Occasional difficulty selecting reverse gear

[Yusee]

Thanks all for your useful and interesting comments.

@Watts, I'm sure he hasn't examined the clutch. In fact I think all he has done is try the gears from cold, and pushed the clutch in a few times. It may be my imagination, but since he has raised this possibility, I do feel the clutch is slightly heavier than when I first bought the car ( the technician suggested I have not noticed the problem as I may have become used to it over time).

@KMP- thanks. Yes, so the fixed plan has identified a (possible) fault, which may be incidental, and essentially he stops there. The complication in this case is that under the terms of the warranty they won't pay for it, nor are they saying it will fix the problem I'm asking them to fix. I don't mind them replacing parts unnecessarily, so long as they pay for it. I have written to them insisting they investigate and rectify the gear selection problem..

@monkeyhanger. Thanks for the heads up- I appreciate I may have a battle. My argument is that it must be a manufacturing defect if it has failed at 8k. I can give details of 2 Peugeots, 2 Alfas, 1 fiat and 1 BMW all driven to high mileage on the original clutch. I'm actually pretty confident that when they investigate, they will find a defect- I cannot understand why the clutch would have worn.

Let's see how they respond. It's actually one of the reasons I don't buy warranties. You own the car, you break it you fix it. Far less hassle than this kind of battle!

[Yusee]

So to update- I've just had a response from VW to say they won't offer any support towards the clutch plate and assembly as it is considered a wear and tear item and "with this particular issue we are not able to determine whether it was caused by user error and we have no recalls relating to this issue"

I'm pretty angry about this. Firstly, the technician who investigated was pretty uncertain as to whether it would solve the cold start gear selection problem. Secondly, I will not accept that a clutch , in a car that has been driven well ( which I know mine has) should fail at around 10k miles.

I'm inclined to get the clutch replaced then take them to court to recover my costs. There doesn't seem to be any acknowledgment of the possibility of a manufacturing defect.

Any advice appreciated.

[barrym381]

So to update- I've just had a response from VW to say they won't offer any support towards the clutch plate and assembly as it is considered a wear and tear item and "with this particular issue we are not able to determine whether it was caused by user error and we have no recalls relating to this issue"

I'm pretty angry about this. Firstly, the technician who investigated was pretty uncertain as to whether it would solve the cold start gear selection problem. Secondly, I will not accept that a clutch , in a car that has been driven well ( which I know mine has) should fail at around 10k miles.

I'm inclined to get the clutch replaced then take them to court to recover my costs. There doesn't seem to be any acknowledgment of the possibility of a manufacturing defect.

Any advice appreciated.

You need to find the cause of your problem first as said a clutch might not sort the issue I’m not surprised Vw are trying to say it’s not there fault but the fact the technician couldn’t say for sure that’s your problem then I think they should investigate more try Vw uk complaints

[Yusee]

Thanks, Barry. Yes, effectively they are refusing to properly investigate. I have logged a complaint on the customer service line and am expecting a call back.
I think my options will be-
1. get the work done under protest and take them to court to get my costs back ( I cannot believe all they will find is a worn clutch)

2. get it independently investigated and send them the bill

[barrym381]

I'm sure if you complain and keep complaining they will have no option but to investigate further

[Yusee]

👍 thanks for the support

[JB GTI]

It sounds like the dealers reluctance to do anything else is because they are not confident that they would be able to recover their costs if VW refuse that it is a valid warranty claim and refuse to cover any of the cost. It’s a fair amount of labour time to get to the clutch and the last thing they need is a car in pieces taking up revenue space in the workshop with no one willing to pick up the cost of putting it back together again. It’s a difficult situation for you but worth politely persevering with the facts as you see them on VW’s social media pages and keep your fingers crossed 🤞
After all no big company that prides themselves on “great customer care” will like their dirty washing aired in public !!
Good Luck 

[barrym381]

It sounds like the dealers reluctance to do anything else is because they are not confident that they would be able to recover their costs if VW refuse that it is a valid warranty claim and refuse to cover any of the cost. It’s a fair amount of labour time to get to the clutch and the last thing they need is a car in pieces taking up revenue space in the workshop with no one willing to pick up the cost of putting it back together again. It’s a difficult situation for you but worth politely persevering with the facts as you see them on VW’s social media pages and keep your fingers crossed 🤞
After all no big company that prides themselves on “great customer care” will like their dirty washing aired in public !!
Good Luck 

90 minutes isn't a great deal of time at all and if the op has spent good money on the car he deserves better than a technician admitting he's none the wiser to the actual problem and there reluctance to investigate

[Yusee]

@JB GTI- I’ve just had an interesting message exchange with my brother who has advised me pretty much what you’ve said. He’s used social media to very quickly sort out his last few consumer issues, after getting stonewalled through conventional complaints channels. Thanks for the advice.

[monkeyhanger]

I've tried the social media route with VW before got me nowhere, they just advise you to get in touch with your local dealership. I wrote in reply that the dealership were fobbing me off because VW UK wouldn't authorise work. The dealership confirmed build fault but used a "6 month adjustment period" technicality for my tailgate contacting the rear bumper due to the catch being set too far back. Lucky for me the damage was negligible (a few tiny paint chips on the inner edge of the tailgate) and I had the know-how to adjust the tailgate strike plate myself.

VW UK customer service is truly abysmal and the decision makers are never available on the phone to justify their decision. The Customer service reps are just outsourced call centre lackeys facing pissed off customers.