Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

[sasha1]

Hi -I'd be grateful for some advice. I purchased a used Hyundai from a Volvo dealer just under a year ago. Prior to purchasing it the dealer put it through a service and MOT, using its own servicing department. Recently I noticed a problem with the handbrake and took it to the local Hyundai dealer to sort it out and asked whether it would be covered by the 5 year warranty. After inspecting the car they informed me that the handbrake had been fitted incorrectly and as a result just under £500 damage had occurred to the rear brakes. They informed me that the car was unsafe to drive. Initially they said they would contact the Volvo garage to ask them to pay for the repairs but subsequently said that they did not want to get involved, but would back me up by saying that the handbrake had not been fitted properly. I needed the car so paid for the works to be carried out ( I live in Maidstone and the Volvo dealer is in Gatwick).

My questions are - should the Volvo dealer be either partly or wholly responsible for the cost of the repair? Should a car service or MOT have picked up the fact that the handbrake had been fitted incorrectly? I am thinking of writing to the dealer, but what should I say? Am I being reasonable?

Any help with this would be appreciated. Thank you.

[sean5302]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

Hello sasha1.

If you've used the car for just under a year and it passed it's MoT I'm wondering what can possibly be wrong with the handbrake.
It's just a lever, connected by a cable to each of the rear brakes.
It's possible sometimes to fit clevises and pins the wrong way round, but that doesn't matter much.
I remember once taking my wife's Mercedes for its first service. They drained out my newly filled windscreen washer contents as it was blue and they only use their own proprietary stuff which is red. We had a conversation they didn't like and I didn't pay.
That's sometimes what you get with dealers.

I'm intrigued to know what could possibly have been wrong that would cost £500. Please let us know and I'll try and help you.

[sasha1]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

Hello sasha1.

If you've used the car for just under a year and it passed it's MoT I'm wondering what can possibly be wrong with the handbrake.
It's just a lever, connected by a cable to each of the rear brakes.
It's possible sometimes to fit clevises and pins the wrong way round, but that doesn't matter much.
I remember once taking my wife's Mercedes for its first service. They drained out my newly filled windscreen washer contents as it was blue and they only use their own proprietary stuff which is red. We had a conversation they didn't like and I didn't pay.
That's sometimes what you get with dealers.

I'm intrigued to know what could possibly have been wrong that would cost £500. Please let us know and I'll try and help you.

Hi Sean 5302;527606- As I understand it, because the handbrake had not been adjusted correctly brake fluid had escaped around the wheel which corroded the discs and shoes. Thank you for your help. Sasha1

[sean5302]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

5302 was an anagram of the old Leeds dialling code 0532. I've used that avatar for 20-odd years now. I'm a Leeds lad. Well, I was.

What the garage is telling you is baloney. I could write something stronger but I'd have Amethyst moaning.

You know what the handbrake adjustment felt like. It should have come on when you pulled the lever and freed off when you released it.
It seems that the garage is trying to say that it was too tight and the pads were held onto the discs causing excess heat, eventually making the caliper piston seal leak. A complete and utter pile.
If you imagine your car on the motorway in traffic, probably braking repeatedly from 70mph, the heat must be dissipated by the brake system. One of the main advantages of discs over drums is that they have excellent heat dissipation qualities.
What do they say about the automatic handbrake adjusters fitted to your car?
Finally, brake fluid is Dot4 and would not corrode steel discs. It could leak onto the pads, which cost around £20 to replace.
The garage has seen you coming. Were they wearing masks?

[paulajayne]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

Hand brake is NOT operated by hydraulic fluid and is a mechanical system cables and levers. The hand brake adjustment is completely separate from the hydraulic system.

Sounds very dubious £500 of damage.

[sean5302]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

By the way, I regret that I don't think you'll succeed in a claim against the garage.
Brakes are a wear item with any vehicle.
Nobody knows how much or how little braking any driver does and with the car having been driven for just under a year, I reckon you'd be on a loser.
Sorry to be blunt but I don't think you'd have any comeback now. The old parts would have gone to the bin and cannot now be inspected. If they were, you might see contaminated pads but who could say what the root cause was?

[twigthewonderkid]

Re: Incorrectly fitted handbrake to car

For future reference an MOT is only good for that precise point in time that the tester checks the items on the list.
Was "discs and shoes" their words? If so that is one poor mechanic, discs are on disc systems and shoes are in drum systems and not mixed on an axle.

So did you pay the £500 bill? As Sean5302 said that is a lot, have you still got the receipt detailing the work carried out and the parts replaced? You may have some recourse under the supply of goods and services act.