Need help re towcar warranty and problems Nissan Pathfinder)

[Darren_5040168]

Hello sorry its long but need help and advice

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I own a Nissan Pathfinder on an 05 plate first registered on 14 July 2005 and I am now having problems with the vehicle and Nissan. On 4th July set of on our long planned summer hols down to Cornwall from Lancashire and after 13 miles the vehicle seemed to loose all power down to 20 mph on a slight hill ( motorway ) so much so I had to pull off onto the hard shoulder and after a few mins limp off at next exit awaiting RAC who turned up 1 hour later and could find nothing wrong. RAC followed for 13 miles and all appeared ok however whilst away i hunted down a Nissan dealer booked vehicle in for 2nd service and 1st MOT could not fit in before July 11th(still inside manufacturers warranty) . The Nissan dealer could find nothing wrong but stated that the clutch may be slipping (13,000 miles only) however at time of problem 04/07 revs did not increase as would normally be case with a slipping clutch. The dealer stated that could not repair before my return and as such after trying to return home under our own steam the vehicle was so bad on the hills trough Devon and Cornwall (including down hill!!!)that it was now time for a mayday call and family car and caravan were transported 200+ miles home on a recovery wagon. I can rule out brakes as if i depressed clutch the vehicle picked up speed also on each occassion of loss of power the engine began making a knocking sound and shook violently. Returned vehicle to my local Nissan dealership 25/07 from whom purchased and they could only say a clutch fault (as it smelt hot no other problems) and stated the vehicle was now out of warranty but would contact Nissan to see if they would pay towards the cost of replacement as a good will gesture. Nissan offered to pay £150 of a £600 bill as they stated it was down to due ware and tear at 13,000 miles!!!!. However the new clutch was installed and 3 days later i took the car and caravan for a test drive only to find the problem has become even worse clearly nothing to do with the cluch. Vehicle returned to dealership and a technician collected who witnessed the speed fall to 10 mph and engine shaking violently. Vehicle returned to dealership for further examination and they have stated they cannot find anything wrong despite one of their technician's being present at time of problems. My problem being that i want the vehicle repaired and i say that Nissan should foot the bill for all costs including clutch (as 3 year or 60,000 mile warranty) as under manufacturers warranty at time problem arose. Any advice greatly appreciated.

Hoping you can help thanks

Darren

 

[Jo-AnneFairway5402010]

hi darren i feel so sorry for you mate. i dont know if i can help. when it loses power it goes into limp mode as a safety feature because there is a fault. with alot of garages if the engine check light or management light hasnt come on 3 times or more it doesnt store a problem. also the light has to be on and the car on the machine at this time.

i had this problem with my 07 plate sedona and the garage didnt belive me. in the end after several weeks they found the fault it was the metering unit which is part of the fuel system but by then i had sent refused the car and got the santa fe.

the only reason i knew it was the metering unit was i phoned another kia dealer down south and they told me it was a common problem with them.

my advice to you is dont give up. this should be done under warrenty as you complained about it when it was. also find out about the check light and how many times etc before it shows a fault.

ring some other dealers and pick there brain you never know they might have the answer.

ring head office technical they might be able to shed some light on it.

my sister has the quashqai and shes had problems with that and they said they couldnt find a fault.

good luck

jo-anne

please keep me posted.

 

[rob_jax]

Hi Darren,

You need to take a look at the various threads on "Touring and Tenting" and "Caravan Talk" discussing issues with the Nissan Navarra and Pathfinder - both apparently have the same Renault diesel engine and drive train.

A good starting point is:

http://www.touringandtenting.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=29703&hl=nissan problem
It's not good reading, and hopefully you can glean the necessary information for Nissan to foot the bills and rectify the problem...

Robert

 

[Angus1]

I`d get to another dealer, pronto.

They will all have details of what has been done and where/when on their computers so if your dates are correct, a decent dealer will (should) sort you out.

I had a similar thing several years ago, took my car in for a 60k service (60k limit on warranty) with a list of faults including clutch (dual-mass, usual problem) and a whining wheel bearing.

 

[Icemaker]

Hi darren, it seems the pathfinder and the navara have quit a bad reputation building as can be seen from the various forums allready mentioned, anoth very good english forum that has some very good advice regarding problems wjth these vehicles is,

http://www.knackerednavara.co.uk/
Good luck with the car and keep the pressure on.

 

[Damian]

Darren, whatever you do, DO NOT GIVE UP!

Do not waste too much time with dealers or tech services of Nissan, and waste no time at all with customer services(if they are like Renault, none of the Customer Service people are in any way qualified to talk tech things with customers).

Demand the name and address of the UK General Manager and write directly to him and use as much of the sales "blurb" as you can to your advantage, ie quotes in the brochure like "superb driving experience", ultimate reliability etc and counter them with your personal experiences.

I had a 5 year battle with Renault and won!!

 

[joeby]

Hi Darren i nearly bought a Navara ,which has the same engine as the pathfinder ,do as icemaker said and go onto www.knackerednavara.co.uk

 

[parker1158]

Hi Darren

As Damian says don't bother with the dealer network go direct to Nissan.

In a previous life I worked in association with an Audi dealer and if the vehicle is out of warranty there is little the dealer can do because if it fixes the problem its claim to Nissan will be rejected, they know this and it why they are reluctant to spend time and money cos they wont get it back. The importer can, and probably will with perseverance on your part, ok the funds to fix. This type of practice is normal they wont want to pay out if they can ovoid it.

P.S I'm afraid I know folk with these vehicles that have had no end of problems as well-sorry.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hi Darren,

There are a number of things you can do that might help.

First of all I recommend compiling a detailed list of dates times and dealers you have dealt with regarding this or any problem you have had with the vehicle.

Use it as part of your submission to Nissan UK HQ. Also don't forget that you do have certain rights under the sale of goods act. If the problem is caused by a fault that was present when you purchased the car, then the seller is legally responsible.

The seller may be finance house if you used one, or if you paid by cash then it is the dealer who sold it to you.

Speak to Trading Standards, and to teh CAB or a solicitor.

 

[Jo-AnneFairway5402010]

darren, lots of help and advice coming in.

have a look at quick fact sales of goods act on google. this helped me when i rejected my two sterlings.

it sounds to me like you car has an inherant fault that was there at the time of sale but the more you use it then you find the fault.

check the guide out its good advice.

jo-anne

 

[Darren_5040168]

Hello everybody and thanks for all the advice so far just a bit of an update I have since had the vehicle on the road again with the caravan in tow along with a technician from Nissan and his portable computer plugged into the car. Despite the problem arising again his computer stated that there was nothing wrong at 20mph on a motorway down hill!!!!!. The technician stated he could see that something was wrong but did not know what stating we will have to get it back in and we will replace the injectors as a start cost of the injectors

 

[Darren_5040168]

hi darren i feel so sorry for you mate. i dont know if i can help. when it loses power it goes into limp mode as a safety feature because there is a fault. with alot of garages if the engine check light or management light hasnt come on 3 times or more it doesnt store a problem. also the light has to be on and the car on the machine at this time.

i had this problem with my 07 plate sedona and the garage didnt belive me. in the end after several weeks they found the fault it was the metering unit which is part of the fuel system but by then i had sent refused the car and got the santa fe.

the only reason i knew it was the metering unit was i phoned another kia dealer down south and they told me it was a common problem with them.

my advice to you is dont give up. this should be done under warrenty as you complained about it when it was. also find out about the check light and how many times etc before it shows a fault.

ring some other dealers and pick there brain you never know they might have the answer.

ring head office technical they might be able to shed some light on it.

my sister has the quashqai and shes had problems with that and they said they couldnt find a fault.

good luck

jo-anne

please keep me posted.

Thanks for your reply jo-anne i have put an update on the situation on for everyone to read today 13/08/08

Regards

Darren

 

[Darren_5040168]

I`d get to another dealer, pronto.

They will all have details of what has been done and where/when on their computers so if your dates are correct, a decent dealer will (should) sort you out.

I had a similar thing several years ago, took my car in for a 60k service (60k limit on warranty) with a list of faults including clutch (dual-mass, usual problem) and a whining wheel bearing.

 

[Darren_5040168]

Darren, whatever you do, DO NOT GIVE UP!

Do not waste too much time with dealers or tech services of Nissan, and waste no time at all with customer services(if they are like Renault, none of the Customer Service people are in any way qualified to talk tech things with customers).

Demand the name and address of the UK General Manager and write directly to him and use as much of the sales "blurb" as you can to your advantage, ie quotes in the brochure like "superb driving experience", ultimate reliability etc and counter them with your personal experiences.

I had a 5 year battle with Renault and won!!

Hello Damian thanks for the reply there is one thing for certain i will not give up on this one even if i end up taking it through the courts. I think i will follow your advice re the UK General Manager and see how it goes.

Thanks again

Darren

 

[Darren_5040168]

Hi Darren,

There are a number of things you can do that might help.

First of all I recommend compiling a detailed list of dates times and dealers you have dealt with regarding this or any problem you have had with the vehicle.

Use it as part of your submission to Nissan UK HQ. Also don't forget that you do have certain rights under the sale of goods act. If the problem is caused by a fault that was present when you purchased the car, then the seller is legally responsible.

The seller may be finance house if you used one, or if you paid by cash then it is the dealer who sold it to you.

Speak to Trading Standards, and to teh CAB or a solicitor.

Thanks John for the advice I have indeed kept a list and receipts of all dates and costs, I have also spoken to a solicitor and she has stated that I have a very good case even if it went to court which is where it ultimately could end up as such Nissan GB should have received a letter with regard to this any day now. I also intend to speak to Trading standards as well and who knows maybe even WatchDog.

Regards

Darren

 

[Darren_5040168]

darren, lots of help and advice coming in.

have a look at quick fact sales of goods act on google. this helped me when i rejected my two sterlings.

it sounds to me like you car has an inherant fault that was there at the time of sale but the more you use it then you find the fault.

check the guide out its good advice.

jo-anne

Thanks jo-anne i shall have a good look at the site.

Thanks again

Darren

 

[Darren_5040168]

Hi Darren,

You need to take a look at the various threads on "Touring and Tenting" and "Caravan Talk" discussing issues with the Nissan Navarra and Pathfinder - both apparently have the same Renault diesel engine and drive train.

A good starting point is:

http://www.touringandtenting.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=29703&hl=nissan problem
It's not good reading, and hopefully you can glean the necessary information for Nissan to foot the bills and rectify the problem...

Robert

Thanks Robert I shall have a look at the site.

Regards

Darren