Recalls
| Campaign | Manufacturer | Manufacturing date | Type | # of units affected | Date Owner notified Mfg | Recall Initiated by | Manufacturers of recalled vehicles/products | Report Recieved Date | Record Creation Date | Regulation Part Number | FMVSS Number | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | ||||||||||||||||
| 05V571000 | GROUP LOTUS PLC | from 04/08/2004 to 02/03/2005 | V (Vehicle) | 1740 | 02/10/2006 | MFR | LOTUS CARS LTD | 12/29/2005 | 12/29/2005 | |||||||
| Defect Summary | On certain passenger vehicles equipped with 6-speed manual transmissions, the gear lever may break. | |||||||||||||||
| Consequence Summary | This could result in the inability to change gears, increasing the risk of a crash. | |||||||||||||||
| Corrective Summary | Dealers will replace the gear levers. the recall began on february 10, 2006. owners may contact lotus cars usa at 1-800-245-6887. | |||||||||||||||
| Notes | Lotus recall no. 2006 / 1r.customers may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov. | |||||||||||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 05/30/2011 | 52524 | ||
| Driving under normal conditions through city traffic when the oil indicator light came on. pulled over to the side of the rode and checked the oil level. showed it was empty with oil spilling on the ground. towed it to a repair shop to discover that the oil hose fitting had broken off the engine causing the oil loss. this could have resulted in a total loss of engine function had i not pulled over. i had the oil hose replaced and replaced the remaining hoses as well. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||
| 04/29/2006 | 27000 | 1 | 02/25/2005 |
| 1) at first 1st to 2nd up shift and 3rd to 2nd down shift was grinding at about 5000 rpm. shifting progressively got worse shifting from 1st to 2nd and 3rd to 2nd. now 3rd to 2nd down shifting grinds at every rpm and 1st to 2nd shift is very difficult. diagnosed by mechnanic as synhro failure. 2) 2nd gear synchro failure. can't upshift well and down shifting from 3rd to 2nd grinds gear and destroys gear. unsafe when you can't get into gear. 3) lotus usa and the dealership autostrada usa have denied warranty claim. they won't fix the transmission. my car is still under bumper to bumper warranty. *jb | |||
| 05/27/2006 | 1600 | 12 | 01/20/2006 |
| Manual transmission popped unexpectedly out of 5th gear during hard driving causing driver to select wrong gear in attempt to regain control of vehicle. the placing of the transmission into 3rd gear by mistake led to catastrophic over-revving of the engine with engine failure (total loss). dealer had been advised regarding the popping out of gear prior to the fatal event and was unable to find problem. the engine was replace and in spite of dealer assessment the problem has continued. the problem now has worsened to grinding of the gears on simple driving. a local transmission specialist has advised defective transmission. the manufacturer has been advised, but reports to me that they do not believe there is a problem. their engineers cannot conceivable think of a way the gearbox /transmission can pop out of gear if properly placed into the gear. the problem has been observed by two other independent drivers who have had the problem occur with their use of the vehicle. i as the owner have purchased another transmission to replace the defective transmission. the manufacturer has been notified and has reported no interest in seeing the defective part, nor any willingness to participate in fixing the issue. issues remain: manufacturer unwilling to investigate the complaint as well as recognize that the problem could exist. safety concern remains for those not expecting the sudden loss of control which can lead to an accident or as in my case the destruction of the engine. *jb | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION - FLOOR SHIFT ASSEMBLY | |||
| 04/13/2006 | 1 | 01/14/2005 | |
| Sub: 2005 lotus elise nhtsa recall #05v-571 vin sccpc11175hl31491. i live in nicholasville kentucky & dealer is in atlanta ga. driving there would be 12 hrs on the road + $$ for accommodations & travel expenses, car mileage & depreciation. failure & i would be stranded & with more expense. i am an automotive engineer, registered professional engineer & former auto mechanic, i have worked in the area of auto safety > 40 years. as an alternative to hazards of failure i suggested to dealer service mgr & lotus warranty mgr, that i have the ability & tools to install the parts if supplied them & would purchase parts & install them. i currently own & maintain another lotus car and have owned and driven several others in the past. i maintain 9 autos of various makes and vintages, my automotive shop is very complete including a 4 post commercial lift. failure of the lever is well known and is documented on various lotus oriented web sites, including the necessary procedures for replacement of the old lever with new production parts or non-oem kits. after-market shift levers are available as replacement but i have found that collectible automobiles decrease in value when non-oem parts are used to modify them, owners are advised to use oem components by mfgs alternative to driving to dealer refused. no alternative such as flat-bedding was offered to avoid the hazards. & to avoid the substantial cost and time to repair dangerous defect i have an expensive automobile that i am afraid to drive at all because i cant obtain the parts for repair. i would be satisfied if the parts were supplied to me and i installed them myself. i certainly could document the change-out with photographs & return the old parts at my expense. a less desirable alternative would be flat-bedding the car because of the additional time & expense involved and the potential for damage during travel please help me get back the safe use of my car, soonest reply appreciated. *nm | |||