Beach roof problems

Hissey · Jun 2, 2014

Hi all,

Sally, our much loved only 3 month old 7 seater salsa red Beach, has problems with her roof. In fact she has already been decapitated once (deliberately by VW) and been given a completely new roof and bellows, which has not solved the issue.

The problem is on the passenger side, when the roof does not always close properly. As you pull it down sometimes it doesn't work properly on the roller half way back and you have to put it back up and try again. The mechanism has already been replaced once. More frequently the roof at the very front on the same passenger side does not sit properly within the gutter, and often the black seal catches on the outer rim, meaning we have to 'tuck it in' before we can clamp the roof down. We have never had this problem (either before or after roof replacement) on the driver's side, where there is good clearance between the seal strip and the outer rim.

Sally is due back in the dealership (again!) next week when they will all be puzzling over how to solve the problem. Coincidentally (or not) a Beach we hired last year before we ordered Sally had exactly the same problem on the same side.

Has anyone else had similar problems, or are we just unlucky? Can't believe they have replaced the whole roof and we still have trouble!

Incidentally we experienced the problem some others have with new bellows last week during a very wet couple of days in Yorkshire, when the canvas became completely soaked inside and out, and in fact has left a watermark on the inside fabric of the passenger's side of the roof when it finally dried out. We remain hopeful that this will not be a problem once it has got wet a couple more times and 'tightened up'?!

Any ideas on how to solve the roof issue would be much appreciated; VW seem as puzzled as we are and we would like to be able to give them some ideas.

Thanks.

James · Jun 2, 2014

Hissey said:
Hi all,

Sally, our much loved only 3 month old 7 seater salsa red Beach, has problems with her roof. In fact she has already been decapitated once (deliberately by VW) and been given a completely new roof and bellows, which has not solved the issue.

The problem is on the passenger side, when the roof does not always close properly. As you pull it down sometimes it doesn't work properly on the roller half way back and you have to put it back up and try again. The mechanism has already been replaced once. More frequently the roof at the very front on the same passenger side does not sit properly within the gutter, and often the black seal catches on the outer rim, meaning we have to 'tuck it in' before we can clamp the roof down. We have never had this problem (either before or after roof replacement) on the driver's side, where there is good clearance between the seal strip and the outer rim.

Sally is due back in the dealership (again!) next week when they will all be puzzling over how to solve the problem. Coincidentally (or not) a Beach we hired last year before we ordered Sally had exactly the same problem on the same side.

Has anyone else had similar problems, or are we just unlucky? Can't believe they have replaced the whole roof and we still have trouble!

Incidentally we experienced the problem some others have with new bellows last week during a very wet couple of days in Yorkshire, when the canvas became completely soaked inside and out, and in fact has left a watermark on the inside fabric of the passenger's side of the roof when it finally dried out. We remain hopeful that this will not be a problem once it has got wet a couple more times and 'tightened up'?!

Any ideas on how to solve the roof issue would be much appreciated; VW seem as puzzled as we are and we would like to be able to give them some ideas.

Thanks.

Can only offer opinion and thought.

In general Beach roofs have two problems, the first is roofs that are out of line - typified by one catches being really stiff. This tends to be on demos where either a dealer or members of the public have been careless, the other problem, is one that affect all pop tops, that is the canvas has to be carefully tucked away to avoid nicks.

The only thing i can suggest is that possibly your Beach left the factory with the roof out of line, that seems hard to believe,

You do need to do a final tuck before you lower the roof.

Sorry to sound stupid, can just go through the problem again.

James

Hissey · Jun 2, 2014

Hi again,

There is no issue with the canvas being tucked in - we always double check that one.

The problem is with the roof mechanism itself.

Firstly, occasionally it 'catches' on the roller part way down as it is brought down quite close to being closed - looking from the outside you can see when it does this as it looks alarmingly as though the roof starts to bend, at which point you have to put it up a bit and try again.

Secondly, if you stand on the step and look along the edge of the closed roofline from front to back of the vehicle, you can see that there is reasonable clearance towards the back, but right at the front where we have the problem the outer edge of the closed roof is very tight against the lip inside which it sits. This means that quite regularly we are unable to clamp the roof down as as it closes the last few inches the seal catches against the seal on the outer lip of the van roof, so to get it to clamp we have to manually 'tuck' the roof edge and seal inside the outer lip.

I hope this makes sense to you. Please let me know if you have any bright ideas. Thanks.

James · Jun 2, 2014

Hissey said:
Hi again,

There is no issue with the canvas being tucked in - we always double check that one.

The problem is with the roof mechanism itself.

Firstly, occasionally it 'catches' on the roller part way down as it is brought down quite close to being closed - looking from the outside you can see when it does this as it looks alarmingly as though the roof starts to bend, at which point you have to put it up a bit and try again.

Secondly, if you stand on the step and look along the edge of the closed roofline from front to back of the vehicle, you can see that there is reasonable clearance towards the back, but right at the front where we have the problem the outer edge of the closed roof is very tight against the lip inside which it sits. This means that quite regularly we are unable to clamp the roof down as as it closes the last few inches the seal catches against the seal on the outer lip of the van roof, so to get it to clamp we have to manually 'tuck' the roof edge and seal inside the outer lip.

I hope this makes sense to you. Please let me know if you have any bright ideas. Thanks.

And you've had one roof changed already?

James

Hissey · Jun 2, 2014

Yes, that's right. One roof changed already. They started by replacing the mechanism part way down the side of the roof, as that was the original problem. That solved that to start with, then we started having the problem with clamping it at the front, and also spotted a small split in the canvas. The warranty manager saw that the clearance at the edge of the roof was a problem, so said they would replace the whole lot; roof panel, bellows etc. We went along with that, and assumed they had fixed the problem, but when we tested it discovered it seemed to have exactly the same issue. So now it is back to VW again to see if they have got any bright ideas or can make any adjustments.

Feels a bit like this: :headbang

James · Jun 2, 2014

Hissey said:
Yes, that's right. One roof changed already. They started by replacing the mechanism part way down the side of the roof, as that was the original problem. That solved that to start with, then we started having the problem with clamping it at the front, and also spotted a small split in the canvas. The warranty manager saw that the clearance at the edge of the roof was a problem, so said they would replace the whole lot; roof panel, bellows etc. We went along with that, and assumed they had fixed the problem, but when we tested it discovered it seemed to have exactly the same issue. So now it is back to VW again to see if they have got any bright ideas or can make any adjustments.

Feels a bit like this:

At a guess if you have had two roofs and they've both had problems, then I'd be looking at the vehicle itself.

Very hard to say without seeing it.

Have you thought about looking at the van and the bits that connect the roof?

James

Andy · Jun 2, 2014

Have you had this problem since new ?? If so I'd be tempted to try & send it back. Having had complete new roof & mechanism it is still not fit for purpose. I know that is not something you will want to do but this is a one time purchase to give years of fun so worth getting it sorted properly.

James · Jun 2, 2014

Andy said:
Have you had this problem since new ?? If so I'd be tempted to try & send it back. Having had complete new roof & mechanism it is still not fit for purpose. I know that is not something you will want to do but this is a one time purchase to give years of fun so worth getting it sorted properly.

Would agree.

It sounds like the whole thing is out of line and that sounds like something that can't be cured but really would need to see it.

James

Andy · Jun 2, 2014

James said:
Andy said:

Have you had this problem since new ?? If so I'd be tempted to try & send it back. Having had complete new roof & mechanism it is still not fit for purpose. I know that is not something you will want to do but this is a one time purchase to give years of fun so worth getting it sorted properly.

Click to expand...

Would agree.

It sounds like the whole thing is out of line and that sounds like something that can't be cured but really would need to see it.

James

Yes, hinges out ? I would also be concerned about any attempts to 'make it all line up'

Hissey · Jun 2, 2014

Thanks to all for the advice. To be fair VW are being very good about it and trying their best to sort it out, but like you say we are beginning to wonder whether the problem is the vehicle, not the roof. Very frustrating for all concerned. I just wondered whether it was just us, or whether other Beach owners have had any similar problems (as with the one we hired last autumn).

James · Jun 2, 2014

Hissey said:
Thanks to all for the advice. To be fair VW are being very good about it and trying their best to sort it out, but like you say we are beginning to wonder whether the problem is the vehicle, not the roof. Very frustrating for all concerned. I just wondered whether it was just us, or whether other Beach owners have had any similar problems (as with the one we hired last autumn).

As i said, the only two problems I have come across are those in my first response, that's not to say there aren't others though.

I would wonder, like Andy said, if the hinges were out, this would mean that somehow they aren't where they should be.

The Beach roof - in my experience is a great piece of simply design.

Can you go through the process again, sorry...

For me, when I am closing my roof, I pull it down, tucking in the fabric, then it sits and it needs one final tug and it sort of clicks and comes down completely, at this stage, it should all line up.

What isn't lining up with yours, do the catches not line up?

James

jamesC · Jun 2, 2014

I suspect you are describing the issue I had a year or so ago.... see discussion below with pictures which might help.

viewtopic.php?f=104&t=3764

James · Jun 2, 2014

redredzimmer said:
I suspect you are describing the issue I had a year or so ago.... see discussion below with pictures which might help.

viewtopic.php?f=104&t=3764

I did think that

James

Hissey · Jun 3, 2014

Hi redzimmer - did you get your problem fixed ok by VW?

Ours is not ex-demo, but brand new, so can't blame the problem on careless customers. I will see if I can get some pics up so you can see more than my slightly baffling description.

SteveM · Jun 3, 2014

So can't help with the roof specifically but I did have a major issue with my first (Salsa red!) Beach. VW agreed the paint was sprayed too lightly leading to flat spots. In the end I rejected it as 'not of merchantable quality' and VW accepted this readily. As there was no other suitable vehicle available they ordered me a new one - which took the usual 6 months to arrive. They did however leave me with my original one for the period (in which I did 6000 miles) with no additional charge. In the end I don't feel I lost out... although painful on the way. I was also able to add a few spec items onto the new van which was nice and they did not charge me for metallic paint on the second van.

Key point is if it is not right, and you worry about it never being right, look at rejecting it as soon as possible - don't leave it too long, the sooner the better. VW will look after you in my experience. Google 'rejecting goods' or similar for more details.

Steve.

jamesC · Jun 3, 2014

Hissey said:
Hi redzimmer - did you get your problem fixed ok by VW?

Ours is not ex-demo, but brand new, so can't blame the problem on careless customers. I will see if I can get some pics up so you can see more than my slightly baffling description.

Hi Hissey

My van was brand new too.

The day I picked it up it seemed wrong, but after two trips to VW in Bury St Edmunds, they fixed it, with no reoccurrence since.

I never got the the bottom of what they did, but the roof latches inside the van are square, and the side guide in the photos no longer catch.

Thanks

James

cleve · Jun 17, 2014

We've had the same problem with our beach. Came from factory with stiff catch on passenger side, corner of roof on passenger side doesn't suit in gutter, catch and hinges all replaced. Got progressively worse but because we dented roof on bike handlebar vw are saying that that has caused roof problem to resurface!

I've never been able to close the roof myself (& I'm no weakling!) so can't use it unless my husband is there to close it. Vw say it needs new roof. We're now in the tricky position of whether we can argue it's warranty work that was never sorted due to the dent we made at the rear. No point getting dent sorted if it needs a whole new roof!

It's good to know we're not the only ones with this issue if we get into a debate with vw customer service!

Hissey · Jun 18, 2014

Good to know we are not the only Beach owner with roof problems! Ours is STILL in the garage after nearly two weeks; one week to sort a paintwork issue on the new roof they put on last time they tried to fix the problem, and now another week to try to sort the roof problem itself. I will believe it is fixed when I see it working properly several times in a row. Fortunately all under warranty. Sorry to hear about the bike rack issue, but easily done. On our previous Caravelle the boot + bike rack didn't stay open when I expected it to and came down on my head - ouch! You have to be careful with them. We haven't tried the bike rack yet on the Beach, but believe the same one should fit if we need to use it.

cleve · Jun 26, 2014

Hissey said:
Good to know we are not the only Beach owner with roof problems! Ours is STILL in the garage after nearly two weeks; one week to sort a paintwork issue on the new roof they put on last time they tried to fix the problem, and now another week to try to sort the roof problem itself. I will believe it is fixed when I see it working properly several times in a row. Fortunately all under warranty. Sorry to hear about the bike rack issue, but easily done. On our previous Caravelle the boot + bike rack didn't stay open when I expected it to and came down on my head - ouch! You have to be careful with them. We haven't tried the bike rack yet on the Beach, but believe the same one should fit if we need to use it.

How's it going at the garage?

Hissey · Jul 5, 2014

Hi, and thanks for the replies. After TWO WEEKS at the garage having paintwork and other warranty problems sorted out, as well as the roof, we finally have our Beach back home with us. As regards the roof, we are told that it now works fine (on most occasions!), and certainly when we tried it before bringing it home it closed fine. Only time will tell whether they have finally solved the issue; there is still very little clearance between the roof edge and the bar it sits against when closed - they said the only other thing they could do would be to remove the bar along the side of the vehicle in its entirety (along with the paintwork it was attached to) and reattach it, though it sounded a bit drastic and might not solve the problem anyway - not recommended by the bodyshop apparently.

The dealership have been very good to us - we have no complaints about our treatment and they are doing their best to sort it - we just hope they have finally managed it! Sally (our van) came home all shiny, clean and polished - they had even blacked the tyre sidewalls.