Peugeot safety recall letter arrived 3 weeks after we had damage caused by the faulty part

dlumsd10

Hi all, hoping to also get some advice on Peugeot Camshaft Drive Chain recall.

We received letter from Peugeot that our 2018 car needed to go to Garage for MXL recall regarding the Camshaft drive chain issue.

So we put the Car in to the official Peugeot dealership and they did below on 2-October-2025;

"MXL Recall completed as per campaign. Uploaded new calibration to ECU. Visual Check of camshaft chain completed. No requirement to change. Oil and filter change completed".

all well and good…. however, after parking my car 2 days ago, without issue for 5 hours. When I returned to my vehicle to return home the Car would not start and had a pile of fault lights. Roadside mechanic plugged in to Car and run some checks, and indicated the fault seemed to be a failure of the Camshaft drive chain!!!

• Do you guys think the repair work for this latest issue should be covered by Garage that assessed my Camshaft a little over 3 months ago?
• Would the repairs still be covered by Peugeot recall?

The first response from the Dealership that did the assessment in October was to say it was not their problem and they've done everything as per Peugeot.

I'm still waiting for Peugeot HQ to confirm if they are going to support or not

Appreciate any feedback

DeathByFluffy

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81859617#Comment_81859617

Wait to see what Peugeot say first, but I expect they'll at least offer a contribution given it was assessed by them as 'all OK' just a few months ago.

The dealer are correct in saying it's not their problem - it's Peugeot as a company who are running the recall; the dealer are just paid by them to assess the vehicles and either remedy with a new chain or declare the vehicle is OK.

born_again

Mass of warning lights.

What's the 12V battery like?

Often the root cause of issues like this, as electronics do not like low voltage.

dlumsd10

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81859794#Comment_81859794

The Roadside assistance tried connecting jump-leads and car still had issue, after clear errors from the connected Laptop.

Aylesbury_Duck

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81859794#Comment_81859794

That was my thinking. I can't see how a cam chain can spontaneously fail while the car is parked and switched off.

OP, when you say it wouldn't start - did nothing happen at all when you turned the key, other than all the warning lights coming on? The engine didn't turn over at all?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81859944#Comment_81859944

That's not necessarily conclusive, you need to get it properly and mechanically inspected, not just hooked up to a laptop. If there's an electrical problem of some sort it might undermine any reports coming through on the laptop.

dlumsd10

The Roadside assistance did get in to see the Camshaft not spinning, and and was pretty thorough in trying to diagnose the issue. But he did also say it would need stripped down to see the full extent of the damage.

My query is really about whether Peugeot are still liable for repair cost if the Camshaft is found to have been cause of failure? or whether their "get-out-of-jail" card is that the Car dealership, as part of MXL Recall, did a visual inspection on the Camshaft (which I believe is listening to its noise), and signed it off as not required to change

Alderbank

I do not share your belief that a visual inspection of something means listening to its noise.

Aylesbury_Duck

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81860275#Comment_81860275

I'm still perplexed by a cam chain failing while the engine was turned off, but as the guy says, it needs a proper inspection.

As to your query, a lot will depend on the service history and whether Peugeot consider there's a valid case for a contribution to repair costs, if there is something seriously wrong and it's not just an electrical quirk. If the car has been serviced by a Peugeot dealer, or other garages have carried out services in accordance with Peugeot's specifications, on or about the specified intervals then they might offer a contribution. Any gaps in the service history, or lack of evidence that the specified oils, etc. were used, would undermine that.

Gumpey

I too have had a nightmare with the MXL recall on my Peugeot Rifter. The recall letter arrive Dec 25 and the 1st appointment offered by Peugeot was 15th April 2026! And of course my car went wrong 3 weeks after the recall letter, unfortunately we were on holiday in Europe. We tried to get it into 2 different Peugeot dealers in Spain but 1st available appointment wasn't until endo of March. We were forced to get 'fixed' at non-Peugeot garage to the tune of £2,800 (new camshaft belt and major rebuild of engine due to wear). The problem happened again on drive home because it needs the software update which only Peugeot can do, but not until April. Arrrghhhh.

Put in a compensation claim to Stellantis who tell me because it happen after 30th June 2025 I'm not covered despite the recall letter not being sent until Dec 25. Ive taken complaint to the Motor Ombudsman but I'm fearing they will not help. I just hope there will be some sort of Legal Group/class action about this in the future.

No I have a vehicle I can not drive until April and have had to buy another car to tide me over. It isn't a Peugeot funnility enough!