Vauxhall Insignia no drive, driveshaft fell out as a circlip was left off during manufacture
Variant: 2.0 DTI grand tourer
Model Year: 2016
Categories:
Engine & Drivetrain
Whilst turning on full lock, I lost drive entirely. Had to call the AA, he found that the nearside driveshaft had fell out, so was put on a trailer and taken to the dealers. There it sat for 6 weeks as first they claimed Id off roaded it! yes there was some mud in the wheel arch but only because I'd rolled back and a because I had no control the car went into a muddy ditch. They refused to payout because of this so had to pay for an independent engineers report. They said that a retaining clip was not present on the gearbox end of the driveshaft which prevents the shaft from falling out on full lock so was a manufacturing fault so they repaired it FOC and had to pay 6 weeks car hire charges. it was a good car until then but I wouldn't touch Vauxhall will a barge pole now. Unreliable cars and dealers that shy away from their responsibilities
Posted: Oct 4, 2020 (4 years ago)
Why did it take 6 weeks to rectify a relatively simple job ? Why did the other garage repair FOC ? Why did the AA not mention the alleged cause was a missing circlip which you could have used as evidence in your claim ?
Posted Oct 4, 2020 (4 years ago)
Seems strange also that it took 4 yrs before it failed .
Posted Oct 4, 2020 (4 years ago)
Replying to post by whittingehame:
Why did it take 6 weeks to rectify a relatively simple job ? Why did the other garage repair FOC ? Why did the AA not mention the alleged cause was a missing circlip which you could have used as evidence in your claim ?
It took 6 weeks because they wanted me to pay when it should have been a warranty issue. It took 6 weeks of emails, phone calls and time to arrange the independent surveyer.The AA just saw that there was no drive, without pulling the car apart they wouldn't know. However the garage should have known when they first looked at the car . As for alleged cause, it wasnt alleged , it was proved as per the surveyors report
Why did it take 6 weeks to rectify a relatively simple job ? Why did the other garage repair FOC ? Why did the AA not mention the alleged cause was a missing circlip which you could have used as evidence in your claim ?
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
Replying to post by whittingehame:
Seems strange also that it took 4 yrs before it failed .
it failed in 2018, ive only just posted as I was interested to know if anyone else had experienced it. I was told it held out for so long because it mustn't have been used on full left lock that much, anything less than about 5 seconds and it would work its way back into place. I had it on full lock for some time as my wheels were spinning on snow whilst pulling into my drive.
Seems strange also that it took 4 yrs before it failed .
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
" the AA, he found that the nearside driveshaft had fell out, " He would see then without dismantling if the circlip was missing . Not taking sides , as it is impossible to do so without knowing why Vauxhall rejected the claim and hearing their version of events .
Having run various dealerships / workshops ,Vauxhall included , I find it very odd that they would reject a valid claim . I could raise other points on this matter , technical and otherwise but life nowadays with Covid etc is hard enough to waste time on it . Suffice to say , on a cursory check on TSBs and elsewhere , I can find no evidence of this happening elsewhere . After 2 yrs+ , best to let it go now you have vented your frustration on this .
Having run various dealerships / workshops ,Vauxhall included , I find it very odd that they would reject a valid claim . I could raise other points on this matter , technical and otherwise but life nowadays with Covid etc is hard enough to waste time on it . Suffice to say , on a cursory check on TSBs and elsewhere , I can find no evidence of this happening elsewhere . After 2 yrs+ , best to let it go now you have vented your frustration on this .
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
Edited on Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
The part that fell out was the the bit that slides in and out of the CV joint to allow for the change in driveshaft length on turning the wheels from straight to full lock. That was contained within the CV boot so wasnt visable unless the boot or shaft were removed. Please raise your other issues ,Id love to hear them
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
You said it was the driveshaft circlip , not the C/V joint circlip , different ball game . Sorry , I have no desire or time to debate this with you , my training / teaching days are now long gone . No doubt Vauxhall have given you their opinion why it was rejected . If you cant accept their findings , not much I can do about it . You could try a Vauxhall Astra forum if you want to talk to others about it , if not already done so .
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
Replying to post by whittingehame:
You said it was the driveshaft circlip , not the C/V joint circlip , different ball game . Sorry , I have no desire or time to debate this with you , my training / teaching days are now long gone . No doubt Vauxhall have given you their opinion why it was rejected . If you cant accept their findings , not much I can do about it . You could try a Vauxhall Astra forum if you want to talk to others about it , if not already done so .
Youve not read the post, the engineer said it was a manufacturing defect so they paid for the repair, 6 weeks car hire and the engineers report. It was rejected because they saw mud on the wheel and wheel arch and claimed Id off roaded it, sorry, any excuse not to pay but it cost them in the end. Same garage that 2 year previous on a vauxhall zafira, refused to repair on warranty an engine wiring loom that had got water damage. They say it was from an incorrectly fitted fuse box cover that had a broken clip which they said Id done. Ive never been in that box, that garage did ,6 months prior as I had an AC pump issue they said was blowing a fuse (in that box) and they had to change the pump. yet they refused liability. And they wonder why people dont trust garages
You said it was the driveshaft circlip , not the C/V joint circlip , different ball game . Sorry , I have no desire or time to debate this with you , my training / teaching days are now long gone . No doubt Vauxhall have given you their opinion why it was rejected . If you cant accept their findings , not much I can do about it . You could try a Vauxhall Astra forum if you want to talk to others about it , if not already done so .
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
There are garages that do give the industry a bad name but you should not tar all with the same brush . There are many , many good garages that are a credit to the trade .Like customers , most are a pleasure to deal with but a minority are a total pain in the butt ( put succinctly ) Signing out of forum now , have a good day .
Posted Oct 5, 2020 (4 years ago)
This problem is archived
If you're having a similar problem please click below to re-post this problem, you can then customise it to suit your situation.
Join the community
Got a question? Can you answer other questions here? If so please...
More problems with the 2016 model year Vauxhall Insignia
We have 9 problems and solutions in our database for this model year of the car.
View all Vauxhall Insignia Problems
Insignia Recalls (6)
Parts mentioned