My car and I

So how do I like my new car? I like it. It drives very well, the power was good, the ride is smooth and it responds to curves very well.

So no complaint there then? Not really...... The air-conditioning system is something else. Ever since I got the car in October '07, I had to take it back to the workshop 5 times due to the air con failure. Yes, you read it correctly, 5 times! So it was like once a month. The problem started just about a month after I got it. The air con just failed; instead of cooling, refreshing air, it blew hot, sweltering air. Got it sorted out and so happily I went away as I was assured that that was the end of my problem. But, barely a month after that, the same thing happened. Obviously I was not happy and took it back to the workshop. This time the workshop blamed it on the person who did the last job. I was told that probably the guy did not charge up the air con system properly, resulting in a loss of refrigerant.

So was it the end? Nope! It happened for the third time. Took it to the workshop and clearly expressed my disappointment. The workshop guy was trying very hard to help, but let it slip that my car was not the first one to suffer the air con failure. So I was intrigued; apparently a few other cars have had the same problem. Nevertheless, it was sorted out and I went away, hoping that was the last of it.

But no! It happened for the forth time. This time I called the dealership and complained bitterly. The workshop that I brought the car to for the first three instances was an authorised workshop. So I opted to take it to the dealership's workshop. Now, the service manager said that the car manufacturer had identified some problem with a batch of the car and offered a solution. I told that two hoses would be replaced.

Barely a month since the last visit to the workshop, the air con failed again. That was the last straw. I called the dealership and spoke to the Sales Manager. Obviously I was not a happy bunny. I complained endlessly; at one point I told him that I might have lost them a few customers as I had not said anything nice about the car. Well, I did not really lose them any customers, but I thought it sounded dramatic and probably caused the Sales Manager to sweat a bit. I also told them that I barely drove the car since the last repair as the thought that the air con might fail always lingered in my mind and I was in denial about the air con problem. The Sales Manager also informed me that there was another car which had the same problem. I asked some owners and they told me they had brought their cars in at some point because of the air con. Anyway, I was told to bring it back for a more thorough check. I told him that I did not have the luxury of skipping work to bring it to Bandar for check-ups. So he offered to pick the car up from KB and lent me a car for my use (that was another story of its own). I was just told that during the last visit, instead of changing 2 hoses, the service guys thought that one of them was still ok and did not change it. The Sales Manager was quite convinced that that was the problem and changing it might solve the problem altogether. As I type this, the car is still being repaired and I should get it back tomorrow.

I did some investigations and found the following links quite unnerving: here and here. Apparently, the failure of the air con was caused by a design error, where the air con system was heated by the hot turbo exhaust or something like that.

So if you asked me if I would have bought the car if I had known the problem earlier..... I do not know really. Apart from the air con, everything about the car is good.

Oh, the story about the replacement car: When I got it, the fuel tank was empty and I had to fork out my own money for the petrol. Yeah, the dealership is not that good with the little things like this. When I first got my car, the tank was less than half full; my sister bought a Honda on the same day and her tank was brimming with petrol.