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Gearbox warranty claim - feeling cheated.


Mikevv

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Hi guys, as some of you may know, I had a gearbox issue with whining gears. Some forum members diagnosed this as a faulty input shaft. I had a mechanic look it over, and he said my thrust bearing is also a bit buggered, just replace both, but clutch seems fine.

 

I got the dealer on the phone and said I had the car for 2 months now and its getting louder and louder, can we fix it etc he said sure bring it in.

 

2 hour drive later, I get there, get my courtesy car and describe the issues, and leave.

 

I get a call about an hour and a half later, claiming my gearbox is out, and the flywheel and clutch show signs of wear. I was previously told this takes 5 hours to check, so I called his bullshit and he dodged the questions I had.

 

My clutch is fine, I checked it when I bought the car less than 1000 miles ago. ( bad for the box but only did it once ) Revved it hard to like 5k , then dumped the clutch in 6th. Bit instantly. So my clutch is 90% fine surely?

 

Anyways. The warranty bloke claimed a clutch job and flywheel is £2500 at Nissan, again I called bullshit as I know the parts are £600 or so sold directly to me, so a dealer like him would firstly claim back VAT and get dealer prices etc. He then ( stupidly ) said "oh I won't get the parts directly from Nissan as they are so expensive" This set alarm bells off. Surely if it's a warranty fix, only OEM parts are supposed to be used? or can he source from a 3rd party ?

 

I mainly was told the whirring noise is from the DM flywheel, so that would need replacing, unlike what forum members have said is the input shaft. It can't be flywheel or the noise would be in all gears surely, not just first?

 

He also wants me to pay a contribution of £350 towards the parts as clutch and flywheel are wear and tear items.

 

Surely I can tell him to **** off, and ignore my clutch and flywheel, only fixing what is needed?

 

What is my next course of action? My dad is fuming at me for this, claiming its my own fault cause I didn't consult Nissan ( I consulted my brother in law, a Honda MASTER MECHANIC of 20+ years )

 

His plan is to try and catch the warranty guy unawares by driving back up there tomorrow and trying to catch him out, with my car not being worked on, and the gearbox still in the car, proving they don't know the condition of my clutch etc - seems risky to me

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A covert operation is usually always a good plan.

 

However providing they fix all your issues and they fit a genuine LUK DMF and a proper Exedy clutch kit with a Koyo release bearing then a £350 contribution is not unreasonable as they are wear and tear items and a degree of betterment will be evident.

 

However, I would make sure that the above parts are definitely fitted and would stand over the technician during the process.

 

The above all does sound a bit extreme, however you have painted a cynical picture in your post so needs must.

 

Only hand over your cash once you have test driven the car after the repairs, and you are entirely satisfied.

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Hang on, let's go back here. I can guess at some of the answers, but let's get them clarified in one place anyway.

 

 

When did you buy the car? From a dealer, yes? Mileage & year? What price did you pay? (Yes, this is all relevant to the naysayers!).

 

When did you notice the problem? When did you let them know there was an issue? What did they do when you told them? Are they declining to fix unless you cough up?

 

 

 

My initial thoughts are that this has SOGA and SCC written all over it. 2 months is nothing, a court is very likely likely to agree that the fault existed from purchase. They can fit whatever parts they like to solve the problem, they do NOT have to use OEM parts, but they DO have to fix it. Wear and tear isn't relevant at this point AS LONG AS THE MILEAGE ISNT SKY HIGH. I agree with Alex, £350 is peanuts if the car is on the original clutch and flywheel, so take that. If it doesn't fix the problem, so what? They have to take it back and fix it again, not your problem and not your cost.

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Hang on, let's go back here. I can guess at some of the answers, but let's get them clarified in one place anyway.

 

 

When did you buy the car? From a dealer, yes? Mileage & year? What price did you pay? (Yes, this is all relevant to the naysayers!).

 

When did you notice the problem? When did you let them know there was an issue? What did they do when you told them? Are they declining to fix unless you cough up?

 

 

 

My initial thoughts are that this has SOGA and SCC written all over it. 2 months is nothing, a court is very likely likely to agree that the fault existed from purchase. They can fit whatever parts they like to solve the problem, they do NOT have to use OEM parts, but they DO have to fix it. Wear and tear isn't relevant at this point AS LONG AS THE MILEAGE ISNT SKY HIGH. I agree with Alex, £350 is peanuts if the car is on the original clutch and flywheel, so take that. If it doesn't fix the problem, so what? They have to take it back and fix it again, not your problem and not your cost.

 

I bought this car about 2 months ago, give or take a couple of days, from the dealer I am now taking it back to for repairs.

The name is Pontings in Banbury, Mileage was 50,500 odd, on a 2007 '56 plate. I payed £8700 after agreeing he would touch up the seat and bumper. These repairs were done to a satisfactory level.

I noticed the problem around middle of August, went on a road trip through the Brecon Beacons, mainly hills etc. I got lazy and rolled down the hill sometimes with the clutch in, but not for long periods of time, just like coasting sort of thing, then my speed getting a bit higher, and releasing the clutch to use engine braking a bit here and there, but only on mild hills. I used the actual brakes for 90% of the stopping.

 

I got back, noticed it more on the quieter roads and took my dad to listen and see what he thought, then took it to a mechanic to get it looked at the next week. I phoned the dealer up 3 days after my mechanic checked it out ( it was a saturday and phoned on tuesday )

 

The dealer said okay well what is the problem, I mentioned gearbox, possibly syncros but lost likely bearings. He said sure let me work out something for you with the car etc and called back 2 hours later agreeing a time to drop it off.

 

Since then, we have spoken again on the phone ( the conversation above ) and he has said he will fix it, but he doesn't think its the bearings its my flywheel and clutch that need doing, and I disputed this, and now we are waiting to get something worked out with what I presume is a managerial person tomorrow morning.

 

My dad left his glasses in my Z so he is going back tomorrow to get them, which is a good enough excuse to see my car too and discuss it all face to face.

 

Apologies for the late reply, I work nights, and having been up since 6 pm Thursday evening, working a 10 hour shift and only getting home just before 4pm Friday due to all this warranty @*!#, I am dead to the world.

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No worries fella, I know the feeling :)

 

See how tomorrow goes, but you may have to be a bit pragmatic here and cough up for the clutch and flywheel. At 50k you might not be too far off needing one anyway, and a court may well think that a 9 year old car could reasonably be expected to need a clutch as wear and tear. Personally I don't agree, but you never know who you may get if you went SCC. At this point they're offering to repair as long as you pay for parts, and like I said if it's not the clutch and fly then that's going to cause him the bigger issue than you.

 

This would be much better coming from you though, not your Dad. He does not have a contract with them, you do. Go with him, or at least make sure that Dad doesn't do ANYTHING confrontational.

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Ekona is bang on right with this. I would also go with dad if it were me. It sounds like they are trying to sort it for you and as ekona says if its not sorted then its more work and expense for them. Good luck with it anyways and hope you have it all sorted soon

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Mate, Im not sure you have a full understanding of what youre talking about here .........

 

Hi guys, as some of you may know, I had a gearbox issue with whining gears.

 

They all whine a bit, have you had a 3rd party or another owner have a listen?

 

I get a call about an hour and a half later, claiming my gearbox is out, and the flywheel and clutch show signs of wear. I was previously told this takes 5 hours to check

 

Im pretty sure Polo has removed and replaced a gearbox inside an hour, an hour and a half is plenty to split gearbox from clutch if you know what youre doing.

 

My clutch is fine, I checked it when I bought the car less than 1000 miles ago. ( bad for the box but only did it once ) Revved it hard to like 5k , then dumped the clutch in 6th. Bit instantly. So my clutch is 90% fine surely?

 

1. This is not a good way to test a clutch, youre far better off trying to accelerate uphill in 6th.

2. A clutch can start slipping anytime, even if your test was successful it could be anything from 90% to 1%, you just dont know

3. A worn clutch doesnt necessarily slip, they can show wear after 1000 miles

 

The warranty bloke claimed a clutch job and flywheel is £2500 at Nissan, again I called bullshit as I know the parts are £600 or so sold directly to me

 

I dont know if they are £600 (that sounds a bit cheap for Nissan to me) but if you factor in 10 hours of labour @ £100 per hour youre not far off £2500 ......... actually, strike that, its over £2500: http://www.350z-uk.c...0z-and-350z-hr/, the lovely people at Clark can do the parts for £1300. Id say hes bang on the money.

 

He then ( stupidly ) said "oh I won't get the parts directly from Nissan as they are so expensive"

 

Anybody who has bought Nissan parts knows this to be true, I remember paying £20 per head bolt for a 200SX :scare:

 

He also wants me to pay a contribution of £350 towards the parts as clutch and flywheel are wear and tear items.

 

Sounds pretty reasonable to me.

 

Bottom line is that if there is a problem, youre looking at a fair amount of time and money to fix it, if hes offering to do it for £350 then why not, even if doesnt work youve got a new clutch and flywheel for £350. Whats your other option?

Edited by docwra
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We've come to terms. Turns out it's worth doing my clutch after seeing it. Doing it all in one go, as it's a good deal.

Is a carbon fibre prop shaft standard on a 350z??? Was nice to hear I have one, even if I was asleep and hahaha

yup, bog standard part of the car, which is just one of the many reasons it's so awesome :)
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  • 2 weeks later...

So I've got the car back, and the clutch is now heavy as hell compared to how it used to be. To me that's a good sign they've done the work they claimed to have done. However, I have now noticed my gearbox is VERY hard to pull into 2nd, and 3rd has become notchy.

 

I now have to almost force it into 2nd, and sometimes I physically cannot pull/push hard enough to get it into gear. I left well alone after trying twice cause I believe if you have to force it in, something's wrong ( innuendo bingo anyone ? )

 

Would a gearbox oil change help the issue?

 

Also my car has now developed a weird rattle under throttle. Sounds like a bolt is a bit loose and wobbling to my ears, but found it weird that it's only the moment I touch the throttle.

Maybe they haven't tightened my gearbox up the my engine enough?

Can't get under the car myself as I have no ramps, and trying to avoid paying a dealer just to look at it :S

 

Any suggestions?

 

My brother as a passenger things maybe my exhaust is wobbling/loose as they obviously had to remove that to get to the gearbox, again, hard to check without getting under it :S

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If you do any work to the car yourself you won't have a leg to stand on shpuld the issue get worse.

Take it back to the garage untouched. It's now a separate issue - the work they have done may or may not be done correctly. They have an obligation to check it.

The garage seems pretty straight up to me. Despite you calling them all the names under the sun in the first post they actually turned out to be telling the truth.

Stop your bitching, save some money, get them to look at it.

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Yeah been googling it, seems like shifter plate and heat shields imo.

I didn't really get a chance to test drive it, got there so late they pretty much threw the keys at me n locked up as I left. Driving home from work today confirmed shifter plate for me, as it's mostly rattling in 5th and 6th

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