Hi, I am interested if anybody else has had a similar problem to me and what VW's attitude was. My 3 year 4 month old Golf TDI PD(115hp) engine died at 35,000 miles. The cause apparently was fuel leaking from the injector over night. On starting the engine, the con rod under the cylinder which full of fuel bent - as diesel isn't too compressible. After 5 weeks, a new engine and nearly £1,600 I got my car back. This cost was after a 50% contribution from VW. I don't think this is reasonable - it seems like a design fault to me. And from discussions with people who I know at some VW agents it seems this is not a unique case.
Has anybody else suffered the same? and have you got a better deal out of VW? Mine is an import so in theory the warranty was only a year. If I'm not unique a case it maybe something to consider before buy a second hand car with VW 115hp PD engine.
Cheers
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I'm very sorry to hear about this and it is something about which Wolfsburg is aware.
Yours was one of the early PD units.
The old injectors looked like spark plugs and sat in a similar location to a spark plug, on the side of the head.
The PD units are atop the engine and initially carried a lot more fuel to satisfy the intense injection pressures which were wanted as part of the design.
It was theoretically possible to get fuel leakage into the cylinder, hydraulic lock, and the symptoms you describe.
Modifications have been done subsequently.
If you had bought in the UK, VW Milton Keynes would have done this job for you, gratis.
They have to pay for such work and cannot claim it back from Wolfsburg, surprisingly.
The replacement injectors should be of the new design, and you should never have this problem again.
Not much help, I know, but what can I say?
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Before VAG put the PD engines in the cars of other manufacturers in the group, presumably they iron this sort of thing out?
I only ask as I have new shape Ibiza with the 100 bhp PD engine.
Any information gratefully received.
Matthew Kelly
No, not that one.
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No worries for you Matt.
Your injectors are well proven.
They are actually fitting them now, in the new, 2 litre engine with 16 valves, to be launched shortly.
No more power, but satisfies Euro 4 emissions.
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Thanks very much for you comments - it is actually a great help as if the injectors in the replacement engine are a different design, I can stop waiting for the engine to self destruct again and that makes me much happier. My only question is that VW (UK) and the local agent seemed to say that the design of the replacement engine was unchanged from the original. I questioned them quite hard on this as I felt I was paying to get an engine with the same potential fault. Mind you VW (UK) seemed to have a politician’s skill of not answering any of the pertinent questions I asked.
Is there anyway of telling visually or via an engine serial number if the injectors are different?
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A few questions to answer here.
1. As part of the policy of continuous improvement, components and systems are subject to change...blah, blah.
2. No way for you to see the new injectors, without serious dismantling.
3. I never trust engine numbers as parts can be retro-fitted. The injectors have a number on them. Highly unlikely you'd get a 1st-release engine as an exch.
4. VAG cars have, in real terms, never been cheaper. You do get value for your money.
5. Cue umpteen q's when I say this, but your car cost about £3k to make including labour in Germany.. The rest is marketing, transport, investment in press tooling,factory maintenance, rates and rebuilding, investment in R&D, investment in warranty & insurance, transport from germany,shareholder profit and dividends, dealer profit etc etc.
Now, it probably cost you nearly £15k to buy.
That's £3k for the engineered part and £12k for the rest.
We would spend more on the car, but it then loses out volume-wise to the competition and the shareholders move their money.
This is exactly the same for say, "C" Class £3200 to make, "E"Class £3400 to make etc.
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As Sean points out, you have to understand that VW(UK) and VW the parent manufacturing company are not one and the same.
In the circumstances, under current consumer protection laws, the 50% goodwill offer from VW(UK) is very generous. They need offer you no more than 0% !!
In your position, I would be most grateful.
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I don't really feel it's about consumer law - It about VW's chosen and heavily marketed image of good build quality and reliability. An organisation with reasonable ethics / honesty should deliver what it advertises.
I wouldn't expect anything if the car were a Lada.....
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I don't really feel it's about consumer law ->> I wouldn't expect anything if the car were a Lada.....>>
Unfortunately for you, IT IS about consumer law. It matters not whether it is a LADA, Merc, BMW or what have you. Your best bet is to contact VW Group in Germany.
The following is from a letter and reply given by HJ in the last issue of Daily Telegraph:
>>>>> " ... I purchased a .... Volkswagen Golf V5 that was originally imported to the UK from Germany. ..... that a gear on the intermediate shaft snapped off and broke the timing chain, which led to valves hitting pistons, with the usual damaging results. This is clearly the result of a manufacturing fault. The dealer has recommended that a new engine be fitted and the total cost will be £5,640, of which VW Germany will contribute 70 per cent as a gesture of goodwill. I don't believe a supposedly high-quality machine should suffer this kind of failure at such a young age. I appreciate that the car is no longer under warranty and did not come from the UK, but I feel VW GB should approach its counterparts in Germany and ask that the full cost of an unusual failure be met.
S.B., Highgate
HJ's reply: You have been unfortunate but the VW Group is treating you fairly and the British arm of the company has no responsibility for your car. " <<<<<<<
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It all depends on whether you (or the courts) believe that the seller is an agent of VW or a separate entity. When you consider buying, the seller and VW would like to make you believe that the seller and VW are contiguous. VW emblems, brochures, support, service standards, advertising, mfrs warranty etc. When you find a manufacturing fault, however, your claim is only against Joe Bloggs, the renter of the site. VW and others should not hide behind an outmoded view of contract law. Would anyone really buy so readily if VW et al did not require the insignia of the corporation to be shot through the sellers premises like the proverbial Blackpool rock? Yes, I know (or did know!) the law of contract in the UK, but thats not necessarily how it appears to the public. Small print is small for a reason. The name of the maker on the dealers premises is ubiquitous and prominent for a reason. Which has more influence when buying? If a duff product is made, the consumer has to jump through hoops to get redress. Mfrg defects are traceable, and known to the company. Unfortunately the individual has to hazard a considerable amount to challenge what is often known in the trade. Fair? Not unless tested in law, which few individuals can afford.
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