New Passat - the list of problems grows!

**Martin Hawken** · 19-11-2006,07:09 PM

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blackie · 21-11-2006,09:29 PM

By crikey, you know I think I'm finally getting somewhere with the dealer!!

Car went in today for the latest round of problems. KESSY still working intermittently - technician finally agreed that it was faulty (especially when he tried it and it didn't work!) Three new door handles fitted today as a result. Hurrah!!! Won't get too carried away though until I see it actually start working.

Power steering noisy and heavy? Solution: new steering rack (after 12 months of me complaining that it wasn't right).

Step by step, little by little. Now all I need is for them to agree that the tailgate doesn't work (it always works when I show them!) and I'll be happy.

Oh, and d'you want to hear something funny (and scary)? Chatting to the technician and he told me he'd just been on the Eos training course. Apparently the trainer looked very sternly at the trainees and said: "Water leaks. The car does leak - we know that. However, when you start getting complaints, please use this to test the amount of water coming in". And each of them was given some sort of water meter - if it's under a set level, VW will say it's Ok!! It would be funny if it didn't relate to Joe Public's hard earned cash.

**minghis** · 08-12-2006,03:14 PM

Just a quick update on my rattle ridden estate - apparently there is now a fix available. Mine's just been done, it looks like they've taken out the interior trim and replaced it. The dash has been refitted also. On the overly sensitive auto hold function they have identified a fault and made some adjustments.

The rattles seem to have gone - looks like it's been fixed, at last.

**tim wall** · 08-12-2006,03:21 PM

hi minghis where was you car fixed ,my garage up to last week was still telling me their is no fix yet in fact i have taken advise on rejecting the vehicle

**minghis** · 08-12-2006,03:52 PM

Originally Posted by tim wall

hi minghis where was you car fixed ,my garage up to last week was still telling me their is no fix yet in fact i have taken advise on rejecting the vehicle

The lease company took it away - I don't know where it went but apparently VW have a technical centre in Milton Keynes (?) and I have a feeling it went there. What I do know is that it didn't go to my local dealer, apparently it had to go somewhere that had a bodyshop as the interior needed to be removed.

"There is now a fix available" was what the lease company said.

Good luck.

**Rocket** · 10-12-2006,02:32 AM

I almost got killed this afternoon. I started my car and was going down the driveway when I realized I had no brakes. Luckily between the parking brake and shifting into Park, I was able to stop the car at the end of the driveway before I got to the street. I am 75 years old and am sure if there was an accident, they would say I got confused.

The brakes were replaced in May 2006. The dealer said that pine needles got in the car and blocked the vent causing water to back up. I called after the above incident and the dealer said the pine needles blocked the vent again and this time froze. He said to wait until the weather became warmer and the brakes should return!!

I have owned Fords, Chryslers, Mercedes, parked them in the same driveway and have never had this problem before. Is it a design flaw?

**mutley** · 10-12-2006,12:31 PM

Originally Posted by Rocket

I almost got killed this afternoon. I started my car and was going down the driveway when I realized I had no brakes. Luckily between the parking brake and shifting into Park, I was able to stop the car at the end of the driveway before I got to the street. I am 75 years old and am sure if there was an accident, they would say I got confused.

The brakes were replaced in May 2006. The dealer said that pine needles got in the car and blocked the vent causing water to back up. I called after the above incident and the dealer said the pine needles blocked the vent again and this time froze. He said to wait until the weather became warmer and the brakes should return!!

I have owned Fords, Chryslers, Mercedes, parked them in the same driveway and have never had this problem before. Is it a design flaw?

Not too sure what vent your dealer is referring to, but the first thing that I would do would be to go to another dealer who doesn't suggest that you should only drive the car under dry warm conditions-sounds pretty much like a load of rubbish to me!

**DonnyG** · 27-12-2006,11:22 AM

Originally Posted by Martin Hawken

I was interested to read your post as I'm going mad with a continious rattle/vibration which appears to be coming from the glove box area (not the lock as you had). I also have an occasional buzzing sound from passanger side dash. Been to dealer several times but difficult to solve as intermittent. Didn't realise so many people having problems with rattles.

Can you help, it's driving me nuts!

Martin
I have same problem around the glovebox..
My car is booked in for complete new glovebox on 4th Jan.
It seems that the hinges/pins aren't quite as tight a fit as they should be and hence the rattling noises. I was convinced it was the little hatch that the service book fits into..

I am sick of plastic creaks and rattles.. I just gave back a 1 year old E90 320D when I changed jobs and this Passat is a bucket of scrap compared the BMW. I chose the 170BHP TDI Sport and whilst power is great "mid-range" there is terrible turbo lag at low RPM and at best I can only manage 42mpg compared to a regular 48mpg from the BMW. This isn't the car that I expected from VW. I used to own an A4 and always wondered how both managed to sell as the build quality from the Passat was near identical to the A4 for much less money. IMO you definitely get more for your money now in an A4, but should you have to pay that extra money for a reasonable standard of build quality???????

PS. I now have to get another fault checked out.. Airbag warning!!!!!!!!

**Tanto** · 27-12-2006,03:17 PM

I feel for you Donny. Several colleagues have also experienced the rattling Passat syndrome after we had our cars downgraded from BMW, Audi, Volvo etc.

The downgrading didn't stop there as I was denied a Passat when I changed cars recently (budget no longer matched monthly cost due to VW servicing & residuals).

I ended up moving from a BMW 320d SE Tourer to a Toyota Avensis T180 Tourer and was anticpating a somewhat lacklustre experience if my colleague's jibes regarding 'an old man's car' were anything to go by.

However I seem to be at the clean end of the stick.
I have a very rapid extremely well equipped car that is comfortable and quiet (unless pointlessly revved to beyond 4,000rpm,) and best of all I have suffered zero faults and zero rattles.

I don't gloat to my colleagues with Passats, I feel sorry for them as they all chose the VW on the basis that they would have a quality car and that they would enjoy lots of 'feelgood factor' motoring.

Perhaps VW have a quality issue? I had a Passat several years ago and it gave excellent service over 128,000 miles, what can have changed?

**steve_c** · 28-12-2006,09:15 PM

Have just received a replacement 2007 Passat a couple of weeks back after having untold hassles with rattles and creaks from the original one I purchased 6 months ago. New one thankfully is much better (fingers crossed).

There is however a very slight rattle in the glovebox area so interested to see what the dealer has to say on this when this gets looked at.