2023 Ocean leaking roof fabric

[Corradobrit]

I note that this is classic "he said, she said" broken telephone. You have party 'A' claiming to quote party 'B' but typically unwilling to provide details to their quotes.

Right now you probably need to try get clarity directly from VW UK and of that doesn't work VW AG.

Or go to a more customer focused dealer.

 

[OooOooTheMonkey]

Thanks for this. I'm hoping that it doesn't come to rejecting that van because it isn't fit for purpose (which has far as I'm concerned it isnt), but if it it does I will seek legal advise with a view to getting my money back.
A camper van that you can't use in the rain? Who'd have thought!

Is it the dealer you bought it from who’s dealing with it?

 

[Jeaniethecali]

Is it the dealer you bought it from who’s dealing with it?

Unfortunately no. Bought the van through Drive the Deal, so dealer was Eurovans Crawley. I live 200 miles from them, so now dealing with VW van centre Manchester.

 

[andyinluton]

Unfortunately no. Bought the van through Drive the Deal, so dealer was Eurovans Crawley. I live 200 miles from them, so now dealing with VW van centre Manchester.

No point doing too much other than logging it as a problem at the moment. No point having the bellows replaced unless they find why it's leaking and can confirm that the new ones won't.

If everyone who's roof leaks registers it with VW as a problem then will take notice.

 

[OooOooTheMonkey]

No point doing too much other than logging it as a problem at the moment. No point having the bellows replaced unless they find why it's leaking and can confirm that the new ones won't.

If everyone who's roof leaks registers it with VW as a problem then will take notice.

Yes that’s true but really it should be done through the dealer that sold you the van as that is who your contract is with. No other dealer has any incentive to help you if VW reject the claim.

 

[.Billy Ocean.]

So, as the initiator of this thread, I thought I'd give a quick update.
My van has been in the workshop since Monday and they have just phoned me to say that they have been in touch with VW who have advised that this is not a fault and that this is due to the fact the rain was 'heavy' . So there you have it folks, VW are NOT admitting that there is an issue with the bellows. So it would appear to be my fault for having the audacity to camp when it rains...
I've told them to get back in touch with VW and tell them that is unacceptable.
I will keep you all posted on their response.

Thanks for sharing your response. I think the fact this forum has lots of posts from owners with new style bellows leaking… but at the same time no posts from people with the old style leaking, clearly shows there is a difference between the two and VW are going to need to do a lot better than that.

 

[Kayleigh]

My van has been in the workshop since Monday and they have just phoned me to say that they have been in touch with VW who have advised that this is not a fault and that this is due to the fact the rain was 'heavy' . So there you have it folks, VW are NOT admitting that there is an issue with the bellows.

So I wonder why VWCV have authorised the replacement on other MY23 Californias with the same issue… seems somewhat inconsistent.

 

[RockinNRollin]

There seems to be some mixed messaging going on here; withdrawal of stock etc. suggests concerns over that stock quality, yet in the same breath they're denying there's even a problem. As an earlier comment, the problem might be a loss in translation as a result of the dealer; VWCV might have said to the dealer "we currently do not recognise any defect with the bellows" meaning nothing officially released, but not denying anything either, the dealership then thinks "right, I've got a customer here with a supposed problem and I'm not going to get a bean towards it if I do anything, and what can I even do?", so the customer gets told "VW have said there is no defect with the roof" which is then supported by a comment to try and justify it "because it's not designed for heavy rain". Who knows, but I wouldn't be surprised.

@Jeaniethecali I would be at this stage thanking the dealership for their efforts and investigations (keep them on side) but say you're still not happy with what VWCV have said, so you want to raise a formal complaint with VWCV. I would then follow that through, including citing that the vehicle is sold as a camping vehicle (and marketed as such) in the UK, which has a variable climate with rain expected throughout the year. I would be very considered in how you phrase everything, keeping it wholly objective and refer to the manual (which only refers to stormy weather) and again cite the vehicle has been used in accordance with the manual.

I don't think you'll actually get any material progress (no pun intended) anytime soon if there literally isn't a physical solution yet, but logging as a formal complaint will definitely escalate it.

 

[Jimmylondon07]

For those with the issue, have you come up with any temporary hacks to keep the area dry whilst pending a solution from VW?

 

[Corradobrit]

For those with the issue, have you come up with any temporary hacks to keep the area dry whilst pending a solution from VW?

If mine starts leaking I will place this tape over the seam from the inside. Should provide enough of a barrier to stop water infiltration until VW come up with a permanent fix. Can be removed without leaving a trace before going to the dealer.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00C87R78Q/

 

[RockinNRollin]

For those with the issue, have you come up with any temporary hacks to keep the area dry whilst pending a solution from VW?

I’ve ordered some waterproof tarp and some bungees to make a “front wrap”. Intend to fold the vertical edges back on themselves to form a gutter too so in wind driven rain it will run down rather than off the material. I’ve not had my bellows leak yet but I’m going to have it ready just in case….

 

[dspuk]

If mine starts leaking I will place this tape over the seam from the inside. Should provide enough of a barrier to stop water infiltration until VW come up with a permanent fix. Can be removed without leaving a trace before going to the dealer.

https://www.amazon.de/dp/B00C87R78Q/

Recommended the same in another post with some pics. I’d also put it over the front open corner to cover the area that water can pool But have both strips span the width of the top of the seam.

Post in thread '2023 Ocean leaking roof fabric'
https://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/2023-ocean-leaking-roof-fabric.49408/post-652324

 

[Joncali2023!!]

For those with the issue, have you come up with any temporary hacks to keep the area dry whilst pending a solution from VW?

I’ve sprayed fabrisil on my seams and it’s helped for now .

 

[Kenisted]

As some members maybe aware I’m treading water as others are, don’t know if this has been mentioned but do the red and blue bellows leak from the same build period ?

 

[Grigio Van Grigio]

Unfortunately no. Bought the van through Drive the Deal, so dealer was Eurovans Crawley. I live 200 miles from them, so now dealing with VW van centre Manchester.

This is exactly my situation and have mine booked in for September with Manchester van centre. Have they tried to charge you an “investigation fee”? They mentioned a possible charge of £354 if there’s no warranty issue when I booked mine in.

 

[RockinNRollin]

I’ve sprayed fabrisil on my seams and it’s helped for now .

If in warranty I’d be wary of applying anything (as the manual says not to) unless the dealer endorses it in writing; it’s just something for VW to wiggle out of their warranty obligations on otherwise.

 

[dspuk]

If in warranty I’d be wary of applying anything (as the manual says not to) unless the dealer endorses it in writing; it’s just something for VW to wiggle out of their warranty obligations on otherwise.

Technically a warranty claim can only be refused is a mod or action can be proven to have caused the failure. So unless the spray has “caused” a leak, they will be fine. Not to say a dealer won’t argue, but that is the legal situation since block exemption. Same for servicing - anyone can service your van, and as long as it complies to the OEM standards it will not invalidate the warranty. They try and wiggle out of it with “specialised dealer training” but that’s twaddle.

A bit like my solar panel - if there was a leisure battery failure they would have to prove my panel caused that. If a starter battery failure, as they are not connected, they could not refuse.

All that said, I’d be looking at bellows mods that left zero trace, to be on the safe side.

 

[Jeaniethecali]

This is exactly my situation and have mine booked in for September with Manchester van centre. Have they tried to charge you an “investigation fee”? They mentioned a possible charge of £354 if there’s no warranty issue when I booked mine in.

They mentioned an investigation charge when I first booked the van in. I picked the van back up yesterday and they told me that their investigation revealed no leaks... so I'm guessing they just blast it for 10 minutes with a hose pipe. Luckily I had taken photos of the leaking fabric, printed them off and took in with the van. I spoke to their service manager, Neil, and he was very understanding. I told him that the leak only starts after 2-3 hours of rain, and just wetting it with a hosepipe or even pressure washer does not cause the fabric to leak.
He has stated that he will make contact with VW, send them my photos and see what they say about it. (VW must know there is a problem by now, so many people seem to be affected).
I wasn't charged the investigation fee..
So my advice is to take photos of the fabric leaking if you can, and take them with you and ask to speak to Neil, who now knows all about this.
Good luck and please let us know how you get on.

 

[Kenisted]

Has anyone’s leaked anywhere else other than the seam along the bottom of the front window?

We were away at the weekend and there was a small chance of rain overnight, so we put a load of cloths out (similar to @bullibuskombi above) and covered the front seats. Thankfully it didn’t rain, but it got me thinking if I should be covering up other areas just incase.

Right down the offside as well, matress was soaked the 300mm on side complete length

 

[Grigio Van Grigio]

They mentioned an investigation charge when I first booked the van in. I picked the van back up yesterday and they told me that their investigation revealed no leaks... so I'm guessing they just blast it for 10 minutes with a hose pipe. Luckily I had taken photos of the leaking fabric, printed them off and took in with the van. I spoke to their service manager, Neil, and he was very understanding. I told him that the leak only starts after 2-3 hours of rain, and just wetting it with a hosepipe or even pressure washer does not cause the fabric to leak.
He has stated that he will make contact with VW, send them my photos and see what they say about it. (VW must know there is a problem by now, so many people seem to be affected).
I wasn't charged the investigation fee..
So my advice is to take photos of the fabric leaking if you can, and take them with you and ask to speak to Neil, who now knows all about this.
Good luck and please let us know how you get on.

Many thanks for that. Very useful. I didn’t get great photos of the leak as it was night time but with my visit being mid September, and me living in Manchester, I’m sure I’ll get a chance to get the roof up in the rain and take plenty of photos and videos of the leak!

I’ll keep this thread up to date following my visit.

 

[Nick from Bath]

We just had half hour of light rain here with fairly light wind (F4). As I was in the garden anyway I thought I’d put the roof up and see if there was any leakage. Sad to say there was, even in that short period so going to send the dealer photos, video and - maybe crucially- screenshots of weather data to show there definitely wasn’t any strong winds or driving rain at the time.

 

[Joncali2023!!]

If in warranty I’d be wary of applying anything (as the manual says not to) unless the dealer endorses it in writing; it’s just something for VW to wiggle out of their warranty obligations on otherwise.

When I get back off this Switzerland tour in two more weeks, I’ll be rejecting the vehicle and getting my money back.
Only had it two weeks, and I’d be sad to say it’s ruined my holiday.
Constant worry about water dripping on my head during the night from the tailgate, the poptop losing pressure and coming down on my kids , and it also leaking.
So the least of my worries is spraying some fabrisil on the canvas

 

[Grigio Van Grigio]

When I get back off this Switzerland tour in two more weeks, I’ll be rejecting the vehicle and getting my money back.
Only had it two weeks, and I’d be sad to say it’s ruined my holiday.
Constant worry about water dripping on my head during the night from the tailgate, the poptop losing pressure and coming down on my kids , and it also leaking.
So the least of my worries is spraying some fabrisil on the canvas

I’m really sorry to hear it’s ruined your holiday. It’s not on. It will be very interesting to see what VW’s response will be to your rejection of the vehicle.

 

[Corradobrit]

I thought you had to give the manufacturer the opportunity to fix the issues before lemon laws apply.

 

[flying banana]

I thought you had to give the manufacturer the opportunity to fix the issues before lemon laws apply.

he needs new bellows,that don't leak,he needs a new roof pump fitting and a new tailgate seal. they will fob him off for sure.