Buchbinder Rent a Car Austria
Buchbinder, Austria's domestic rental company, refused to take responsibility for having provided me with a car with faulty board computer (and no car owner's manual!!) which caused me to buy a new winter tyre at a cost of Euro 320 to replace a flat tyre which burst after driving flat for 60km (unnoticed because of the faulty board computer). Furthermore the car did not have a spare wheel but only the foam spray which of course is useless when the tyre bursts. Just in passing, the car had already logged 53,000 km and its tyres were completely worn out. To explain their position, Buchbinder said that they "checked the tyre condition" when they rented the vehicle. No word about the missing car owner's manual and the non-functioning board computer. What a grossly negligent behavior. NEVER AGAIN Buchbinder cars. Too risky and too self-serving customer care.
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So what you are telling us is that you drove on a flat tyre for 60K's and couldn't tell? Regardless of whether the on board computer registered the deflated tyre or whether the tyres were of the run flat type, you can still tell if you are anything of a driver.
The speed on run flat is limited to 50mph over which the tyre will burst if driven for such a distance. This is more to do with your experience as a driver than a faulty computer. |
"burst after driving flat for 60km (unnoticed because of the faulty board computer)." great story Luigi but 60km????
:-) :-) :-) |
Rentals never come with a handbook in my experience. Foam repair kits are standard in many vehicles nowadays.
How on earth do you drive for 60km without feeling a flat tyre, never mind a burst one? Quite often flat tyres are only covered with extra insurance too. Who says the board computer was faulty anyway? Maybe it just didn't have a tyre pressure indicator in the first place. Not that unusual to not have one. |
New book coming out titled " How To Travel W/O Computers, IPads, IPhones, etc.
Chapter 1: Visually Inspecting The Auto Chapter 2: How To Read A Map Chapter 3: How To Find And Use A Public Phone |
Chapter 4: How to check tire pressure
Chapter 5: How to fill the tank ((I)) |
It is very easy to drive on a flat tyre -- because some tyres are specifically designed to be driven for MANY KILOMETERS(as the on-line owners' manual indicated) after starting losing pressure.
QUOTE FROM THE OPEL ASTRA DRIVER'S MANUAL Driving with a damaged tyre A loss in tyre pressure is indicated by the tyre pressure monitoring system or the deflation detection system. If a tyre has no pressure, continued driving is possible ■ at a speed of max. 50 mph ■ up to a distance of 50 miles UNQUOTE If the board computer works, there is a light indicating low tyre pressure and, once this happens, the driver must immediately stop and either switch to the spare wheel or inflate the tyre with the foam spray. However, if the dashboard does not show low tyre pressure, because the board computer is faulty, there is no way that this emergency repair can be done before the tyre gets fully damaged. Buchbinder was grossly negligent for having provided a car without a functioning board computer (and without owner's manual). Period. And their refusing to take up responsibility for this very risky condition of their vehicle is APPALLING. |
Chapter 6: What the plasticy sticky things on the side of the driver's steering wheel are for
Chapter 7: What to do if you can't read the sign in the rear window of the car ahead, get closer. |
QUOTE COMES FROM PAG 181 OF THE OPEL ASTRA OWNER'S MANUAL AVAILABLE ON LINE. PLEASE CHECK DIRECTLY IF YOU STILL ARE IN DENIAL.
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FURTHER FROM PAGE 181 FOR THOSE WHO ARE DISMISSIVE:
Run-flat tyres Run-flat tyres have reinforced, selfsupporting sidewalls, which ensure that the tyres always have a certain amount of driveability, even when there is no pressure. Run-flat tyres are only permitted on vehicles with electronic stability program and tyre pressure monitoring system or deflation detection system. Caution Check tyre pressures regularly even if run-flat tyres are fitted. Depending on tyre manufacturer, runflat tyres can be identified from a marking on the tyre wall. E.g. ROF = RunonFlat for Goodyear or SSR = Self Supporting Runflat Tyre for Continental. Use of run-flat tyres is only permitted in combination with factory approved alloy wheels. Do not use a tyre repair kit. The ECO tyre pressure must not be used. Run-flat tyres must not be combined with standard tyres. |
AND PAGE 183:
Tyre pressure monitoring system The tyre pressure monitoring system continually checks the pressure of all four wheels when vehicle speed exceeds a certain limit. All wheels must be equipped with pressure sensors and the tyres must have the prescribed pressure. Otherwise, the tyre pressure will be monitored by the deflation detection system 3 183. The current tyre pressures can be shown in the Info-Display 3 110. Vehicle messages, tyre pressure 3 105. Control indicator w 3 93. If a complete set of wheels without sensors is mounted (e.g. four winter tyres), no error message will be displayed. The tyre pressure monitoring system is not operational. Retrofitting of sensors is possible. The use of commercially available liquid tyre repair kits can impair the function of the system. Factory approved systems can be used. External high-power radio equipment could disrupt the tyre pressure monitoring system. System initialisation After a wheel change, the system must be initialised: inflate the tyres to the prescribed pressure, switch on the ignition, press and hold the DDS button for approx. 4 seconds, control indicator w flashes three times. Tyre deflation detection system The tyre deflation detection system continually checks the rotation speed of all four tyres. If a tyre loses pressure the control indicator w illuminates red. Stop immediately and check tyre pressure. Control indicator w 3 93. |
IF BOARD COMPUTER DOES NOT WORK, THERE IS NO WAY TO DETECT THIS MALFUNCTIONING -
BUCHBINDER SHOULD STOP RENTING CAR WRECKS OF > 50,000 KM. |
Ok Luigi it is clear, have you sent all this evidence to the supplier and have you received an email response??
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>IF BOARD COMPUTER DOES NOT WORK, THERE IS NO WAY TO DETECT THIS MALFUNCTIONING -<
How to determine if you have a flat tire: Car pulls in one direction Car sways in turns |
Most any driver with any experience does not need a board computer to dedect a flat tire. It can be felt through the steering wheel and poor handling.
It seems this problem occurred in winter. Winter mandatory by law in Austria autos must have winter tires. Rental company had to have winter tires on the auto. Please read above quote . " If a complete set of tires without sensors is mounted ( eg. four winter tyres no error message will be displayed. Thus computer working or not will not show flat. Poster should concede that he is just wrong and a poor driver. |
I admit I did not notice any significant impairment of maneuverability of the car, driving at reasonable speed. This is EXACTLY how run-flat tyreS are supposed to perform.
You seem to absolve Buchbinder's GIGANTIC RESPONSIBILITY to rent cars that are unsafe to drive. They should have tested the board computer (and provided a car manual). And then, once the accident had happened, and I paid to replace one of their worn-out tyres of 55,000 km, they could have made a goodwill gesture to reimburse me of all or part of thIs cost. NOTHING. Buchbinder's Customer Care service did not act appropriately either. Therefore people must be aware that BUCHBINDER is not a good and reliable rental company for their rental needs in Vienna. PERIOD. |
Chapter 8: When To Be Take Responsibility For Your Actions
Chapter 9: I Always Know That It Is Not My Fault, I Ignored Chapter 8 |
Chapter 10: CAVEAT EMPTOR
Chapter 11: Get clients to pay up to their throat Chapter 12: Nobody reads the Fodors Blog. |
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