Warning - Nissan Qashqai clutch failure

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 10:20am #1

Just had to pay €750 euro to replace clutch in wife's 08 Qashqai. Only has 50k miles on the clock with one experienced driver. Contacted Nissan Ireland and there attitude to the situation stinks, refusing to pay or compenstate for clutch failure due to 'wear & tear'. My argument to them is that even if a clutch or any other part of the car is worn out so quiuckly this is obviously a manufacturing fault and therefore Nissan should cover this.

Have seen other threads on UK forums where is looks like this is a common problem with Qashqai's so be warned. We were considering getting the Qashqai + 2 model in the future but after this we will never buy another Nissan.

johnos1984 · 18-08-2011 10:27am

Doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

Nissan Ireland were well within their rights to refuse. Are you sure you're not just pissed off with having to pay to get i done?

Daved_XB · 18-08-2011 10:34am

To be honest every car maker would have the same response, clutch, tires, breaks are all wear & tear items... sure someone could wear out a clutch in 50 miles let alone 50,000 miles.

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 10:37am

Not reasonable given the low mileage and the fact that the car cost €27k just 3 years ago.

Have no problem paying for 'usual' costs associated with a car of this age such as servicing, tyres, brake pads etc - all items that truely are exposed to 'wear & tear' but a clutch being worn at 55k miles is just ridiculous and is clearly a manufacturing failure.

Have done nearly 120k miles in my own car with no clutch problems and the wifes previous car a VW polo is still going strong with the orignal clutch and it's a 00 reg with nearly 150k miles and has been used by 3 different learner drivers during it's lifetime to date.

Would have thought that Nissan could have at least made some gesture given the orignal cost of the car and the fact that is less than 3 years since it was bought. Guess they don't value customer loyalty.

My advice to anyone thinking of buying a 2nd hand Qashqai is steer clear unless it's had the clutch replaced.

phill106 · 18-08-2011 10:39am

This chap only got 1800 miles!
http://www.nissanforums.com/general-discussion/140130-700-qashqai-clutch.html

Anan1 · 18-08-2011 10:40am

Did Nissan remove and examine the clutch before deciding that it was wear & tear?

johnos1984 · 18-08-2011 10:41am

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

My advice to anyone thinking of buying a 2nd hand Qashqai is steer clear unless it's had the clutch replaced.

This isn't an issue with them AFAIK. I've never come across it.

After 50k miles, yes it's early, but it's not unreasonable for it to fail.

And Nissan are well within their rights not to cover it. It normally wouldn't be covered as it's a wear and tear item and the car is outside it's warrant anyway.

Do you mind me asking did you drive it hard during the cold snap, get stuck in snow/mud and ride the clutch trying to get out or do any towing with it or anything else which would shorten it's life?

shamwari · 18-08-2011 10:43am

50k miles for a clutch to go is not a lot and I can understand the OP feeling aggrieved. However 50k does give Nissan an out because it is well within the "fair wear and tear" zone.

Given the amount of work involved, €750 for a clutch replacement from a main dealer doesn't seem too bad either.

L-M · 18-08-2011 10:45am

If they replaced if for you everyone could dog their clutch and claim it wasn't there fault, they've no way of proving you didn't pull a house behind you for the last 50,000

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 10:49am

Interesting feedback all...

@ Anan 1 - no they made the call that it needed replacign before actually removing it. Based their decision on the car 'juddering' and clutch slipping on their test spin during service.

I see some folks in the UK who encountered the same problem have had some success getting Nissan to cover under warranty.. http://forum.qashqaiclub.co.uk/judder-when-moving-away_topic2055.html

Anan1 · 18-08-2011 10:51am

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

@ Anan 1 - no they made the call that it needed replacign before actually removing it. Based their decision on the car 'juddering' and clutch slipping on their test spin during service.

IN order to decide whether it was covered under warranty, they'd have to determine why it needed replacing. Wear & tear would not be covered, but failure due to a manufacturing defect would.

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 10:53am

johnos1984 wrote: »

This isn't an issue with them AFAIK. I've never come across it.

After 50k miles, yes it's early, but it's not unreasonable for it to fail.

And Nissan are well within their rights not to cover it. It normally wouldn't be covered as it's a wear and tear item and the car is outside it's warrant anyway.

Do you mind me asking did you drive it hard during the cold snap, get stuck in snow/mud and ride the clutch trying to get out or do any towing with it or anything else which would shorten it's life?

No hard driving to be honest - wife was off work during cold snap and my car was used for any trips we needed to make.

No towing either

To be honest I was really shocked that it had gone so quickly as it's a one driver car that's had no abuse and the heaviest load it's hauled is the weekly shopping from Lidl's:)

johnos1984 · 18-08-2011 10:55am

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

To be honest I was really shocked that it had gone so quickly as it's a one driver car that's had no abuse and the heaviest load it's hauled is the weekly shopping from Lidl's:)

I can understand you feel hard done by at 50k miles (I wouldn't be impressed either) but I doubt Nissan Ireland will be too willing to help.

Is your clutch just juddering or has it actually failed?

The link you posted is just for clutch judder

Master and commander · 18-08-2011 11:27am

well i agree, therey are just telling the truth. Brakes clutches tires and the like are wear and tear items and could be worn out in that time due to the drivers habits.

I think if you read the small print of the warranty it will state that friction linings in clutches and brakes are not included in the warranty so i'm afraid you'll just have to pay for it. They are under no obligation to replace it free of charge since its not covered.

No offence but in general the formula "clutches + women = not good" applies here

Thatnastyboy · 18-08-2011 11:32am

shamwari wrote: »

Given the amount of work involved, €750 for a clutch replacement from a main dealer doesn't seem too bad either.

Surely it was just the clutch disk & not the pressure plate etc that needed changing?

Is 750 not very high? or am i just ignorant to the cost of running a modern car??

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 11:48am

Master and commander wrote: »

well i agree, therey are just telling the truth. Brakes clutches tires and the like are wear and tear items and could be worn out in that time due to the drivers habits.

I think if you read the small print of the warranty it will state that friction linings in clutches and brakes are not included in the warranty so i'm afraid you'll just have to pay for it. They are under no obligation to replace it free of charge since its not covered.

No offence but in general the formula "clutches + women = not good" applies here

Would normally tend to agree with the formula above but the my problem is how can it be that a person (male or female) drive 2 cars for 100k + miles with no clutch problems yet then on a 3rd car with half the milage the clutch goes? In this scenario the driver is the same, only difference is the cars / manufacturers.

Refuse to accept the thinking of categorising a clutch in the same bracket as brakes / tyres as these items are clearly 'consumables' that will wear over the same period of time pretty much regardless of make/model, although driver habits will be a factor to consider with these.

There are thousands of cars on the road with 100k+ miles done that have never had a clutch replaced, don't think the same can be said for tyres or brakes.

Thatnastyboy · 18-08-2011 12:18pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Would normally tend to agree with the formula above but the my problem is how can it be that a person (male or female) drive 2 cars for 100k + miles with no clutch problems yet then on a 3rd car with half the milage the clutch goes? In this scenario the driver is the same, only difference is the cars / manufacturers.

Refuse to accept the thinking of categorising a clutch in the same bracket as brakes / tyres as these items are clearly 'consumables' that will wear over the same period of time pretty much regardless of make/model, although driver habits will be a factor to consider with these.

I there are thousands of cars on the road with 100k+ miles done that have never had a clutch replaced, don't think the same can be said for tyres or brakes.

In my humble opinion there are too many variables involved to compare other cars, or even another Qasqai to yours; driving style, number of stop-starts, hill starts, possible resting of foot on clutch pedal whilst driving, holding it with the clutch on a hill, even the materials used in the clutch friction plates.

I agree 50k is relatively low for clutch faliure, but, It has to be accepted as a consumable, if it failed on 5k I would understand.

There are also thousands of cars on the road that have had to have clutch changes well before 100k miles..

I do feel for you having to fork out such a sum for something you would hope to do at least twice the mileage, but I dont think that Nissan have a case to answer..

scholar007 · 18-08-2011 12:23pm

Bought a car from new. Did 30k miles. Changed car and gave the car with 30K miles to herself. At 40K miles the clutch was gone.

TigerTim · 18-08-2011 12:44pm

I've just seen my mechanic replacing al clutch & dial mass flywheel on an 08 Ford Focus ad 50K miles(80K KMS). He says the DMF are giving unreal issues.

My old Corolla had 180K miles on original clutch. Older technology used.

T.

Master and commander · 18-08-2011 12:52pm

Thatnastyboy wrote: »

Surely it was just the clutch disk & not the pressure plate etc that needed changing?

Is 750 not very high? or am i just ignorant to the cost of running a modern car??

its probably just the disk that is shot but when clutches are replaced it is done as a kit and the disk, pressure plate and release bearing are all replaced also regardless of their condition. I used to work in a agri dealer and when we had to split a trator for some reason we automatically replaced the clutch regarless of whether there was anything wrong with it or not. I imagine it would be the same for a jeep.

Darsad · 18-08-2011 1:08pm

Petrol or Diesel ? I guess Diesel am I right ?

Halfshaft · 18-08-2011 1:11pm

Any pics of the worn clutch in question? 1 good inspection of the 3 piece clutch would tell alot about what happened.....

Nissan doctor · 18-08-2011 1:12pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

There are thousands of cars on the road with 100k+ miles done that have never had a clutch replaced, don't think the same can be said for tyres or brakes.

There are also thousands of qashqai's on the road with 100k+ miles done that have never had a clutch replaced.

mb1725 · 18-08-2011 1:17pm

scholar007 wrote: »

Bought a car from new. Did 30k miles. Changed car and gave the car with 30K miles to herself. At 40K miles the clutch was gone.

My significant other put 198,000 miles on one clutch in her old e36

YESHUCKSTER · 18-08-2011 1:23pm

Halfshaft wrote: »

Any pics of the worn clutch in question? 1 good inspection of the 3 piece clutch would tell alot about what happened.....

Am following up with the dealer to get the original clutch back - will post pics when I have them

Nissan doctor · 18-08-2011 1:27pm

mb1725 wrote: »

My significant other put 198,000 miles on one clutch in her old e36

The women and clutches thing is rubbish IMO, in the 12 years I've known the better and the 3 cars she'd had in that time none have ever needed a clutch.

-Chris- · 18-08-2011 1:55pm

Fabritzo wrote: »

Ah, another women versus clutches thread. 50k is pretty good going in fairness.

Master and commander wrote: »

No offence but in general the formula "clutches + women = not good" applies here

Lads, if you can't keep your stupid, sexist comments to yourselves, you're going to be banned from this forum for a while.

shamwari · 18-08-2011 8:49pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Am following up with the dealer to get the original clutch back - will post pics when I have them

They'll probably tell you that the price they gave you was based on exchange of old parts and therefore they won't give you the old ones back

April08 · 30-09-2011 8:04pm

I have a 2010 Qashqai and I have had nothing but trouble from day one. Firstly, three weeks after purchasing I noticed the paint bubbling on the boot. I brought back to the dealer and several phone calls and letter writing to Nissan HQ and haggling finally got them to agree to replace the boot lid. They only wanted to respray it. The second problem came 6 months on when the fan belt went. THey duly replaced it. The third problem came at 12 months when the bearing in the front went. They replaced this too. Has anyone encountered problems like these with their new Qashqai?...... I will NEVER buy another NISSAN again. I had a Toyota for years and never had a problem.

ianobrien · 30-09-2011 8:19pm

While knowing nothing about the driving style of the OP, all I can say that given the abundance on modern diesels with loads of low down torque on the road, I'm not surprised if clutches are being burned out.

The amount of people I hear and smell slipping clutches on diesel cars is unreal when out walking around any hilly parts of town. It seems that people were used to the characteristics of torque delivery of a petrol engine and are driving the diesels that way, resulting in lots of needless slipping clutches.

Also, OP, is this your first Nissan? I know that the Nissan hydraulic clutches can take a small bit of getting used to and can lack "feel". I know it took a bit to get used to mine.

By the way, my record for burning out a clutch is 1.2 miles.......

AndrewBond · 30-09-2011 9:35pm

Qashqais are not too bad in terms of reliability, they give small troubles here and there but generally they are OK, not any worse than majority of modern cars. Prematurely worn clutch is not common problem for them (its Navaras and Pathfinders that are giving a lot of troubles with burnt clutches - bad design causing overheating of the clutch). Dealer was, most likely, right as it is practically impossible to proof some manufacturing defect that caused clutch to wear excessively. Unless manufacturing defect was proved, warranty will be lawfully rejected. You can choose not to buy another Nissan if you like, but the same practices are used by all manufacturers and their dealers

ottostreet · 30-09-2011 10:28pm

April08 wrote: »

I have a 2010 Qashqai and I have had nothing but trouble from day one. Firstly, three weeks after purchasing I noticed the paint bubbling on the boot. I brought back to the dealer and several phone calls and letter writing to Nissan HQ and haggling finally got them to agree to replace the boot lid. They only wanted to respray it. The second problem came 6 months on when the fan belt went. THey duly replaced it. The third problem came at 12 months when the bearing in the front went. They replaced this too. Has anyone encountered problems like these with their new Qashqai?...... I will NEVER buy another NISSAN again. I had a Toyota for years and never had a problem.

That doesn't sound that bad? Do you think cars require no work or maintainance at all?

Darsad · 30-09-2011 11:00pm

April08 wrote: »

I have a 2010 Qashqai and I have had nothing but trouble from day one. Firstly, three weeks after purchasing I noticed the paint bubbling on the boot. I brought back to the dealer and several phone calls and letter writing to Nissan HQ and haggling finally got them to agree to replace the boot lid. They only wanted to respray it. The second problem came 6 months on when the fan belt went. THey duly replaced it. The third problem came at 12 months when the bearing in the front went. They replaced this too. Has anyone encountered problems like these with their new Qashqai?...... I will NEVER buy another NISSAN again. I had a Toyota for years and never had a problem.

Thats awful and your right no mass produced product with over 10,000 individual parts should ever give a problem you should have gone straight to your solicitor :rolleyes:

As a previous poster said the biggest problem with early clutch failure on modern diesels is the fact that they produce the max torque at very low rpm in many cases < 300 nm above 1800 Rpm
What happens is people who were used to driving petrol vehicles continue while parking or manouvering to control vehicle speed with their left foot ie clutching while keeping RPM above 1500 RPm end result clutch gone 50 K or less

YESHUCKSTER · 29-12-2011 12:14am

ianobrien wrote: »

While knowing nothing about the driving style of the OP, all I can say that given the abundance on modern diesels with loads of low down torque on the road, I'm not surprised if clutches are being burned out.

The amount of people I hear and smell slipping clutches on diesel cars is unreal when out walking around any hilly parts of town. It seems that people were used to the characteristics of torque delivery of a petrol engine and are driving the diesels that way, resulting in lots of needless slipping clutches.

Also, OP, is this your first Nissan? I know that the Nissan hydraulic clutches can take a small bit of getting used to and can lack "feel". I know it took a bit to get used to mine.

By the way, my record for burning out a clutch is 1.2 miles.......

It is a 1.6 Petrol model

YESHUCKSTER · 29-12-2011 12:23am

Darsad wrote: »

April08 wrote: »

I have a 2010 Qashqai and I have had nothing but trouble from day one. Firstly, three weeks after purchasing I noticed the paint bubbling on the boot. I brought back to the dealer and several phone calls and letter writing to Nissan HQ and haggling finally got them to agree to replace the boot lid. They only wanted to respray it. The second problem came 6 months on when the fan belt went. THey duly replaced it. The third problem came at 12 months when the bearing in the front went. They replaced this too. Has anyone encountered problems like these with their new Qashqai?...... I will NEVER buy another NISSAN again. I had a Toyota for years and never had a problem.

Thats awful and your right no mass produced product with over 10,000 individual parts should ever give a problem you should have gone straight to your solicitor :rolleyes:

As a previous poster said the biggest problem with early clutch failure on modern diesels is the fact that they produce the max torque at very low rpm in many cases < 300 nm above 1800 Rpm
What happens is people who were used to driving petrol vehicles continue while parking or manouvering to control vehicle speed with their left foot ie clutching while keeping RPM above 1500 RPm end result clutch gone 50 K or less

This thread relates to a 1.6 PETROL Qashqui with faulty hardware (non consumable) I.e. Clutch failure. Exibit A for this POV is same driver having a polo & a corolla both for 100k miles with zero clutch issues.

PaulKK · 29-12-2011 12:29am

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

This thread relates to a 1.6 PETROL Qashqui with faulty hardware (non consumable) I.e. Clutch failure. Exibit A for this POV is same driver having a polo & a corolla both for 100k miles with zero clutch issues.

A clutch is a consumable though, it wears out. While I feel that 50K is a tad early its not unreasonable for it to be worn out at this stage. Generally if there are manufacturing defects these things wear out very quickly, not after 50K miles.

-Corkie- · 29-12-2011 12:31am

PaulKK wrote: »

A clutch is a consumable though, it wears out. While I feel that 50K is a tad early its not unreasonable for it to be worn out at this stage. Generally if there are manufacturing defects these things wear out very quickly, not after 50K miles.

Exactly I have heard of DMF'S going at this mileage.

YESHUCKSTER · 29-12-2011 12:42am

PaulKK wrote: »

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

This thread relates to a 1.6 PETROL Qashqui with faulty hardware (non consumable) I.e. Clutch failure. Exibit A for this POV is same driver having a polo & a corolla both for 100k miles with zero clutch issues.

A clutch is a consumable though, it wears out. While I feel that 50K is a tad early its not unreasonable for it to be worn out at this stage. Generally if there are manufacturing defects these things wear out very quickly, not after 50K miles.

Can't be considered a consumable if in one make / model it can take endless milage with same driving pattern / style from same driver yet another car it fails early. Would you say the same thing about anything else? Can't believe that people think this is an acceptable issue for certain models. Next time i pay 26k for a car I'll be avoiding the Nissan forecourt.

L1011 · 29-12-2011 1:15am

ottostreet wrote: »

That doesn't sound that bad? Do you think cars require no work or maintainance at all?

Lots of Irish people assume this, got INCREDIBLY lucky on old Toyota/Nissan lumps and curse every car they've bought (and failed to maintain) since.

YESHUCKSTER · 29-12-2011 4:30pm

MYOB wrote: »

Lots of Irish people assume this, got INCREDIBLY lucky on old Toyota/Nissan lumps and curse every car they've bought (and failed to maintain) since.

Repairing faulty paint, fan belt and bearings all within the first 12 months of a cars life should not be considered maintainence.

Drummerboy08 · 29-12-2011 4:44pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Can't be considered a consumable if in one make / model it can take endless milage with same driving pattern / style from same driver yet another car it fails early. Would you say the same thing about anything else? Can't believe that people think this is an acceptable issue for certain models. Next time i pay 26k for a car I'll be avoiding the Nissan forecourt.

Just as a matter of interest, I'm wondering what makes you qualified to state the above? I'm not being smart, I'm just wondering if you are a mechanic/motor engineer etc?

Can you actually prove that Nissan should have covered this item under warranty, I.e. an independent engineers report etc?

Guy:Incognito · 29-12-2011 5:03pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Can't be considered a consumable if in one make / model it can take endless milage with same driving pattern / style from same driver yet another car it fails early. Would you say the same thing about anything else? Can't believe that people think this is an acceptable issue for certain models. Next time i pay 26k for a car I'll be avoiding the Nissan forecourt.

Theres plenty of things that are similar like that. Different models of tyres by the same manufacturer will have much different life spans. Thats without even including different brands.

If every clutch was the same there'd be only 1 company making them (the cheapest). Why would anyone else bother?

AndrewBond · 29-12-2011 5:14pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Repairing faulty paint, fan belt and bearings all within the first 12 months of a cars life should not be considered maintainence.

You can get a bad luck like this with any other new car. I am not a particular fan of Nissans and have no interest in protecting their image, but I can assure you, they are far from being the worst on the market (not the best either). What I am trying to say, that decision to avoid Nissans won't guarantee you peace of mind, you still have a small chance to get into similar troubles with any other car

L1011 · 29-12-2011 5:27pm

YESHUCKSTER wrote: »

Repairing faulty paint, fan belt and bearings all within the first 12 months of a cars life should not be considered maintainence.

Hence the warranty.

barura · 29-12-2011 5:39pm

Just wondering, if a clutch went after 60k miles over 5 years, would you still feel the same? That's only the difference of 10kmiles but 2 more years "trouble free". I understand your woes, a clutch shouldn't go like that, but perhaps you just got a bad roll of the dice. There are exceptions to everything. If this cluch lasts you 100kmiles+, would you still be singing the same tune?

Also bigger car + low(ish) powered engine would result in a quicker clutch failure? A clutch in a small car can take a hell of a load of trashing as it's not being put under as much stress due to the weight it has to pull, which is considerably less. I'm referring to your Polo that's done 100k+ no clutch replacement.

In short, sorry your clutch went, but maybe the next one won't go so soon, but 50k and 750 being the biggest cost so far is quite reasonable, IMO.

damien doyle · 12-01-2014 12:55am

I have a 09 nissian quashqui & there is a smell from the clutch my warrarnty is nearly out but wonder is these cars any good as i had a fiesta for 8 years with no trouble now i have water in the boot & burning clutch what next

b.c · 12-01-2014 1:48am

Nissan = Renault, I have been through an expensive clutch recently, clutch plate, pressure plate and release bearing were all fine,dmf flywheel worn out? First clutch ever replaced in 21 years

bbam · 12-01-2014 11:27am

I think there's no point in talking about comparing clutches now to 20 years ago.
There is no doubt that they have been engineered to be lighter and produced as cheaply as is acceptably possible.
This would seem to have reduced their lifetime in many cases and across many makes / models they have become a long life consumable item.

My brother has a 08 Focus and has just done the clutch, one of our friends has an SMax and theirs was done last summer 08 as well.

I appreciate OP being frustrated, but I think clutches need to be taken as a long life consumable.

I think the developments in vehicle reliability and technology are worth it compared to the few places we've last out on.

ba_barabus · 01-08-2014 11:58pm

WHAT FRESH HELL IS THIS???????????

sammyano · 18-12-2014 5:17pm

Guys, I have been searching for nissan Qashqai 2009 - 2010 and after reading all these now a bit confused - currently own a 2001 Almera from new and have not had any problem with it at all.

Poulgorm · 20-12-2014 11:01pm

The reliability of engines, transmission and electrical systems of modern cars is gone to bits.

The mechanics / garage owners on here who argue that it is all down to skipping maintenance by the owners are talking rubbish and their self-interest in expensive repairs is obvious.

VAG, BMW and the others will never produce trouble free cars until the EU forces them to give a 5 year guarantee, or something like that. No chance of that happening though, given the importance of the motor industry.

Your best chance of getting a trouble free car is a Toyota or Honda, with a petrol engine. They are not turbo charging their engines (so far).

Warning - Nissan Qashqai clutch failure

Comments