My new Golf 1.6 TDI DSG BlueMotion had a complete electrical shutdown whilst on the motorway with less than 50 miles on the clock. The on-site recovery technician diagnosed a faulty alternator, which was subsequently confirmed by the original VW dealership. I asked the salesman how the car got through the pre-delivery inspection without this issue being detected, and he said that the VW-approved process asks them to check the battery voltage but not specifically the alternator function.

Is the garage correct, or could I have reasonably expected them to have identified the issue at the PDI? The salesman was very keen that the car should be recovered back to them, and not another VW dealership (others were closer to the point of my breakdown), which has made me suspicious that they are trying to hide the issue. He also directly asked me not to mention it when asked by the standard VW post-sales survey whether I had experienced any post-delivery issues.