For those that remember my accident thread. get a load of this! problems with car.

[VZ_commo91]

So for those that remember my thread a few months ago, So. I just had an accident thismorning :(

I bought a 2005 BA MKII xr6 turbo, so I'm trying to sell my commodore. I took it into holden for a RWC and it fail. Badly.

Come back with the list of

*K frame has been constructed wrong and is loose and rattling
*Rear diff bush split
*engine mount split
*excessive play in RHS tie rod
*leaky power steering rack
*leaky bottom radiator hose

So I took it straight back to Ammi, and told them they have ####ed my car in the repair not tightening my K frame correctly after. So Ammi has brought up the repair list and labor list they have done to the car. There is at least 3 item missing that I KNOW they fixed because they told me they just have to fix it before I get my car back. e.g main bushes at the front of the car ( what ever they are called. ) and my tyre. So they are saying all this is just because the car is old, (2006). So if they never touched my K frame, they have ####ed up not inspecting the car correctly and giving me back a defective car. What makes it worse is I had my NEWBORN baby in that car. They are going to try and tell me that they won't fix the car because it's not their fault.

I'm absolutely raging because they have ####ed up, and now they are going to try and blame it on me.
Here is a pic again of the damage. You tell me if they would of touched the K frame or should of checked it.

Keep in mine they cut out and replaced my strut tower. cut and repaired the chassis. and most of the hit was on that wheel with a hard side impact.

[Reaper]

Firstly, raging won't help your cause. So what if you had your baby in the car - nothing happened, just don't put him/her in it again till the issues are rectified.

I would write a letter to AAMI politely explaining why their repair was unsatisfactory and take it from there. I don't think the leaky power steer, rad hose nor diff bush could be attributed to the accident or repair.

Reaper

[VZ_commo91]

Wheel had a hard hit. only started leaking after the accident.

I'm not raging at them. Just raging at the fact that have #### me over. They also had my radiator out. again only started leaking after they touched it.

[Calaber]

The K frame would only need removing if the front subframes were bent and needed straightening or replacing, or the K frame itself was damaged. That pic really doesn't give the impression that the frame had to be touched by the repairer.

The "rear diff bush", whatever that is, is at the wrong end of the car to have been damaged in your front end prang, so it's difficult to align that part with the repair either.

Wear in the steering rack is more likely to be attributable to wear and tear, unless the rack was damaged in the prang. It could have been damaged but was it on the quote?

Engine mount split - maybe. They DO wear out, but they can also be damaged in an impact. Two bob each way on that one.

Leaking radiator hose - probably the repairer's fault, but as it's a very simple two minute job, do it yourself and know it's done.

I wouldn't be bothered pursuing AAMI - if the items weren't itemised on the repair quote, they will back out of any responsibility.

One more thing I would do. Change to a decent insurer when your renewal is due.

[NAVZCALAIS]

Ok almost all of the damages can be attributed to the crash. The only one's not are the dif bush and maybe the engine mount. When you say engine mount split is it just the rubber? Or is the metal part of the mount cracked? Everything else however they should have fixed to the correct standards. Unfortunately holden and their reputation for doing a good quality roadworthy is not that great so that wouldn't of helped on the roadworthy side of things. They are just a big company trying to get money out of their customers, so sometimes they like to make things up to swindle the average person who doesn't know much about cars. And yes i know they do because a mate of mine took his car into holden and they told him he had to replace his front strut tower bearing, he bought i back to me and i said a strut tower bearing doesn't exist. Take you car to a well know and reputable roadworthy supplier and have them check it out and get a second opinion.
Hope this helps

[VZ_commo91]

The K frame would only need removing if the front subframes were bent and needed straightening or replacing, or the K frame itself was damaged. That pic really doesn't give the impression that the frame had to be touched by the repairer.

The "rear diff bush", whatever that is, is at the wrong end of the car to have been damaged in your front end prang, so it's difficult to align that part with the repair either.

Wear in the steering rack is more likely to be attributable to wear and tear, unless the rack was damaged in the prang. It could have been damaged but was it on the quote?

Engine mount split - maybe. They DO wear out, but they can also be damaged in an impact. Two bob each way on that one.

Leaking radiator hose - probably the repairer's fault, but as it's a very simple two minute job, do it yourself and know it's done.

I wouldn't be bothered pursuing AAMI - if the items weren't itemised on the repair quote, they will back out of any responsibility.

One more thing I would do. Change to a decent insurer when your renewal is due.

So you're telling me my steering rack has worn out after only 5 years use ? Yes more than likely the diff bush is not a result. But my whole sub frame is moving making noise. Only after the accident. They replaced items on the RHS of the car too, as the smash repair told me that there is quite a lot more damage then what they thought ( $11,000 damage actually. ) They should of had an inspection done after the collision. I had a wheel alignment and inspection done about 1 week before the accident, they informed me that my car was fine, and tie rods were fine, and they only thing that needed replacing was the front main bushes. Which i got replaced. So after 4 months and 2,000KM I have had all this go wrong ?

[VYMAD]

Sounds to me that everything mentioned is attributable to the prang apart from possibly the diff bush. I would persue it further, get it checked by someone else. If the K frame is loose and moving, then that alone is BAD.

[Calaber]

So you're telling me my steering rack has worn out after only 5 years use ? Yes more than likely the diff bush is not a result. But my whole sub frame is moving making noise. Only after the accident. They replaced items on the RHS of the car too, as the smash repair told me that there is quite a lot more damage then what they thought ( $11,000 damage actually. ) They should of had an inspection done after the collision. I had a wheel alignment and inspection done about 1 week before the accident, they informed me that my car was fine, and tie rods were fine, and they only thing that needed replacing was the front main bushes. Which i got replaced. So after 4 months and 2,000KM I have had all this go wrong ?

I said that "wear in the steering rack is more likely to be attributable to wear and tear, unless the rack damaged in the prang. It could have been damaged but was it on the quote?" And yes, five years doesn't count - it's the distance travelled that affects steering components, so whilst a VZ may only be five years old, it COULD have done 200k plus. If yours is normal "mileage" for a VZ, then it's reasonable to suspect it was damaged in the impact. But I ask again - was it itemised on the quote, because if it wasn't, I don't like your chances with AAMI.

And yes, if the impact was sufficient to damage the rack, then it was probably sufficient to damage or loosen the K frame, but the same comment applies as above. If it's not on the quote - good luck.

You're right about the inspection - it would have been inspected by the repairer, damage assessed and a quote provided and the insurance assessor would then have authorised such reparis as he considered applied to the claim.

I hope I'm wrong and the insurer comes to the party, but I have grave suspicions about AAMI - I wouldn't touch them and I have heard enough horror stories about cheap-jack repairs authorised by them to scare me well away from them. Perhaps other members on the forum who have insurance with AAMI have good stories to tell.

Edit: Re-read your original post and saw your comment at the end where you said the strut tower needed to be replaced. That changes things as far as my post goes - if the damage was severe enought to require a tower to be replaced then, yes, for sure, the K member had to be pulled so it should have been replaced properly and obviously wasn't. Same goes for the rack - the damage would almost certainly have arisen from the impact, so I'll stand corrected there as well.

[bogan_vk]

*K frame has been constructed wrong and is loose and rattling , how is it constructed wrong? if its loose get under there and tighten it
*Rear diff bush split, bushes dont last forever they wear out another easy fix
*engine mount split, jack up your motor and change the mount theyre cheap
*excessive play in RHS tie rod replace it whilst putting a good secondhand rack in easy job
*leaky power steering rack
*leaky bottom radiator hose, 5 minutes work

i wish i copped a rwc list as easy to fix as this id be stoked, it wouldnt take more than a day to fix the lot yourself.some of the things were probably attributed to the accident but its all small easy to fix stuff better off just fixing it yourself than fighting with an insurance company that probably wont listen anyway if you want to have more chance of them listening though lodge a complaint with the ombudsman.

[Adds_05]

And yes i know they do because a mate of mine took his car into holden and they told him he had to replace his front strut tower bearing, he bought i back to me and i said a strut tower bearing doesn't exist.

hang on, please tell me you were getting technical when you say they dont have a strut TOWER bearing when clearly they were meaning strut TOP bearing?
you do realise they have a strut top bearing?

[NAVZCALAIS]

Yes i know there is a bearing in the strut top. But the quote from them said strut tower and its said bearing. I took the car in and asked where i could find said bearing and they managed to lead me to the front left shock absorber bottom mounting? I was rather perplexed as i'm a mechanic and if there was a bearing in there i would eat my work uniform. So thats why i don't go to holden for pretty much anything except parts, just my experience with the local dealer i'm sure most other places aren't the same and that they would do a perfectly fine job.
Just while we're on the topic of dodgy repair jobs and crap insurance companies. I recently sold my old VT wagon to a mate of mine and we were just waiting on parts for it to be roadworthy. In the space of me selling him the car and recieving the parts he's managed to write it off. He had it insured and we've managed to transfer the rego into his name (i love legal loop holes) and he's been paid out. The problem is he was borrowing two of my stock Calais rims which were on the car at the time of the accident and he's been paid out for the car which is now sitting at the wreckers. Am i able to reclaim my rims or do i just have to grin and bear it?

[DAZ88P]

Yes i know there is a bearing in the strut top. But the quote from them said strut tower and its said bearing. I took the car in and asked where i could find said bearing and they managed to lead me to the front left shock absorber bottom mounting? I was rather perplexed as i'm a mechanic and if there was a bearing in there i would eat my work uniform. So thats why i don't go to holden for pretty much anything except parts, just my experience with the local dealer i'm sure most other places aren't the same and that they would do a perfectly fine job.
Just while we're on the topic of dodgy repair jobs and crap insurance companies. I recently sold my old VT wagon to a mate of mine and we were just waiting on parts for it to be roadworthy. In the space of me selling him the car and recieving the parts he's managed to write it off. He had it insured and we've managed to transfer the rego into his name (i love legal loop holes) and he's been paid out. The problem is he was borrowing two of my stock Calais rims which were on the car at the time of the accident and he's been paid out for the car which is now sitting at the wreckers. Am i able to reclaim my rims or do i just have to grin and bear it?

off topic, but similar thing happened to a friend who wrote off his VL with wheels on it being worth more than the insured value of the car. once insurance pays out on the car it becomes their property. So I'd consider your rims gone.