VW automotives treat their (European) customers like shit.

Let me tell you how it it is with this shitty company. I bought a VW New Beetle 4 years ago. Two years later the driver window regulator failed on me. Oh well. That was £300 down the drain (about $500). Shit happens. Last week the passenger one went. Cock, another $500. God knows how much fucking hassle. So WTF? Two in four years? Well, I looked on the net. Gee, it is a known problem. So much so that VW USA sent their customers a letter explaining that they know it is a problem. In fact they have redesigned the part. Oh and they will fix any car that experiences the problem, gratis, for up to 7 years after the point of purchase. Or refund any charges for previously incurred work. Great!

That is lovely for you US VW owners. So what does my local VW customer care centre say when I call about it, however? “Tough” would be a rough approximation. Some fucking shit about VW USA being a different company. Different litigation laws. Different specs. Blah, blah, blah, fuck you we sold you a piece of shit and it is your tough luck. Suck it up, dipshit. Gah, I hate this. They know they produced a piece of fucking scrap. They know they can get away with it over here in Europe as well. Goose stepping fucking cunts. Sorry, I had to get that off my chest. Your company deserves to wither and die. You should be delivering 3rd rate shitty pizzas not attempting cack handed automotive design. I hope your company ends up in the scrap yard where it so obviously belongs. And the worst thing? VW used to be a good company. They used to build quality vehicles. Now their reputation is trash. And, at least in Europe, they don’t seem to care.

Thank you.

Try five right headlights in three years thanks to bad wiring design, two stereos, said window issues, a pair of shattered headlight housings thanks to poor plastic quality thanks to said headlight changing, and every time something goes wrong it’s a grand to fix it… and five bucks for parts.

If its any consolation, VW has had threse problems for years, and apparently hasn’t bothered to fix them. The vaunted German quality control seems to be so much hot air! My neighbor has gone through this withe the ignition coils and window regulators. As well, he plastic trim on the doors of his Jetta keeps falling off! The dealers now give VW Jetta owners a kit with which to stick the trim back on. He says that he will never buy VW again.

Is a window regulator the motor that raises and lowers automatic windows?

There was a thread on another message board years ago detailing the ordeal a VW customer went through with his Golf at a dealership. The dealership sued the guy for posting his troubles on the 'net! (The guy did get satisfaction enventually, but IMO not nearly enough to compensate him for the atrocious treatment he received from the dealership.) There’s a ‘solidarity’ thread on SDMB; but I don’t remember the name of the dealership, so I can’t search for it.

Are European VWs built in Europe? IIRC, VWs for the American Market (at least some models) are built in Mexico.

I seriously considered a VW for my next car. I rented a New Beetle once, and I liked it. I like the Golf even better. But I’ve heard that replacing a New Beetle headlamp requires a $50 trip to the dealer, and I’ve heard plenty of horror stories about the quality of the Golf.

Re: window regulators. In November the cable on the window regulator in the front passenger door of my 1999 Jeep Cherokee broke. Geez, the passenger window is rarely even used! This required replacement of the entire unit. $200 for the part, plus $200 at an independent shop to install it. (I think the Jeep dealer would have charged $400 for installation.)

Yeah, that is the baby. Or at least it is until the window is at half mast, it is freezing outside and there is nothing you can do to move the window one way or the other. Grrr.

If VW want to sue me for my comments, all I can say is bring it on! :slight_smile: (These new smilies are shite by the way. I loathe them almost as much as the car manufaturer VW).

I may be pulling this right out of my ass, but I think that all New Beetles must be made in the same factory. Unlike the Golf, there can’t be enough demand for separate factories for the US and European markets?

Re: the dealership lawsuit. Here’s a story from 22/11/2001.

Here is the VW Vortex thread that prompted the lawsuit.

That’s what I was told.
After a year of driving with my right-rear window held up by strapping tape, I took my car in to the local VW dealer and said “I would like that FREE window repair, please.”

The next day, I got a call from the dealer saying something like “Well, in most cases this is a free repair, but, you see, that only covers Jettas purchased on odd Tuesdays in months with R in them by left handed drivers, so you are not covered. It will be $300 for the repair.” :frowning:

Pissed me off. I knew that they would wriggle out of that one.

Depends on the specific model. The New Beetle and Golf are being built in Spain right now. The VW factory in Pamplona is often perceived as The Big Factory, about a 10% of local jobs depend on it getting enough orders.

And while our French neighbors still think we may be part of Africa, we did join the EU about 20 years ago.

I had to go in the back seat of a New Beetle once and I haven’t seen a more presumptuous or more uncomfortable car ever. Why would you put a back seat so badly designed that a 5’5" person can’t sit straight on it and gets a crick on her neck after a ride of less than 15 minutes?

OK, Nava, you called me. Other factors excluded, the car is not very practical. I liked how it looked, however. That is it. Next time I might reflect on more utilatarian considerations.

The parts that break are the plastic clips that hold the glass on the bracket, so there’s nothing holding the window up and it just falls down into the door. The new design uses metal clips. The coils were actually recalled, so replacement should be absolutely free for the coils.

I have to disagree on the seats, though. VWs have awesome seats. That was a major selling point for me. You want shitty seats? Try riding in a Ford.

This sounds about right for a company that used slaves during WW2.

If it’s any consolation, my cousin just sold her New Beetle over here in the US because of shitty treatment by the dealer and expensive parts that kept going bad. I really wish VW could get its act together because I really like the Passats (but I wouldn’t buy one after all the horror stories I’ve heard re: VW).

I totally agree, aeropl. People love VWs, but they are becoming infamous for rude, crappy service and reliability issues. As much as I enjoy driving it, I seriously doubt I’ll ever buy one again.

I agree. I like the Golf, and I like VW seats; but from what I’ve heard of dealer so-called ‘service’, I’m going to steer clear of VW.

Good idea. Here’s what passes for “service” at a VW dealer.

  1. Call in advance to make an “appointment”. (required)

  2. Despite the fact that you made an appointment, you must show up as early as possible in the morning and wait in line with your car, where they take you first come, first served. However, if you are there for covered warranty service, they will work on your car last, after all the paying customers have been taken care of, no matter how early you got there.

  3. Wait 6 or 7 hours for them to call. Don’t hold your breath.

  4. After 7 hours, call the service department. Prepare to be hung up on several times, or put on hold for 1/2 hour, or be transferred endlessly from the receptionist to the service dept. and back. If you ask for a manager, they’ll tell you there isn’t one, or lie and say “I’m the manager”.

  5. If you actually reach the service dept., you will be told that “the guy who’s handling your car is at lunch”, and he will call you back. “Lunch” can be anywhere from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm.

  6. If you are fortunate enough to get a call back, you will be told that they haven’t even started working on your car yet.

  7. Return to dealer at 6:00 pm closing time. Your car won’t be ready. Ask for loaner car. You won’t get one. Either rent car at your own expense or hope that family member or friend can pick you up.

I’m not kidding. If you’re lucky, they might finish working on your car within 10 hours. They’re not gonna even start on it for at least 6 hours. And they almost never answer the phone.

And God help you if it’s not covered by warranty.

The Passats are a different animal and don’t seem to have the problems others talk about. Consumer Reports listed it as a best buy (or whatever they call it.)

As for service I guess it depends. I made an appointment and was out within an hour. My dealership had a waiting room where you could connect your laptop and do work.

I dearly love my Cabrio. The dealership where I bought it was withing walking distance of my hospital, and they’d give me a ride if I didn’t want to walk. I could always get my car in that day, their service prices were remarkably good for a dealership, and they did one bit of warranty work for me with no hassle. They even took care of a tire for me free once when VW Roadside Assistance screwed me over (long story).

They sold out to Flow, Greensboro’s automotive behemoth. Now it’s a colossal pain in the ass to get to, the people are rude as hell, and they charged me $180 (you read that right) for a service visit that would have been $50 at the old dealership.

I won’t take my car back there, and I seriously doubt I’ll buy another VW.