2020 RAV4 Oxygen Sensor Fault

[Jean Jacques]

Engine warning light came on less than 48 hours after delivery. Its been off the road for 2 weeks with the likliehood of a further 2 weeks minimum due to availability of replacement sensor. Not impressed. Anyone else had this problem or know how I can escalate this beyond my dealer. (The repairing dealer who has it now in Coventry isn't the same dealer in Leeds that supplied it).

[Teresap]

I’m really sorry to hear of this fault with your new car. Hope mine will be ok I’m collecting it on the 1st March. 
many years ago I had a bad experience with a new Ford Explorer. After about a week of ownership I discovered the body hadn’t been painted properly. I took the car to my local ford dealer for them to paint the effected areas. For the job to be done properly it needed the glass to be removed but the ford motor company wouldn’t do that they insisted the windows where to be masked up and painted up to the edge. I refused to allow that to happen and had a long battle with ford. Ford refused to play ball. 
the mistake I made was I didn’t take the car back to the point of sale and reject it. Under your consumer rights your contact is with the supplying dealer and not Toyota 

[FROSTYBALLS]

You escalate to Toyota GB Customer Services - https://www.toyota.co.uk/contact-us/

[Phill111]

5 hours ago, Teresap said:

I’m really sorry to hear of this fault with your new car. Hope mine will be ok I’m collecting it on the 1st March. 
many years ago I had a bad experience with a new Ford Explorer. After about a week of ownership I discovered the body hadn’t been painted properly. I took the car to my local ford dealer for them to paint the effected areas. For the job to be done properly it needed the glass to be removed but the ford motor company wouldn’t do that they insisted the windows where to be masked up and painted up to the edge. I refused to allow that to happen and had a long battle with ford. Ford refused to play ball. 
the mistake I made was I didn’t take the car back to the point of sale and reject it. Under your consumer rights your contact is with the supplying dealer and not Toyota 

A friend of mine had similar with a Ford van. They point blank refused to do anything but mask and spray despite the body shop saying to them this would not be a suitable repair and would fail in time. He had it less than 30 days so formerly rejected the van. Both the dealer and Ford at first refused, until his credit card company got involved. He had paid the initial deposit on his credit card so was covered for the full cost of the van. A couple of phone calls from the credit card companies legal team and the refund was duly given.

I would agree, the contract is between the buyer and the dealer. Inside the first 30days you can reject and they have to accept it. Simple as that. After 30days it gets a little more complicated but they buyer still has all the cards. So don’t back down, don’t take no for an answer and know your rights.

[Phill111]

5 hours ago, Jean Jacques said:

Engine warning light came on less than 48 hours after delivery. Its been off the road for 2 weeks with the likliehood of a further 2 weeks minimum due to availability of replacement sensor. Not impressed. Anyone else had this problem or know how I can escalate this beyond my dealer. (The repairing dealer who has it now in Coventry isn't the same dealer in Leeds that supplied it).

Contact the supplying dealer that sold it to you and put them on notice that if it is not fixed inside x days (try and keep it inside 30 days from delivery) that you will formerly reject the car. If they cannot get the part they will probably take it from a donor vehicle, or at the very least offer you a loan car of the same model until yours can be sorted.

 Faults do happen and you have been unlucky. However the dealer has a responsibility to you and wait for a month for a brand new car to be fixed is not acceptable. I don’t blame Toyota, but the poor response from the dealership.

[TabbyBoy]

On 1/24/2020 at 9:38 PM, Phill111 said:

Contact the supplying dealer that sold it to you and put them on notice that if it is not fixed inside x days (try and keep it inside 30 days from delivery) that you will formerly reject the car. If they cannot get the part they will probably take it from a donor vehicle, or at the very least offer you a loan car of the same model until yours can be sorted.

 Faults do happen and you have been unlucky. However the dealer has a responsibility to you and wait for a month for a brand new car to be fixed is not acceptable. I don’t blame Toyota, but the poor response from the dealership.

I can't agree more. In fact, I'd give them just 7 days to resolve or replace the car before starting proceedings to formally reject it via the CAB and Trading Standards. It gets more difficult as time goes on and I say this as it could be lemon with one fault after another. Yes, faults can occur, but you do need a resolution and, at least, the same car that you paid for to drive while it's being fixed. You should name and shame the dealership on here, I certainly would!

I had a nightmare from Nissan when my "death-trap" Primera failed it's first MOT (it was on first name terms with the AA before then!) with 3 serious faults (steering rack crack, suspension bushes very worn and dodgy brake servo after only doing 18,000 miles!. Of course, after speaking to a good solicitor that I didn't know of previously, I refused to drive the car and got Trading Standards and my local MP involved. After about £5K in legal fees and 3 months of court hearings, Nissan UK were forced to accept my formal rejection of the car and gave me a 100% refund of the original RRP plus legal costs and £1K goodwill. Yes, I ended up with a "free" car for 3 years, but it was a total pig and caused no end of stress during that time. To be honest, I was considering paying somebody to steal it and burn it out. This is why the Nissan Qashqai and X-Trail weren't even on my short list when looking for a new SUV!

Remember, the customer has more rights than they think and a lot don't use them, it's a shame.

TIP... Always finance (eg. 0% PCP if possible) a car rather than a cash purchase and place even the smallest deposit using a credit card, you'll then get extra protection if there's problems down the line. A dealership in a legal battle with VISA or a major bank stands little chance of getting one over on you.

[MrBee]

On 1/24/2020 at 4:04 PM, Jean Jacques said:

Engine warning light came on less than 48 hours after delivery. Its been off the road for 2 weeks with the likliehood of a further 2 weeks minimum due to availability of replacement sensor. Not impressed. Anyone else had this problem or know how I can escalate this beyond my dealer. (The repairing dealer who has it now in Coventry isn't the same dealer in Leeds that supplied it).

Hi, I was wondering how you got on with this? 

Is it all fixed? 

[Jean Jacques]

On 2/8/2020 at 1:36 PM, MrBee said:

Hi, I was wondering how you got on with this? 

Is it all fixed? 

Hi - Escalated to Toyota UK (thanks Frostyballs !) I got the vehicle back after being off the road for exactly 4 weeks following the breakdown which occurred less that 48 hours after delivery. They loaned me a C-HR during the 4 weeks and I've just received a £150 High Street voucher as a "gesture of goodwill" from Toyota UK. I'm still regaining confidence in it and I keep looking out for the engine warning light !