My 56 Reg (Nov 2006) Volkswagen Eos has developed a fault with the ABS and my local Volkswagen dealership has quoted me £1300 to replace the unit, although they have offered a "goodwill" price of £680. The car has done 49,000 miles and has been serviced by the Volkswagen dealership since new (I am the original and only owner) and the car's warranty expired last November at the 3-year point. Whilst I accept that cars break and one must accept the cost of ownership, the fact that such an important element of the car's braking system should fail after only 3.5 years and that the high cost of replacement appears to be only because the defective sensor in the unit cannot be replaced as a separate item has made me quite angry.

I have trawled the internet and found many instances of the ABS on Volkswagen cars failing indicating that this is a known, and inherent fault, that Volkswagen are aware of. I am also suspicious that a main Volkswagen dealer would offer a price cut of 50 per cent without a thought and this makes me think I am being fobbed off and that if I argue to case they may agree to foot all of the bill. I would be grateful for your opinion on this and for any advice you may be able to provide to try to fight for a better deal. I only bought a Volkswagen car because of their reputation for reliability, but I am now wondering if I have made a mistake and their "quality build" is a bit of a myth.