Just over two weeks ago I was driving to the airport and my car instantly lost power when moving off from a set of traffic lights. I had already driven 100miles that morning with no bother and the car was running perfectly as normal.

When I pulled away from the traffic lights, there was a complete lack of power then the engine failure sign flashed up on the dash. I pulled off the main road instantly and stopped and the car completely cut off. The car was recovered and taken to the garage where it has been for the past 2 weeks.

Warranty direct have sent an independent engineering to report on the vehicle and have come back with the following.....

"We are now in receipt of the Independent Engineers report for your vehicle
in regards to the Turbos and engine failure -

The conclusion to your claim has good news and bad news I'm afraid -

The engineer confirms the initial failure to be a service wear and
deterioration to both turbo chargers however concludes a degree of drive-on
damage now deeming the engine beyond repair -

Deterioration of the turbo chargers has resulted in oil by passing the
seals resulting in oil being drawn into the induction system resulting in
the engine over running and then finally causing a hydraulic lock -

An element of drive-on damage whilst in a failed state has been confirmed -

In respect of your warranty cover unfortunately any element of drive-on
damage is a specific exclusion within the warranty whereby parts and lab
costs for this damage incurred would not be covered, therefore the warranty
is in a position to agree and authorise labour and parts less policy
deductions for replacement of both turbo chargers only -

We are in a position to agree and authorise this contribution towards the
repair and will be speaking with the garage shortly -"

Drive on damage? It was a sudden loss of power and no further driving was done, I stopped almost instantly? Anyone have any advice/experience on this? It appears to me as though they are trying loophole out of it. The only reason the engine has failed is because both turbos failed?

oh sorry no advice but this is every rrs owners worst nightmare,unless you're loaded and money is no object then we all have to rely on our warranties.I thought W.D. was one of the better ones.can you ask W.D.for a second opinion as we all know the turbo failure can take out the engine no matter how quickly you stop.feeling real sorry for you,hope you get something more from them,

^^^ yes ditto

That sucks. If you switched off immediately I would fight back on the 'drive on' clause. Its your word against their conjecture. Get yourself a legal opinion from citizens advice. 2008 MY Java Black TDV8 HSE

How are they coming up with the "drive on" theory.
The only "drive on" you did was to get the car to a place of safety, the damage was already done.
Do not let them get away with this, ask for proof of where they got their findings from.
How do they know the car wasn't "driven on" by the recovery team or the garage. 2005 Vesuvius 1st edition ( now sadly gone ).

I have logged a complaint with them first to see what they come back with, then if I am not happy with that response I will be speaking to the Financial Ombudsman next and potentially seeking legal advice if it's still not resolved.

From their policy wording:

"Failure of any insured part (or parts) which a qualified engineer appointed by us, believes has been aggravated due to the vehicle being driven-on after the fault was more than likely to have been apparent to the driver. In such cases we will only be liable for the reasonable repair costs the engineer believes would have resulted if the vehicle had been stopped at the earliest opportunity."

From the time the car lost power to me pulling over it was under 30 seconds. I do not know how much sooner an opportunity I could have had to stop the vehicle?

IMO the turbos have failed, consequently leading to the engine failing. There's no two ways about it. He even said that in his email himself.

Anyone know the best place to source a reconditioned engine for a TDV8?

That's the way to deal with it - take them on!

Irrespective of the outcome with the warranty; as you are in Scotland if it were me I would be contacting Disco_Mikey as no-one knows more about sorting out these beasts than he does. Contact him by PM ?

Even though the engine is said to have suffered a hydraulic lock it may be salvageable. There was at least one have a go hero on the forum who replaced a bent con-rod without even taking the engine out of the car! 2008 MY Java Black TDV8 HSE

Hi Mike

Sad news

Once you have the complaint dealt with WD if you're not happy with the outcome you can take it to the financial ombudsman - no need for legal rep (unless you really want one) as they are a free and impartial service.

I would may be consider getting your own independent report on the reason for the engine failure. If you are right you can ask the ombudsman to add the cost on to any compensation should you win the case.

Also having a full service and no previous issues should help your case.

It has a full dealer history, last one done 4000 miles ago in October. WD had an independent inspection carried out on the car before issuing the warranty also. After reading all the positve reviews on here for WD I thought they were a good honest company who wouldn't try to wriggle out of genuine claims.

I will wait and see what they come back with from my complaint before going to the FOS, however I will need to find out where I stand for getting the car fixed while the complaints process is still on-going. I can't wait around for weeks/months waiting on the them, I need it fixed and back on the road.

RRSMike wrote:

From their policy wording:

"Failure of any insured part (or parts) which a qualified engineer appointed by us, believes has been aggravated due to the vehicle being driven-on after the fault was more than likely to have been apparent to the driver. In such cases we will only be liable for the reasonable repair costs the engineer believes would have resulted if the vehicle had been stopped at the earliest opportunity."

From the time the car lost power to me pulling over it was under 30 seconds. I do not know how much sooner an opportunity I could have had to stop the vehicle?

Really sorry too, Mike. As a TDV8 driver who has had the WD warranty for three years for the very reason that the turbos are big bucks if the blow, I'll be following this thread closely. As others have said, I'd have hoped its impossible for WD to wriggle as naturally you'd have to have driven a few yards at the least to find a safe spot. If the turbos blew at 70mph in the fast lane it would be a good half mile before you'd safely be able to pull over - and they surely cannot say that's excessive 'drive-on'?

Personally I think they work on a percentage, say the same to all their claimants, then hope that a certain percentage just take it on the chin and pay up, whilst the others who dare question them are in the minority.
I like being one of those minority people, lol. 2005 Vesuvius 1st edition ( now sadly gone ).

I have logged my complaint with the Ombudsman, however Warranty Direct have 8 weeks to get back to me with a final written answer before they can investigate.

I will need to find out where I stand regarding paying to get it fixed myself in the mean-time. I am unsure if I can do this and then claim back later if they decide that I do indeed have a case.

Also, NWS (anyone heard of them?) have quoted me £4800 for a new engine or the same price to rebuild mine. Anyone any experience with them or recommend the best place to source a TDV8 engine?

I want it at a reasonable price, but obviously not on the cheap as I do not want to run the risk of any other problems with the new engine.

Warranty Direct currenlty covering two new turbos, so hopefully a decent engine/rebuild along with them will be the end to my woes.

You need deep pockets for these beasts.......... the Mrs is not happy and wants me to get rid of it ASAP haha.

8 weeks is the maximum hopefully they will come back quicker...maybe give them (WD) a call and say that you will either get it repaired and bill them or hire a car and bill them (if you succeed). see what they say.

Ouch ! that's an awkward one I also would have thought you would have been safe with that one, I have a Sytner warranty with mine, I hope it lives up to my expectations should I need it . Just to add I think that the number 40 has been missed off after the WD, as they are certainly trying to slip out of this one !!  2007, HSE, Cairnes Blue, Factory tints, Love it !!!

Got a reply from Warranty Direct and they are standing by their initial conclusion. A total joke.

"Ultimately, I am confident, had the vehicle been stopped when the turbochargers first showed signs of failure, the consequential engine damage would have been avoided".

There were no signs of failure, it just happened there and then! This is like banging your head against a brick wall.