Consumer group Choice, the largest organisation of its kind in Australia, has found hat two-thirds of people who buy a new car find problems with it within five years of purchase. About 1 in 6 of these cases made the car undriveable.
Perhaps even more alarmingly, they also say that in 1 in 6 cases, the car owner is made to sign a non-disclosure agreement in order to get the car serviced.
This coincides with efforts by the Queensland government to push for stronger laws regulating the auto industry’s quality assurance methods. The laws – nicknamed ‘lemon laws’ – would compel sellers to replace a car after a certain number of service attempts.
Choice reckons that though a reasonable proportion of defects and failures experienced were to do with non-essential systems (Bluetooth is a big offender), many had serious issues with the electronics, engine and battery.
They probably don’t explode indiscriminately. But Choice says we should expect better. “The fact that two-thirds of people can expect something to go wrong with a car is alarming,” Choice spokesperson Erin Turner told ABC News.
Pretty alarming indeed.
Source: ABC News.
Image: Getty Images.
