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I've just joined the ESP club.
When put through diagnostics it showed there was a problem with the ABS unit, and said it would need replacing, at a cost of about £1000 (how can this cost be so different from one place to another??!!).
My car is well out of warranty (5 years old, 38,000 on the clock), but I made it clear to them that I knew VW knew about this fault and would not be willing to pay anything.
The garage contacted head office for me.
Fortunately, because I have full sevice history with VW they have agreed to give me a 100% goodwill gesture. Result.
Good luck to you all, keep persisting, even if you don't get it serviced with them, they should at least give you some goodwill gesture as this is obviously a very big problem.
Karen
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I've also just become a reluctant member of the ESP light-always-on club. I've got an 05 VW Golf TDI, it's done 75k miles, so I think I'm a bit luckier than others reading the many posts above that it's lasted so long.
Anyway, I've had a diagnostics test done at my local VW garage and it's the same problem as everyone else with the ABS unit. I've been offered a repair kit with 20% discount (10% from garage, 10% from VW), £374 fitted.
Having already read the other posts above, I thought this wasn't too bad to get it sorted, but I was warned by the garage that the repair kit might not fix the problem. They have had an odd one that makes the car completely undriveable as it loses any pressure in the brakes. The brake pedal goes slowly to the floor, and stays there! (but the ESP light error disappears from the dash)
The only way to then fix it is to completely replace the unit. BUT.. you still have to pay for the repair kit! (despite it not working). I appreciate the honesty from the garage but it seems unreasonable to ask people to choose if they want to gamble on a reapair kit or shell out £1k+ for a new ABS unit.
So I phoned VW head office myself today and asked if a guarantee could be offered, that if the repair kit doesn't work then I won't have to pay for it (sounds fair to me, after all I'm paying for a faulty part that VW should've sorted out themselves when they saw how many people were having the same problem).
They're passing the query to a customer service advisor and they'll get back to me within 7 days.
ps. I got my Golf when it was only 10 months old, from a VW garage and it's got the full service history from VW dealers. VW said they don't normally offer anything when it's over 5yrs old, but my garage offered 10% so they matched it.
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I've just had my ESP light come on and after researching on here I'm not happy. Booked in to the local VW dealer to diagnose.
I bought the car ('06 TDI with full VWSH) less than 4 months ago from a dealer (non-VW) with 38k now has 41k.
Now as the car was bought less than 6 months ago I'm assuming that as it is a known fault that section 48A of the Sale of Goods Act 1979 will apply. Has anyone had any experience under this part of the Act (or others - I see someone posted about "durability of safety features" being an element of the Act).
I'm determined not to pay anything towards this fault as a) I should be covered by the SoGA and b) It is a known fault and therefore the dealer or VW should take responsibility - optimistic to say the least I know :-)
I will re-post with an update when I've 'discussed' the matter with VW and the dealership!
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Went into local VW dealer (Solihull nr Birmingham) yesterday and they diagnosed ABS fault and that it required an ABS repair kit - £644.90 fitted inc VAT!
The service advisor then asked me if I had VWSH, which the car does - full from purchase by previous owners. She then advised me that as it was a known fault, VW do give a contribution towards the work based on 3 factors: VW service history; age (up to 6 years) and mileage (up to 100k).
As my car has FVWSH, is under 6 years and under 100k miles I was over the moon when they told me that they would give me a 100% contribution towards the work AND I did not have to pay the diagnosis fee (£85) thus giving me a £730 saving (and they even replaced a bulb that had gone for free!).
I must say I was impressed with the dealer - they didn't try to wriggle out of anything and were very helpful. Hopefully this won't degenerate into another fault e.g. casuing brake pressure loss (as a previous message highlighted) - meaning a complete unit replacement but I will be highlighting this to the dealer and seeking a guarantee of some kind.
I think the three factors I mentioned above each give a percentage contribution towards the work so even if your vehicle is over 6 years or only partial VWSH or over 100k mileage I still think it's worth pushing them for some contribution.
Hope this message helps.
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The previous message is good news, however, essentially VAG are blackmailing owners in to only honouring warranties if you continually spend money with them. But this is old news........
I remember being told by the QA manager of a global car parts manufacturer that if a part supplied by a sub-contractor to a vehicle manufacturer (ie in this case Teves supplying the ABS units to VW) is found to be faulty, then the regular contract the supplier signed makes the supplier liable for the replacement units, plus other costs on top of that. So in reality VAG aren't displaying that much goodwill after all - because they'll be recouping their costs from the supplier of the faulty part.
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I may be a little biased but i will stick my oar in to this.
These pumps can be repair and i find the bill of nearly £600 to fit the repair kit as extortionate. The repair kit is only about £180 and about 2 hours labour. Quite an easy job. Sure a good garage could do this job for about £300.
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Thought I would let people Know, I have a 2007 golf tdi 105 match with 73,000 on clock, 3 vw services and 1 independant. ESP light came on yesterday took it to independant dealer for diagnostic and was told it was the dreaded ABS pump failure, was quoted £452. After reading discussions on here I thought a call to VW customer services on 0800 0833 920 was worth a try. I told them about problem and that it appeared to be a common fault and without to much persuasion as a good will gesture they are going to foot 100% of the bill, result. Booked in for next tuesday will let you know how I get on.
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Hi,
I have a 2007 VW Golf 1.6 FSI S 60K and I too joined the ESP club several months ago, and at the time, just presumed it was a faulty warning light as driving was 'normal' and it didn't feel/sound any different. Eventually went to my local independent garage for an MOT, who told me my ABS pump was faulty and that they fit a lot of pumps, so it wasn't uncommon for this to be replaced??! Less than unimpressed, I came home, and thankfully came across this site. I called VW customer service, explained my problem and told me to book the car in at my local VW garage and they would foot 100% of the bill. (£650.00!!). If it hadn't of been for this site, I would have, without a doubt paid to replace the pump. There was a slight issue at my local VW garage, whereby they did say the part wasn't under 'factory recall', and I would have to make a claim to VW, however after I said that VW C.S had agreed to pay, they also agreed and said 'they'd got it wrong'. (Personally I think they were trying to pull a fast one). I also found out that if the car had been over 6 years old, or done 100,000 miles, I wouldn't have been covered.
So cheers to everyone who posted, you've saved me a small fortune!!
P.S Just makes you wonder how many golf owners out there have paid to have the pump replaced, when they didn't have to??!
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This is the same for my 05 plate Touran. It came on at 103K miles and VW refused to contribute or even acknowledge it was a common fault. It is now (from 1.4.12) an MOT failure even though it has passed 2 MOTs inc rolling road tests with the light on. Thanks for the advice above I'll shop around for a fix before next MOT is due.
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So for nearly three years you have been driving around with what could be faulty brakes.
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Thanks Guys,
I've just left my 56 reg Golf in for a service today and I thought the ESP Light coming up on the dashboard could be easily fixed. The independent local garage told me it was going to be £450-ish for the repair (part and labour). I called VW customer services and was transferred to my local VW dealer who told me I'd have to book the car in for a diagnostics check at £54 to determine the fault......even though I insisted I knew what the fault was. Then I'd need to deal with VW customer services to be reimbursed with the cost of the repair. What a palaver.......but I suppose I shouldn't be complaining as VW customer services have agreed to reimburse me as the car is under 6 yrs old.
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I have a simular issue with my A3 55 Reg was first told that it was probably a sensor after taking it to an independant VW/Audi sepecialist i'm told that there is a fault on the electric module of the unit , The good news is that aparently I dont have have the whole unit changed and it will only cost me about £420 bad news for me is after reading some of the above i'm outside of the 6 year cut off a bit gutted cause i have been driving it round for a while and if i'd looked into it when it first came on i was inside the 6 years :(. Might still try my luck with audi though they can only say no cant they. After reading many of these posts and alot of others else where it amazed me how the VW group could have let this go on for so long it seems that abs units have been an issue as far back as the 90's
Edited by Leighton on 13/04/2012 at 16:09
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Hi.
Just want to start by thanking everyone over the past few years who have posted their experiences in dealing with VW over this problem as it was the blueprint to my resolution. The dreaded ESP light came on continously last week so called the National VW Customer Service Dept who advised I take a diagnostic test at nearest dealer which is VW Liverpool. Copy and pasted two A4 sheets of the positive comments on this thread to let them know that I was aware of this 'known fault ' when I made a booking for diagonostic test. Took our 54 reg Golf to dealer who advised the diagnostic test would cost of £48. Left HJ articles about this topic on passenger seat so mechanics would realise I knew the solution to the underlying problem. Several hours later I was informed that they had detected an ABS fault. As the car is 9 years old with 65K, I was concerned that our Golf might not meet the VW requirements for a goodwill gesture reimbursement as previous posters have suggested. Anyhow, I was told the ESP light fix would be fully met by Volkswagon under warranty and that I would not have to pay anything towards the ABS repair or for the diagnostic test. Even though last service was independent, no service history details were required. Never received any documentation for the repair so unsure of current prevailing cost. Just elated to have escaped a big bill. Hope this helps anyone who is confronted with this scenario in the future.
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Hi
Just an update on the E.S.P light issue, I have had the ABS pump repaired at a VW main dealer with the bill footed by VW, didnt even have to pay for the diagnostic check. Thanks to all the posters on here for the info. If you have this problem try ringing Vw customer services, its worth a call
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Vw jetta ESP 06.
After seeing Dom on the beeb I decided to challenge vw (also mot due..!)
I called customer service and they were very helpfull. They told me to book it in for a diagnostic check, if it was the common fault then they would repair the ESP fault for FREE even though I never serviced the car with vw.
The diagnostic check is £80, I'm not happy paying it but hey, I'll argue that after the repair.
So as I write I'm in the dealership waiting on the repair (3 or 4 hour job).
My car is also a few days away from the 6 year warranty so I've just scraped it...
I'll update on the quality of the replacement.....
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Hi I believe Iam probably amongst todays new subscribers to the esp light entertainment club, I recently became the proud owner of a 55 plate 06 model 1.4 golf and whilst I was suspicious of the light being on when I bought the car I didnt think too much of it as during the test drive the breaks where spot on and very responsive......anyway today looking up ebay for mats I came across a kit for the unknown to myself common fault as posted above by everyone the more I read the more I could have used one of those mats for my seat as I have just passed the six year old mark and also have broken the mentioned 100k mile marker too, not 2 sure about service issues as not looked at book to check if stamps from official or not anyway....After taking the kind advice of HJ and some other worrying panickers and called VW HQ 0800 0833 920 customer services mentioning my alarm at seeing how many people where having this problem on this site and how I should go about things I can honestly say that I was treated very well and assured that if I take my car to a local dealership which was duly arranged by the helpful customer services lady whilst I was on the phone then given a reference number and that if I have the diagnostic check done and it turns out to be the fault that they are currently dealing with it will be free as will be the diagnostic test so Ive since been called and emailed by local Edinburgh Gorgie Road Western dealer to confirm next thursday appointment. I will update next week and thanks again to all above.
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Hi I believe Iam probably amongst todays new subscribers to the esp light entertainment club, I recently became the proud owner of a 55 plate 06 model 1.4 golf and whilst I was suspicious of the light being on when I bought the car I didnt think too much of it as during the test drive the breaks where spot on and very responsive......anyway today looking up ebay for mats I came across a kit for the unknown to myself common fault as posted above by everyone the more I read the more I could have used one of those mats for my seat as I have just passed the six year old mark and also have broken the mentioned 100k mile marker too, not 2 sure about service issues as not looked at book to check if stamps from official or not anyway....After taking the kind advice of HJ and some other worrying panickers and called VW HQ 0800 0833 920 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 0800 0833 920 end_of_the_skype_highlighting customer services mentioning my alarm at seeing how many people where having this problem on this site and how I should go about things I can honestly say that I was treated very well and assured that if I take my car to a local dealership which was duly arranged by the helpful customer services lady whilst I was on the phone then given a reference number and that if I have the diagnostic check done and it turns out to be the fault that they are currently dealing with it will be free as will be the diagnostic test so Ive since been called and emailed by local Edinburgh Gorgie Road Western dealer to confirm next thursday appointment. I will update next week and thanks again to all above. Just to update everyone that my problem has now been corrected by the above mentioned garage last week, As previously mentioned after arrangement via VW HQ on the above number I am now very releived at this and must thank all from the above threads, HJ etc and also to VW HQ and the dealership western VW in Gorgie Road Edinburgh for all their help good luck to all who have this problem.Ta.
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Hi
ESP warning light came on last Monday 21 May 2012 on a straight bit of B-road, normal speed and driving on a fine dry day. It refused to go away. Car's a 2007 mk5 Golf GTI manual with 32k. Tested ABS on gravel yard and it still worked fine with the fault showing.
Went in to the local dealership today as I happened to have a 'Free Health Check' booked in, so didn’t have to pay for any diagnostics. Mentioned the ESP light was on and they came back advising ABS unit fault and they can fix it same afternoon no problem. No bill, fixed free of charge. They advised that it's a common problem but hadn't warranted a recall. I guess given the prevalence of the fault they've finally bit the bullet and repair free of charge. Total time about 3 hours including diagnostics and repair (and car wash!)
I had a full VW service history but they didn’t ask to see it. The car wasn't bought from VW dealership. Item appears on the service ticket as 'ABS brake pressure sensor faulty - repair kit required'..'£475.28' - though fixed free of charge as I say.
Thanks to everyone who's posted previously - I took a copy of this thread in with me just in case. But glad to say I didn’t need it. Thanks to HJ and all the people who've toiled with this - otherwise I expect I'd have a large hole in my pocket!
Cheers
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Hi, My ESP light came on 2 weeks ago (56 Reg Golf, 55,000 miles). I took it to the local garage who plugged in the computer which identified the switch fault, and only this fault. As this was the case I contacted VW who said I should take it to a dealer who would run the diagnostic and replace the switch if this was the issue.
I have been told today that a 2nd fault has been identified with the ASB pump and that this would not be covered by VW. The pump did not show up on the first diagnostic. From reading earlier posts to repair the switch do you not have to replace the pump? Has anyone else had the same issue?
Thanks
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Following on from the previous note of thanks above, can I add my own.
The ESP warning light came on in the wife's 07 mk5 Golf 1.6 FSI (53K) as she was driving down the A1 last Monday, 29th May, panic ensued etc. I calmed her down and had a look at the car that night and then started looking at the internet and eventually came across this thread, after a quick phone call to VW customer service team on Thursday (VW customer service advisor Emma was very helpful) and the car was booked in to VW Benfield at the Silverlink, North Tyneside for today.
I dropped the car off and explained the problem mentioned this website and that this seemed to be a common fault etc and gave them the case reference number from the customer service team. I picked the car up tonight washed, hoovered and was presented with a service invoice for an "ABS Control Unit Replacement" at no cost to myself as a goodwill gesture from VW. As you can imagine I'm now a very, very happy customer.
We have had three Golfs now and this is the first free thing I have ever had from VW !! According to the dealer this is a known fault with RHD MK5 Golfs only, due to the units positioning on thje car and is not covered by a general safety recall but is being done as a gesture of goodwill for cars that present the right fault code within certain criteria ie age, mileage etc.
My local garage, not the main VW dealer, has seen loads of these faults, and replaced quite a few units for VW owners who are frightened off visiting VW garages by potential high main dealer charges for replacement parts/labour. He's a decent, honest local mechanic and is now going to suggest they contact VW customer service directly in the first instance to see if they can get any satisfaction/goodwill before he gets his spanners out in future.
Apologies for being a bit long winded but many thanks to all those that have toiled before on this issue, I'm happy, the wife is delighted and VW may get some repeat business in the future.
Cheers,
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Just to add to this discussion...I have Mk5 Golf GT TDI (55 plate 60k miles) which showed this ESP light "feature" fault back in Feb 2012. When I first spoke to VW UK they were less than helpful and said that they wouldn't offer any goodwill after doing the diagnostics. I had left it until recently without repair and thought I'd give it another go.
I rang them again last week and they advised that if I took it back in for another diagnostics (they didn't keep the details from back in February) then the repair would be free if it came up with 1 of 3 fault codes (G201 is one of those codes, not sure of the other 2).
They have confirmed this afternoon that they will be performing the repair free of charge.
It would seem their policy on age/milage has significantly changed over the last few months and anyone experiencing this problem should ring customer services and open a case with them....hope this helps.
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Just to add to the frayI had an 06 plate VW Touran 2 TDI Sport as company car from new and at 2 years old and 80k miles,in 2008, I got the same thing happen. I left the fleet company to argue the 2 grand bill for parts and labour with VW as it was over the 60 k mile warranty limit
Remember seeing loads of posts on it at the time
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My 55 plate Golf plus joined the ESP club 2 weeks ago. Today the car went into Peter Cooper Volkswagon for a diagnostic check with the result of Volkswagon deciding to repair the fault at no cost.
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My VW (56 plate) Golf GT TDI (69K miles) has just fallen fowl of the ESP light issue.
Thankfully, I began reading this thread and it has helped alot so thanks.
I have therefore just called VW Customer Servs on 0800 0833 920 and they confirmed that this sounds like a 'known fault' and if I book my motor in with them then should the issue be diagnosed as the known fault, they would pay for the diagnostic test and the repair in full. No questions asked.
If the results are not the known fault then I would have to foot the bill for the diagnostic test (£59.95 inc VAT at VW garage in Rotherham, S66 2JL). The customer services department also gave me a reference for the call which was quite reassuring as they must clearly log my call and this would allow me to refer back to this if I have any issues. I will also receive a call within 14 working days from them to see if the issue has been resolved.
The lady I spoke to at the Rotherham dealership confirmed that they are looking for the G201 sensor issue (I have no idea but this might be helpful for some of you out there?).
Lets hope it is this known fault and VW stand by their verbal agreement to foot 100% of the bill. I will let you know how I get on.
Good luck to all
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I am in a similar situation as the ESP light came on two days ago on my (57 plate) Golf TSI 1.4 with 36K miles.
This Thread has been so informative and I would like to thank those that have taken time to post thier experiences over this known problem.
Have arranged for the garage that I purchased it from and also the necessary servicings that were done with to resolve this known problem but of course must await the necessary diagnostic check to ensure that it fulfils the G201 sensor issue problem ensuring that it will be paid for by VW.
The car is booked in on the 7th Sept and i will keep you posted.
I am still perplexed as to why VW have not resolved this long term problem.
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Have just had my golf fixed by a reputable and highly recommended mechanic who replaced the abs pump. Since this, there is a lot of travel in my brake pedal. Has anyine else had a similar experience and how have you fixed it?
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Your reputable and .... mechanic has not followed the correct procedure for bleeding the brakes.
On these vehicles you need VAGCOM or its update to place the ABS system into "open valve" mode in order to bleed the brakes properly. Traditional methods won't work as an air bubble in the valve block introduced on replacement will otherwise remain stuck there.
This is the reason for your long brake pedal travel.
659.
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It was proved that my problem was indeed the 201 Sensor and tomorrow the car goes in the garage for a replacement paid for by VW, good news too.
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Job carried out today and pleased with the garages overall assistance. Supplied a car for the day without incurring a cost to myself. In addition the car was valetted and washed, thats what you call service.
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Hi,
Another successful free of charge fix here (07 Golf, 45,000 miles, VW service history). Rang customer service first but no quibbles from them or Nottingham dealership.
Thanks soooo much to everyone who contributed to this thread and those who pushed VW to change their policy.
Cheers,
Eljay
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Thank you to everyone who has posted on this topic. It put me in the right frame of mind when I took my Golf Plus to our local VW dealer with this problem. Glad to report that the garage told me when I booked the car in that if it was the ABS pump problem then it would be replaced free of charge. Hey Presto that was what happened. Cannot fault Heritage of Bristol for their advice and service. Pity it happened in the first place but turned out to be relatively minor inconvenience which didn't empty my wallet
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Just another thank you post. Just had the necessary repairs carried out free of charge at Isaac Agnew Belfast on a 2006 VW Golf, 33k miles, without a VW service history. Contacted VW Customer services on the number provided above, they were more than helpful, provided a reference number and told me how to proceed. Isaac Agnew carried out the diagnostics, then carried out all repairs and gave the car a good clean.
Thanks again folks.
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I have just joined the ESP light on Club. At 27,000 miles after starting my Mark 6 Golfthe ESP/ABS and Brakelight stayed on continuously. Luckily, the car was just in warranty.
The garage have changed a brake swaitch and the ABS control unit; now the engine will not start. Apparently the new ABS unit will not 'code' to the ECU. Despite liaising with the VW factory my local dealer has been unable to fix the problem.
It has been 10 days since they started work and I am concerned that VAG have been unable to fix this problem. Anyone else experiencing this problem or with advice on how to proceed?
Thankyou
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Another week has passed and the fault has not been fixed, The factory sent out another ABS control unit but the ESP light stays on and the unit cannot be 'coded'.
The chances of two new units being faulty must be very low. It seems to me that the problem is how the unit is connected to the car. As the problem started just after a wet spell of weather I wonder if it might be a damp connection or earth.
Any technical people out there with advice or thoughts? If so please comment.
Regards
P.S. VW have kindly arranged a nice Passat to cover my car-gap
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