[W.A.G.7]

I have been reading this thread for quite a while and I feel really sorry to read what you have been going through. Though your heart may not accept it, your i20 is a lemon. From what I see in the consecutive posts, the dealer is becoming more and more unresponsive to your problems with each passing day.

I think it's time now for some legal action action against the dealer and Hyundai before the car becomes danger to you or your family.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by motorhead666

Check this link, might help you out I20 - Power Steering Not Working! While Slow Driving - Hyundai-Forums.com : Hyundai Forum

The EPS malfunction in happened in my car when it was being dead straight on the road. There was no turning involved at all. I have no doubt in my mind that this has happened due to the steering rattle issue, which I have been raising with the workshop and the company itself. Neither the workshop nor the RO realises the criticality or the gravity of the situation.

I am supposed to pick up my father from the Diu airport today. Now because of the steering malfunction, I am being forced to hire a taxi to go to Diu as it is too dangerous to drive the car now.

Take note, "Always......all the way" & "Always Around" slogans of Hyundai are no where to be seen or heard here.

[skanchan95]

When the EPS malfunction happened twice on the same day, I was lucky that the car was at rather slow speeds . If the same malfunction happens on other i20s troubled by the steering issue on highways or at high speeds, the occupants of the car may not be so lucky.

The only reply on e-mail I got from Hyundai RO(A'bad) was a machine like, Kindly contact our dealer for the necessary rectification on the same .

I had pleaded with Hyundai to atleast send a qualified company engineer to my residence to have a look at such a critical issue, where the steering malfunctioned when the car was being driven( I damn well knew those jokers from Om Hyundai would have no clue nor would have I allowed them anywhere near the car after the damaged the car so badly last time). I requested them that since there is now an i20 with this particular malfunction(possibly due to steering rattle), they can look at it and prevent any such malfunctions from happening in the future and probably save someone's life.

But no, neither Hyundai RO nor anyone from Hyundai ever bothered to reply to this genuine & serious concern. Just could not believe their insensitivity
They do not realise how serious the issue is. They probably are waiting for another such failure to be reported and may be check on a wrecked i20!!!!!

[selfdrive]

In the absence of a 'local high placed contact' who can help you, I think the best way forward for you is to file a case with the consumer court and ask for a full refund + charges for all your troubles. Unless you drag them to court, this will never be resolved. I am no legal expert, but I am sure you have a very strong case with all the evidence of emails, etc. they are taking you lightly as you are an individual user and arent using any influence.
If you take this route, I would not recommend going in for a replacement, as there is no guarantee about the product in itself now. I have been dilly dallying about my purchase between the I20/ Figo/ Jazz, but after seeing your experience, I will neither consider the i20 nor recommend it to anyone else.
I hope you can resolve this issue to the best of your interests.

[noopster]

Sandesh, please stop driving that car at once. It's not worth the risk to your own and your family's safety.

An appeal to all TBHPians: *surely* somebody knows decent people at Hyundai who can help. Am sure there are TBHPians who work with Hyundai and can help a fellow member out? This is getting out of hand!

[selfdrive]

I checked the Hyundai website for any details for escalations. I remember that one of the car manufacturers have the details of top management at company level (could be Fiat, not sure) for addressing escalated complaints. I cannot find anything for Hyundai on their website. Perhaps you should call the Mumbai RO (not telling them you are from Gujarat) and ask how/ where you can escalate complaints to the company itself. there has to be a way to contact the company hq in india if issues cannot be resolved by the RO.
Please do not drive the car anymore and try to bring this issue to the attention of the relevant honchos well within your warranty period. If possible, take time stamped pictures of your mileage (not sure if this is adequate to show if you have not driven further since a particular date)

[skanchan95]

I haven't "touched" the car since that EPS Malfunction/Failure on the late evening of December 17,2010. The EPS failure/malfunction happened twice that evening at 23073 kms & 23075 kms on the odometer and after 12 days, it is still on 23075 kms- the car hasn't even been started since that day.

I realise that it is too dangerous to drive not only for me or for the car's occupants but also to the vehicles and pedestrians on the road. I also realise that the car may even start to behave normally if I drive it today, but why take the risk? If some accident happens, neither the police nor the company would believe me that accident happeend due to steering malfunction. I had been urging the RO & customer Care to send some company engineer to check the issue. But till date there has been no response from the company.

It causes great pain, anger and frustration to see the car this way, that it has become unsafe to drive. It is a torture to see the car everyday when I go out. Everywhere I go, I have to either walk or take a rickshaw and every second person asks what happened to your car. I am sick of answering that question and explaining so many times too. What makes me even more sick is the Hyundai has become so insensitive to such a serious issue. They probably don't realise that such a malfunction can happen in some other i20 which is troubled by this steering rattle issue. Like some government office, they chose to sit on my report on the numerous experiments done on the car and how "great" the works manager & staff are in Om Hyundai, Junagadh. Take note that the report was addressed to

1. Regional Heads(Ahmendad & Mumbai RO)
2. CEO, HMIL, Tamil Nadu
3. President, Sales & Mktg, HMIL, New Delhi

None of them even bothered to reply inspite of giving a full report of the car's troubled history right from the first service.

While going through my e-mails sent to Hyundai, I came across an e-mail in which I told them about one of Om Hyundai's "great" exploits where they had completely messed up the tilt adjustable steering after replacing the steering rack( second time). The adjustment lever had gone in so deep that it it took quite a bit of effort to unlock the lever and adjust the steering for rake & reach. Here's a copy of the e-mail that my brother(who's a marine engineer) and I sent to Hyundai notifying them of the tilt steering adjustment goof up by Om Hyundai due to their utter carelessness

From: Sandesh Kanchan
Sent: Thursday, September 02, 2010 3:24 PM
To: xxx@hmil.net
Cc: Customer Relations ; xxx ; xxxx@hmil.net ; xxxx@hmil.net
Subject: Pictures of Hyundai i20 GJ 11SXXX

Dear XXXXX

With reference to our telecon today morning, please find attached herewith the pictures of the "problems" in my car. Please judge for yourself if the "Authorised Service Centre" has carried out a satisfactory job. The pictures here are of the tilt steering and the front brakes.

On 15 July 2010, when the rack and tie rod assembly of the vehicle was replaced, the steering column had also been removed. Last week, when I tried to adjust the steering, I found the lever was very difficult to reach. As it would be evident to you from the pictures, adjusting the steering is a big pain as the lever has not been correctly aligned. The other pictures are of the driver's side front brakes which looks as if somebody has made a fine cut on the lathe machine. All four brakes have been replaced over a period of 4 months beginning April 2010, because the "Authorised Service Centre" could not locate the exact "problem". The "problem" I had brought to the notice of the people at the workshop was that of a screeching noise emnating from what seemed to be the rear brakes, which after two visits turned out to be form the front brakes.

As you had rightly asked me, "which car does not have problems", I completely agree with you, but the car in question is not even a year old. This car was bought on 28 September 2009 and in less than a year this car has frequented your "AUTHORISED SERVICE CENTRES" 12 times, 9 of those with the same steering rattle problem. And the explanation given to me for this rattle ranged from 'fault with EPS' to urethane bush to colorless grease tested in the scorching temperatures of Arizona and finally design flaw!!!!

We had owned a Hyundai Accent GLX, bought from Shreenath Hyundai, Rajkot in September 2001, which was a car with almost no "problem" for the six years we owned it. Then, it was a Suzuki Swift ZXi bought in January 2007, which too did not give us much trouble. Before asking one of the customers 'which car does not have problems', please take a look at the service HMIL had offered 6 years back and now being offered by your competitors.

After talking to you I am convinced that everybody at HMIL has taken this issue very lightly. This is the car's third year since launch and if the technical team has not been able to find a solution, i really regret my decision of having thought of this car. I am a mairne engineer, I work on ships which have 4 engines: 3 auxiliary for power generation and 1 main for propulsion. When the engine runs with a problem mid-sea, we troubleshoot and rectify the problem within a day. A car has much lesser moving parts than that of a ship and if the technical team has not been able to rectify the fault in three years, it is definitely a shame calling them engineers.


XXX is a keen follower of Team-BHP, even he may throw some light on this issue.

No doubt the Hyundai i20 is one of the best cars on Indian roads today, but this shoddy service and the attitude of the customer service exectives brings a bad reputation to this Korean giant. My client from Korea owns a Santa Fe and he just cant stop raving about the service committment of the company there and then just laughs off at the replies he has read from the Indian counter-part. When that gentleman does, he laughs at the attitude of the people here in this country, saying 'it can happen only in India'. Just goes to show how well we Indians are preceived abroad. Very shortly HMIL will be run like run like one of the many government organisations.

My request to you for visitng me in veraval was not to insult any of you. It was just to highlight the problems of customers who are located miles away from one of your "Authorised Service Centres". After spending over six and a half lakhs on this vehicle, I do not have any peace of mind. XXXXX, step into a customer's shoes and you maybe able to handle this issue with a little more sensitivity and please do not ask any customer 'which car does not have problem'

Regards

It was rectified in the next visit. But it points to Om Hyundai's carelessness & incompetence, something which I had been repeatedly raising with Hyundai.


Now, I wonder if the EPS malfunction was a culmination of some goof up on Om Hyundai's part when they worked on the steering on October 14, 2010. They had damaged the car at many places during the last visit(refer post no. 49 in this thread here). It wouldn't surprise me if tomorrow the car is checked and some fault is found in fitment of some part in the steering system!!!

Recent history of the car
September 30, 2010 : People from Hyundai Delhi along with Area Manager(Ahmedabad) & Works Manager(Om Hyundai) visit my residence and acknowledge presence of rattle in the car(though they claim it to be dashboard rattle from somewhere in steering column area). They accept that the defogger got damaged due to poor fitment of sunfilm at the workshop and agree to replace the rear glass

October 14, 2010 : Car visits workshop and the replace the rear glass and supposedly fix the dashboard(steering) rattle

October 15, 2010: I notice damage at many places in the car. I had no doubt that the workshop did it as an act of vengeance for my repetitive complaints about their service standards. Also notice water leakage into the cabin from the rear glass. I send an e-mail to RO about the situation

October 24, 2010 : Om Hyundai representative visits my residence. Flatly denies their involvement in the damage, but promises to speak to the works manager and do something about it. Checked for water leakage, no leakage was noticed in their presence. But he told me if any leakage is noticed, to inform them

October 27 , 2010 : get an e-mail from the works manager stating that the damage caused is outside their "preview"

December 01, 2010 : sent a detailed report to HMIL offices in Ahmedabad, Mumbai, New Delhi & Tamil Nadu about the circus that had been going on with the car at om Hyundai.

December 03, 2010 : Report is received by HMIL offices(except Tamil Nadu)

December 13, 2010 : Sent an e-mail to Hyundai Customer Care asking for the response on my report

December 14, 2010 : receive a reply by some Mr XXXX from New Delhi that they are co-ordinating with the RO & workshop to address the concerns. No reply whatsover from then on

December 17, 2010 : EPS malfunction. sent an e-mail to Hyundai informing the m about the issue. Decided not to drive the car until the car is thoroughly checked and repaired

December 18, 2010: Receive an e-mail from the RO asking me to contact the dealer. On phone, it was informed to the Area Manager to send a technically qualified person from Rajkot to check the car since such a serious fault had developed in the car. Bluntly he replied to pay up for such a visit. No response from the company ever since, inspite of many requests.

Yesterday, tried calling the number of the person who replied from Delhi on Dec 14, the number was of the security office!!!!!

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by noopster

Sandesh, please stop driving that car at once. It's not worth the risk to your own and your family's safety.

Haven't driven the car since the day of EPS malfunction.

Originally Posted by noopster

Am sure there are TBHPians who work with Hyundai

There are, trust me.

[motorhead666]

I believe the EPS malfunction is a result of incompetent people working on the steering rattle issue and is not because of defect in the EPS. Take your car to another Hyundai dealer if possible. But if you are thinking of suing these guys then avoid it because then they will put blame on the other dealer. It sucks that when you give your car to resolve one problem these guys create another. This steering rattle issue hasn't caused a dent in i20 sales but im sure it will dent the resale value of the car.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by motorhead666

I believe the EPS malfunction is a result of incompetent people working on the steering rattle issue and is not because of defect in the EPS.

Could be. But shouldn't any responsible company check the issue first? Had the car run over someone or had it something, who would have believed the incident was a result of EPS malfunction. Specially since restarting the car seemed to get rid of the problem(temporarily, that the problem recurred only two kms later proves that it will recurr if the car is driven at a stretch).

Here's a car which was( still is) troubled by the steering rattle issue, now it has suffered from steering malfunction and has become unsafe to drive. We, as a family, are suffering because of this, as it is our only car. The Regional Office in Ahmedabad damn well knows that Om Hyundai is a third grade workshop. Yet they refused to take action against the workshop. The silence on RO's part actually proves their guilt.

As a matter of fact, on the morning on that fateful day on Dec 17, I had booked a service appointment in Rajkot as the car was due for its 4th service. And in the evening, the EPS malfunction happened. I had nowhere to go and had to cancel the service booking two days later. I hoped that atleast now the RO would wake up and do something to help out, but no, they still chose to sit cosily in their offices and do nothing. They probably forgot for what purpose they are there in the RO the first place- to help customers and to monitor the performances of the workshops in their region. In fact, I was told that we were were the only ones having issues with Om Hyundai, I spoke to some Hyundai owners owners here and most of them were not satisfied with Om Hyundai. Are you listening RO ??????

Those guys, when they had come to my residence, were treated nicely. Inspite of all our anger about the car's steering rattle issue and brake noise, we spoke to them politely and treated them nicely, not even speaking to them in a high tone. Now it is sad and frustrating that they are not even bothered to respond. This is what we got for being nice to them.

To all of you in team-bhp, who have supported me with PMs, I say a heartfelt thank you for your sympathy. I tried everything ...from sending e-mails and reports(with proof) to talking to them personally...nothing worked.

Eventhough, I did not want to to do it, the total lack of response from Hyundai about this God awful mess forced me to do what was necessary in such a situation. Even if one of them had called up and said, that we are doing something within a specified amount of time, I probably would not have been forced to go this far.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

there has to be a way to contact the company hq in india if issues cannot be resolved by the RO.

Well, I had sent a report of my what all had been happening with the car in the past one one year to Regional Heads(Mumbai & Ahmedabad RO), President Sales & mktg, HMIL New Delhi). I had even sent a copy of this report addressed to the CEO, HMIL in Tamil Nadu. I made it clear in the report that the steering rattle problem and brake problems were not getting repaired and how competent the works hop in Junagadh was. I even mentioned about the rear glass water leakage and the damage caused on the car by the workshop( repair/ replacement of the damaged parts was estimated to be worth around Rs 10000)

Originally Posted by selfdrive

try to bring this issue to the attention of the relevant honchos well within your warranty period. If possible, take time stamped pictures of your mileage (not sure if this is adequate to show if you have not driven further since a particular date)

I had taken pictures of the EPS malfunction as and when it happened. I sent a mail to hyundai immediately after reaching home. But no one bothered to address such a serious issue with the car, instead the Area Manager asked us to bear the costs for a visit by technically qualified people from Rajkot. So much for Hyundai's "Always all the way" & "Caring for you Always" clichés.

The issue never was about money, but the point is that we had been complaining about the steering issue for such a long time, I had even questioned the steering system's safety because of this rattling, they had started ignoring our complaints lately and then the EPS malfunctioned. Then the Area Manager had the guts to ask us to pay for a visit by technically qualified people from rajkot. So, who is actually responsible for the whole mess? Me or the great men sitting in the RO?

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

The issue never was about money, but the point is that we had been complaining about the steering issue for such a long time, I had even questioned the steering system's safety because of this rattling, they had started ignoring our complaints lately and then the EPS malfunctioned. Then the Area Manager had the guts to ask us to pay for a visit by technically qualified people from rajkot. So, who is actually responsible for the whole mess? Me or the great men sitting in the RO?

I can totally understand your situation and know whose fault this is. I was only trying to ask if you had explore these options; which you already have. I am sorry if this upset you and hope this gets resolved for you. if this was elsewhere they would be running scared of being sued for millions. better legislation is needed in india to act as a deterrent to such behemoths that have no regard for the general public (in terms of both wealth & life)
I am not sure if this makes you feel any better; but Hyundai have lost 1 existing and 2 prospective customers from my side till date. I dont want any of my friends/ family driving in an unsafe car.

[skanchan95]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

I can totally understand your situation and know whose fault this is. I was only trying to ask if you had explore these options; which you already have. I am sorry if this upset you and hope this gets resolved for you.

No,no, you are getting me wrong. I did not get upset because of you. Sorry, if my reply meant that, but it was not my intention.

Yes, being stuck with a car which cannot be driven keeps on bugging me every minute these days and it does make me angry that we as a family are suffering and that I will be powerless in case of an emergency. But its not at you or anyone else, but at Hyundai and its band of jokers that I am angry at. As I said earlier in the thread, I was being referred to (privately) by them as "paagal" and "jhik jhik wala aadmi" and thanks to some friends, I came to know about it. This EPS malfunction and my concerns about the car's safety issues with the steering proved right and just goes on to prove who is(are) the "paagal" now. I also know of a person who's Tucson too had issues with that good for nothing workshop in Junagadh, they started calling that gentleman "kachra sait"( which roughly translates to waste boss)

Originally Posted by selfdrive

if this was elsewhere they would be running scared of being sued for millions. better legislation is needed in india to act as a deterrent to such behemoths that have no regard for the general public (in terms of both wealth & life)

and that is the reason why these people take us so lightly.

Originally Posted by selfdrive

I dont want any of my friends/ family driving in an unsafe car.

That is the reason why I have been warning others. Today this EPS malfunction happened with me, tomorrow it could happen to another i20(troubled by the steering rattle issue), and the poor fellow may not be so lucky. Had this malfunction happened 2-3 days here or there, only God knows what would have been the result.

I made this point very clear to Hyundai and asked them their very own friends & family are driving i20s, doesn't it make them worried? With our car, they have an intact example of steering malfunction and that they could check our car and prevent similar incidents in the future, yet they took this very lightly almost as if EPS malfunction is a daily occurence!!!!

I don't know whether they lack the intelligence to understand this situation or whether they are shocked by this incident and don't know what to do or whether are ignoring me on purpose.Whatever it is, this is how Hyundai is being run these days......by a bunch of insensitive robots!!!!!

[askids]

Hi Sandesh, I want to thank you for the detailed information that you have put on this tbhp as well as the cw forum. I was looking to upgrade to i20. But after reading through the 20+ page details of the issue encountered with steering rattle by numerous customers, I have decided to put my upgrade plan on hold. I already own a Santro Xing for 4 years and had never faced any issues with it. But I wish you all the best in the legal battle. As suggested, seek a replacement along with reimbursement of all the expenses incurred to fix the rattle issue. Show no mercy.

You can also create a CJ video and send it to the TV channels. Also, which ever car you are going to use, put a banner for few weeks atleast advertizing the i20 issues. Dont leave FB, orkut as well. Advertize it everywhere. If you work in a corporate setting, provide the information in your corporate BB. Wish you all the best!!

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by skanchan95

No,no, you are getting me wrong. I did not get upset because of you. Sorry, if my reply meant that, but it was not my intention.

No issues sir, I just wanted to ensure I didnt add to your troubles! Looking at how things are going, I would not really trust the media either (especially with your experience with the magazine). Perhaps you should enter the next launch/ press conference for Hyundai and ask them this question