Suzie dies on the Stuart Hwy

Hey guys,

Well the mech that reconditioned my gearbox (who's name I won't mention just yet) has refused warranty as the part that has failed was a supplied part.

Fair enough. Though a friend of mine had supplied the mechanic with an old V8 gearbox and a couple of transfer cases just so he could keep them at stock and cut the price down for me a little bit (this saved me about $300). Now I'm being told that the mechanic has used (without my knowledge at the time) the layshaft from the V8 box in my LT77S and this is what has failed.

So where do I stand here, am I at fault for supplying parts even though the parts aren't a proper fit in the LT77 or is the mechanic at fault for 1) not following instructions and negligence?

Your opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Alex

The gearbox from a 110 County would be an LT95, different to an LT77 in a 200tdi defender. It sounds pretty crappy and I would think that the mechanic would have to inform you of such things. But I have no knowledge on the legal side of things.

Unlucky hey..

Sam

Sam, V8s and LT77s were used together in early D1s and some RRCs...

Cheers, I was just thinking box-shaped landy's. Whoops.

Sam

Quote:

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Originally Posted by alexturner

Hey guys,

Well the mech that reconditioned my gearbox (who's name I won't mention just yet) has refused warranty as the part that has failed was a supplied part.

Fair enough. Though a friend of mine had supplied the mechanic with an old V8 gearbox and a couple of transfer cases just so he could keep them at stock and cut the price down for me a little bit (this saved me about $300). Now I'm being told that the mechanic has used (without my knowledge at the time) the layshaft from the V8 box in my LT77S and this is what has failed.

So where do I stand here, am I at fault for supplying parts even though the parts aren't a proper fit in the LT77 or is the mechanic at fault for 1) not following instructions and negligence?

Your opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Alex

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Alex
You would need to check your invoice closely.
If you were charged for a complete gearbox overhaul and no mention of fitting second hand parts,then you will have comeback on the repairer.
If there was mention of gearbox rebuild using supplied second hand parts,with the parts used listed,then you probably don't have much comeback.
If you feel you have a comeback,then you need to contact the MVRIA in NSW,which is the automotive arm of Dept fair trading in NSW and lodge a complaint.Unfortunately they will have to contact the repairer and then there would normally be mediation,before a decision was made.
This is not going to get your gearbox repaired in South Aust. though.But you would need to obviously keep receipts etc for when you got back.
You might like to mention to the original repairer that you are going to contact the MVRIA though,and that you will be claiming the cost of the repair and any further out of pocket expenses.
Unfortunately there is only one person in NSW I would trust to build a LandRover gearbox or transfer properly.And he doesn't work in a fancy workshop.

Wayne

My 2c,

If you provided the part either new or second hand and the mechanic was either instructed to use these then you have problems.

Unless the part that failed was either observably faulty and a reasonable mechanic should have detected this and told you in which case the Mechanic has some problems.

If the part that you supplied failed and was faulty but not observable on installation then you have problems.

If the part you provided failed but on fitting “seemed”/was working properly but turns out to be the wrong part or faulty you have problems.

If the part was incorrectly fitted regardless of who provided it the mechanic has problems.

Basically mechanics in NSW make a profit on parts they supply, it’s part of their cost structure. If you provide parts to save money then you take the risk of part failure and fixing. Fair enough.

Having run a case through the NSW system with my brother (we won) it is can be expensive and you have to have qualified experts (qualified mechanic/engineer) supporting you. Also very time consuming, nothing moves fast.

Also costs of your experts are not recoverable. Nor do I think other costs you nay incur being interstate. Far better to reach an “agreement”.

Alternatively if you can get the mechanic to notify his insurer and deal directly with them, this could be the least expensive for you, quicker and you get to speak to the insurer.

All the best.

Ok ,so how have things turned out Alex?

Wayne

An update from Alex:

He's still at Port Augusta. His gearbox arrived in Sydney during last week, and is supposed to be repaired under warranty as it was recoed 4 months prior to its demise. The mech was concerned that there was only 500ml of oil in the box when he received it.

Alex is heading for Adelaide tomorrow, will be there for a few days, if anyone wants to catch up for a beer with him PM me and i'll send you his contact number.

Hey guys,

My trip
Finally back online after a comedy of errors. Firstly my gearbox fails forcing me to leave Susie in Port Augusta and continue travelling in the convoy north towards the Simpson Desert. I was the communications guy for a marathon event across the Simpson Desert.

The event organisers were incredibly disorganised, and began worrying about water/fuel just before we entered the National Park. Already one car down, and every vehicle in the convoy was grossly overloaded, the Project Manager fired a member of the support crew for trying to overpower him (merely because he voiced his concerns for fuel and water). Two vehicles down - stuck in Mt Dare we we're going to make it across. The owner of the Mt Dare hotel (Jeff) offered the Project Manager a fuel and water drop because he shared similar concerns to that of the support crew. The drop went ahead.

After entering the national park, the support crew started to setup and pack up camp in under an hour, everything became habitual - fuel and water were no longer concerns and the race was going ahead.

On the day of the $2500 fuel/water/fuel drop from Mt Dare, about 10km east of the intersection with the Colsons Track we receive a call on the Satellite phone from the police advising us to leave the park as bush fires were heading across the french line. We abandoned camp and left camp in a mad panic.

After arriving back at Mt Dare we were informed that the race had been cancelled and every member of the support crew and the runners turned against event managers. On top of all the animosity between the crew and the management, one of the support crew receives a call at Mt Dare informing him that his mother passed away (at 65) 3 days ago.

The following day all vehicles left for Alice Springs leaving the event managers in Mt Dare to recover the 750Kg~ of equipment abandoned in the park.

All in all quite an interesting trip- though I didn't make it across the Simpson :(

Now about my car
My gearbox has been removed and is due to arrive in Sydney tomorrow. After a long battle with mechanic that reconditioned the gearbox 4 months ago, and a threat to take the matter further, the gearbox mechanic has promised to rebuild the gearbox using brand new components under warranty. So I should receive the gearbox in Port Augusta on Friday/Monday, refit it and be on my way.

When I first bought the car the gearbox was run without oil and had failed. The seller offered to give me 2 old transfer cases and a gearbox for a V8 that the gearbox mech (a mate of his) could use as shelf stock if he dropped the price a few hundred dollars. The mechanic agreed and all was well. However I believe there was a miscommunication in the whole process and the gearbox mechanic has extracted the 20year old layshaft from the V8 gearbox and had used it in the reco box. Consequently I believe it failed (not sure if it's a different part or if it was just fatigue).

The gearbox is yet to be opened, though the mechanic in Port Augusta raised concerns that only 500ml of oil was drained from the box when he pulled it from Susie. After 4 months of city driving and one big trip (Syd to P.A) with no obvious/noticeable leaks where could 2l of oil disappear to?

Anyways guys, thanks so much for the SMS's and PM's you're support has been awesome.

Geez Alex what an adventure. It would be a shame if you don't get to cross the Simpson this time. Still you have a good story to tell.