Bought roof bars for my car 18 months ago. I think that they are Thule made, possibly Mont Blanc, but branded as Ford specific. The have had very light use since (and definitely no abuse).
I happened to remove the plastic cover of one of the anchoring points a few days ago, a big piece of plastic covering the unsightly metal fixings, and discovered that the padding (type of a washer made out of rubber) that holds the bars to the screw that goes into the anchoring point has completely disintegrated... It is completely hidden by the cover, so the screw that holds it to the roof could have easily snap causing quite serious damage to the car.
I have since checked the other 3 anchors, and discovered that another one has failed in a similar manner.
I spoke to the Ford dealer that I bought it from, and he informed me that:
- Spare parts for it are not sold separately, and;
- The warranty is only for 12 months, so I am on my own.
This does not make sense to me as I believe that one can sensibly expect roof bars to last a little longer than that (the set on my previous car lasted 8 years without a problem). However, I am not sure of my rights/my course of action.
Any tips as to how to proceed will be much appreciated.
PS: unfortunately the bars were bought online from a dealership at the other end of the country (they are quite pricey, and they offered a substantial saving), so I cannot really go there and cause a scene...