Good service from Fiat

[aandy]

While in France two months ago I had an engine warning light come on, the cause of which turned out to be a failed exhaust differential pressure sensor. Fiat workshop in Epinal replaced it (560 euros) and all was well. Returned to France yesterday and the light came on again. Found a Fiat dealer ten minutes away, near Caen, who diagnosed the same fault. When I explained the history they rang the dealer in Epinal and, having confirmed it was indeed the same fault, replaced it free of charge. Having arrived at 3pm, I was on my way by 5:30.

 

Obviously I would prefer not to have had the problem in the first place, but I am greatly impressed.

Andy

[Solomongrundy]

From a quick search for a Ducato Sensor you'd only pay around £60 or less, depending on model, which seems a lot of labour charges for the price you were charged.

[aandy]

I don't have the invoice with me but, from memory, it was around 180 euros for the sensor, 200 for labour, and the rest for some magic potion to clean the DPF, plus VAT. Engine is a 2.3 Euro 5.

[monique.hubrechtsgm]

You were robbed. The sensor is outside the DPF - pot, and takes 5 minutes. Was this a FP dealer?

[euroserv]

Not necessarily robbed.

 

The earlier Euro5's built before mid 2013 had a different sensor to that fitted on later vehicles. To change over to the later sensor there were a couple of quite expensive steel pipes that needed to be changed as well. It's quite possible that these pipes had to be fitted when the sensor was changed. It's unfortunate that the problem did not occur while under warranty because this would all have been done free of charge. The later sensor is made by Bosch and is as stated; around £60 but will not always need changing because the problem is more often than not caused by water in the pipes, affecting the readings from the sensor. If it is removed and shaken, then the pipes blown through with compressed air; this often fixes it.

N

[monique.hubrechtsgm]

For any repair by a FP dealer there is a time set and parts to carry out the repair, and the cost of it. That price is open to the customer of a fiat vehicle. I will never or ever pay that bill.

[aandy]

Both were Fiat Professional dealers. While I understand your concern about pricing, being in France and with only a basic grasp of the language, I was not confident of finding a good independent. As it turned out, had I not used a Fiat dealer I suspect I would have found it difficult, if not impossible, to get Fiat to meet the cost of the second replacement.

 

Nick, that's encouraging. At least it should be less cost and hassle should I be unlucky enough to have it fail a third time. Sounds as though it could even be a DIY fix, or is that too ambitious?

[euroserv]

As long as you can get under it comfortably, there is one nut to undo and two pipe clips. Take care when removing the pipes from the sensor because the plastic tubes are not strong. Gentle twisting should do it but pulling on them is a no-no. The electrical connection is easy too.

[aandy]

Thanks Nick. With luck I won't need to touch it, but useful to know just in case.