[AndrewC]

That would seriously piss me off too and might also put me off Zoes in the future.

 

[RiverRock]

This morning after trying to speak to the service manager and leaving a message for him to call me back which didn't happen.

I wouldn't burn your bridges after 1 day of lack of communication.

However my experience has been similar. I had 2 complaints closed by Renault without telling me, and it took them 4 weeks, plus 2 checks in the month before booking it in for them to fix the issue in my brand new Zoe.
Make sure you go through complaints system to try and claim any replacement ICE fuel back. You can try for more compensation (they may offer a dealer voucher).

 

[Blackwater]

I wouldn't burn your bridges after 1 day of lack of communication.

However my experience has been similar. I had 2 complaints closed by Renault without telling me, and it took them 4 weeks, plus 2 checks in the month before booking it in for them to fix the issue in my brand new Zoe.
Make sure you go through complaints system to try and claim any replacement ICE fuel back. You can try for more compensation (they may offer a dealer voucher).

It's not just 1 day of lack of communication with the dealer, it is weeks of it, I call, the service manager is busy with a customer so I ask for him to call me when he is free, like yesterday it usually doesn't happen.
I have been into the garage now on 3 occasions over the last few weeks and each time they tell me they have been in touch with Renault for the solution, they are waiting for parts and the work will be done next week, but the weeks roll on.
When I do eventually get the car back I will almost certainly be selling it as I have lost confidence in the Zoe.

 

[cDy]

... as I have lost confidence in the Zoe

It's time to name and shame the dealer (I couldn't see it in your earlier posts). It's at least as much its fault as the Zoe's. We had the PEB replaced on ours after Renault Wolverhampton diagnosed a potential fault whilst doing a service. Part obtained and replaced in a week.

Even with that fix, I've had fewer faults (two, both fixed promptly) with our Zoe in two years than we did with our Golf diesel over its first two years. And we've never 'broken down' in the Zoe, whereas we did in the Golf.

 

[Blackwater]

It's time to name and shame the dealer (I couldn't see it in your earlier posts). It's at least as much its fault as the Zoe's. We had the PEB replaced on ours after Renault Wolverhampton diagnosed a potential fault whilst doing a service. Part obtained and replaced in a week.

Even with that fix, I've had fewer faults (two, both fixed promptly) with our Zoe in two years than we did with our Golf diesel over its first two years. And we've never 'broken down' in the Zoe, whereas we did in the Golf.

The dealer is Brayleys Renault in Milton Keynes. You might find my thread on Facebook interesting Official Renault Zoe & Z.E. Owners Club (RZOC)

 

[Blackwater]

Day 54 update. Yes our R90 has been with our local Renault dealer for 54 days now waiting to be fixed. I had an update call from customer support today with a progress report, but really all they could tell me was they were putting pressure on the dealership to make getting it fixed ASAP and that having wait this length of time was unacceptable. They also said continuing with the Enterprise car was not a problem and that when we finally get the car back we can expect a goodwill gesture.

 

[Blackwater]

OK, so Renault Customer Services didn't call me today as promised, the dealer hasn't been in touch either. This afternoon I went out and bought a replacement for the R90, a low mileage 2008 Daihatsu Sirion 1.5SX auto for a couple of grand. It is now sitting on my driveway. As soon as we get the R90 comes back it will be up for sale. As soon as we get a 64Kw Kia Soul, eNiro or MG ZS EV our R110 will also be going. Enough is enough.

 

[srichards]

Renault really know how to drop the ball with warranty repairs ?

 

[Simon Reddin]

I had this failure - "Stop: electric motor failure" - right in the middle of a mini roundabout a couple of miles from home but with just 10 miles of charge left. When I tried to limp it home with the fault showing/beeping, it did something very scary - it started to accelerate by itself uncontrollably. I had to constantly brake to keep it under control. Just about got home without crashing & called the dealership, who called ZE Assist.

What I was told after the dealership had had it for a week was interesting - they said that it was a known software fault & that they had applied a patch. It has not occurred again despite doing 5000+ miles since & running it down to 5 miles on the battery.

 

[Blackwater]

Yes that was scary. There seems to be serious faults with what may be a small minority of Zoes, but I don't think Renault are willing to acknowledge this. In my opinion there should a safety recall before somebody is seriously injured or killed.

 

[moojuiceuk]

OK, so Renault Customer Services didn't call me today as promised, the dealer hasn't been in touch either. This afternoon I went out and bought a replacement for the R90, a low mileage 2008 Daihatsu Sirion 1.5SX auto for a couple of grand. It is now sitting on my driveway. As soon as we get the R90 comes back it will be up for sale. As soon as we get a 64Kw Kia Soul, eNiro or MG ZS EV our R110 will also be going. Enough is enough.

I would park the R110 outside the garage in question, sign written about how poorly the garage has treated you.
Some inspiration perhaps?

There's always BBC Watchdog too!

 

[Blackwater]

It's not our R110 which so far has been OK, it's our 2017 R90 that is the problem.
An interesting suggestion, but I don't think so, I'm thinking social media, trading standards and possibly Watchdog. In any case the car is in the garage, but maybe I could ask them if I can send in a sign writer

 

[DrEskimo]

There was a similar long battle with Audi over excessive oil consumption for their 2.0TFSI engines in B8 model A4's A5's and some Q5's I think. Mine would go through a liter of oil as quick as it went through petrol. It would cause damage to the engine block and in some cases required an entirely new engine.

It took loads of owners to band together and then it went on Watchdog before Audi finally admitted it was a manufacturing default and agreed to cover the repairs even if the car was out of warranty. Thankfully I got mine and had the issue after they accepted it, otherwise I would have been like this guy:

There's probably an example of this with every manufacturer...unfortunately Renault aren't the first, not will they be the last...

 

[srichards]

Watchdog seems to be the key to get any manufacturer to get off their backsides and do what is right.

With the new model Zoe coming out now is a good time to kick Renault in the nuts about reliability.

 

[Blackwater]

It's now week 10 and my Zoe still isn't fixed, isn't in the workshop, isn't being worked on.
I have emailed Vincent Tourette, Renault UK’s Managing Director, this was his reply:
"I am sorry to hear that your Renault ZOE has been at a Dealer for repairs for the last 10 weeks. This is definitely not something we would expect.

A Customer Support Manager from our Customer Relations team will be in contact to see how best they can assist you."
One of my complaints is the failure of the Customer Support Manager's seeming inability to put pressure on the dealership.She does call or text me once or twice a week saying she is doing all she can, but it's really not enough.
If I try to call her, she is not available and texting does not work, I now have her email address, but is yet to respond the emails I have sent.

Here it is right now.

 

[moojuiceuk]

10 Weeks? Jesus! I think I'd be going nuclear by this point if it were me.

There's a few schools of thought.
1) Making a lot more noise in public? How about contacting the local newspaper and local radio stations? No firms like bad publicity. A happy customer might tell a few friends, an angry customer tells the world and every stranger he meets on the bus (that he is having to take because of the car at the garage! )

2) Was part of the car purchased using a credit card deposit of £100 or more? If so, maybe a section 75 could be used here, depending on the financial arrangements of the car?

3) Regardless of the local garage, maybe pushing Renault UK to directly repair the car themselves if the local dealership is unable to do so in a timely manner, or refer it to another EV specialist dealer in the UK to repair? Get Renault to sort out the logistics and costs of getting your broken car to another dealer too if thats an option. I don't believe for one moment that Renault do not have their own in-house technicians, either in the UK or France, that can be called upon in extreme circumstances. After all, they must run in-house training for the dealerships, so they must have technicans of their own who can do this work!

Lastly on parts, if they do not have the part in the UK, one should be taken off a brand new in stock vehicle or despatched on a 24 hour carrier from France if needed. If they cannot give a guaranteed date of repair, then I would seriously look into what the Motor Ombusman can do to assist. https://www.themotorombudsman.org/motor-ombudsman/consumers/make-a-complaint

My blood is boiling already at this, and it's not even my car!

 

[Blackwater]

10 Weeks? Jesus! I think I'd be going nuclear by this point if it were me.

There's a few schools of thought.
1) Making a lot more noise in public? How about contacting the local newspaper and local radio stations? No firms like bad publicity. A happy customer might tell a few friends, an angry customer tells the world and every stranger he meets on the bus (that he is having to take because of the car at the garage! )

2) Was part of the car purchased using a credit card deposit of £100 or more? If so, maybe a section 75 could be used here, depending on the financial arrangements of the car?

3) Regardless of the local garage, maybe pushing Renault UK to directly repair the car themselves if the local dealership is unable to do so in a timely manner, or refer it to another EV specialist dealer in the UK to repair? Get Renault to sort out the logistics and costs of getting your broken car to another dealer too if thats an option. I don't believe for one moment that Renault do not have their own in-house technicians, either in the UK or France, that can be called upon in extreme circumstances. After all, they must run in-house training for the dealerships, so they must have technicans of their own who can do this work!

Lastly on parts, if they do not have the part in the UK, one should be taken off a brand new in stock vehicle or despatched on a 24 hour carrier from France if needed. If they cannot give a guaranteed date of repair, then I would seriously look into what the Motor Ombusman can do to assist. https://www.themotorombudsman.org/motor-ombudsman/consumers/make-a-complaint

My blood is boiling already at this, and it's not even my car!

10 Weeks? Jesus! I think I'd be going nuclear by this point if it were me.

There's a few schools of thought.
1) Making a lot more noise in public? How about contacting the local newspaper and local radio stations? No firms like bad publicity. A happy customer might tell a few friends, an angry customer tells the world and every stranger he meets on the bus (that he is having to take because of the car at the garage! )

2) Was part of the car purchased using a credit card deposit of £100 or more? If so, maybe a section 75 could be used here, depending on the financial arrangements of the car?

3) Regardless of the local garage, maybe pushing Renault UK to directly repair the car themselves if the local dealership is unable to do so in a timely manner, or refer it to another EV specialist dealer in the UK to repair? Get Renault to sort out the logistics and costs of getting your broken car to another dealer too if thats an option. I don't believe for one moment that Renault do not have their own in-house technicians, either in the UK or France, that can be called upon in extreme circumstances. After all, they must run in-house training for the dealerships, so they must have technicans of their own who can do this work!

Lastly on parts, if they do not have the part in the UK, one should be taken off a brand new in stock vehicle or despatched on a 24 hour carrier from France if needed. If they cannot give a guaranteed date of repair, then I would seriously look into what the Motor Ombusman can do to assist. https://www.themotorombudsman.org/motor-ombudsman/consumers/make-a-complaint

My blood is boiling already at this, and it's not even my car!

I have given up with the dealership, BRAYLEYS, MILTON KEYNES, now only deal directly with Renault UK.
My email to the MD of Renault UK seems to have stirred things up a little and more senior person who reports directly to the MD is on the case an has given assurances that they will get this resolved as soon as possible.
I don't want to say too much publicly because you just don't know who is reading this, I want to keep it civil and not prejudice my case.
One comment that I would make is heads should roll at BRAYLEYS, MILTON KEYNES and Renault should give serious consideration about having BRAYLEYS, MILTON KEYNES as a franchisee.
On another topic, the RZOC Facebook hierarchy don't like me posting anything negative about the Zoe and it looks like I have been removed, so if you are reading this Craig, I'm really not bothered.

 

[Cloud]

Yikes. Shameful of the MD to just pass the buck back down to CS - I know it's a bit easier nowadays with all the "top tips of how to complain and get results!" on the internet but I still think once a complaint reaches director level they should be treated seriously, not just bounced back downstairs.

Brayleys - I reckon they're being petty. They must've seen that you're getting annoyed and vocal and slagging them off and are deliberately just ignoring the car now out of spite. This is a good argument for remaining calm, polite and civil (but firm) with companies you have a beef with, and trying to leave any public shaming stuff to absolute given-up last resort (not easy I know, I struggle with it myself). Don't get me wrong you have every right to be angry and to be tearing them a new one, I mean purely from a "getting the results you want" perspective. I have a similar situation with a large electronics company that makes smartwatches - I'm writing some pretty firm emails but the proper slagging is a last resort as I know once I do that, the chance of them 'seeing sense' and repairing it as they should is less than zero as the bridges will have burned.

RZOC honestly I think are good guys who mean well and try to help (e.g. trying to help get it transported to the club associated dealer-with-an-actual-clue who happens to also be my local), and I get on very well with them. I do think it's a bit heavy handed when someone is unhappy though, that's just my personal opinion, I've seen a few ejected, some to a bit of relief, some I perceived as unfair, some came back. Their space and their choice ultimately, it is what it is, I enjoy the fandom/circlejerk factor there but if it's frank, raw, uncensored opinions I'm looking for then must admit, I look here

 

[Blackwater]

Yikes. Shameful of the MD to just pass the buck back down to CS - I know it's a bit easier nowadays with all the "top tips of how to complain and get results!" on the internet but I still think once a complaint reaches director level they should be treated seriously, not just bounced back downstairs.

Brayleys - I reckon they're being petty. They must've seen that you're getting annoyed and vocal and slagging them off and are deliberately just ignoring the car now out of spite. This is a good argument for remaining calm, polite and civil (but firm) with companies you have a beef with, and trying to leave any public shaming stuff to absolute given-up last resort (not easy I know, I struggle with it myself). Don't get me wrong you have every right to be angry and to be tearing them a new one, I mean purely from a "getting the results you want" perspective. I have a similar situation with a large electronics company that makes smartwatches - I'm writing some pretty firm emails but the proper slagging is a last resort as I know once I do that, the chance of them 'seeing sense' and repairing it as they should is less than zero as the bridges will have burned.

RZOC honestly I think are good guys who mean well and try to help (e.g. trying to help get it transported to the club associated dealer-with-an-actual-clue who happens to also be my local), and I get on very well with them. I do think it's a bit heavy handed when someone is unhappy though, that's just my personal opinion, I've seen a few ejected, some to a bit of relief, some I perceived as unfair, some came back. Their space and their choice ultimately, it is what it is, I enjoy the fandom/circlejerk factor there but if it's frank, raw, uncensored opinions I'm looking for then must admit, I look here

In fairness to the MD I got an out of office reply saying he is on leave until 9th August and that I should contact his PA. The P.A. responded within a couple of hours saying that the MD had read my original email and my case was passed on to Customer Support Manager.
My initial thought was this is just going round in circles as my case is already being dealt with by a Customer Support Manager, however, this lady who called me after 5 pm seems to be higher up the chain and does seem to have more clout.

She had been in touch with Brayleys and was informed that the car should be ready by the end of the week, but they will need to test it to make sure that the fault is cured. That sounds to like me it will now be next week, I have stopped holding my breath.

Yesterday I was in the area of Brayleys so decided to look for my self to see if the car was actually in the workshop, when I saw it in the car park I was going go in and have it out with the service manager but decided not to as I might not have stayed calm and just lost the plot, so I took the photos, walked away and will let CS deal with it.

What surprises me is that Renault UK have not been jumping all over Brayleys long before now to get the car fixed, they are paying for a rental car and fuel which so far has cost me £290.66, they are also talking about a goodwill something or other, so apart from the cost of repairs which is probably into 4 figures it is costing Renault.
Having said that a few grand to Renault is peanuts, but what they really don't want is bad publicity.

I have told CS that I don't want the car back as my wife won't drive it again and I have also lost confidence in it, the best outcome for me would be for them to give me what it cost me when I bought it in February, apparently that is unrealistic.

The saga continues, but I have decided that if I don't have a satisfactory resolution by this time next week I will take this to another level.

 

[Cloud]

Ah I see, good to know the MD's office didn't just kick it back down!

Incidents like this must be costing them a fortune, even with all the battery lease income. Investing in the future I suppose, it's a shame a few people have a hard time along the way though

Advice I saw on making customer complaints is despite the temptation, to try not to highlight that nothing they can do will make you happy any more and you'd sell the car regardless, as that gives a company less motivation to help if they think there's no chance of getting you back in favour. Hopefully they are motivated still though as prospective buyers will be watching threads like this with interest.