Major fault- Dealer saying write off
Discussion
NRG1976 said:
Had a little poke around, sounds like water ingress is quite common on Volvos. These may or may not help:
https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=33...
https://www.swedespeed.com/threads/water-leak-in-m...
Thank you https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=33...
https://www.swedespeed.com/threads/water-leak-in-m...
pits said:
Started reading this, and before I got to the end of your first post I chuckled to myself and said "I bet it's a V90"
There is currently the start of a class action lawsuit in the US (IIRC) due to the drain tubes being pinched in the A pillar when welded, or them getting blocked at the scuttle panel, which then fires water into your dashboard and all your electronics.
Long and short, it is f
ked, I would gather loads of info as this is a common issue and pursue Volvo UK like a bloodhound, just like rear lights, sunroof seal shrinkage and doors freezing, it is a known issue.
I’ll have a look into that, thank youThere is currently the start of a class action lawsuit in the US (IIRC) due to the drain tubes being pinched in the A pillar when welded, or them getting blocked at the scuttle panel, which then fires water into your dashboard and all your electronics.
Long and short, it is f
ked, I would gather loads of info as this is a common issue and pursue Volvo UK like a bloodhound, just like rear lights, sunroof seal shrinkage and doors freezing, it is a known issue.Skyrocket21 said:
Look at the windows and check for any replacement non genuine Volvo glass, often the bond on replacement glass can leak badly, just a thought. Only so many ways water can get into a car, a professional independent inspection would be the way to go, i.e https://www.themotorombudsman.org/consumers/indepe...
https://www.iaea-online.org/find-an-engineer
With some legal advice too.
Very useful, many thankshttps://www.iaea-online.org/find-an-engineer
With some legal advice too.
Ok
We drove down to see if they’d left the car out over the holidays, and they had, so
Front footwell has some water in it, but the carpets are dry to the touch (Dealer had unbolted the seat, and removed some trim) no electrical components I could see bar some wiring, which appeared unaffected by the water there)
The rear footwell, was saturated to the touch. Couldn’t get proper access to see what the situation was underneath, so don’t know if there are any electrical components there.
Boot was completely dry including the battery and ECU
Car started on the button, with no warning lights, and cycled in and out of gear without issue.
I noticed the NSR wheel arch liner had pulled away from the arch by about an inch for a quarter of its length, so that may be where the water got in?
Will go back tomorrow when they come back, possibly just needs drying out and the arch sealing?
This is surely what the dealer should have done instead of talking about insurance claims?
We drove down to see if they’d left the car out over the holidays, and they had, so
Front footwell has some water in it, but the carpets are dry to the touch (Dealer had unbolted the seat, and removed some trim) no electrical components I could see bar some wiring, which appeared unaffected by the water there)
The rear footwell, was saturated to the touch. Couldn’t get proper access to see what the situation was underneath, so don’t know if there are any electrical components there.
Boot was completely dry including the battery and ECU
Car started on the button, with no warning lights, and cycled in and out of gear without issue.
I noticed the NSR wheel arch liner had pulled away from the arch by about an inch for a quarter of its length, so that may be where the water got in?
Will go back tomorrow when they come back, possibly just needs drying out and the arch sealing?
This is surely what the dealer should have done instead of talking about insurance claims?
Ok, brief update
Nearly a week on and the car still sits at Volvo, partly dismantled inside
We spoke to an independent engineer and sent him a couple of photos I took yesterday, he was helpful, but won’t be cheap at £650.00 for a normal engineers inspection report or £1k if he needs to strip the vehicle and report for court should it be needed
Volvo today said they believed the water ingress was from the rear passenger door seal
They also said they couldn’t just dry it out and give it back, due to the electrics being contaminated by dirty water
So we have a car that they are currently denying responsibility for the fault, whilst saying we can’t have the car back either !!!
Nearly a week on and the car still sits at Volvo, partly dismantled inside
We spoke to an independent engineer and sent him a couple of photos I took yesterday, he was helpful, but won’t be cheap at £650.00 for a normal engineers inspection report or £1k if he needs to strip the vehicle and report for court should it be needed
Volvo today said they believed the water ingress was from the rear passenger door seal
They also said they couldn’t just dry it out and give it back, due to the electrics being contaminated by dirty water
So we have a car that they are currently denying responsibility for the fault, whilst saying we can’t have the car back either !!!
GasEngineer said:
If the car now starts normally, perhaps the electronic component causing the fault has now dried out.
As said upthread - they need to give you details about which part is/was affected and why it can't be repaired or replaced.
Agreed,As said upthread - they need to give you details about which part is/was affected and why it can't be repaired or replaced.
It seems incredible to me they have had the car a week, and still haven’t told us what was wrong with it
Not sure how they can legally refuse to return it, either
M4cruiser said:
I'd say it is connected. Car had water damage at the rear before you bought it, and it's now showing through other electrical bits.
I think that’s almost certainly true, and the best case for getting them to sortHe got a call this afternoon from someone more senior in the dealership who seemed like he may get things moving, and said we would get an update tomorrow
Ok, latest update, and closure, in the main
Dealer rang yesterday, said they had dried the car out, and replaced the NSR door seal, and an electrical connector under the seat (OFM?)
The car was starting and driving with no faults recorded. However they jet washed the car multiple times, and could not confirm where the water ingress had been from, but it was not coming from the door seal (now, at least) said they would leave it overnight and check it again this morning to make sure all ok, and we could then pick it up.
We collected the car this morning, and at present all seems well, it runs and drives without issue. They also fixed the issue with the NSR wheel arch liner, which now sits correctly against the wing. Looks like a fixing was missing.
Negatives, whilst they did not charge for labour they charged for the parts (about (£130.00 inc vat) and whilst that’s a rather better position than a week ago, I dont believe he should have had to pay, even if the dealer offered it as good will, especially with the nonsense spouted by they service advisor about contacting the insurers and a potential write off.
Rear floor passenger side is still pretty wet, so I got some out with a wet vac thing, hopefully it will dry out and the cause has been resolved even if they couldn’t pinpoint it. Dealer said the colour and smell of the water suggested it had been present for an extended period, potentially back to before purchase.
He has written to Volvo customer services with the complaint
Would like to thank all of those who posted information and suggestions, and those that PMd me with further assistance, all very much appreciated
I will update if and when he gets a response from Volvo
Dealer rang yesterday, said they had dried the car out, and replaced the NSR door seal, and an electrical connector under the seat (OFM?)
The car was starting and driving with no faults recorded. However they jet washed the car multiple times, and could not confirm where the water ingress had been from, but it was not coming from the door seal (now, at least) said they would leave it overnight and check it again this morning to make sure all ok, and we could then pick it up.
We collected the car this morning, and at present all seems well, it runs and drives without issue. They also fixed the issue with the NSR wheel arch liner, which now sits correctly against the wing. Looks like a fixing was missing.
Negatives, whilst they did not charge for labour they charged for the parts (about (£130.00 inc vat) and whilst that’s a rather better position than a week ago, I dont believe he should have had to pay, even if the dealer offered it as good will, especially with the nonsense spouted by they service advisor about contacting the insurers and a potential write off.
Rear floor passenger side is still pretty wet, so I got some out with a wet vac thing, hopefully it will dry out and the cause has been resolved even if they couldn’t pinpoint it. Dealer said the colour and smell of the water suggested it had been present for an extended period, potentially back to before purchase.
He has written to Volvo customer services with the complaint
Would like to thank all of those who posted information and suggestions, and those that PMd me with further assistance, all very much appreciated
I will update if and when he gets a response from Volvo
BertBert said:
wow, what a tale. Gone from not economical to repair to we've dried it out and it's fine!
What utter muppets
Indeed, maybe had these noir advisor been involved from the beginning maybe I wouldn’t have needed to start this thread!What utter muppets
Other bloke shouldn’t have anything to do with cars ever, as he’s clearly totally lacking in knowledge
To update further on this
Car had dried out and was fine for a few weeks, then one day after some hard overnight rain, the same problem returned, with the rear footwell being soaked.
He dried it out himself this time, and it has not returned
In the mean time, the finance company sent an engineer to inspect the car properly.
Report concludes that whilst it was not possible to determine exactly where the water was coming from, it is clear that the fault was existing at the time of purchase
The finance company have offered some compensation and booked the car into the dealers to inspect it again to try and resolve. They say if this fails then the car can be rejected
I’m thinking it should go back immediately as the engineer has reported it was an existing fault (even though no one appears to know what the actual fault is!!
Dealer said they’ll have a look but they can’t do more than they did before, so I doubt the problem will be fixed anyway
Car had dried out and was fine for a few weeks, then one day after some hard overnight rain, the same problem returned, with the rear footwell being soaked.
He dried it out himself this time, and it has not returned
In the mean time, the finance company sent an engineer to inspect the car properly.
Report concludes that whilst it was not possible to determine exactly where the water was coming from, it is clear that the fault was existing at the time of purchase
The finance company have offered some compensation and booked the car into the dealers to inspect it again to try and resolve. They say if this fails then the car can be rejected
I’m thinking it should go back immediately as the engineer has reported it was an existing fault (even though no one appears to know what the actual fault is!!
Dealer said they’ll have a look but they can’t do more than they did before, so I doubt the problem will be fixed anyway
Latest update
Volvo had the car back for almost two weeks
Unable to replicate the fault, so currently have no idea how or why water has been getting in
As far as I was aware this should now be grounds to confirm rejection
Finance co are saying they want to send another engineer…
No idea why, apart from to waste time
They are also saying that after rejection they would refund the finance payments, less 35p a mile which would leave him giving the car back, and then needing to give them some cash on top, as it’s done about 12k since purchase
Have to say that doesn’t sound right to me, but who knows?
Volvo had the car back for almost two weeks
Unable to replicate the fault, so currently have no idea how or why water has been getting in
As far as I was aware this should now be grounds to confirm rejection
Finance co are saying they want to send another engineer…
No idea why, apart from to waste time
They are also saying that after rejection they would refund the finance payments, less 35p a mile which would leave him giving the car back, and then needing to give them some cash on top, as it’s done about 12k since purchase
Have to say that doesn’t sound right to me, but who knows?
OutInTheShed said:
How does anyone agree what's a fair 'per mile' deduction?
You're giving back a car which is older in years as well as miles.
You could try looking at the prices of cars related to mileage, you could play games with WBAC.
Rightly or wrongly all the 'market value' indicators are strongly influenced by mileage.
As well as the reduced value, you've also 'used up' some interval between services?
Has the car had services or tyres etc paid for by the buyer?
What's the current HMRC mileage rate for using a private car? 45p still? That obviously includes fuel, but various people have moaned it's too low for a very long time.
If you buy a car with a small deposit, then I imagine it's very easy to be in 'negative equity ' with it, particularly early in a contract when the payments could be lower than the depreciation.
Car has recently been serviced, by Volvo. Service was part of their deal when buying the carYou're giving back a car which is older in years as well as miles.
You could try looking at the prices of cars related to mileage, you could play games with WBAC.
Rightly or wrongly all the 'market value' indicators are strongly influenced by mileage.
As well as the reduced value, you've also 'used up' some interval between services?
Has the car had services or tyres etc paid for by the buyer?
What's the current HMRC mileage rate for using a private car? 45p still? That obviously includes fuel, but various people have moaned it's too low for a very long time.
If you buy a car with a small deposit, then I imagine it's very easy to be in 'negative equity ' with it, particularly early in a contract when the payments could be lower than the depreciation.
Second inspection carried out by the Finance co tech, who turns out to be the same person who inspected it the first time!
He verbally reported that the car is not fit for purpose and could be rejected as they could not trace the issue and he believed it existed at point of sale
He also found additional issues with water ingress to the offside rea light area
Just have to await his report and the finance companies response. Hopefully car goes back and he can negotiate some good will off the mileage charges
He verbally reported that the car is not fit for purpose and could be rejected as they could not trace the issue and he believed it existed at point of sale
He also found additional issues with water ingress to the offside rea light area
Just have to await his report and the finance companies response. Hopefully car goes back and he can negotiate some good will off the mileage charges
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