The Holden Recall – What’s It All About?
A couple of weeks ago, the radio and other new channels rang with the news that Holden had ordered a recall. Now there are a lot of Holden enthusiasts out there, and a few of them might have got a bit worried that their new pride and joy might be part of the recall. And now another one’s just been launched. What is going on?
In a nutshell, if you haven’t got a letter from Holden, don’t panic: you’re fine. Holden took responsibility for tracking down the owners of the vehicles affected by the product recall. Two types of Holden have been affected by this recall. First of all (recall notice issued 21st November) , there’s the 2.0 L Diesel Holden Captiva Series one with the following VIN numbers:
• KL3CD26RJ8H307843 to KL3CG26RJ8H313387 (2008)
• KL3CA26RJ9B258567 to KL3CD26RJ9B557340 (2009)
• KL3CA26RJAB000715 to KL3CD26RJAB118110 (2010–2011).
The second Holden recall which was only issued yesterday (5th December) applies to the 2.0 L Diesel Holden Epica with the following VIN numbers:
• KL3LA69RJ9B137502 to KL3LA69RJ9B529009 (2009)
• KL3LA69RJAB000281 to KL3LA69RJAB099015 (2010)
• KL3LA69RJBB005838 to KL3LA69RJBB065472 (2011)
To find out more about the details of the recall, visit http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/1008793 about the Epica recall and
http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/1008473 about the Captiva.
If you have another type of Holden, then this recall doesn’t apply to you. You can keep driving your Commodore or Calais quite happily.
Product recalls happen because of a flaw in the product – in this case, the car, and it’s the same problem in both the 2.0 L Captiva and the Epica. And because bringing your car back to an authorised Holden dealer to be given a clean bill of health or to get the problem fixed is a nuisance, especially at this time of year, we’re not talking about some fiddly little thing. Here, the problem is a potential leak in the fuel feed hose – in other words, there’s a risk of diesel getting where it shouldn’t be, which is a very dangerous situation, as the stuff’s highly flammable.
Product recalls are annoying, but they’re part of the way that manufacturers ensure that their product is safe. I, for one, am glad that Holden is checking their products and taking action now that they’ve found an alarming (but easily fixed) flaw in their vehicles. It’s much better than doing nothing – and, according to the Dog and Lemon Guide, there has been a case in history where an automotive manufacturer – which will remain unnamed because it was in the past and the cars in question are off the road, but it wasn’t Holden – decided that it would be cheaper to pay compensation to grieving relatives than to fix a design flaw that could lead to the cars catching fire. So, Holden, thanks for caring and making sure that customer satisfaction and safety are important to you.
And if you have been contacted by Holden about your Captiva or your Epica, don’t be a silly muggins and ignore it. Yes, it’s a nuisance to have to take your car back to an authorised dealer to get it checked and fixed, but if you don’t do it, you could be putting yourself at risk. We don’t want that. Holden doesn’t want it. And you don’t really want it either.
PS: If you want to know more about product recalls and consumer rights, visit the Product Recalls page of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commision’s website at http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/952401.
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