Peugeot 208 Recall

[Zambo]

I took my car in to have some minor accident damage assessed and was staggered to be told I needed a new engine. Apparently there is a recall on a batch of 208s to have the lateral crankshaft play checked. The margin allowed was 0.5m and mine was 1mm, so a new engine it was.

Got that sorted, but if it is a recall why are dealers waiting for customers to bring vehicles in for something else? I was informed that the problem could bring the car to a standstill.

Apart from that when I went to collect the car, I noticed that the engine warning light stayed on when I turned on the ignition. Diagnostics apparently showed a faulty oxygen pro sensor. The car is just over one year old. Is it likely that this part can become faulty in that time and was just a coincidence that it happened at this time, or is it more likely it was damaged when they fitted the new front end?

 

[Peter.N.]

Many years ago a friend of mine bought a new Ford Orion diesel, it rattled like a goodun, apparently they had fitted an undersized crankshaft. The size was coded by a spot of coloured paint which it seems had fallen off. They quite promptly changed the engine.

I wonder if something similar has happened to yours, that amount of lateral movement would mean that the front main bearing if not all of them were sloppy which I would have thought would have resulted in low oil pressure.

Peter

 

[Mursal]

Think the service manager is getting a bit excited.

Lateral movement (in line with the radius) would be measured by lack of oil pressure as already said.
Trust or axial movement in and out movement of the front pulley (in line with the center of the shaft) on the other hand, will be measured in mm and could be somewhere between 0.5mm and 1mm. Resulting from a bad batch of thrust washers or driving with the left foot on the clutch?

Main dealers cut you loose if you don't go back for service work, Toyota is a good example of this approach. Only carrying out recalls at service intervals, so the recall is now flagged to customers that do not use Toyota for service. But then as the number of recalls grow and grow, they probably couldn't cover the paperwork never mind the postage costs.