Citroen/DS 3 stop drive recall

Clcatt91

Hi All,

So Stellantis has issued a stop drive recall for most of their Citroen C3 models and DS 3 models due to the defective airbags, which is suspected to have caused the death of a woman in france recently. I drive a 2015 DS 3 which is one of the models affected. As soon as I was made aware of the recall I booked my car in to repair. The problem is the parts are on back order. My closest citroen dealership is saying it will take 3 to 4 weeks. In the mean time, I am not supposed to drive my car. The dealership said they can't give cars to everyone. 

I need my car, I live in a rural area, my workplace is 15 miles away and I cannot work from home. There is no bus, the only way I could get to work is with a bike and 2 trains. It would cost a small fortune to do this. I'm not eligible for any rail cards. None of my co workers who live near to me work the same hours, so I can't grab a lift either.

I have tried calling citroen customer care, who directed me to the stellantis helpline. The stellantis helpline gave me the number of several other dealerships, one which is 100 miles away, and said they cannot provide hire cars in the mean time. She said that I should try calling back next week.

I have tried ringing other dealerships, one said it won't have availability until 2026. I'm at a loss at what to do now. All the dealerships just say to ring the helplines, the helplines say that they can't do anything other than to try other dealerships.

flaneurs_lobster

I'm not suggesting that you might ignore the stop drive directive, but does anyone know what the legal situation is with such recalls? 

Is the car unroadworthy by definition and therefore illegal to drive on public roads?

Because of this, or maybe otherwise, is the car no longer insured if being driven?

Mildly_Miffed

It's still legal to drive it, but don't come crying if you get shredded by the claymore on the steering wheel.

These cars were recalled for their airbags YEARS AGO. Most will have been replaced by now under that recall. All that's happened now is that it's been upgraded to "Don't drive it" to try to hasten those who've not bothered taking that recall up.

And, yes, this has been hastened by the death of a woman near Reims a couple of weeks ago. A minor autoroute crash barrier impact avoiding a truck led directly to her death. The kid in the passenger seat was uninjured. The French government said "Sort it" in response.

It's all about your attitude to risk. It's the same car in the same condition as it was two weeks ago. You were happy driving it, despite the recall not having been done, at that time. The only difference is that you're now aware of the issue, even though you should have been before.

These Takata airbags are in LOTS of cars from LOTS of manufacturers globally, all of whom have recalled them over the last decade. Takata went out of business in 2017 because of the costs of these recalls.

The stop-drive is not "most". It's second generation C3s only, and first generation DS3s, 2006-2019 (but the 2nd gen C3 went off the UK market in 2016, the 1st gen DS3 in 2018, and it's unlikely 2016-18 DS3 will be affected).

Put the VIN into the checker on the website.
https://www.citroen.co.uk/maintain/safety-recall-check.html

Do that with your car's VIN for ANY AND EVERY manufacturer, because there will be lots from other brands that have been recalled but the work not done.

Clcatt91

I'm concerned as I have heard people say it invalidates your insurance if you continue to drive it. I'm not going to lie, im not very lucky when it comes to things like this, I dont want to risk driving it. I just wish I new about it sooner, I never realised how to check for recalls, I just assumed I would be notified 

dxbcc

These cars were recalled for their airbags YEARS AGO. Most will have been replaced by now under that recall. All that's happened now is that it's been upgraded to "Don't drive it" to try to hasten those who've not bothered taking that recall up.

This is not entirely accurate. I discovered this week that my 2013 car is affected. It doesn't show up on the .gov.uk recall checker even today. I've lived in the same place since I bought it new and VW haven't written to me.

After a tip off by a friend who's affected by the C3 recall, I had a look to see if VW were also affected by the Takata recall and they have a VIN search on their website (https://www.volkswagen.co.uk/en/owners-and-services/my-car/takata-airbag-recall-campaign.html) which does list my car, alongside such exciting phrases as 'Risk of fatal injury' and 'serious safety risk to you and your passengers'.

I've contacted them and they're not even ready to start replacing them yet:

"Regarding the airbag issue, all our retailers are currently awaiting accurate and detailed instructions on how to proceed with the repair. As this is a sensitive and safety-critical matter, the manufacturer is still finalizing the necessary steps to ensure a safe and effective resolution... 

We kindly ask for your continued patience while we await this information. Once we receive the required guidance, we will contact you promptly to schedule your vehicle for the repair."

So it feels like there may be a lot of vehicles that haven't been recalled yet but should have, and now they've been caught unprepared by the France / Citroen recall. 

Do that with your car's VIN for ANY AND EVERY manufacturer, because there will be lots from other brands that have been recalled but the work not done.

This is very good advice, if your manufacturer has such a page it's well worth checking.

Nobbie1967

What about getting the airbag removed? Usually pretty straightforward, couple of screws and a snap connector. You’ll have to drive with an airbag light on until it’s repaired. Personally I’d just drive it as is on the basis that the risk is tiny. Depends on your attitude to risk. If you’re highly risk averse then you’ll have to park it up and find alternative transport.

Clcatt91

Nobbie1967 said:

What about getting the airbag removed? Usually pretty straightforward, couple of screws and a snap connector. You’ll have to drive with an airbag light on until it’s repaired. Personally I’d just drive it as is on the basis that the risk is tiny. Depends on your attitude to risk. If you’re highly risk averse then you’ll have to park it up and find alternative transport.

To get to work I have to go on 2 different motorways. Maybe if it was just city driving I wouldn't be too fussed, but I think it would be risky to have no airbags. The alternative route avoiding motorways is twice as long, so I dont think that would be any better either. I'm seriously considering just buying another car at this point

dxbcc

What about getting the airbag removed? Usually pretty straightforward, couple of screws and a snap connector. You’ll have to drive with an airbag light on until it’s repaired. 

In some cars that may also disable the seat belt pre-tensioners.

Goudy

I'd just unplug the thing until they can get it in and sort it.

The risk is having a crash AND the airbag exploding.
With it unplugged, the risk is having a crash.

SiliconChip

The issue is primarily occurring in hot and humid conditions where the ammonium nitrate gas can deteriorate, hence why Tuesday's do not drive order in France applies to cars in Corsica and French overseas territories (but also to pre-2011 cars in mainland France). This wouldn't normally be an issue in the UK but given that another amber heat warning has been issued today for parts of England it might be more of a concern.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cly24w3z6p7o

Arunmor

OP your driving an old car, it is your choice how to deal with the situation until they can fit you in.