AYgo clutch overheating and warranty

[omb]

Hi all, 

First time poster so apologies if this has already been posted somewhere else, i have tried looking but could not find anything.  I have a 2012 Aygo 1.0 mmt which only has 8k miles on the clock.  It has been serviced by toyota annually with no issues.  I have had the dreaded beeping noise which indicates an overheated clutch.  Took it to my local dealer who confirms that the the clutch is overheating and it needs replacing £895 !!!

Obviously I questioned why it would overheat to which i was told driving style.  Given the clutch on an MMT is not controlled by the driver by the ECU,  I argued my case to no avail.  It was escalated to Toyota head office who have given me the same story.

 

Im obviously going to fight this but want to know if anyone has successfully got the clutch changed under warranty.  I'm aware of issues with the MMT but surely this cant be right.  the last thing that toyota stated was that there are clear instructions in the owner manual that you should select neutral when in traffic!

The car is driving like a snail at the moment so i am most probably going to have to get the work done anyway as it will soon become un-drivable 

Any help or guidance will be greatly appreciated 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Hello Hanif - welcome to Toyota Owners Club.

6 minutes ago, omb said:

I'm obviously going to fight this but want to know if anyone has successfully got the clutch changed under warranty.  I'm aware of issues with the MMT but surely this cant be right.  the last thing that Toyota stated was that there are clear instructions in the owner manual that you should select neutral when in traffic!

What you haven't said is whether you do select neutral in traffic or whether you leave it in the equivalent of 'drive'.

The MMT is a manual gearbox with an automated clutch. Clutches are provided with limited cover under the new car warranty (and this is the same with the majority of manufacturers), and after this limited cover they are usually regarded as a wear and tear item

[omb]

Hi Mike, 

 

It's my wife's car and TBH I don't think she does put the car in Neutral once stopped (didn't realise we had to to).  surely the clutch should not burn out with only 8k though?

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Mileage may not be the deciding factor. You live in Greater London, so like where I reside, there is a lot of stop/start traffic, etc. For example my daily commute of 6.5 miles could take anywhere between 30 minutes and an hour, depending on traffic in and around Birmingham City Centre. If the car isn't put into neutral when drive isn't required, the clutch will be experiencing a degree of wear, and over the space of three years or so, that could be enough to require a new clutch prematurely

[eygo]

agree with frosty

keeping the car in D and not in N is exactly the same as slipping your clutch or keeping your

foot on the clutch at traffic lights, and we all no thats a no no if you have come from a proper auto

leaving it in drive is not an issue but definately not in an aygo always select N

[TomdeGuerre]

That's why Toyota should never have flogged the MMT as an automatic. It had only two pedals and people who only held a licence to drive an automatic were legally entitled to drive them. Some streets in Glasgow have very steep hills with traffic lights practically every block and my wife could drive our Corolla automatic there  (proper automatic) with no problem. But she point blank refused to drive the MMT there. You really needed to be a 'manual' driver to know about the hill start with the handbrake etc - and before anyone mentions Hill Start or Assist brakes we didn't have them fitted. Even the CVT box will let you run backwards sometimes.  

Oh and wanting £895 for a clutch on an Aygo 1.0 is outrageous. 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Think with the MMT in addition to the clutch, it needs reprogramming. Couple of members last year were quoted £600-700 - would be worth trying a couple of Toyota dealers to see whether the cost varies.

[Wiz201]

This is why I'm not sticking with the same Aygo after three years, I don't trust MMTs. Generally if I'm stopped for ages I'll put it in neutral to save clutch wear. But most of the time my journeys don't have that much stopping and starting for long.

[eygo]

2 hours ago, TomdeGuerre said:

 wanting £895 for a clutch on an Aygo 1.0 is outrageous. 

this is why we sold our first aygo and bought one of the last facelift versions

as i could justify spending that much on a car nearly 5 yrs old

[omb]

I guess i have no choice.  i've fallen for the semi "automatic" sales pitch.  My wife is a manual car driver, however liked the idea of moving to a "automatic".  Think next time ill buy a proper automatic rather than a semi.

I have found a garage who will replace the clutch for a fraction of the price. I called around to  a number of Toyota dealers and they all started quoting up to £1000!

Needless to say ive advised my missus the use the car as a manual with regards to using neutral when at a standstill.

Thanks for all you advice guys 

 

[eygo]

as long as you drive it as you would a manual then the clutch will last you a long time with no issues

isn't it starnge that toyota never advised you how the mmt needs to be driven

[eygo]

7 hours ago, omb said:

I have found a garage who will replace the clutch for a fraction of the price.

just make sure they have the correct equipment to reset the mmt as it is really specialised

when we had ours i went to an auto gearbox specialist who had been around for 40 years

and they couldn't do the toyota as the software was too expensive for the amount they would do

in a year.

[TomdeGuerre]

1 hour ago, eygo said:

as long as you drive it as you would a manual then the clutch will last you a long time with no issues

isn't it starnge that toyota never advised you how the mmt needs to be driven

Toyota did build in a warning light to warn when the clutch was starting to overheat. They advised in the handbook to pull over and let it cool down. 

[eygo]

49 minutes ago, TomdeGuerre said:

Toyota did build in a warning light to warn when the clutch was starting to overheat. They advised in the handbook to pull over and let it cool down. 

thats like bolting the stable door after the horse has gone ,

the damage has already been done by that time

rather be told you have to drive this car like driving a manual car

because it will cost you in the region of £1000 to repair

 i am sure having that figure in your head would help you drive the car properly.

[Wiz201]

MMT gearboxes have a warning when you are stood still in gear too long and flash neutral. This could be like road work traffic lights for example

[ihpj]

I have posted a detailed experience of claiming for MMT clutch under Toyota extended warranty on my Aygo. I have a very good dealer, there were no issues, all sorted under Extended Warranty  

[eygo]

your lucky having a good toyota dealer,our local dealer isn't even rubbish,

saturday 9th july our auris was booked in for an issue with dab radio covered by a tsb

on arrival Johnsons toyota wirral told me they couldn't find a tsb and recommended i took it back to

the toyota dealership i bought it from,10 minutes later i looked on my pc & found the tsb so gave

them a call quoting the tsb number they now are willing to do the work since i completed the leg work for them.