Leven Car company goes into administration

[C8RKH 6,419]

2 hours ago, tim_marra said:

Hmm, I live in Whitehaven, some 40 miles south of Carlisle and always drive to Edinburgh for servicing etc.

Just sayin' 

Yeah but to Craigs or Murray/Leven and in warranty or out?

[Toeside 58]

I have booked in also for the 1K they must be getting a great deal of new business. Shame for the Scottish contingent further north. 

[Andy Norman 76]

CM is going over mine with a fine tooth comb before my trip to spot any warranty work before it runs out in April then it’ll be seen in Carlisle with a list of anything they find.  I need to get the car plugged into a reader too. 
I was emailing CM today and Lotus Hethel need a serious kick up the arse for not giving him the approved dealership status given his level of support.

 

[C8RKH 6,419]

+1 @Andy Norman. You beat me to it in terms of you need the dealer/authorised service centre in warranty to get any latest service flashes for the ecu etc 

Good idea re CM doing a pre service/ pre warranty ending inspection. 👍

[marcfair 2]

Has anyone  been in touch with lotus direct? Just wondering what  they are advising

 

[tim_marra 478]

16 hours ago, C8RKH said:

Yeah but to Craigs or Murray/Leven and in warranty or out?

To date I have always gone to Murray/Leven. My car is 2012 so well out of warranty. I have been keen to maintain the dealer stamp, but have no issue otherwise with Craigs. It would be good if he was to be officially recognised as a service centre, or even full dealer status if he wanted it. I know he's a good guy.

[Toeside 58]

Not much choice for warranty. Leeds is a fair trek 😜

[Toeside 58]

2 hours ago, marcfair said:

Has anyone  been in touch with lotus direct? Just wondering what  they are advising

 

Emailed them last night. They never replied to my last email when i asked about alternative warranty dealerships close to me so not expecting much. But it made me feel better 😂

[Andy Norman 76]

Ring them to put pressure on them. I did. Didn’t get far but worth speaking to someone. They only told me they were trying to move things along quickly. 
that was three weeks ago....

[TerryCTR 85]

On 12/02/2020 at 11:34, Toeside said:

Not much choice for warranty. Leeds is a fair trek 😜

Why not David Haytons in Carlisle?

[Toeside 58]

That is were i am booked in. The only alternative is Leeds. 

[TerryCTR 85]

The Oakmere trip is very straightforward although I’m not convinced on them after my front access panel almost flew off on the motorway after collection.

There is some complaint re David Hayton over on seloc so perhaps Leeds is the best option after all!

[Andy Norman 76]

1 hour ago, TerryCTR said:

The Oakmere trip is very straightforward although I’m not convinced on them after my front access panel almost flew off on the motorway after collection.

There is some complaint re David Hayton over on seloc so perhaps Leeds is the best option after all!

It’s a lot of miles to put on the Cup though for a dealer service stamp. I’d sit tight if you can while we see what pans out. I just need to go for an ECU flash and some warranty stuff before 20th April. 
My washer motor seems to have packed in or is blocked, I’m hoping that’s causing the intermittent spanner appearing. 

[TerryCTR 85]

I spoke to Scott today and he is hopeful something is sorted out soon. My warranty is up until November so I’ve got time to spare at present. 

[Andy Norman 76]

14 minutes ago, TerryCTR said:

I spoke to Scott today and he is hopeful something is sorted out soon. My warranty is up until November so I’ve got time to spare at present. 

Scott?

Just now, Andy Norman said:

Scott?

You loving the car BTW? It’s a beast isn’t it.  🤪🤪

[TerryCTR 85]

Scott Walker the sales manager for the uk.

With this weather Andy I’ve not had that much chance to drive it, the cup2’s need to be treated with respect but I did get one one night a couple of weeks ago for a good blast and emptied the tank down some deserted B roads. It’s certainly some machine and has me champing at the bit time get back out 😎

[delands 46]

Just in case anyone was in the Leven Servicing Plan, contact the administrators. 

I was 8 months into mine and contributed around £270 into it.

Today I received just over £60 back.  So, there's a chance of not losing everything.

[Toeside 58]

Folks this was the reply I got from Lotus customer services 

Thank you for the email.

 

We completely understand your frustrations. Unfortunately The Leven Car Company entering into Administration only a few weeks ago is out of our control. Rest assured our Network Development Team are doing everything they can to find a suitable replacement. I’m sure you will agree the correct standard of Dealer would have to be appointed.

 

We are currently referring Customers to our Dealer in Carlisle, David Hayton. Although not ideal some feedback from Customers has been it’s an easier journey although perhaps a little longer journey.

 

Should you require any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact me.

 

Kind Regards,

 

CALLUM SMITH

[C8RKH 6,419]

Total muppet. It's a bit like telling someone in Birmingham don't worry, you can get the car serviced in Portsmouth. Clueless.

I'm starting to lose the love and have looked at a McLaren and dare I admit it, a bloody Porsche!

[Smapmap 147]

A little longer journey lol. 🤪 Imagine the commute from Inverness or Aberdeen lol. Whats that- a 500/550 mile round trip? It was bad enough having one dealership in Edinburgh.

As an aside - It reminds me of when I lived in Tokyo and my boss asked me to 'head over' to HK to deal with some of the Chinese authorities who were visiting the next day. She thought it was a day trip despite it being over 1700 miles away and I'd be entering a communist country as a foreign national lol. To this day I'm sure she thought Hong Kong was in Japan. 🥴

[Toeside 58]

5 hours ago, C8RKH said:

Total muppet. It's a bit like telling someone in Birmingham don't worry, you can get the car serviced in Portsmouth. Clueless.

I'm starting to lose the love and have looked at a McLaren and dare I admit it, a bloody Porsche!

Porsche dealerships they are wonderful places if you are a preferred customer............. if your not............ then stand in queue.  ............... I do have a soft spot for a bit of pork though! 

[tim_marra 478]

3 minutes ago, Toeside said:

I do have a soft spot for a bit of pork though! 

Me too. Can't beat a good hog roast.

Porsche can FRO however 

[Toeside 58]

🤣  Cannot be fully aligned with that  ............but I understand your perspective 👍

[Johnny5 15]

Let's not forget why we all own Lotus cars, let's be serious for the money they cost the re-sale value and the performance they produce can you get better, this issue will resolve its self. As mentioned, yes closest Lotus Dealer is now Carlisle but I take this as still an option, it lets you drive your car and possibly make an event of it. We Have Craig Moncrieff who has great Knowledge of Lotus engineering. Since I bought mine I have had The Lotus Dealers stamp in the service Book, in Scotland Craig is so well known and services more Lotus cars than Leven did.

[C8RKH 6,419]

Great cars indeed. Great value for money. Great performance. Great Craig. All hugely positive.

But no dealer is an issue as you wont get latest ecu refreshes etc unless you make a huge trip to carlisle and most people expect first three dealer stamps in the book.  It's a 120 mile round trip I have happily made to Craig/Murray/Leven since my first Lotus. But the thought of a near 350 mile round trip is not acceptable. Fun. Nor an event. It's a fookin' pain in the arse to be frank! For those in say Aberdeen it will be a 500 mile round trip.