New Passat - the list of problems grows!

**AndrewT** · 21-05-2006,06:27 PM

Is anybody else experiencing problems with their new Passat?

Since I picked my new car up at the end of November and covered 9,000 miles I have had the following problems with my car; a 2.0 Tdi Sport with DSG:

keyless entry - broke within the first month and took 3 months to finally sort
parking sensors - been back 3 times, front sensors still have a mind of their own and come on constantly when the car is wet - parts on back order
drivers electric lumbar support broken
service indicator has been reset once at 6,000 miles and came on again at 8,000
steering - the car pulls to the left and the steering wheel is off centre (car has not been kerbed)
when starting the car on my drive which is on a slope with the car facing down hill, the engine starts very loudly (not at high revs) and it is virtually impossible to move the gear stick from Park to Drive without forcing it. Can anyone shed light on this?

On the whole I'm delighted with the car, but my patience is starting to run out. I might have been naive, but expexted more from a £25k car that aims to bat with the big boys in the compact exec sector.

Have I just been unlucky and got a lemon?

**Mark Hutchinson** · 22-05-2006,11:32 AM

On the whole it's a lovely car. i don't think I have any major faults yet but just a few niggles: -

- Bouncy bi-xenon headlamps
- Poor quality paint finish on parts of the car
- Rattling glove box
- Windscreen wipers that come on when it's dry, and don't come on when it's pouring
- Extremely irritating creaking coming from the driver's door, every bump, twist, turn (I think its the plastic strip on the car rubbing the door)
- Rather clunky gear box

That's it so far.

**martinj** · 22-05-2006,07:12 PM

Hi,

In response to your point re the steering being off and it pulling - I know that you said it hasn't been kerbed, have the dealer had your car without you being present? Our previous passat was driven into a kerb whilst the dealer had the car for a service - suggest you get it checked and corrected as if it is out, the tyres will get a 'memory' effect on them after not too long and will pull for the rest of their time irrespective of whether the steering alignment has been set.

I would recomend going to a Pro Tyre depot, or to Micheldever Tyres (they are the parent company of protyre) as they have a superb alignment system that will ensure that all four wheels are pointing in the correct relative position to the car itself, rather than simply setting one axle relative to itself. Your profile does not show where you are based to be able to suggest a local depot.

Best of luck with your car, we sold our previous car due to the service, and have only gone back to a passat that will never see the inside of a main dealer's parts fitting facility. It is a shame that with a new car you are effectively forced to use the main dealer for servicing due to people's perception that a main dealer service history is essential for a newer car!

Martin

**AndrewT** · 26-05-2006,05:20 PM

Martin,

thanks for the useful comment re the steering alignment; the car is in the dealer (hope mine is OK!) next week so hopefully all the niggles will be sorted

**Mark Hutchinson** · 26-05-2006,05:26 PM

Had the paintwork checked out and it is going back to VW to be resprayed. Also had problems with the parking sensor button which has broken/collapsed and is permanently on. Also the rubber surrounding to the interior chrome door handle is now flaking off.

Am finding the car sluggish at low revs before turbo kicks in, plus there is a lot of road/tyre noise, almost unbearable on concrete motorways.

**webjk@iol.ie** · 06-06-2006,08:39 PM

Bought mine new in July 2005 - launch month in Ireland. Delighted with all major aspects of the car. Experiencing nothing thus far with the likes of steering, unwanted rattles, moody wipers etc. My gripes are ...
· ashtray (or mini stowage compartment as referred to in the manual) in back of center armrest is constantly loose - a minor foot tap from one of the kids dislodges it
· ashtray in rear passenger door, located on driver's side - again easily ejects with minimal contact
· as of today the plate on the gear stick just slipped off - only reason I can think of is due to the mini heat wave we are having here at present
Has anyone had experienced any or all of above?

**bryandon1** · 21-09-2006,08:05 PM

Had a similar thing on a Renault and they kept repairing the car up to £13,000,
Main fault was the wiring loom needed to be replaced that solved most electrical problems. I know work in the Automotive industry and you never buy a car within the first year of it being released. The problems are unreal and the customers never hear about them.

blackie · 25-09-2006,03:56 PM

Pedi - I'd be interested in the outcome of your KESSY problems - mine still aren't fixed yet (12 months on!).

Mine now jolts and judders when you accelerate - almost like kick down in an automatic. Already had the engine remapped once, we'll see what they do this time.

For the record, just down a round trip from Kent to Newcastle and I averaged 48 mpg at a steady 70mph.

**msp69** · 19-08-2006,01:18 AM

Hi - I took delivery of my 2005 Passat 2.0TDI SE 4 Door on 18th July last year - I'm very disappointed with this car and believe many of the issues are down to cheaply manufactured trim. The first issue which arose was when I'd had the car 5 days, I inserted the key to start the car, it froze everything and the steering locked solidly - in the end the AA attended as VW assistance we're available after 9pm. This issue was temporarily resolved by them disconnecting the battery and re connecting - next day the car was in the garage - they could not find a fault. The following issues have plagued the car since new - I had compensation from VW and believe the retailer has done their best (however this has been based on advising if the car wasn't fixed I would be rejecting it)

Rattle from rear view mirror this has been replaced twice
Rattles from trim around instrument cluster
Rattles from door pillars where seat belt mechanism is
Rattles from behind door covers
Dash assemby around ashtray making a grating noise under acceleration
Auto handbrake intermittent fault
Drivers seat belt connectorn broke which caused issues due to handbrake mechanism

In brief my car has been in the garage for a total of 4 weeks. The trim issues have been resolved and are better than they were but in my opinion not up to the usual VW standard.

The rattles get worse in hot weather especially from the door pillars.

This car is NOT well built - to add to my unhappiness I received a letter last week regarding a recall for the flywheel, which may cause a fire !!

I've had two Passats before and they were great. This one I cant wait to get rid of. Wish I'd bought an A4, albeit £3k more expensive, but definitely much better in terms of build quality.

**30MGS** · 22-08-2006,11:04 PM

My 2.0TDi Sport has just come out of the dealer having had the fuel cap release button changed and new door trim fitted. When I went up with it initially they couldn't find the problem and only managed to create an intermittent problem with the passenger side front electric window.

The handbrake is nothing more than gimmicky and the sluggish take-off is infuriating. I'm considering a re-map to get some torque at lower revs and as a by-product some more BHP.

Oh, and the Mrs wants it sold!!