Clutch Linkage Ball Joint

[Dougie106]

Hello all
Yesterday my '59 twingo clutch pedal went pop and is now just dangling around. I believe a ball joint has corroded and is obviously not doing its job anymore.
The RAC towed me to my local Renualt dealer (which we have a warranty with as we only purchased the car from them two weeks ago...) and so far they have been royally useless.
The car was dropped off at 6pm and I was promised a phonecall in the morning to see what the problem was and how long I was supposed to have to wait. I rang this morning and they chuckled at me telling me that it wouldn't be seen until the afternoon. When I asked if a courtesy car would be available I was told that I could pay £20 a day for an enterprise rental.
I was basically asking if this is usual Renault service? And also I know it is a common problem, but is it a quick/easy fix? As I can't afford to be carless as I struggle with mobility problems!
Any help would be duly appreciated! Thanks chaps!

 

[DrDrew]

Which dealer have you dropped it off at? Can't say that I've had any problems with my Renault dealer, but I do travel quite a way to get to one I trust.

Unless it's a Renault extended warranty you've got with the vehicle, Renault UK won't have any direct control over the dealer. However, if you phone Renault UK customer services they can usually help in getting things sorted quickly at a Renault garage.

 

[Dougie106]

Just noticed I've posted this in the wrong forum, sorry!!
Its at Renault Leicester, we have taken out extended warranty but as we have only had it for two weeks its still covered anyway.
I am expecting a phone call from them this afternoon, but at the moment, I am stuck at work in limbo as I would like to hear from them before I leave, in case I need to go to them. As four bus journeys is just not possible for me! Would it be worth getting on to the Renault UK customer services sooner rather than later?

 

[DrDrew]

I'm sure one of the Mods can move this thread when they read it.

Renault Leicester is part of the Renault retail group, so Renault UK should have a fair clout with them. If you're already unhappy with the service you've received, calling RUK can't hurt. Every time I've dealt with RUK they've proved very helpful. The earlier you get them involved, the more of an immediate affect they can have to help.

https://www.renault.co.uk/ownerservices/customerservice.aspx

0844 335 0000

At this point you may end up with a response along the lines of "we need the garage to have a look at the car and see what the problem is", and if the garage is truly very busy it might not speed things up, but having RUK prod the garage (pointing out that they said they could have a look this morning) could help things happen faster.

 

[singlespeed]

Hi Dougie.
Sorry to hear the tale of woe Some dealers seem to be very good, whilst others have had plenty of bad reports leaving members thoroughly peed off with their poor service.

If its only two weeks and not many miles from a dealer, then you would expect the car to be as described IE- a usable car which can safely be driven about without the need of a recovery truck. Yes, unexpected things can break which is unfortunate... How it is dealt with, is however another matter entirely and thers no need to chuckle at a customer when just explaining that "we were already busy this morning with pre-booked work so we haven't been able to look at it yet. and, I'm sorry but all the courtesy cars were already booked out too"

^^^ that may not be the case and they could have just had a long lay Friday morning and not give a s*** about customers :?

There shouldn't be much harm in calling RUK customer services

 

[Dougie106]

What a joke!
I have just rang the customer services, I was told I would be put through to a manager who would be able to help so I was put on hold. Swiftly followed by 'Due to unforeseen circumstances we are not able to take your call, please call again later'!

 

[DrDrew]

That's odd, definitely an exception to the rule. Not had anything like that happen with RUK before.

 

[Dougie106]

Finally got through to the manager chap who was wonderfully helpful. Whilst I was talking to him Renault Leicester rang, they are expecting a new clutch pedal in on Tuesday so hopefully I will have it back Tues/Weds sometime.
He is going to try and sort me something out in the meantime so that I can get around in a courtesy car or they will fork out for a rental car as my car really shouldn't have gone pop after two weeks!
Feeling a little better about it now. Fingers crossed anyway.

Thank you very much for all of your help, I appreciate it greatly, I will keep you posted

 

[DrDrew]

Good to hear. Sounds like things are moving in the right direction for you.