A tale of woe and of a serious fire hazard I experienced

[SteveE]

A story about my 2013 California.

Sometime in May, 2020 I was sanitizing the water tank to get ready for the jam-packed summer of euro-camping (not) and I noticed the tap was not working.

Having checked absolutely every possible external fault and found no issues I finally has to remove the water tank access cover (which is no simple task) so I could examine the pump unit. I made a horrifying discovery...

The water pump unit had suffered a serious burnout, so serious it had destroyed the water tank and burnt through to the gas-safe compartment, which it shares a wall with. Luckily I keep my gas bottle away from the van during the winter. Unluckily I now had a nice hole from my water tank into my gas-safe compartment which was now too deformed to take the gas bottle.

I have no idea how or when this fire occurred. We've accidently knocked the tap "on" in the past and it is very obvious it is on, especially when the water tank is empty. It makes a loud noise.

VW customer services advised I needed to get a dealer to look at it and then they would contact the dealer to obtain a report for the VW Fire and Safety team to assess.

I left the van with JCB Eurovans in Crawley for a few days in early June and then waited, and chased, and waited, and chased etc. I can understand lockdown and staff shortages has made life more difficult for everyone but after 6 months of hearing nothing I was contacted by customer services to see if I had heard from the dealer and could they could close the case. Hmmm... so VW CS knows that the dealer has an answer but the dealer isn't telling me... hmmmmm. Anyway, 6 more weeks of me calling the dealer on Mondays and VW customer services calling me on Thursdays "to see if I had heard" went by and I eventually heard back from JCB: VW had determined they were at no fault and would not help me with the repair costs. I was on my own.

JCB advised it would be at least 3 days labour to replace the water tank and quoted me £3,562.45 parts and labour. JCB would not share the report they had prepared for VW with me.

£3500!!! Blimey. So I then contacted my insurance company (Safeguard)... cue much teeth sucking and being passed on to successively more niche and specialised claims departments until, a few weeks later, my claim was eventually denied due to it being electrical failure, due to that being explicitly excluded, due to insurance companies being absolute bandits.

[sigh] I might as well get a second opinion... so I contacted my old muckers, SMG in Cowfold. They quoted me £550 parts and labour - . By this time I had had enough of this whole situation and got the van to them a few days later. SMG also discovered the tap was faulty and was "constantly on" - something JCB hadn't noticed so I have doubts about the thoroughness of their report for VW.

It's all fixed now and will soon be on the market.. I'm looking for a Beach as a replacement... all the practicality, none of the mysterious danger!

Lessons learned:

• I cannot recommend JCB Eurovans in Crawley, and Gavin will NOT return your call no matter how many times you ask him even if you are calling from VW.
• SMG Cowfold can be thoroughly recommended but I think you all know this already.
• VW UK do not care once you are out of warranty.
• Claims you'd think would be a no-quibble settlement with your "camper van specialist" insurance may not be.
• I would say check your water taps but what is there to check? Mine worked in late Autumn but sometime after that failed or corroded and decided to turn itself on one time it was unattended.
• A translation of "JCB: we have to remove the entire kitchen, that is 3 days labour" is "we've never done this before so I quickly checked YouTube"
• A translation of "SMG: to replace the tank we just move the kitchen away from the wall" is "yeah, we've done this before"

Anyone selling a Beach?
Steve

 

[KGCali]

A story about my 2013 California.

Sometime in May, 2020 I was sanitizing the water tank to get ready for the jam-packed summer of euro-camping (not) and I noticed the tap was not working.

Having checked absolutely every possible external fault and found no issues I finally has to remove the water tank access cover (which is no simple task) so I could examine the pump unit. I made a horrifying discovery...

The water pump unit had suffered a serious burnout, so serious it had destroyed the water tank and burnt through to the gas-safe compartment, which it shares a wall with. Luckily I keep my gas bottle away from the van during the winter. Unluckily I now had a nice hole from my water tank into my gas-safe compartment which was now too deformed to take the gas bottle.

I have no idea how or when this fire occurred. We've accidently knocked the tap "on" in the past and it is very obvious it is on, especially when the water tank is empty. It makes a loud noise.

VW customer services advised I needed to get a dealer to look at it and then they would contact the dealer to obtain a report for the VW Fire and Safety team to assess.

I left the van with JCB Eurovans in Crawley for a few days in early June and then waited, and chased, and waited, and chased etc. I can understand lockdown and staff shortages has made life more difficult for everyone but after 6 months of hearing nothing I was contacted by customer services to see if I had heard from the dealer and could they could close the case. Hmmm... so VW CS knows that the dealer has an answer but the dealer isn't telling me... hmmmmm. Anyway, 6 more weeks of me calling the dealer on Mondays and VW customer services calling me on Thursdays "to see if I had heard" went by and I eventually heard back from JCB: VW had determined they were at no fault and would not help me with the repair costs. I was on my own.

JCB advised it would be at least 3 days labour to replace the water tank and quoted me £3,562.45 parts and labour. JCB would not share the report they had prepared for VW with me.

£3500!!! Blimey. So I then contacted my insurance company (Safeguard)... cue much teeth sucking and being passed on to successively more niche and specialised claims departments until, a few weeks later, my claim was eventually denied due to it being electrical failure, due to that being explicitly excluded, due to insurance companies being absolute bandits.

[sigh] I might as well get a second opinion... so I contacted my old muckers, SMG in Cowfold. They quoted me £550 parts and labour - . By this time I had had enough of this whole situation and got the van to them a few days later. SMG also discovered the tap was faulty and was "constantly on" - something JCB hadn't noticed so I have doubts about the thoroughness of their report for VW.

It's all fixed now and will soon be on the market.. I'm looking for a Beach as a replacement... all the practicality, none of the mysterious danger!

Lessons learned:

• I cannot recommend JCB Eurovans in Crawley, and Gavin will NOT return your call no matter how many times you ask him even if you are calling from VW.
• SMG Cowfold can be thoroughly recommended but I think you all know this already.
• VW UK do not care once you are out of warranty.
• Claims you'd think would be a no-quibble settlement with your "camper van specialist" insurance may not be.
• I would say check your water taps but what is there to check? Mine worked in late Autumn but sometime after that failed or corroded and decided to turn itself on one time it was unattended.
• A translation of "JCB: we have to remove the entire kitchen, that is 3 days labour" is "we've never done this before so I quickly checked YouTube"
• A translation of "SMG: to replace the tank we just move the kitchen away from the wall" is "yeah, we've done this before"

Anyone selling a Beach?
Steve

The melting water pump appears to be a common issue if run dry but I've never heard of one actually burning and melting the tank!
It's a shame all VW dealer aren't like SMG Cowfold who are a great team.
Are you going to inform VW that the tap had a fault?

 

[Jandy61]

Will certainly read the small print on insurance cover, how big does the fire need to be to for them to cover it, I guess a lot of vehicle fires start with the electrics too

 

[66tim99]

A story about my 2013 California.

Sometime in May, 2020 I was sanitizing the water tank to get ready for the jam-packed summer of euro-camping (not) and I noticed the tap was not working.

Having checked absolutely every possible external fault and found no issues I finally has to remove the water tank access cover (which is no simple task) so I could examine the pump unit. I made a horrifying discovery...

The water pump unit had suffered a serious burnout, so serious it had destroyed the water tank and burnt through to the gas-safe compartment, which it shares a wall with. Luckily I keep my gas bottle away from the van during the winter. Unluckily I now had a nice hole from my water tank into my gas-safe compartment which was now too deformed to take the gas bottle.

I have no idea how or when this fire occurred. We've accidently knocked the tap "on" in the past and it is very obvious it is on, especially when the water tank is empty. It makes a loud noise.

VW customer services advised I needed to get a dealer to look at it and then they would contact the dealer to obtain a report for the VW Fire and Safety team to assess.

I left the van with JCB Eurovans in Crawley for a few days in early June and then waited, and chased, and waited, and chased etc. I can understand lockdown and staff shortages has made life more difficult for everyone but after 6 months of hearing nothing I was contacted by customer services to see if I had heard from the dealer and could they could close the case. Hmmm... so VW CS knows that the dealer has an answer but the dealer isn't telling me... hmmmmm. Anyway, 6 more weeks of me calling the dealer on Mondays and VW customer services calling me on Thursdays "to see if I had heard" went by and I eventually heard back from JCB: VW had determined they were at no fault and would not help me with the repair costs. I was on my own.

JCB advised it would be at least 3 days labour to replace the water tank and quoted me £3,562.45 parts and labour. JCB would not share the report they had prepared for VW with me.

£3500!!! Blimey. So I then contacted my insurance company (Safeguard)... cue much teeth sucking and being passed on to successively more niche and specialised claims departments until, a few weeks later, my claim was eventually denied due to it being electrical failure, due to that being explicitly excluded, due to insurance companies being absolute bandits.

[sigh] I might as well get a second opinion... so I contacted my old muckers, SMG in Cowfold. They quoted me £550 parts and labour - . By this time I had had enough of this whole situation and got the van to them a few days later. SMG also discovered the tap was faulty and was "constantly on" - something JCB hadn't noticed so I have doubts about the thoroughness of their report for VW.

It's all fixed now and will soon be on the market.. I'm looking for a Beach as a replacement... all the practicality, none of the mysterious danger!

Lessons learned:

• I cannot recommend JCB Eurovans in Crawley, and Gavin will NOT return your call no matter how many times you ask him even if you are calling from VW.
• SMG Cowfold can be thoroughly recommended but I think you all know this already.
• VW UK do not care once you are out of warranty.
• Claims you'd think would be a no-quibble settlement with your "camper van specialist" insurance may not be.
• I would say check your water taps but what is there to check? Mine worked in late Autumn but sometime after that failed or corroded and decided to turn itself on one time it was unattended.
• A translation of "JCB: we have to remove the entire kitchen, that is 3 days labour" is "we've never done this before so I quickly checked YouTube"
• A translation of "SMG: to replace the tank we just move the kitchen away from the wall" is "yeah, we've done this before"

Anyone selling a Beach?
Steve

Terrible to read but thanks fir sharing. Despite (because of) buying an Ocean from them Eurovans Crawley will never see my van again after delivery. Absolutely sing.
@Tomdbreeze will be getting all my business.

 

[AlisonF]

Sorry to heat this story. Glad you found a reputable dealer to help sort it.
Just looking to get insurance for my new van and will be reading the small print and asking more questions than I have done previously...

 

[Drpps]

Glad it is sorted and thank you for sharing. A few people recommend removing the 5a fuse under the passenger seat that controls the pump when it is dormant with no water in the tank to prevent damage to the pump but I have not heard of it going this awry.

 

[ThomasHJ]

Sounds like a horrible experience, especially when getting no help from your dealer or VW. Sad really.

Might be a reason for other cali owners to leave water in the tank just to be sure (assuming it's not freezing temperatures)? Or is there a reason why this is a bad idea?

 

[Legin]

Why didnt the fuse blow. To generate that much heat you would expect a short. Have you replaced the fuse with a higher rated one in he past or some chinese crap.
For general info I once fitted a supposed 5a fuse from one of those chinese cheapo boxes. Guess what it didnt blow (short was still there) and melted all the wiring as a result, even melted the fuse holder. I couldnt pull the fuse as it was too hot. I now buy used fuse boxes off ebay and salvage the fuses , no problems since.

 

[SteveE]

Why didnt the fuse blow. To generate that much heat you would expect a short. Have you replaced the fuse with a higher rated one in he past or some chinese crap.
For general info I once fitted a supposed 5a fuse from one of those chinese cheapo boxes. Guess what it didnt blow (short was still there) and melted all the wiring as a result, even melted the fuse holder. I couldnt pull the fuse as it was too hot. I now buy used fuse boxes off ebay and salvage the fuses , no problems since.

As far as I know the fuse is original and the correct rating.

 

[SteveE]

Sounds like a horrible experience, especially when getting no help from your dealer or VW. Sad really.

Might be a reason for other cali owners to leave water in the tank just to be sure (assuming it's not freezing temperatures)? Or is there a reason why this is a bad idea?

But the tank would just drain and run dry?

 

[SteveE]

Glad it is sorted and thank you for sharing. A few people recommend removing the 5a fuse under the passenger seat that controls the pump when it is dormant with no water in the tank to prevent damage to the pump but I have not heard of it going this awry.

Or perhaps an accessible control panel to put the vehicle into a "decommissioned mode" during winter... something that basically closes all non-essential circuits?

 

[westfalia]

My pump stopped working and when i replaced it i found
that a bit of burning had occurred and a slight deformation
to the plastic casing.
I didn't think much about it at the time and i replaced it with a Comet
one - like for like- just missing the VW stamp on it.

Why didn't the fuse blow first?
Would it be wise to fit a lower fuse in there?

Shocking that yours was damaged so much steveE, luckily you had a
half good outcome ( 500quid ) and not got ripped off for the work.

 

[Phil P]

A story about my 2013 California.

Sometime in May, 2020 I was sanitizing the water tank to get ready for the jam-packed summer of euro-camping (not) and I noticed the tap was not working.

Having checked absolutely every possible external fault and found no issues I finally has to remove the water tank access cover (which is no simple task) so I could examine the pump unit. I made a horrifying discovery...

The water pump unit had suffered a serious burnout, so serious it had destroyed the water tank and burnt through to the gas-safe compartment, which it shares a wall with. Luckily I keep my gas bottle away from the van during the winter. Unluckily I now had a nice hole from my water tank into my gas-safe compartment which was now too deformed to take the gas bottle.

I have no idea how or when this fire occurred. We've accidently knocked the tap "on" in the past and it is very obvious it is on, especially when the water tank is empty. It makes a loud noise.

VW customer services advised I needed to get a dealer to look at it and then they would contact the dealer to obtain a report for the VW Fire and Safety team to assess.

I left the van with JCB Eurovans in Crawley for a few days in early June and then waited, and chased, and waited, and chased etc. I can understand lockdown and staff shortages has made life more difficult for everyone but after 6 months of hearing nothing I was contacted by customer services to see if I had heard from the dealer and could they could close the case. Hmmm... so VW CS knows that the dealer has an answer but the dealer isn't telling me... hmmmmm. Anyway, 6 more weeks of me calling the dealer on Mondays and VW customer services calling me on Thursdays "to see if I had heard" went by and I eventually heard back from JCB: VW had determined they were at no fault and would not help me with the repair costs. I was on my own.

JCB advised it would be at least 3 days labour to replace the water tank and quoted me £3,562.45 parts and labour. JCB would not share the report they had prepared for VW with me.

£3500!!! Blimey. So I then contacted my insurance company (Safeguard)... cue much teeth sucking and being passed on to successively more niche and specialised claims departments until, a few weeks later, my claim was eventually denied due to it being electrical failure, due to that being explicitly excluded, due to insurance companies being absolute bandits.

[sigh] I might as well get a second opinion... so I contacted my old muckers, SMG in Cowfold. They quoted me £550 parts and labour - . By this time I had had enough of this whole situation and got the van to them a few days later. SMG also discovered the tap was faulty and was "constantly on" - something JCB hadn't noticed so I have doubts about the thoroughness of their report for VW.

It's all fixed now and will soon be on the market.. I'm looking for a Beach as a replacement... all the practicality, none of the mysterious danger!

Lessons learned:

• I cannot recommend JCB Eurovans in Crawley, and Gavin will NOT return your call no matter how many times you ask him even if you are calling from VW.
• SMG Cowfold can be thoroughly recommended but I think you all know this already.
• VW UK do not care once you are out of warranty.
• Claims you'd think would be a no-quibble settlement with your "camper van specialist" insurance may not be.
• I would say check your water taps but what is there to check? Mine worked in late Autumn but sometime after that failed or corroded and decided to turn itself on one time it was unattended.
• A translation of "JCB: we have to remove the entire kitchen, that is 3 days labour" is "we've never done this before so I quickly checked YouTube"
• A translation of "SMG: to replace the tank we just move the kitchen away from the wall" is "yeah, we've done this before"

Anyone selling a Beach?
Steve

Hi Steve thanks for taking the time to put the post on, I wonder if there has ever been a similar event in any other country? Hope on latest versions it has some sort of fail safe.

 

[pw90]

Hi Steve thanks for taking the time to put the post on, I wonder if there has ever been a similar event in any other country? Hope on latest versions it has some sort of fail safe.

I have a 6.1 Ocean and apparently if the tank runs empty the pump cuts out after a couple of seconds. Some people have complained about this because if you drain the tank for winter then it is difficult to get the water running again as the pump cuts out before getting the air out of the pipes.
I guess after reading this story, cutting out is a better option than a fire!!

 

[KGCali]

On the T5 and T6 it's possible not to turn the tap off fully so no water flows but the pump's still running and could eventually burn out. As it's fairly quiet and you may not hear the pump running you could always fit a flashing LED that comes on with the pump and place it where you can see it. Something like this would do ...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07C6XRRW2/?tag=unique09f-21