20th Jul 2009, 07:11

I have had the same issues with my car, but not sure why you were quoted or charged so much! I was charged $42 for diagnostic, the part only costs $580 and it takes an hour to fit, why did they charge you so much?!

20th Oct 2009, 07:01

I own a 2003 Holden Barina and have a faulty EGR valve. The car keeps stalling and chugging at low speeds, really frustrating, thinking of just selling it...

17th Apr 2010, 00:28

I have a Holden Barina purchased brand new, 2002 model.

I've had major problems with the emissions light, had diagnostics with no real reason what is wrong with the car.

Had timer belt replaced, full service, coil pack, spark plugs, lube service, replace air and fuel filters, clean throttle body manifold and catalytic converter, and still the emissions light won't turn off. So far the cost has been 2200, and no one can tell me how to rectify the problem.

25th May 2010, 21:58

I have just purchased a Holden Barina and the emissions light has come on. My mechanic has serviced it and still the emissions light is on, however my mechanic tells me the engine mounts are worn and need replacing. When this has been done, I hope everything will run smoothly and the emission light will go off.

31st May 2010, 20:01

I have a 2003 Barina SXI. I've noticed my emissions light came on. Took it to get it diagnosed, which turns out to be an issue with the EGR valve. The symptoms of my sick car are lurching at take off, gear changing not so smooth, loss of power (I put my foot to the floor and the car revs out, however speed climbs very slowly to the point its dangerous merging lanes)

9th Jun 2010, 06:18

I too bought a 2nd hand Barina XC 2001 for $5000 (75000k's) for my wife to learn driving.

A week later, when I took it in for a service to a Holden dealer, they recommended I do a few things as a precautionary measure; quoted me $3200 for fixing a radiator leak, replacing the rocker cover gasket replacing the timing belt & coolant. I told them just to do a service and I picked the car up.

A day later the engine maintenance light came up (fault p1483 fan relay fault). Have shown it to 2 sparkies.. both reckon the ECU is faulty, Holden dealer also said the same. Holden quoted me $1800 for this problem (new ECU with labour). I bought the ECU with matching immobiliser, chip and ignition from a wrecking yard, still same problem. Sparkie then noticed a wrong fan relay. I can only assume the Holden dealer deliberately did this when I had rejected the quote as this fault wasn't there before I took it to them, however I cannot prove it.. Once I get the correct relay fitted, I will be meeting the state service manager personally to tell what I think.

The radiator leak only showed up 2 months later, so I got that fixed. All up the repair bill for all problems has come to $1000 (timing belt, radiator, coolant flush). Rocker cover is fine and doesn't need replacing.

Just goes to show that if you take a little trouble, you can save a small fortune. Once I replace the relay, this fault will have cost me a total of $700.

Will never go back to a Holden dealer for service, and will never again buy a Holden. Incidentally, before this whole saga, I was in the market for a Commodore as I lost my car in the hail storm.. so they have definitely lost a customer, and perhaps many more as I have told this story to heaps of people.

26th Jul 2010, 22:51

I have a 2002 Barina and had to get the timing belt replaced at 50000km, the coil pack ($680) at just under 100,000km and now the EGR valve at 112,000km ($500).

This is bloody ridiculous because it sounds like everyone else here.

They should really fix these 3 things for free if they are common problems.

12th Oct 2010, 17:44

13/10/2010

I have also had the same problems!!! Same as comment below, I have a 2002 model, auto, and today will have to take it in to have them look at it, as the engine light has come on again for the 100th time. I am not in a place to purchase a new car, so will have to spend another $1200 on this car to have it on the road again. HOLDEN SHOULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS, as there are some many people I know who have had the same problem with the same car!!! I think, since I have owned this car, I have rebuilt it, as everything has been replaced. I'M NEVER BUYING A HOLDEN AGAIN!

18th Nov 2010, 02:29

I to agree with ALL of the above comments. I bought my XC 2001 brand new and it was beautiful for about 5 years, then the engine light came on and would not go off. Diagnostics, nothing conclusive.

Then the car would drop a cylinder and engine light flash, then we'd stall while doing 100k on the freeway. Final straw, loss of power on acceleration.

The above has all been suggested to coming down to the possible scenarios: The head, ECU, EGR valve, catalytic converter or coil pack. But not definitive in if they were replaced/repaired, the problems would go away. I sold the car, sorry to the next owner but I have to get what I could to catch up.

A friend who bought a 2nd hand 2001 XC, replaced ECU, which disabled her immobiliser which meant she needed a new one, then the coil pack. Total cost, $3000, for a car she bought for $5500 12 months earlier. Another typical unhappy customer.

If you can afford it, get rid of it, if you're on the market for a new car, don't buy the Barina, spend an extra couple of grand and buy something else. It will save you in the long haul.

17th Dec 2010, 01:17

Hi, I have a 2002 Holden Combo Van that has had a couple of problems since I bought it.

One, the computer has been playing up. Use to run OK, but when I stop, I have to pour water on it to cool it down to start it again. As it is my work car, and I only use it for work, I have made do as it costs over $1400.00 for a new computer. Now I cannot rev it much over 3000 RPM, and it's like it's starving for fuel. I will change the fuel filter tomorrow, and try it again. However, I am very reluctant to go to a Holden dealer, as they do over charge.

I would not buy another Holden.

4th May 2011, 20:28

I have a 2003 model Barina, and have spent 2500 on fixing my car, timer belt, coil pack and full service, and the problem still persisted. Then I went into a Holden forum and read about the EGR valve being faulty. Well today I got installed for 280.00 an EGR valve and the car is running smoothly, the light on the dash board has come off. Flushing the EGR valve works to a extent but won't fix the problem, a new one is required. Don't let mechanics rip you off like I was.