DUAL MASS FLYWHEEL CAUSE OF CLUTCH GOING?

Question

Hello there, I'm a novice with mechanics and cars.
I bought an 06 plate mondeo st tdci and took a 12 month warranty with 'Evans Halshaw.'
3 months later the Dual Mass Flywheel and clutch went!
Evans Halshaw turn to me saying they will pay £500 for a new 'Dual Mass Flywheel' but not the 'Clutch,' due to it coming under the category of 'wear and tear.' So I have to folk out £750 for a clutch and labour (but surely the DMF and clutch are in same area so why the £750 for a clutch as I'm sure labour can't cost that much!!??)

What I would like to know is, was it the breaking up of the DMF the cause of the Clutch breaking down?
If it is I'm going to use this against them into why I'm not paying for the clutch, even if its wear and tear.

Any advice would be appreciated! Many thanks!

Answer 1

It's customary to replace both given the amount of labour (time) it takes to remove everything to get at it, they'd be mad to replace one without the other. Whether the clutch failure has caused the DMF to fail or vice versa is impossible to say, the DMF's a horribly complicated piece of gear and surely manufacturers will soon learn to stop fitting them.

To be honest, they ARE screwing you a bit to recoup the cost of the DMF, you'd pay about £750 all in for a complete clutch & DMF at a local garage.



I'd be happy they're offering to foot the bill for at least some of the work, many places would just shrug their shoulders and say the whole lot's down to wear & tear.

Welcome to the expensive world of modern Diesels, this is only the start.....

Answer 2

That's one reason why I will never take out a warranty.. They never cover the things that are most likely to go wrong ...CLUTCH is one , unfortunately you will probably find the flywheel needs replacing because the clutch was down to it's springs and damaged it...



Ok could be? dual mass flywheels are notoriously unreliable on turbo diesels because of the high torque.. but get a written expert opinion from your garage and use that to make a claim... Next time you purchase a car be carefull of the clutch.. take note when your new clutch is fitted how low it engages compared to a tierd clutch that will engage high



I recomend you get the work done at a Ford dealer ask them for a quote on a new clutch fitted and compare it? I paid out £1700 for the same job but on a 4x4 jag .........it does sound a bit steep for a front wheel drive car

Answer 3

A clutch kit shouldn't be more than 100, and as it has to be completely dismantled to do the DMF there's no justification for charging 750. They are trying to get as much of the cost out of your wallet as they can

Answer 4

You should only have to pay for the clutch. Replacing the Dual Mass Flywheel involved removing the old clutch anyway so there should be no extra charge for replacing it.