Thermostat housing failed leading to engine failure

[CFH]

I had a catastrophic Qashqai engine failure without warning. Thermostat housing split open leaking coolant, the engine overheated and an engine warning light only came on a few seconds before I came to a total standstill. RAC rescue van confirmed he had come across this problem with Qashqai’s before, my garage confirmed this was the issue and with minimal research we found other Qashqai drivers had exactly the same experience as me. My husband stopped just last week to talk to another Qashqai driver in Norwich who had the same issue. Nissan have been totally unhelpful - they said I would have to pay £180 for a diagnosis and of course as the engine wasn’t working I would have also had to pay for transport. The DVSA said Nissan were aware of this problem and were dealing with it but not so in my case - I have never had any notification that there was an issue with this part failing. Nissan gave an outline price for reconditioned engine replacement of £11,500 - £3000 more than the car was worth. The particularly frustrating part about this is I had loved  my car - it was in pretty perfect shape. We have lost £8000-9000 and it seems incredibly wasteful when Nissan could have recalled Qashqais and changed this relatively cheap part.

[Trevor]

i would say its a case for the ombudsmen and certainly run it past citizens advice to get some more guidance on pursuing a claim

If unsuccesful then a secondhand engine (with the revised cooling system parts) may be the most financially advisable way forwards

[CFH]

Thank you - the ombudsman is the direction we are heading but I am surprised the DVSA has not taken it seriously as I have read about lots of other people who had the same experience but in much more dangerous situationseg:  on motorways and again with no dashboard warnings. Nissan have apparently revamped this part a few times but shocked how they have washed their hands without any help.

[Trevor]

its amazing how powerful the media can be in resolving such issues with manufacturers - keep trying as you may get a good outcome
 

[CFH]

Thank you yes haven’t given up yet as we really looked after our car so feel it is pretty unfair 🙃

[sublow40]

Exact same thing just happened to me this weekend, car just stopped with no warning! I'm going to try and claim through my finance company claiming a breach of my consumer rights but i'm not hopeful. Looking online it seems the problem is endemic! 

[CFH]

I am really sorry to hear that -sadly you don’t have dig deep to see lots of other people in the same boat. I am afraid I found Nissan completely awful to deal with- I really hope you have better luck as we have lost thousands. Citizens advice suggested approaching the car finance company if you have a finance deal because claims can be made outside the warranty of the vehicle. Trading standards are also worth contacting - the more of us who contact the DVSA with evidence I  think the better - because engine failure without warning is very dangerous, particularly as this is such a popular family car. I am planning on sending details about this issue to car journalists. I hope you get a happier resolution.