Problems with new vehicle and getting them fixed

[acer]

We had a great time away last week in Scotland but we've picked-up on a few problems with our new van that has been with us for 3 weeks now. I thought that I would share these so that people check at vehicle handover and also to get your comments on these issues as to how common they are etc.

So far my local dealer's attitude has definitely taken the gloss of ownership. This might boil down to fear of not being paid if the issues aren't warranty issues. He said that there would be a charge if they are not warranty issues and he won't know that until he gets the vehicle. He was further concerned that he wouldn't be able to recover the costs for non-warranty issues from the dealer that I purchased through. My view is that these are all things that were present from new - we just haven't done anything to the vehicle, it was like this from new. The dealership that I bought the vehicle from have been good, but I'd rather use my local dealer for ease of travel.

I've sent them the following list including pictures to try to make things clear.

1. The tailgate door only lifts part way without a push-up (1 picture). (The service dealer has suggested that this is normal, but this doesn't seem right.)
   
   
2. The right hand kitchen door is very stiff when sliding open. Also, the left hand kitchen door meets with resistance when almost open. (1 picture).
   
   
3. The fridge lid can be opened without the use of the handle. (The hob lid is fine.) (1 picture).
   
   
4. The driver's seat catches on two bolts when rotating it. (1 picture).
   
   
5. The blind over the sliding door does not fully close without a push against the central pillar door trim. (1 picture).
   
   
6. The cigarette lighter was pushed down, but then never popped-up again. (1 picture).
   
   
7. The 12v socket behind the front passenger (next to the sink) does not work (no picture).
   
   
8. The 12v socket in the boot area does not work (no picture).
   
   
9. When the roof bed is in the up position the trim hangs down slightly on one edge. I think I have diagnosed this one as being due to two missing fasteners that go in through the side of the bed (3 pictures). (The service dealer suggested that this would require a complete new roof! He might also need the vehicle for up to a week!)

Really grateful for any comments on this list.
Is this all par for the course on a new vehicle?
Have you found service departments to be obstructive / suffer from a poor attitude (or at least leave you with that impression)?

 

[Martin]

Very interesting, both my vans have identical problems to you, I have not been able to get to a dealer yet as they have been out on hire most of the time so I am possibly going to have to leave it until the end of the season.
When was yours delivered?

 

[reserves]

With Number 3, hit the catch hard when the fridge is closed and you'll hear it click shut properly...

 

[reserves]

More on fridge lid here http://vwcaliforniaclub.com/threads/how-does-your-fridge-close.9033/

 

[acer]

Very interesting, both my vans have identical problems to you, I have not been able to get to a dealer yet as they have been out on hire most of the time so I am possibly going to have to leave it until the end of the season.
When was yours delivered?

May 7th. And you?

 

[reserves]

No 5. that blind isn't perfect on both the cali's I've been in.

 

[acer]

With Number 3, hit the catch hard when the fridge is closed and you'll hear it click shut properly...

Yes, that's right. We here the click, but we can still lift the fridge lid without pushing the button.

 

[Martin]

May 7th. And you?

I sent you a PM

 

[GrannyJen]

Tailgate: If I'm not going to bash my head whenever I use it I do need to use some manual intervention to raise it fully, but once fully raised it stays where it is. TBH I have never considered this to be a problem.

The stiff doors may just be due to how tight the bottom running rails are. I have the opposite problem. The RH door catch falls out of it's fitting most days and the lower running rail is a bit loose so I have to keep shoving it back. Plus side is it makes it easier to clean

The fridge catch is wrong. It may just not be closing properly in the first place. Do you give it a push and hear it "click" when closing? If not, then it needs adjusting.

The drivers seat should not catch.

Sliding door blind: Mine is the same.

I don't use the cigarette lighter, in fact have no idea where I've put it but ALL the 12v sockets should work and if they do not then they need fixing.

I have not had a trim problem but if I had I would suggest a new roof solution suggestion is indicative of a dealer that needs to take a long holiday before resuming a career selling Lego, nothing more complicated than that.

I have dragged my vehicle back with some niggling, and some non, problems. It is part of dealer support. If they cannot offer that support then change dealers but not before telling VW customer service what you think of the service.

 

[Neilgbj]

Hi and welcome....ours was new in March, a few minor niggles but we are putting together a short list and will get fixed when we can, your dealer should sort them really...

Tailgate....as above, sometimes requires a bit of 'support' we find but doesn't really bother us to be honest...

Fridge door....ours wasn't shutting properly for a while but have found that living with it and using it has solved that one ! Thought you had to push the button to open it ?

12v cigarette lighter....its on our list, doesn't seem to charge (only used it a few times to charge phones etc when driving)

Blinds....can be a bit temperamental we have found but nothing major, main problem was not making sure the blind was level when pulling down. The rear blind is pretty fierce on release !

The seat shouldn't catch and the talk of replacing the roof seems a tad excessive ! Not had a problem with our sliding doors (yet!)

So....we have had few minor niggles and have managed to resolve most ourselves over time. When we get round to it we will be back at the dealers to fix a couple of things we can't !

 

[dannosail]

1. Tailgate needs help - still holds up with 3 bikes on the back though.
2. Seems your doors might be a bit stiff but may be better than rattles.
4. Shouldn't catch.
5. I don't need to press the trim but meets a bit of resistance. Rather than pulling from the centre I use to hands. I think this makes it secure rather than being a problem.
- Sockets definitely should work, rear ones all the time even if the control panel is turned off.

All the best with the dealers! You can tell those who are confident in what they are doing because at least they are willing to have a conversation.

 

[cozmo1589]

Acer, In short to your comment re has anyone found the vw service dept to be obstructive and suffer from a poor attitude, all I can day is yes yes yes. My local dealer in Poole is run by a team of complete buffoons and the technicians are total jobs worths and don't get me started on how competent at cleaning vehicles the car valeter team is!!!

 

[steve and lisa]

We also have very similar problems to yourself and more besides! For a £50k vehicle this is very dissapointing

 

[snowy55]

I thought the tailgate "pauses "so you can get the picnic seats out easier.
As for all the other issues we must be blessed, he says touching wood, we haven't got any of them on ours.......yet.
Yes the dealerships are generally a pile of poo! Although of course poo can be very useful in the garden for growing plants and vegetables but is of no use for fixing vehicles.

 

[rippers]

1. and 5. have been the same for me on my 2015 SE. 5. has improved with use.
I personally have confidence in SMG Cowford to sort any issues them seem to know their stuff in regards to them.

I have an issue which I'm sure I can resolve myself which is an issue I didn't have with my 2013 Beach. The awning rails seem to have a blob of hard mastic inside the runners on every end which makes it very hard to slide things in and out of, for example the alloy brackets for the roof topper and the Brandrup Water filler strap.
Hopefully can get a file small enough to file it down.

Not sure these pics will capture it

 

[briwy]

We have the seat problem. The dealer fitted a new seat base (took nearly two weeks to obtain) which was better but didn't cure the problem and also caused an air bag error. They then replaced an air bag sensor but the seat was worse than the original problem. Only found out in France when it was stiff to rotate initially and then needed a lot of force to get back into the driving position. It goes in again tomorrow to (hopefully) have it finally fixed. They initially tried to say that we caused the problem by standing on the seat to get into the roof but backed off when we pointed out that our previous two Calis handn't suffered from that.
It's obvious to me that they dont check their work properly so make sure that you do check everything in their presence before leaving the dealer.

 

[pjm-84]

1, 3 and 5 (refer posting about grey washers) This does not need the roof removed. Its a tight access but not insurmountable.

2 - Is a maybe.

7 and 8 I haven't tried.

1 - You would never be able to shut the tailgate if it didn't need a little help. Also consider the operation when the chairs are removed. It caught me out the first time.

Its a VAG.

 

[Taglish]

Picked "Taglish" up from Coventry mid-April and after 4k miles have had no issues, other than the sliding door not closing (fixed by VW assist). Still a happy chappie and looking forward to the sunny weekend. No issues with the dealer in Coventry.

 

[calikev]

Coventry vw excellent dealer

 

[WelshGas]

Remember the struts on the tailgate are gas struts and if the external tempo is on the cool side then they may not open the tailgate fully without a little assistance but should hold it open. As it warms up then they will.
As has been mention, it might be the " Remove the seats, Position ".

 

[tim batten]

We had our first proper camping trip out in our new SE 4 Motion earlier this week. We previously had a 2008 T5 Cali for 5 years, so we know how things should work! We found some of the same problems as Acer.
The fridge lid catch does not work.
The right hand kitchen cupboard door is very stiff.
The sliding door blind has the same problem, due to the plastic trim at the front end being floppy and poor quality. (Not a problem on the old van).
The electric close mechanism on the sliding door often does not work.
Maybe quality control in the factory has deteriorated as they rush to complete existing T5 orders prior to switchover to T6? These are not things would would expect on a £56,000 vehicle.
I do have confidence that the supplying dealer (Lanchasire Van Centre, Preston) or my local dealer (West Yorkshire Van Centre) will sort these niggles out, as I think they are both excellent.
By the way, we have the VW cycle rack on the new van, whereas on the last one, we had the Fiamma rack. We think the Fiamma one was better - easier to fix bikes on to, easier to fold away (on the VW one, you need to fasten 2 straps each time you fold it away), didn't protrude so far at the back, and you could open the tailgate with 2 bikes on the rack.....and it was half the price!

 

[acer]

Thanks Tim, Martin and all. VW obviously have issues here. I'll mention other people's similar problems when I get mine repaired. I've booked-in at the place I bought it from, rather than the local place.

 

[briwy]

Our seat problem has finally ( I hope) been fixed.
It seems that the cable for the lumbar adjustment had been routed incorrectly and was jamming the swivelling mechanism. Simple fix in the end but has entailed me making three trips to the dealer to get it sorted properly. I

 

[DavidM]

1. and 5. have been the same for me on my 2015 SE. 5. has improved with use.
I personally have confidence in SMG Cowford to sort any issues them seem to know their stuff in regards to them.

I have an issue which I'm sure I can resolve myself which is an issue I didn't have with my 2013 Beach. The awning rails seem to have a blob of hard mastic inside the runners on every end which makes it very hard to slide things in and out of, for example the alloy brackets for the roof topper and the Brandrup Water filler strap.
Hopefully can get a file small enough to file it down.

Not sure these pics will capture it

Rippers, +1 for the mastic problem on our 2015 SE. I've been wondering how to remove it without marking the rail. Perhaps tape of some sort. Let me know how you get on.

 

[acer]

I promised Martin an update on my issues to the new vehicle, which seem to be shared. I took the vehicle to where I bought it, rather than my local place. I know that this shouldn't have been necessary, but the local one was just so disinterested and awkward that I didn't feel that I'd get a good job done. As it is, there are still issues outstanding, but here we are at present:

1. Tailgate:
Your comments, and theirs satisfied me that the tailgate 'problem' was not a problem at all.
2. Stiff right hand kitchen door.
After a look at it, the dealer has put a new door on order.
3. Fridge lid not closing.
The 'solution' was to slice the two bumpers that fit underneath the lid to about half their original size so that the catch engages. However, it still needs far too much of my 13 stone to make the catch engage and so I have asked them to look again. The initial reaction of "there's not much more we can do" did not please me and the service manager is going to have a discussion with the engineers. I don't think that removing the bumpers is the way to go. They obviously do a job, and it feels like a 'bodge' rather than a correction of the problem.
4. The seat catching on the bolts has been sorted. The trim around the seat had not been correctly fitted.
5. I thought that the blind housing on the sliding door had been fixed. On closer inspection it has been broken so that it moves as the blind comes down. Again, rather than get to the root of the problem they've done a bodge. I would have done something similar on a 10 year old vehicle, but from new? I'm really annoyed by that. See below:

6. The 12v sockets in the boot and kitchen still do not work. I didn't check them when I collected the vehicle - I just took their word for it. And, now I'm mulling this over, I'm not sure that putting a higher rated fuse in is, as they told me they had, is actually a good thing to do. Perhaps, they just tested the cigarette lighter (that does now work). How can you not test before handing the vehicle back?
7. The roof trim is now fine. It was just a couple of fixings that needed to be inserted.

I was really ready to be positive about my vehicle. No-one spends £50k and wants to be anything else. I want to be thinking about my trips away, not this stuff. It also takes a great deal of time - not the least the 5 hours of driving so far!

I've obviously raised the issues again with the dealer, and they are going to come back to me. I'll let you know how we go. Of course, I'm also very interested in your views on the above.