An update on the airbag
This is a long overdue post, so remember the annoying SRS airbag warning, first time I sent it to Volvo they did a software update and sent it back and the error came back in a few days. So, I sent the car back again. This time they ran comprehensive diagnostics, and the conclusion was, the driver side curtain airbag was throwing a failure. It was reportedly receiving less voltage of power than it required, which meant it might not deploy when needed and had to be changed.
I was quoted Rs. 77,000/- for the replacement. But I pointed out that I had an extended warranty and the workshop technician said, “Airbags are not covered in warranty.”
Now that’s where the back and forth began, I opened my extended warranty document, and this below in the picture was the only mention for airbags. There was nothing that specifically stated it was not covered, while I understand a deployed airbag not being covered, this was a purely faulty one.
The only mention of airbag in the entire document
I asked to speak to the manager and went the next day to Volvo service center and had a meeting with the GM of service, a fantastic gentleman with a lot of experience in the automotive industry, he listened to my issue patiently and why I thought it should be covered.
After our discussion we agreed on an action plan, they will first contact the warranty team to explain the issue in detail and if they still don’t cover it, they will give it to me in writing with the reason why and we will take it from there. I left the car in the workshop.
They had to open the side frame record everything including all diagnostics and then send it over to the Volvo team to take a look. A couple of days later the technician informed me that the part would be replaced under warranty as it was at fault, they placed the order for it and would take a month or so to be imported from Sweden.
Finally in December the replacement airbag arrived and was promptly replaced.
Lessons from this experience:- Do not delay when an issue starts occurring, I ignored the random SRS message until it became a constant occurrence, better to have it on record as soon as the issue happens.
- Extended warranty is a must on cars. Most cars today have a zillion sensors and electrical components, remember, the more the components, the higher the points of failures. Especially on expensive cars, the cost of components quickly adds up.
- Do not take the first response at face value, talk, discuss, ask to speak to someone in authority but always be pleasant. I personally had more work done with pleasant conversations than shouting or losing one’s cool.
- Ask for things in writing, makes dealer/service center to always double check.
- Do your homework, be ready with your documentation, I waving my handy extended warranty document which did not explicitly state airbags not covered helped.
Also, credit goes to Volvo service center and their General Manager, they listened, they understood and were willing to give it a go for the benefit of the customer, which is more than want most car companies do today.
I have stated this earlier; machines break down but they way there are dealt with and fixed counts…for now Volvo is doing a great job in this regard.
On a side note, it’s a little sad to see the XC 40 petrol being discontinued to make way for the electric one.