2006 Vauxhall Vectra Exclusiv from UK and Ireland - Comments

On the 8th of October 2007 I had use of a Vauxhall Vectra. I normally drive a Citroen C8 company car which was being serviced, a Vectra was a hire car supplied to me for the day. I noticed that when I picked up the car from the garage that the handbrake was down which I felt was odd especially as the vehicle had been left by the hire company driver at the citroen garage on the 5th. Later in the day I parked at Siblyback reservoir to check my dinghy. I parked on a slight incline, sufficient to require use of the footbrake to hold the car before applying the handbrake. About 40 seconds later after walking around to my boat I heard a noise looked over and the car was moving rapidly down the slope towards the reservoir. It ended up going over a 2 foot bank across the beach and ended up in the reservoir. Yes very funny in hindsight, but frightening at the time as there were many schoolchildren about 50 yards away who could easily have been killed if I had parked in a different position. As with previous reports the handbrake was completely down when I got to the car. I have been driving for about 30 tears and for the last 20 have averaged 30,000 mile per year, I know I applied the handbrake appropriately as the Citroen C8 has the lever on the door side so I had to consciously apply the handbrake, whereas others used to driving normally configured cars may have applied the brake subconsciously. I am fortunate in that firstly no one was hurt and that my company car insurance will cover the cost of repair. My email address is mikebaker59@blueyonder.co.uk Please feel free to add my experience to the case against Vauxhall.

I am a further victim of this problem. Having had a very minor incident some months ago which I had put down to absent mindedness the same occurred last night after parking on my driveway at home and I am now aware of the scale of this problem.

The driveway is on an incline, sloping away from the house. It is impossible to park and enter the house without the handbrake on. Last night I parked as usual at 18:40 Hrs, at 19:00 Hrs I heard a noise followed by a car alarm going off.

Looking out of the window my 07 registered Vectra had rolled clean off the drive, across the road and embedded itself in the bushes and trees in the front garden of my neighbour.

Upon retrieving the car the handbrake was fully released, as though it had never been on - which is quite impossible given where I park.

I now need a new front bumper, radiator, air con radiator and paint to the offside lower sills and will be out of pocket by some £500.00.

Hi.

All comments are noted. Would new people who leave comments on this site leave an email address. Otherwise all we are left with is an interesting story.

To the rest of you, the matter is still under control. Research is still being carried out.

Please, please, new complainants - please leave email addresses. They will not be passed by me to a third party without your consent. But it makes it easier at this end.

Kindest regards.

Dave.

I had a new Vectra delivered 9th Dec 2005. A couple of days later I had arrived home from work, parked the car on the ever so slightly inclined driveway and walked towards the back door. As I was entering the door I was startled by a loud thud from the front of the house, only to find the car on the green on the other side of the road where kids often play.

My fleet business people and Vauxhall tried to convince me I was the dumbo for not parking the car in reverse gear on my drive, something I have never had the need to do in 38 years of driving. I now have no confidence in the hand brake and am counting the days to the lease expiry date; no more Vauxall's for me.

Interestingly enough, my next door neighbours Vectra was seen passing my front window driverless a couple of weeks earlier; he is sales manager for the local dealership!

TD NORTH WALES.

I also have an 06 plate vectra with a dodgy handbrake. I left the car parked on a very slight incline on a busy road, nose in to pavement as per the parking bay. Took the cat to the vets and returned 45 minutes later to find two police officers putting bricks under my wheels. Apparently the car had slid out into the road, thankfully not hitting anything, and the police had been passing and put the car back and decided to brick under the wheels. They did not take any action merely telling me 'We know its not your fault mate, it's a vectra'. Got the vauxhall letter recently with a helpful sticker to remind me to always leave the car in gear and that there is no fault with the handbrake!!! If there is no fault why make stickers and send them out to vectra owners.

Frasergsmith@supanet.com.

Hi,

When in Ireland for a short break with my wife and 2 friends, we hired a Vauxhall Vectra From Avis at Belfast airport on 20/04/07. Drove out to Letterkenny to a rented house which had a very steep driveway.

Parked the Vectra at the top of the driveway that night. Handbrake was applied properly and also left in gear.

Looked out window about 30 minutes later and the Vectra had rolled down the driveway and collided with a crash barrier opposite, damaging the bumper. The handbrake was in the off position.

The following day while sitting at set of traffic lights, and with handbrake applied, the handbrake jumped off, car rolled back and I applied the footbrake.

Returned Vectra to Avis on 23/04/07 and informed them.

They charged me £190 for repair to Vectra, and said they would check vehicle

Phoned them about a week later and they said handbrake was fine.

Phoned Vauxhall UK to inform them there may be a problem with vectra handbrakes, but they denied it saying there was nothing wrong with their handbrakes.

Gerry.

Ryang347@aol.com

I too have suffered from Vectra Handbrake Deficiency syndrome. The faults occured on my wife's 53 reg Active, purchased in September last year from a Vauxhall NQ dealer. In the first instance it released while my wife was still in the car without engine running. It rolled 3 feet into the corner of my garage wall causing £200 of damage (fortunately I found someone who could repair the bumper saving cost of replacement). We automatically assumed she must of somehow caught the lever and released it. At it's service in June I requested that the dealer looked at the handbrake mechanism as occasionally, when applying it, I was greeted with a loud clunk. They (obviously) found nothing un-toward. The self-releasing mechanism came into action again last week, fortunately this time the car was in gear which gave me time to stop it rolling further (which was worrying as the car was facing down a slope and in Reverse gear!)

I too have the new yellow sticker repair kit which I have yet to apply. Hopefully it will stick better than the handbrake!

btw, I drive a 2001 Omega and have never suffered from this problem

cstidder@hotmail.com

Two weeks ago my Vectra (2004) ran away from my drive after being parked for about half an hour. Vauxhall deny any responsibility and tell me the insurance company would not have accepted my claim if there was manufacturing fault!

I may make a claim through the small claims court to try to recover my insurance excess of £200 if they don't cough up. I have driven cars and trucks for 50 years and have always been trained to depress the handbrake button when applying the handbrake in order to avoid wear of the quadrant pawls. The advice given on the stickers sent by Vauxhall is suggesting an abnormal practice - hardly promoting safety.

It is also, on occasions, necessary to park a car without putting it in gear. e.g. opening gates on gated lanes - opening garage doors - warming the engine on frosty mornings etc.

My local village garage says they have known Vauxhall handbrakes to be notoriously bad for years and have developed a technique for adjusting the secondary handbrake pads and not trying to correct mal adjustment via the brake cable - but they say it impossible to ensue a consistent performance as it either grabs or is ineffective. I think there is a problem that the Vauxhall routine service schedule is too long between services due to the use of long life synthetic oils and therefore safety items like the brakes don't get sufficient routine checks and adjustment. However a properly designed car should not demand unrealistic finicky attention and should 'be fail safe'.

It seems Vauxhall Motors are trying to deny any problem exists in order to avoid an 'admission of guilt' or an expensive rectification campaign - but of course the 'Letter and Sticker' they sent out is a form of passive admission that a problem exists.

Regards.

Malcolm Lyon.

I thought many might like to know that I have just inspected a Vectra on behalf of a Client and have taken video evidence of the handbrake lever letting itself off all by itself.

I will, of course, be sending this to Watchdog to help them further their case and to VOSA.

There is one other thing which has occurred to me whilst reading all your posts which include some from lawyers which may well need considering by somebody who is legally qualified to do so. That is usually when faulty goods (a car in this case) are bought and it is alleged not to be of Satisfactory Quality in accordance with the Sale of Goods Act, a contract dispute between the buyer and the seller arises if a resolution cannot be agreed.

In those circumstances and if it can be proven the goods were not of Satisfactory Quality the seller can be made liable for the losses incurred that arise form the breach.

If the car is bought directly from a car dealer the dispute is between the buyer and the dealer but if the car was bought under the terms of a Hire Purchase agreement for example the dispute is then be between the buyer and the finance company.

If I am correct, questions have to be raised why nobody takes action against whoever sold them the car with whom they have a contract in preference to taking up the argument direct with the Manufacturer with little help from the seller? Is everybody happy to be fobbed off by the dealers, bypassing the seller with whom they have a legally binding contract for the sale and supply of a car which should be safe and of Satisfactory Quality?

For reference, my old e-mail address was mark@brown72.fsnet.co.uk which has been replaced with ms.brown@sky.com if anybody wishes to correspond.

On Saturday 29th December I returned to the village Hall car park and my 07 plate Vauxhall had rolled backwards and into a wall. Luckily no one was hurt.

What are the procedures for repairs... ie is it best to make a complaint and then have the repairs carried out and then pursue Vauxhall.

I would point out I had a similar problem with a 54 plate Vectra and I did receive a sticker. I assumed the problem had been sorted out as I had nothing with my 07 plate car!

The post about Sales of Goods Act is a good one. After 5 months of letters and visits to the dealership I approached a solicitor who took my case on. After 1 letter they caved in and offered me a refund less £1000 for wear and tear on the vehicle, which I took since it would have cost £750 to start a court case and get a Barristers opinion.

As I state in my first posting on 3rd June 2007 I had 2 problems with my new Vectra, steering as well as the handbrake.

In December I had a phone call from General Motors Customer Care dept. to see if I was happy with the way my complaint was handled. I guess you all know my reply to that.

I went on holiday to Ireland in April 2003 and was given a 2002 model Opel Vectra by the car hire company I used. The house I was staying in was near the top of a hill, and on returning from a shopping trip I parked the Vectra on the driveway, and applied the handbrake correctly. While getting my shopping out of the car the handbrake failed. As the drivers door was open it hit me, I was knocked backwards, and my ankle ended up getting run over by the car. I spent eight weeks with my leg in plaster. The car stopped when it smashed into a concrete fence. This was fortunate as it if it had gone through the fence it would have dropped into the garden of the house below which had children playing in it.

Even before I got to hospital I contacted the hire company to come and take the car away. I was concerned the same thing would happen again, and I had no way of making the car safe. I was concerned somebody would be more seriously injured than I had been.

As I hadn't taken out personal injury insurance with the hire company I had no recompense. At this time there were no documented reports of problems with this model, though a mechanic I knew told me he had already heard of similar incidents. I was left with months of pain, physio, and an ankle which has never been right since.

I contacted Opel Ireland to advise them of the problem with the car, and to tell them they needed to do something about this or someone would be killed.

I can't believe that four years later the problem is still occurring and they have done nothing about this.

Siobhan105@googlemail.com.

I have a 2006 Vectra which I bought in July 2007. I have just parked it at the top of a hill at my mother in laws house with the handbrake on. I looked outside and my car had rolled down the hill and smashed into another car; both cars are damaged, mine the worst. After I phoned a few people I know with Vectras, I found out they had letters sent out to them about the problem with the handbrake. I have had nothing.

I can t afford to lose my no claims bonus, which is 70%. My car is bought through Motability as I depend on it for my disabled child. Who do I contact about getting this sorted. My email is lornag71@btinternet.com

When I bought the car I was not warned by the dealership about the handbrake, and did receive the letter and stickers about this problem.

This was featured again on Watchdog this evening. The problem has also spread to Corsas. Apparently Vauxhall are going to modify the handbrakes on Vectras and Signums by adding an extra spring. Vauxhall are going to be sending letters to all vectra/signum owners.

Hello All

I had a 04 vectra elite, in 2005 it rolled backwards down a hill (after the handbrake was applied). It totalled a golf and I was left with the excess to pay & lost all my no claims. I contacted vauxhall who replaced the handbrake as a'precaution'. My insurance company tried to pursue vauxhall for damages, but it was easier for them to lay the blame at my doorstep than pursue a lengthly & expensive legal fight with vauxhall! I've sold the car since as my insurance premiums rocked. Is anyone pursuing this in a court of law?? Radio Northampton did a brief stint on chasing vauxhall as I was so incensed and still am!! but they didn't get very far!

Regards.

Phil Burrows.