibra 16V 124K - 1 breakdown due to failed fuel injection relay. 1 recovery by AA due to vandals destroying drivers door lock in an attempt to disarm. 1 set of disks (front and rear) 1 full exhaust system (inc cat @100k) 1 set of shock absorbers (yes I know they should be replaced more often :^) ) I'm no angel when it comes to driving, but my mind boggles as to what you guys must be doing to your cars :^) Clive
2260.14	six cars later....	NEWOA::CROME_A		`Fri Jun 24 1994 13:04`	14
	Cavalier SR 1.6 54k no breakdowns, a set of front discs @ 100k Cavalier SRi 74k no breakdowns - no visits between services Cavalier SRi 66k no breakdowns - fuel pump relay replaced, squeaky wiper mech replaced. Cavalier CDi 59k no breakdowns - front discs @ 55k, towed in twice for alarm fault Wadham Kenning introduced when central locking had intermittent fault. Citroen ZX Volcane 25k no breakdowns as such, problem with missfiring - this was caused by Speen Citroen washing the engine - this filled the plug holes causing them to short. Astra GSi 34k no breakdowns - two breaklight bulbs. So thats 312,000 miles and no breakdowns - cant be bad eh !!!
2260.15		FUTURS::CROSSLEY	For internal use only	`Fri Jun 24 1994 19:06`	11
	This note is cursed. I tell you all about my problems with my internal alarm, and then I get a stone through the radiator. Talk about getting hot under the collar............ Ian.
2260.16	Astra GSI	WELCLU::63854::lewis	I play my music in the sun!	`Mon Jul 18 1994 17:30`	17
	Astra GSI - a heap of junk. In just under two years / 57K miles, - clutch arm broken (x2 - every 25K miles or so) - "a GSI problem sir........." - electric windows stuck open (4 including a new motor) - ETC button (replaced) - electric mirror probs (5) - inside fell off driver door (2) - radio display (intermittent problem, still exists) - alarm - also a heap of junk. Alloy wheels stolen without a pip from it! - central locking problems (x2 including not being able to put in fuel!) My next car will NOT be an ASTRA. If I can afford it, it will not be a Vauxhall. Phil.
2260.17	Good News from the Base Noter!	LARVAE::SMITH_JON	JONATHAN SMITH	`Thu Aug 11 1994 15:23`	18
	with reference to my Base note. I finally got my air con fixed 2 weeks ago - that was three months out of action through the hottest weather that we have had for five years. Imagine my frustration sitting on the M25 in 30 degrees looking at an air conditioning button that did nothing! However some slightly good news is that after complaining bitterly to both Hertz and Vauxhall several times and at one point demanding a replacement car until the air con was fixed, Vauxhall finally gave me one hundred pounds compensation. Although I would have preferred to have the air con working at least this more than pays for the option for the year. The moral has to be make a fuss and you will get something. Jonathan
2260.18		PETRUS::GUEST_N	An innocent passer-by	`Thu Aug 11 1994 15:58`	2
	Hope you're declaring it :-)
2260.19	Of course ....................	LARVAE::SMITH_JON	JONATHAN SMITH	`Thu Aug 11 1994 20:44`	1
	I'm leaving the company tomorrow............. :-)