Truma Combi D6...warranty generosity [not]! (1 Viewer)

[andrewjw]

We are told that the Truma Combi D6 [diesel run air and water heater] in our van [still under warranty] requires a new glow plug to make it work...

Our local Truma service outlet [ well trusted ...long relationship with them] tell us that Truma are willing to pay for the cost of the part and one hour's labour.

Needless to say [as in most campers and caravans ] the D6 is well tucked away and will involve up to 4 hours labour to remove and refit....having done the easy first stages myself I can see why.

We will have to pay the difference..life I guess.

Truma say they will pay the labour to cover the cost of fitting the new glow plug as if the unit was " on the bench".

I'd suggest that there are very few of their heaters etc etc that are situated on a bench.

Last year the same unit had a PCB control unit replaced under warranty...no extra charges happily.

I suppose we should be grateful for small mercies...

Does anyone make vans that don't use Truma units?

I've seen lots of posts calling them Trauma .. I get it now.

 

[andy63]

Am I missing something here.. the equipment ..ie heater and van are still both under warranty. .. if that's the case why is there any cost to you of puting it right..
I may be wrong here but warranty work for a dealer is a good earner.. they do the work and bill the manufacturer. ..or is that not the way it works..
Had my van back in recently .. I gave them a list of all the faults even though many had been put right by myself.. they took it all on board and set about ordering parts to sort the various remaining issues.... I got the impression that they just ordered the various parts and billed chausson..
Would the same not apply to your heater problem if it's still under warranty? ?
Andy..

 

[andrewjw]

Yes , the van and the Truma unit are still under warranty...

So..you'd think it would be so as you have suggested ...but apparently not.

Truma are only willing to pay for the labour cost as if the unit is already on a workbench..not in situ in the van.

We just want to get it fixed so we can use the van...sadly Truma seem to have a monopoly on heaters etc etc so can get away with poor back up for their products when things go wrong.

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[Gromett]

Yes , the van and the Truma unit are still under warranty...

So..you'd think it would be so as you have suggested ...but apparently not.

Truma are only willing to pay for the labour cost as if the unit is already on a workbench..not in situ in the van.

We just want to get it fixed so we can use the van...sadly Truma seem to have a monopoly on heaters etc etc so can get away with poor back up for their products when things go wrong.

Truma should pay the share of the labour related to the work on the unit itself. I think they are right on that. But as it is a warranty repair on the van itself then the van manufacturer should pay the remaining labour I would have thought. It is not Truma's fault the van manufacturer put it in an awkward spot for maintenance. It is not your fault either so the manufacturer should pay?

I am probably miles out on this but that seems the logical conclusion?

 

[andrewjw]

Yes...that makes sense but may be not so easy in practice.

At the end of the day we just want to get the heater/ hot water working so we can use the van comfortably as it gets colder.

I just wanted to raise awareness that the warranties that come with the base van / converter / various bits of equipment manufacturer are not as easy to access as you might hope...call me naive!

 

[sdc77]

The two times i have dealt with Truma have been very positive tbh

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[andrewjw]

Good to hear..maybe I'm expecting too much..

 

[andy63]

Yes , the van and the Truma unit are still under warranty...

So..you'd think it would be so as you have suggested ...but apparently not.

Truma are only willing to pay for the labour cost as if the unit is already on a workbench..not in situ in the van.

We just want to get it fixed so we can use the van...sadly Truma seem to have a monopoly on heaters etc etc so can get away with poor back up for their products when things go wrong.

If that's the case then I'd expect the dealer you got the van from to do the work at no cost to you and assume they would bill the manufacturer of your van..
If only it was that simple by the sounds of it...
Best of luck but I'd be pressing for that solution...
Andy..

 

[two]

You should not expect Truma to compensate for a poorly designed installation. That should lie with the dealer & manufacturer.

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[andrewjw]

We imported the van from a dealer in Germany...maybe one of the downsides of not having your dealer close to hand....that would make things simpler you might hope.

 

[andrewjw]

You should not expect Truma to compensate for a poorly designed installation. That should lie with the dealer & manufacturer.

The installation is cleverly executed to fit into a small space...as is the case with many vans...Truma know that is the case but I take your point apart from the " poorly designed " comment.

 

[Gromett]

thinking about it a bit more. Your warranty and contract is with the dealer. The dealer with the manufacturer and the manufacturer with Truma?

The company you bought it from is the one you have the contract with. They should actually deal with the repair in full, and deal with Truma and the manufacturer to recover any costs. It should not be down to you.

Speak to your dealer first and if this fails give trading standards a call as they may be able to assist. I don't often recommend going to trading standards but on this particular issue I think they may be helpful?

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[andrewjw]

thinking about it a bit more. Your warranty and contract is with the dealer. The dealer with the manufacturer and the manufacturer with Truma?

The company you bought it from is the one you have the contract with. They should actually deal with the repair in full, and deal with Truma and the manufacturer to recover any costs. It should not be down to you.

Speak to your dealer first and if this fails give trading standards a call as they may be able to assist. I don't often recommend going to trading standards but on this particular issue I think they may be helpful?

Yes...makes sense but less easy to do with a German dealer many miles away...one of the downsides of importing that rarely gets mentioned in all the " import , easy to do and save ££££'s posts" you see on forums like this.

Thanks for your thoughts..seems like Truma have been fair enough.

 

[Gromett]

Yes...makes sense but less easy to do with a German dealer many miles away...one of the downsides of importing that rarely gets mentioned in all the " import , easy to do and save ££££'s posts" you see on forums like this.

Thanks for your thoughts..seems like Truma have been fair enough.

Sorry didn't see your German post until now... It is probably going to be cheaper to pay the 3 hours than drive to Germany to get your dealer to sort it out.
However may be worth speaking to them and the manufacturer as one of them may be willing to pay for the labour? Worth a try.

I do however think Truma are being more than fair though.

 

[andrewjw]

Sorry didn't see your German post until now... It is probably going to be cheaper to pay the 3 hours than drive to Germany to get your dealer to sort it out.
However may be worth speaking to them and the manufacturer as one of them may be willing to pay for the labour? Worth a try.

I do however think Truma are being more than fair though.

Yes.will give it a go ..thanks for your thoughts.

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[TheCaller]

I'm with Gromett on this one - it's not uncommon for a dealer to agree for warranty work to be done local to the customer. The dealer can hardly claim they didn't know you were a long way away!

Truma are responsible for the heater. The dealer is responsible for taking the heater out & replacing it once repaired. They may or may not be able to recover that from the converter, but that will depend on the terms of their dealership agreement & doesn't directly concern you.

But I agree - it's not worth going to Germany just to get the job done, nor is it worth a huge or drawn out fight - you just want a warm van. It may just be a cost you have to offset against the saving you made on the original price.

 

[Scotties]

Can't fault Truma, they replaced a faulty unit (nearing the end of its warranty) with a brand new one and gave another 2 year extension, all f.o.c.

er... but I did have to go to the Truma factory in Germany.

 

[Lenny HB]

We imported the van from a dealer in Germany...maybe one of the downsides of not having your dealer close to hand....that would make things simpler you might hope.

Most German vans come with a pan European warranty so you should be able to take it to your nearest dealer, that's what we do with our Hymer.

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[Allanm]

The labour might be more expensive than the trip to the dealers in Germany. Our Truma heater packed up when the van was just outside the warranty. Truma agreed to pay for parts and I had to pay the labour cost to the local dealer. The heater was easily accessible under the fixed bed, but it still cost me over £400 for 5 hours labour.


Enjoy your trip to Germany!