First, take a deep breath and calm down.
Until we hear of any similar failures this is a one-off. The Qubo is also a Fiorino van, Peugeot Bipper car and van and Citroen Nemo car and van. That's a lot of vehicles.
I don't understand why fiat could not of took a quick look they did when the airbag failure light/alarm kept going off
Garages are a business and need to keep their mechanics busy to earn money, as they have to pay them. They do not plan empty space during any day, so the ability to look at anything will depend on workload.
Your original complaint was of tyre wear. This is not normally life-threatening. The alignment printouts from KwikFit show caster/camber issues, not normally adjustable. Again, this is not indicative of an urgent problem. The differences between the two printouts is quite subtle and it is only this that suggests that the problem is changing. I saw this, I would doubt that many technicians would, and very unlikely for receptionists to understand this.
This thread had been live for nearly 3 weeks before you showed us the printouts, yet this was key to the diagnosis. The garage have to try to understand the issue and assess its urgency based on the customer's complaint. Not always easy.
You continued to drive it whilst hearing noises. Did you report the noises to the dealer?
I understand kwik-fit would of not allowed it on the road if it was unsafe,
KwikFit diagnosed a suspension alignment issue, not adjustable which is why they referred you to the dealer. I doubt they looked under the car, so would not have seen any evidence of metal fatigue. A vehicle built with suspension mountings incorrectly aligned is not urgent. The second KwikFit might have been expected to compare the two printouts, if you'd shown them the first, so disappointing that they did not highlight the differences and look underneath to assess what was changing.
I understand fiat won't admit it was there fault due to legal reasons ,
Fiat and the dealer are not the same. The dealer is an independent franchisee. They will return the part to Fiat technical for assessment, who will be very careful what they tell you, until they are certain as to the cause.
I understand Motability have to protect themselves,
Motability are not technical. They are a facilitator. They will refer all technical matters to their contracted "experts". They can only act on what their experts tell them.
Fiat are a company to avoid they won't help ,the dealer won't help ,Motability want me to have it back (we refuse to drive it on safety grounds if we was on a14 we would of been dead ) they say if I can find a replacement car with quick delivery I can have it , but what a surprise after a grants in place you order a car then the dealer calls to say grants withdrawn ,but guess what the grants dpt didn't tell me , and you can't call them from 5.15 on Friday until Monday ,I have had no sleep and worried sick I will loose the Motability car ,I just wish I had some money and I would tell them to stick it ,Motability is for disabled people but they are not disabled friendly , I just want to give up on everything
Motability are a charity leasing company. You have a lease on this car, so would not be eligible for another at the same time. So until the first car is definitely rejected by Motability, they may not be able to facilitate a replacement. The vehicle's condition and safety will be decided by Fiat and its dealer, not by Motability or its customer.
If the vehicle has been repaired, it should be fine. Fiat will continue to investigate the cause and will take any necessary action.
The broken arm is unlikely to be a component fault as thousands have been made. Although we can be confident that Fiat will investigate this.
The arm is likely to have been damaged some time over the 10 months the car has been in use. This could have occurred at any time, not just recently, so difficult to know when, unless any driver can specifically remember dropping it into a deep pothole or hitting a kerb hard, etc.
If it has been repaired, continue to use it, but keep pressing for a report on the cause.
