Vauxhall Zafira

zafria b 1.9cdti 150 diesgn

I have owned my zafria a year and i had nothing but problems with mine from paint work to mechanical . I bought it from a networkq dealer which i thought was the right move but not to a year on and still having problems with it , networkq should of gave me a replacement vehicle but i was never offered one . So the NETWORKQ policy not worth the paper its wrote on . I will say its great on diesel but i would buy the 1.9cdti 120bhp , cheaper tax and less problems

By tarty69 on 8 January, 2010, 7:11pm

tarty69

After leaving the about comments ,the car has broken down 4 times in 12 months .Had a new EGR valve fitted and DPF filter fitted and 6 months on the DPF filter pipes have failed .Vauxhall no about the problems but don't want to no .Its out of warrenty now and has only covered 30000 miles Im still waiting for the filters pipes to arrive as there on back order ,6 weeks to get some plastic pipes and it took 6 weeks to get the EGR valve last year .So think before you buy a 1.9cdti 150 diesel stick to petrol be warned !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By tarty69 on 30 April, 2010, 7:38pm

vauxhall zafira 1.9 cdti 150 dpf egr problems

i have had the car three years and it has been in the garages for egr problems several time each year new parts fitted manifolds erg valves several times three week ago i had the light come on again took it into local garage on wednesday got it back that night with yet another vavle fitted.went wrong next day going into work took it back they have had it since now needs dpf filter pipe that has crack in it. given date of the 14may rang through back door of vauxhall to chase parts up with customer service and now they say the parts have to be made in germany and then sent to local dealer for fitting.my car is covered by extended vauxhall warranty sold on their web site but since problem with parts they now say its under written by some one else and this part isnt covered no car no loan car as dealer blames vauxhall for lack of parts and vauxhall say they should loan me courtesy car they have told me the car shouldnt be drove untill new parts are fitted as it could result in the dpf filter been damaged. i will be getting rid of this as soon as i can and move to a hyundia with
7YEAR WARRANTY VAUXHALL NO OF ALL PROBLEMS ABOVE I MAY CONSIDER TAKING THIS TO VOSSA AND ASK IF THEY CAN PUT PRESSURE ON VAUXHALL TO SEND OUT A RECALL ON ZAFIRAS PS MY CAR HAS HAD TWO WASHER PUMPS FITTED ASWELL

By fester on 7 May, 2010, 10:24pm

Zafira 1.9 CDTI SRI. EGR, DPF problems - Warrrantywise

I have had vauxhalls for 23 years, this is my 3rd Zafira, the 1st of the "new" ones and I have had it friom new for nearly 4 years, it has done 78000 miles. In the first year it broke down 13 times, had numerous EGR valves, new DPF , exhaust, catlalyst... it was off the road often for weeks waiting for parts which were on back order.
Advice: when it is new and goes into limp home mode, contact the RAC, and get taken to the garage, then you get a hire car, so if parts are on back order at least you can stay mobile.
Vauxhall dealers and customer care do not care and have been totally unsympathetic.
When the car had done 60000 miles it was still under 3 years old, so I took out a policy with Warranty wise which they said would cover everything, my EGR valve and manifold have just gone and they won't cover it as it is due to carbon build up....
So the moral of the story ,I will NEVER have another vauxhall, and I certainly won't waste my money on a warrantywise warranty in future

By Nigel_Booth on 18 May, 2010, 12:53pm

Update on Warrantywise

Finally got sense out of Warrantywise , if on the odd occasion that your claim seems frustrating, the solution is to email Quentin Wilson, his email address is on Warrantywise website.

By Nigel_Booth on 20 June, 2010, 11:05am

On 2 September 2006 I purchased an Opel Zafira 1.9 Diesel from Williams Hunt Fourways (Johannesburg South Africa)

In the first weeks of driving I was disappointed with the fuel economy of the vehicle – my previous car was a Renault Scenic II that had averaged 6.9 litres per 100km over the 130000km that I covered in the vehicle. The Zafira was delivering 8.2 litres per 100km. I had been shown a comparative between the Opel Zafira and the Renault Scenic (done in Germany) that promised 6.1litres / 100km.

In the first week of November, I was driving on the freeway when there was a very sudden development of a grating noise in the engine compartment. I pulled off and called General Motors 24 Hours customer care to arrange my very first tow in.

I was provided with an Opel Corsa for a few days and then after complaining that I was paying for a Zafira but driving a Corsa, this was changed to the dealer principle’s Zafira.

The diagnosis was that the turbo had packed up. The unit was replaced, but during the test drive by Mark Derbyshire (he was the service manager) the new one developed the exact same fault.

The factory did not have a replacement part and expected me to wait for a new part to be shipped in from Germany. Thanks to Gary Klets and Mark Derbyshire the vehicle was replaced (late in November) by the factory.

Late in 2007 year the new vehicle developed a problem and had to be towed in again. The diagnosis was that the Turbo was on its way out and a new one was ordered. After 5 days I called Mark Derbyshire (service manager) and told him that there had been no recurrence of the fault. We agreed that it could not be the Turbo and decided to wait for symptoms to return – fortunately this did not happen – it must have been a faulty diagnostic machine.

In January 2008 year the vehicle was towed in due to an electrical fault that was diagnosed as a faulty battery. The battery was replaced, but after three weeks the same problem recurred. This time the fault was diagnosed as a faulty alternator. After a week the wrong part arrived from the factory in Port Elizabeth.

I was without the vehicle for a whole month while we waited for the correct part to arrive from Germany due to the fact that the factory in Port Elizabeth did not have the correct part in stock.

On 6 April 2008 the vehicle developed a fault and had to be towed in. The fault was diagnosed as a faulty injector. The injector was replaced and I received the vehicle back that afternoon.

From Monday to Thursday evening I drove about 500km and was pleasantly shocked to see that the economy was suddenly achieving 6.4 litres per 100 over that period (my normal driving style and routine).

This made me think that there had been a fault since I purchased the vehicle. If this is true then I have had to spend between R5000 and R6000 on excessive fuel consumption.

On Thursday 10 April as I turned off the freeway on my way home the engine died. After a few attempts it restarted, cut out, restarted and then kept going over the 3km to my home. It felt exactly the same as on Monday – very rough as if it was running on three cylinders.

The car was towed in for the fourth time since January – diagnosis another injector. I suggested to Virusha (a service assistant) that the remaining three injectors should be replaced and this was agreed to. Once again parts were not available in Johannesburg. A week later I called and was told that the car would be ready but that they wanted to test it overnight. I explained that I needed a bigger car than the Corsa lite that I had been driving all week since I needed to pick up four people with luggage at OR Tambo International airport. Virusha agreed that I could collect the car and be the ‘guinea pig’.

When I arrived I was told that after the wash bay a warning light had come on and that they were trying to diagnose the fault. I was provided with Williams Hunt’s courtesy shuttle vehicle which solved my problem for the airport.

The next afternoon I called Virusha to be told that the diagnosis was the ‘EGR Valve’ and that they are awaiting arrival of the part. When I asked when it will be here I was told that (as per usual) the part is on back order at the factory. I was also informed that the inlet manifold needed replacing as it was part of the EGR valve.

Over this whole time ALL staff at Williams Hunt Fourways were amazing – Bianca, Virusha, Ian, Deon, Sean, Jens and Mike Derbyshire.

Besides making me suffer in a Corsa Lite with no air con for a week, they always provided me with a loan vehicle.

I wrote to Mr S. Langheim (dealer principle)

“I have absolutely no issues to grind with Williams Hunt Fourways; however I would really like to know what the purpose is of buying a Premium quality vehicle from Opel when parts are never available locally or at the factory in Port Elizabeth?

On Friday next week I have booked to take my family to St Lucia (25 April returning 2 May). In order to make this trip possible I have to have my vehicle back. If not I need a vehicle with a tow bar that is capable of carrying me, my wife, my parents and our three children on this trip.

I sincerely hope that you will be able to have my vehicle back on the road by Thursday Morning”

Once again, Williams Hunt came to the party and provided me with a Mercedes Vito for our family holiday – it was wonderful.

I never once received any correspondence from Mr Langheim – not even a phone call, but his staff were amazing.

On 28 May 2008 Petro Van Rooyen sent me a letter offering a further 6 month / 20000km warranty on the vehicle due to the trouble that I had experienced. (this was worded as a gesture of goodwill, but NOT an admission of liability or obligation under their warranty plan.

The economy of the vehicle never improved and averaged around 8.2 litres per 100 km which is disgusting for a Diesel vehicle. I consider myself to be an economical driver.

Between the middle of May 2008 and November 2008, the vehicle performed without any major issues, however in late November, it had to be towed in again (TWICE) – the engine warning and service light was a constant intermittent niggle that Williams Hunt could only diagnose as “a possible intermittent air leak in the system that they could not locate”. The radiator filler cap was replaced due to the water light coming on. This did not resolve the problem, and I was told by Williams Hunt that it could be the cylinder head, but that since businesses were shutting down for the December break, I should drive the vehicle as is and keep topping up the water as and when required.

“It seems as if faults on vehicles that are under warranty are diagnosed by replacing as many parts as possible without ever going back to check which replacements were unnecessary once the problem is resolved”- personal quote.

During 2008, my vehicle was off the road for in excess of 14 WEEKS.

In February 2009 there was more trouble – and the eventual diagnosis was that there was a crack in the cylinder head. This ‘wonder car’ was off the road for at least another three weeks while the part that was on back order at the factory (FOR A CHANGE), but once again I was well looked after by Williams Hunt who provided a suitable loan vehicle.

On 30 April 2009, the Zafira was booked in for its 120000km service. When I collected it, I was informed that (AS PER USUAL) the cam belt service could not be done due to the part being on back order at the factory.

They also reported that an intake leak was detected (as previously….ditto….ditto…ditto)

In November 2009 the vehicle was booked in for a service. Two days before the date, the engine warning light had came on and the vehicle went into ‘limp’ mode, so I handed it over early for the service. A loan vehicle was not available, so I was compelled to hire a vehicle at my own expense.

After a couple of days, I received a call from Ian to inform me that one of the 4 pins on the ‘Mass airflow meter’ was broken. I was told that this can not be repaired – they had tried to solder it but firstly access is difficult and secondly due to the sensitivity of the part, it would most likely not function properly if it were soldered. I could not understand how I should be held liable for a part that was probably broken due to the number of times that the vehicle had been worked on, however I decided not to argue this point.

The part was ordered, but this time the factory was performing a stock take (during the week instead of after hours), so the dear valued customer was forced to wait over five days for the part to be delivered.

I then received a call from Ian in service to inform me that the replacement of this part had not fully resolved the problem and that they were now going to replace the turbo at a cost of +/- R25000.00. I was shown the old Air flow meter – it had three pins, and I could clearly see the stub where the remainder of the 4th pin appeared to be.

At this stage I had requested a trade in quotation where I was offered R80000.00 (I still owed R122000.00 on my finance plan).

In a state of shock, I decided to remove the vehicle from Williams Hunt and arranged for an independent service company (BB Motor Corporation (BB Corp)) to repair my Opel Zafira.

The turbo was removed and tested by a turbo specialist who diagnosed that besides a few seals, the unit was functioning perfectly. When the turbo was refitted, the vehicle was still running in limp mode, so BB Corp checked the catalytic converter - only to discover that the innards do not exist! I did not bother to query this discovery since I expected to repair and sell the vehicle, but I would really like to know when the catalytic converter innards were removed – and why. Or was this also an omission at point of manufacture?

BB Corp then investigated further and discovered that the EGR valve had seized up. This was replaced, and the inlet manifold that splits into two pieces was cleaned (not replaced). The problem went away and I was back on the road.

This was the second EGR replacement on this vehicle, and I have since discovered that this is a regular recurring fault on this engine type – see Vauxhall Owners Forum – After discovering this in December I was in Port Alfred visiting some friends when a relative from the UK joined me to go and do some shopping. When he got into my car he commented – oh, I also have one of these, I have just had to replace the EGR valve!

On 22 February 2010 I took the Zafira to BB Corp to have a cracked sump removed and repaired ( it had been struck by a brick on the freeway in December 2007, but I had successfully repaired the crack with Pratley’s putty, but this had once again begun to leak, and a second attempt with Pratley’s was unsuccessful). The sump was removed, welded and refitted. After this the vehicle went into limp mode.

BB Corp investigated and discovered that the EGR valve was totally clogged up. This was replaced under warranty, but the problem was not resolved. Upon further investigation, BB Corp discovered that one of the four pins on the mass airflow meter was missing. They ordered a replacement and I was quoted R18000.00 for the part. I showed them the invoice from Williams Hunt Fourways and they showed the invoice to Barlow World Centurion who were adamant that the part for my vehicle’s VIN number was the R18000.00 part. However since the vehicle had functioned OK on the R8000.00 part, they ordered it (Part 93184406). This was (ONCE AGAIN) on back order at the factory. When the part eventually arrived, BB Corp opened the box at Barlow World Centurion and discovered that the part is actually manufactured with 3 pins and not 4!

Williams Hunt Four Ways replaced the Air mass meter Part 93184406 on invoice 33562639. The reason for replacing the part was that one of the 4 pins had broken off and that they could not repair it. I saw the part and it had THREE pins (NOT TWO). They told me that they had tried to solder the broken pin but could not access the area, and also claimed that the soldering might interfere with electrical conductivity and the functioning of the part, so it was best to replace it.

My Big Question is: Has this OPEL Zafira 1.9cdti had the wrong Mass Air Flow Meter since point of manufacture? If so, the incorrect fuel mix could have resulted in all of the problems that I have experienced

1. incorrect air/fuel mix
2. poor fuel economy
3. recurring faulty EGR Valves
4. engine runs at incorrect temperature
5. cylinder head cracks
6. I am told that it was a leaking cap
7. problem continues
8. I am told to drive and top up due to shut down
9. Problem eventually diagnosed as cracked cylinder head
10. Cracked cylinder head causes steam to enter combustion chamber
11. This in turn causes early wear and tear on cylinders / rings…
12. Diagnostic testing proves this due to loss of compression
13. I am awaiting news from the factory / Williams Hunt Fourways

On Thursday 15 April I contacted GMSA to try and verify exactly what part is required for this Zafira. On Friday 16 April I received a call from Yvette at customer care informing me that according to Germany the correct Mass Air Flow meter should have 4 pins, not 3.

Eventually on Monday 19 April I received another call to request that I have the Zafira at Williams Hunt Fourways so that Mr Louis Fingeredo (factory rep) could assess the vehicle on Wednesday 28 April. I then ranted at Yvette complaining that it is totally unacceptable for me to have to wait another NINE days for some attention.

A few minutes later Yvette came back to me and informed me that I must take the Zafira to Williams Hunt Fourways on Tuesday 20 April, so on Monday 19 April we towed it to Fourways.

On Friday 23 April Nicky Jansen van Rensburg – the service manager at Williams Hunt Fourways called me to inform me that they had tested the Zafira. The diagnosis is that there is a loss of compression and that the engine needs a complete overhaul. He had reported this to the factory and was awaiting a response.

On Wednesday 28 April I called Yvette – she was unavailable but called me back to inform me that she had tried to get hold of Mr Langheim but that he was not available.

This morning I called Williams Hunt Fourways and was informed by Mr Langheim that he was awaiting a report from the factory. I told him what Yvette had said yesterday to which he responded that he had not been unavailable yesterday.

I then called Yvette and when I reported this to her she promised to follow up.

I have now received an open ended quotation from Williams Hunt Fourways which I find to be simply disgusting since the History of this vehicle clearly exposes a serious FACTORY FAULT.

“Good afternoon sir

As discussed we have conducted some tests on the vehicle in order to establish what is wrong, and the finding is as follow

* Blow by was noticed from the filler cap which indicated that the piston rings does not seal properly as it should
* A compression test was done and found that all cylinder compression is low and the worst on cylinder no 1 and 4
* Data display with diagnostic tool indicated that there is no boost pressure from turbo as indicated to yourself in November 2009 as well

Basically the engine needs to be overhauled

New engine on the costs R 83874.16 excluding labour and other (Oils belts etc)

Unfortunately I cannot give you accurate pricing on rebuilding the engine due to the engine still being in the vehicle and needs to be removed and sent to Engineering for inspection and quote

If we are to go with the engine overhaul I would need your authorization for the cost incurred to remove engine send it to PE (Remtec engineering) and engineering costs

With regards to the air flow meter. When the vehicle was here in November we have diagnosed the problem to be one of the problems as per our diagnostic equipment and protocols available. And unfortunately I cannot find any evidence of the pin being the cause of the failure noted on our system. And the parts was correctly ordered as per our Electronic parts catalog which is applicable to your vehicle VIN number

Please advise me where we go with regards to the engine repairs from here

Regards

Nicky Jansen van Rensburg

Williams Hunt 4 Ways

Service Manager

Tel: 011-557 3000 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 011-557 3000 end_of_the_skype_highlighting I Fax: 086-5160711 I Cell: 083 310 9555 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 083 310 9555 end_of_the_skype_highlighting″

I ONCE AGAIN REPEAT MY QUESTION:

Has this OPEL Zafira 1.9cdti had the wrong Mass Air Flow Meter since point of manufacture? If so, the incorrect fuel mix has resulted in all of the problems that I have experienced

1. incorrect air/fuel mix
2. poor fuel economy
3. recurring faulty EGR Valves
4. engine runs at incorrect temperature
5. cylinder head cracks
6. I am told that it was a leaking cap
7. problem continues
8. I am told to drive and top up due to shut down
9. Problem eventually diagnosed as cracked cylinder head
10. Cracked cylinder head causes steam to enter combustion chamber
11. This in turn causes early wear and tear on cylinders / rings…
12. Diagnostic testing proves this due to loss of compression
13. I am awaiting news from the factory / Williams Hunt Fourways

AND IF NOT, THE FAULT LIES SOMEWHERE ELSE WITHIN THIS NIGHTMARE OF A VEHICLE!

WHAT IS THE FAULT WITH THESE VEHICLES IF THE FIRST ONE WAS REPLACED AND THE REPLACEMENT HAS BEEN A TOTAL FAILURE AS WELL?

By DavidKahn on 5 July, 2010, 9:33am

Zafira 1.9cdti 150bhp diesel

I have owned my Swedish, LHD Zafira 1.9cdti 150bhp from new since October, 2006. I have now covered 140,000km's with full regular history from Opel dealers. Almost immediately from new I started having issues with it. In the first two years I had a new EGR valve, Turbo and Alternator. It is now in the garage with undiagnosed vibration coming from the engine....which I suspect is a knackered Dual Mass Flywheel issue. The car is very practical and comfortable to drive, however the diesel engines are very fragile and I for one,have no confidence in the car anymore. I would not recommend the diesel engine models at all. They will break your heart and your wallet. I also have paint bulbbling up from the driver's sill....I think caused by water being trapped under the door seal. PLEASE BE CAREFUL WHEN CHOSSING THE ENGINE MODEL OF THIS CAR.

By Molnboman on 27 July, 2011, 7:51pm