02 Petrol RX4
Just paid a bill to a local garage for & discounted to £506.64 this was for a new starter motor Lucas £92 an Air filter £5.20, plus new lead from the starter to the battery as apparently when the starter fails the lead is burnt out, The Labour was approximately 12.83 hours @ £429.17 discounted to £325.
Nearly all of the labour was access and consequent refit & this really shouldn't be the case unless idiots or computers or both are involved in the design and manufacturing process.
In an ideal engineering world I would have expected to do the job myself or paid a garage £175 tops.
The starter motor is up round the back of the engine but once loosened cannot be removed from the vehicle had to remove the exhaust manifold, air ducting, air filter, throttle body and plenum chamber & work in spaces under conditions that would challenge a contortionist.
They stated the design was the worst had come across for access to peripheral parts and consequent servicing.
It really concerns me, (understatement), that major car manufacturer's design and build stuff in such a way, they seem to give little thought at best to servicing ease and practicality and I am writing to Renault in France to see whether they can explain the Raison d'etre for their vehicle construction process.
Incidentally it looked like the air filter hadn't been changed for 5 years of more! On the old Renaults this was a five minute job.
My warranty is 1 year on the starter but the garage will not refit the motor for free, if the unit fails, but will aid in me getting compensation from the starter manufacturer if this happens.
Two years ago exactly the Rover 400 had a new, multi-layered head gasket fitted, ( again a design boo-boo),water pump, thermostat oil filter & change e.t.c 101/2 hours labour total bill £542.22, but this was a major operation, not a starter motor replacement & refit.
Scrap yards are now full of showroom condition vehicles & Renault reputation from 1998 for electrical faults and engineering hamfisted-ness seems to legendary in the motor trade.
Sustainability, yeah right and 20% Vat just adds salt to the wound!
Cars have been manufactured for 130 years plus, by now you would think they would be few failures and no design errors of consequence.
If manufacturers do not give a toss for customers, let it be known and let them gaily go to their extinction sooner rather than later. Has this come about as the female world is now heavily involved in car purchases and therefore less male orientated values/needs are factored into the design process.
I still haven't changed the belts and a CV joint is starting to make a noise.
The car styling is appealing and its roomy inside, but.....
Yours
Disgruntled with French automobiles.
John
Just paid a bill to a local garage for & discounted to £506.64 this was for a new starter motor Lucas £92 an Air filter £5.20, plus new lead from the starter to the battery as apparently when the starter fails the lead is burnt out, The Labour was approximately 12.83 hours @ £429.17 discounted to £325.
Nearly all of the labour was access and consequent refit & this really shouldn't be the case unless idiots or computers or both are involved in the design and manufacturing process.
In an ideal engineering world I would have expected to do the job myself or paid a garage £175 tops.
The starter motor is up round the back of the engine but once loosened cannot be removed from the vehicle had to remove the exhaust manifold, air ducting, air filter, throttle body and plenum chamber & work in spaces under conditions that would challenge a contortionist.
They stated the design was the worst had come across for access to peripheral parts and consequent servicing.
It really concerns me, (understatement), that major car manufacturer's design and build stuff in such a way, they seem to give little thought at best to servicing ease and practicality and I am writing to Renault in France to see whether they can explain the Raison d'etre for their vehicle construction process.
Incidentally it looked like the air filter hadn't been changed for 5 years of more! On the old Renaults this was a five minute job.
My warranty is 1 year on the starter but the garage will not refit the motor for free, if the unit fails, but will aid in me getting compensation from the starter manufacturer if this happens.
Two years ago exactly the Rover 400 had a new, multi-layered head gasket fitted, ( again a design boo-boo),water pump, thermostat oil filter & change e.t.c 101/2 hours labour total bill £542.22, but this was a major operation, not a starter motor replacement & refit.
Scrap yards are now full of showroom condition vehicles & Renault reputation from 1998 for electrical faults and engineering hamfisted-ness seems to legendary in the motor trade.
Sustainability, yeah right and 20% Vat just adds salt to the wound!
Cars have been manufactured for 130 years plus, by now you would think they would be few failures and no design errors of consequence.
If manufacturers do not give a toss for customers, let it be known and let them gaily go to their extinction sooner rather than later. Has this come about as the female world is now heavily involved in car purchases and therefore less male orientated values/needs are factored into the design process.
I still haven't changed the belts and a CV joint is starting to make a noise.
The car styling is appealing and its roomy inside, but.....
Yours
Disgruntled with French automobiles.
John
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