Vosa Vehicle Recalls

[chris vince]

Dear All,

I came across this site during my daily duties.

http://www.vosa.gov.uk/vosa/apps/recalls/default.asp

VOSA is the Vehicle & Operator Services Agency.

Its not a lot of use to us lucky Lexus owners! however there are quite a few recalls out there for our cars.

It may be of more use for any other make you may also own (hope yours are all done).

Regards, Chris Vince

[cleverdick]

Interesting...

But it seems to me that the concept is flawed, since the onus is on the vehicle manufacturer to 'own up' and issue the recall. Perhaps this is why there are more recalls issued in the US for any given model, since the makers are afraid of huge lawsuits there. I'm sure somebody will step in and correct me if necessary!

At the risk of digressing, I had a fruitless exchange of correspondence with the Ford Motor Company a few years ago in connection with this subject. My previous car, A 1983 Mk2 Granada Ghia X, had a 'timebomb' planted in it in the form of a hidden and undocumented (even in the Dealer's workshop manual) filter INSIDE the fuel tank. Over time, this filter gets clogged and eventually caves in and blocks the pipe, resulting in a stall. This happened to me on the M25 when overtaking an HGV! I know that Sierras were affected by this design, too. I wrote to Ford, asking them which models were affected by this design and from what years. I also suggested that they issue a recall, since there were many such vehicles still on the road and that this was arguably a safety matter. (Poor maintenance could not be blamed, since this 'secret' filter was not listed as a service item.) I also asked how many years does a car have to be out of production before the manufacturer WON'T issue a recall, in other words, what is the cut-off period after which their obligation ceases. Of course, they failed to address any of my questions head-on and I am still none the wiser. If a safety issue now came to light affecting early LS400s, could Toyota legitimately claim that the car is past its intended lifespan? I have never seen, in writing, what the intended life of any vehicle actually is, and for how long it will be supported by the manufacturer. Perhaps this is something that prospective buyers should ask the delaer at the time of purchase!