Hi looking for some help and advice please
I have a 2006 ( 56 ) plate multijet diesel. The gearbox was replaced at lipscomb fiat maidstone around 21/11/2008 under warranty. I purchased the car feb 2009 and the differential has failed in the gearbox. My local fiat dealer has suggested a replacement is needed. The warranty ran out on 26/10/2009. Fiat have offered a minor goodwill reduction on parts and labour rate.

My point is that the new gearbox is still under 12 months old. Fiat argue that all warrant runs out after 3 years so are not prepared to guarantee the part for 1 year.
Where do i stand on this has anyone else had similar experiences please advise.
The car is NOT modified i.e wheels are standard not upgraded etc thanks

the gearbox should be covered for a year from when it was repaired wether it has run out of standard warrenty or not

That is the point i raised with fiat customer relations on friday my point being that the part should be covered by a 12 month guarantee which has not yet expired. The response was that regardless of that the guarantee died when the warranty ran out.
The gearbox is and sounds terminally ill and i cannot continue to drive the car. How do i pressurise fiat into accepting responsibility for this part and replace urgently free of charge ? Anyones help would be appreciated thanks

if its out of warranty its out of warranty, also you cant get warranty on warranty.

Late now but its wise to take out a 3rd party warranty, many forum members here do.

Surely the warranty is to deal with new faults covered in the terms of the agreement? The warranty is for the vehicle, so surely the parts they fitted have their own guarantee?

If I were you, I'd contact Consumer Direct and see what they have to say.

That said, I have just gone down the route of a FIAT good will gesture and the dealer I went to chased that for me. I was lucky and FIAT are paying £600 for a new steering motor. So personally I cannot fault that and my car is much further out of warranty than yours.

the new part should be gauranteed for a year from the replacement, whether or not the vehicle warranty is expired. Contact smmt society of motor manufacteres. They have a website and cover the issue you have.

er...T, think that consumer goods act would imply otherwise as the part replaced must be of reasonable standard! if the part has only lasted less than 6 months or not fitted to the consumers satisfaction then the consumer(OP) is entitled to have the work redone, or taken to another firm where the original firm will shell out for the parts and labour to replace part!

whether or not this was done during the warranty period is a non starter and consumer advice/citizens advice would be the next port of call!

depends what caused the failure, has the garage actually stripped/investigated the box or just said 'yeah needs a box'.

In response to your comments here is some more detail for you to consider
1. The original gearbox was replaced by Lipscombs Maidstone on 21/11/2008. The warranty job card states that a RECONDITIONED gearbox was fitted !!
2. The car has been inspected by Stoneacre Fiat Rochdale on 12/11/2009 and a report has been sent back to Fiat customer relations stating a gearbox ( diff ) failure. The gearbox oil has been checked by the dealer who have confirmed that all is fine There is NO suggestion that this damage has been caused by neglect or driver abuse
3. Fiat have offered a ' goodwill ' gesture of another replacement box at minor discount and warranty labour rate contribution from the dealer. The cost to me is approx £1200 plus vat.
4. Nearly all opinions given to me on this say that they are staggered that the manufacturer fitted a RECON box as opposed to a new one. When i questioned Fiat on this on 3th November the representative said that sometimes they do this for COST reasons !!!!
5. Everything i am stating is factual as i have recorded who said what , when they said it etc in other words I am giving you the accurate picture.

I

Did you not question, after the warranty work had been completed why a reconditioned gearbox had been fitted??

I would have been on to fiat straight away regarding this.

amcand said:

Did you not question, after the warranty work had been completed why a reconditioned gearbox had been fitted??

I would have been on to fiat straight away regarding this.

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This is within their rights.

But the warranty concerning the car and the warranty concerning the warranty of the gearbox is 2 different things.

Strictly speaking a part was fitted that is warranted for a certain time. Fiat might want to argue that this is under the warranty terms of the car not applicable, but usually the courts see this different.

The gearbox was replaced prior to my ownership but i have questioned the use of reconditioned major parts and fiat seem okay with their policy !! on this occasion

Secondly interesting view on warranty from old school thanks. It begs the question when is a guarantee not a guarantee ? Fiat suggest that all warranty regardless of when the work was carried out runs out at the end of the 3 year term. So on that basis I can only seek further advice if necessary legal which I will because I see this fight is for everyone in future. But really i am not looking for a fight just a reasonable resolution.
I have referref the matter to the SMMT now so thanks for that advice. Anyone from Fiat UK interested in commenting further ?

mercury5863 said:

The gearbox was replaced prior to my ownership but i have questioned the use of reconditioned major parts and fiat seem okay with their policy !! on this occasion

Secondly interesting view on warranty from old school thanks. It begs the question when is a guarantee not a guarantee ? Fiat suggest that all warranty regardless of when the work was carried out runs out at the end of the 3 year term. So on that basis I can only seek further advice if necessary legal which I will because I see this fight is for everyone in future. But really i am not looking for a fight just a reasonable resolution.
I have referref the matter to the SMMT now so thanks for that advice. Anyone from Fiat UK interested in commenting further ?

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Fiat will not comment directly.

Your contract is with the dealer you bought the car from and it is their responsibility to resolve the gearbox problem ulitmately.

I know that will be difficult as the last thing they will want to do is stump up for a new gearbox or attempt to fix this one (assuming thats possible).

Parts fitted during warranty are normall subject to a manufacturers 1 year guarantee regarl;ess of the manufacturer/dealer warranty. This should be stated on any paperwork, but they are not legally obliged to offer one. However you could argue under the sale and supply of goods and services act that the parts be of satisfactory quality - even the ordinary person in the street might reasonably expect the gearbox (even a reconditioned one) to last longer than a year!

Any approaches to Fiat are in effect requests for a goodwill gesture or a means of arbitration between you and the dealer.

In the meantime keep pressing the dealer who in turn will keep pressing Fiat as they will want to resolve the problem.

Best of luck

Once again thanks for all your opinions not sure whether to go back to dealer i purchased from, or dealer who fitted the part will take advice and update as necessary thanks all again for your help etc

mercury5863 said:

Once again thanks for all your opinions not sure whether to go back to dealer i purchased from, or dealer who fitted the part will take advice and update as necessary thanks all again for your help etc

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Your contract is with the dealer you purchased the car from. They should be your first prt of call to resolve the problem.

Don't know if you have seen this:

http://www.consumerdirect.gov.uk/after_you_buy/know-your-rights/cars/