My new to me 2018 Golf has a leak into the boot. Water is clearly travelling through the rear hatch door handle, behind the rear skin and tracking across the lock into the boot. Googling shows its probably a common failing of a drain pipe costing a fiver. The problem from a DIY point of view is that you need to ease off a lot of fixing clips that are prone to break. So back to the dealer for a warranty repair.

How hard can it be to remove the hatch trim and replace a pipe? Very apparently.

Their solution first entailed giving me a free courtesy car for a day for diagnosis. On my return they said Google may be right but what if its not? They now want my car for three days to do the repair which has to be recorded on video, agreed by VW then pressure tested. They can't do it for two weeks but will keep my car on site in case a cancellation slot becomes available to do it sooner. Meanwhile they have given me a free 2019 Passat DSG diesel until 12 November. taking it off sale to do so and will return my car with a full tank as goodwill.

On one level this is great customer service but its costing them a fortune. Why not whip off the trim, which has to come off anyway, and see if the problem is as simple as it appears and just slip in a new pipe? A few minutes work for rather less than my tank of petrol let alone the courtesy car and booked workshop time.