[cpcnw]

Hi All,

Today had an MOT fail on my 2014 Leaf 24 @ 40k Miles. Was a little surprised because I have only done 6k since last MOT which was around when I bought it.

The description on the refusal sheet says;

Repair Immediately [Major Defect] Suspension arm pin / bush worn excessively

The description on the service / inspection sheet says;

nsf wishbone rear bush separated from housing MOT Fail
osf wishbone rear bush separated from housing MOT Fail

The description on the Quote for Work says;

Part N54501BA60A LINK COMPL-TRAN

Total Parts £143.24
Total Labour £110.50
VAT £50.75
Total 304.49

This is for EACH side so £608.98 in total

I've driven home and will ask my local suppliers and workshop for quotes.

Must admit was somewhat surprised that a suspension item should need replacement at 40k miles? Or am deluded?

I am wondering how much the dealership mark up the parts? The labour is down as £85 / hour + VAT

I have 10 days to get a re-test but have to pay the inspection fee.

Will come back with progress...

 

[cpcnw]

Local parts supplier is fairly sure after doing a search for that part number, that they are £160 inc VAT for a pair [osf + nsf]

So Nissan doubling the cost of the parts??!!!

 

[dk6780]

Sadly that is a common failure on front wheel drive cars, and as a heavy example the LEAF suffers likewise. It's simple spanner work for any garage, not just EV specialists.

 

[cpcnw]

My local work shop hourly rate is £85 including the VAT

 

[cdlb]

Today had an MOT fail on my 2014 Leaf 24 @ 40k Miles. Was a little surprised because I have only done 6k since last MOT which was around when I bought it.

Must admit was somewhat surprised that a suspension item should need replacement at 40k miles? Or am deluded?

How was the car driven for the first 32k miles? If the previous owner was aiming for every pothole at 100mph, the suspension is going to be pretty tired.

 

[Bullterrier]

Quite a lot of reports of aftermarket items failing quickly so Nissan parts and a local workshop to fit perhaps?

 

[DeVore]

Front suspension is the big weak point of the Leaf, stuff just seems to need replacing at silly low mileage.

 

[LeafMatters]

How was the car driven for the first 32k miles? If the previous owner was aiming for every pothole at 100mph, the suspension is going to be pretty tired.

At 100mph he must have been driving it off a cliff

 

[cdlb]

At 100mph he must have been driving it off a cliff

Which is generally not great for the suspension

 

[cpcnw]

So this gets more interesting...

My local guys fitted aftermarket arms manufactured by Control arms and wishbones. (delphiautoparts.com)
as follows;

Delphi Lower Wishbone DELTC2496 86.62
Delphi Lower Wishbone DELTC2497 86.62
Labour 113.60
Total inc VAT £344.20

They put the removed parts in the boot

They also commented that there was not enough slack to warrant an MOT failure.

So, now I have to go for the inspection to get my MOT cert. Not sure what tact to take if I am honest. At the end of the day it's their engineer vs my engineer opinion.

 

[dk6780]

They also commented that there was not enough slack to warrant an MOT failure.

So, now I have to go for the inspection to get my MOT cert. Not sure what tact to take if I am honest. At the end of the day it's their engineer vs my engineer opinion.

It wasn't recorded as slack based on your earlier post.

nsf wishbone rear bush separated from housing MOT Fail
osf wishbone rear bush separated from housing MOT Fail

Looking at your photo I'd say that both bushes on both wishbones have the "rubber" part separating from the metal sleeve, and hence the MoT inspector is correct.

Being slightly less judgemental, it is the MoT inspectors bat and ball and you don't want to be on the wrong side of him otherwise he'll take them home. He will not believe that the parts you produce and claim to be in good condition were the ones removed from your car unless he still sees fault in them.

Now to being pedantic - this failure is likely to be an age related one rather than a "poor driving" one. After 6 years exposure to the elements and the rubbish on the roads I'm not surprised that the "rubber" is beginning to fail - it is very common.

 

[Carty]

At the end of the day it's their engineer vs my engineer opinion.

Yeah - I guess your local garage does not have an MOT licence then, otherwise you would have taken it to them in the first place.
The problem is your local “tech” is not person signing the MOT - The other guy is !.
He will not change his mind even if you challenge it.
I friend of mine has owned an MOT station for over 30 years, it was passed down from his farther who also MOT,d cars for many many years.
My friend said that different makes / models of cars have known items that are pretty certain to get snagged on the MOT inspection.
He said he can almost go straight to the point of most failures instantly.
Once the common known fault is on the hit list, then it’s a target in only a couple of minutes of being on the ramp.

 

[cpcnw]

It wasn't recorded as slack based on your earlier post

Sorry my bad, I didn't report back correctly and possibly mis-interpreting what was said by reception. The engineer is going to call me back for a more in depth viewpoint.

 

[cpcnw]

Yeah - I guess your local garage does not have an MOT licence then, otherwise you would have taken it to them in the first place.

Actually it does, and has held one for 50 years. I would of taken it to them other than Nissan where offering a years road side assistance in with the price of the minor service.

Thinking about it this is worth about £60 - I haven't had a price of my local guys for a minor service on the Leaf because I fell for the carrot offered by the dealership.

 

[cpcnw]

@dk6780 as an aside would your first name happen to be Dougie?

 

[cpcnw]

Right just spoken to the local engineer. Firstly they have not 'thrashed out' what they are going to do about servicing EV's yet. Secondly his report on the fail was indeed similar to the dealer at least for one of the bushes. He said the other two reported weren't that bad to warrant a fail. In any case its back to the dealer for the inspection and to get my MOT cert.

 

[dk6780]

@dk6780 as an aside would your first name happen to be Dougie?

No - that's my first car's registration number .......

 

[Carty]

In any case its back to the dealer for the inspection and to get my MOT cert.

The bottom arm links on most cars are similar to the ones fitted on the Leaf.
There are two attachment bushes plus the bottom ball joint that could get snagged for wear on the MOT.
The larger rear bush where it attaches to the sub frame is the most likely culprit for being the failure point.
Bottom suspension arms have unfortunately become a throw away item now.
On some models, you can replace the bottom ball joint as an individual item.
A lot of main dealers will now offer free MOT's as part of their servicing schedule.
I never offer the main dealer the chance to MOT my cars.
They just see it as a good opportunity to carry out a so called "Free" health check and then slap you with a estimate for the work to be carried out !.
Use an independent agent for your MOT's is my advice.
MG do offer A.A. recovery cover if you take it to them for it's annual service.
I am okay with that ( ish ).
I HATE taking my car to the main stealers.

 

[JDleaf]

Interesting, as I was wondering what our leaf might get snagged on first. Just had its mot at 58k and 5 yrs. it passed and didn’t even have any advisories fortunately. Suspension is likely to be the first thing to go then, better start saving up for next year just in case!

 

[dk6780]

On some models, you can replace the bottom ball joint as an individual item.

And on most you can push out and replace the other bushes with a suitable press. Perhaps as LEAF owners we should get a set of arms and pass them around as required.
@cpcnw have you still got that set that were taken off?