Nissan South Africa - Poor Workmanship, Lack of support

I am extremely frustrated and disappointed with the way my Nissan Magnite matter has been handled by Nissan East Rand, Nissan Kempton Park and Nissan South Africa.

On 29 June 2026, my Nissan Magnite broke down at Rhodesfield Gautrain Station. The vehicle was stationary and in Park when, approximately 30 seconds later, I heard a loud bang and noticed oil leaking from the vehicle. The dashboard then displayed a “Braking Fault” warning followed by “Check Injectors.”

I immediately contacted Nissan South Africa's emergency assistance line at approximately 18:20pm, and the vehicle was towed through Nissan's assistance network.

The vehicle was subsequently taken to LC Kempton Park.

Initially, I was given several different diagnoses. I was first told that the starter needed replacement, then that the right-hand driveshaft seal was responsible for the oil leak, and later that the gearbox had a crack.

I was subsequently informed that the gearbox had been inspected and that a bolt/nut was found inside the gearbox, which Nissan indicated was related to previous work carried out by Nissan East Rand. This is a huge safety concern coming from the Nissan.

Initially, I was told that the components and repairs were covered under warranty. However, after the bolt/nut was identified inside the gearbox, I was informed that the warranty would no longer cover the repair because the damage was believed to be related to previous workmanship.

Nissan South Africa is now trying to get Nissan East Rand to resolve the matter and accept responsibility.

On 14 July 2026, I was informed by Nissan Kempton Park that an investigation had already been conducted into the gearbox issue. I was contacted by Nomkululeko and the technician, Dekez, regarding the findings.

The information provided to me was that the evidence pointed towards Nissan East Rand being responsible, as Nissan East Rand was the last Nissan dealer to work on or around the gearbox.

This is where the situation has become extremely frustrating.

The issue is no longer simply about diagnosing what happened to my vehicle. From what has been communicated to me, Nissan South Africa is now trying to get Nissan East Rand to accept responsibility for the damage identified during the investigation.

Despite this, I have been left caught in the middle of a dispute between Nissan dealerships. My biggest concern now is the complete lack of mobility support.

I have repeatedly requested a courtesy vehicle while Nissan investigates and resolves the matter. I have been requesting this since 10 July, and I raised the matter again with Nissan South Africa on 17 July until the 25 of August 2026.

Despite this, I am still without a vehicle.

I continue to have my monthly financial obligations on the Nissan Magnite, while I have personally had to use my own savings to pay for alternative transportation over the past two months.

What is extremely frustrating is that I am being left to wait for an outcome between Nissan South Africa and Nissan East Rand, while I have no mobility support whatsoever.

Nissan Customer Care has acknowledged the matter, but from my experience, they appear to have very little control over the dealership that I am now being told must accept responsibility.

I should not be the person who suffers the consequences while Nissan dealerships determine responsibility between themselves.

This level of customer service has been extremely disappointing.

I trusted Nissan to assist me when my vehicle broke down. I immediately contacted Nissan's emergency assistance rather than taking the vehicle to another workshop. I have followed the correct channels throughout this entire process.

All I am asking is for Nissan to take ownership of the matter, resolve the dispute between its dealerships, and provide me with a courtesy/loan vehicle while the matter is being investigated and resolved.

I sincerely hope Nissan South Africa will intervene and resolve this matter urgently.