Rust in my front arches

[Davstylee]

Hey guys and girls

I dunno if any of you remember but I posted up some pics of some rust I have found in both my front wheel arches.

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=158289.msg1456794#msg1456794

Well after ages and plenty of phone calls I have an update and I was hoping for some advice.

So the story goes I took the car to VW Beadles in Dartford, and they got a guy from the Sevenoaks body shop to come take a look, as Dartford don’t have a body shop. The guy sent the photos off to VW to see if it could be repaired under the 12 year body protection warranty. The reply was no, they also asked for a good will payment and again VW said no. So I rang VW myself, and after 2 days a guy rang me to say that the repair would not be done under the body protection warranty because the rust was down to, and I quote “a mechanical defect, where the inner trim has rubbed against the arch.” So I asked, if it is a mechanical defect then it must be covered under my 1 year extended VW warranty? He said no because the defect was caused by something making the trim move, ether a stone hitting it or something like that. Anyway I didn’t argue, as he offered me 70% off the repair. So with that I rang Sevenoaks to get a quote, but the guy with all the paper work and pictures is on holiday. Anyway I asked for a rough estimate, and the guy said to fully replace both arches, and paint them ect would come in at around £1000. With my 70% off I only have to pay £300 but still that is quite a bit of money for something that is not my fault. I am waiting on a quote from Abridge VW in Loughton (the place where I brought the car) to see if they can do it cheaper.

The thing that confuses me, is that surely they know that stones, mud ect are going to get flung up at the arches, I mean it is impossible not to. So then that must mean that VW are a faulty because the trim was ether not correctly installed or it is a poor design???

I have tried ringing my local citizens advice bureau, but it is ether engaged or they don’t pick up. If i could give them some advice it would be to hire more staff to answer the damn phones!

So with that what do you guys suggest I do?

Should I fight some more to see if the repairs can get done under warranty?

Should i try and ask for more of a discount?

Or should I go to an indie garage and get a quote from them to see if VW will match it? VW Beadles in Dartford have a huge sign that says we will match any quote from an independent garage for servicing (not too sure if it says repairs)

Any advice would be great thanks.

[musicman87]

Hey guys and girls

I dunno if any of you remember but I posted up some pics of some rust I have found in both my front wheel arches.

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=158289.msg1456794#msg1456794

Well after ages and plenty of phone calls I have an update and I was hoping for some advice.

So the story goes I took the car to VW Beadles in Dartford, and they got a guy from the Sevenoaks body shop to come take a look, as Dartford don’t have a body shop. The guy sent the photos off to VW to see if it could be repaired under the 12 year body protection warranty. The reply was no, they also asked for a good will payment and again VW said no. So I rang VW myself, and after 2 days a guy rang me to say that the repair would not be done under the body protection warranty because the rust was down to, and I quote “a mechanical defect, where the inner trim has rubbed against the arch.” So I asked, if it is a mechanical defect then it must be covered under my 1 year extended VW warranty? He said no because the defect was caused by something making the trim move, ether a stone hitting it or something like that. Anyway I didn’t argue, as he offered me 70% off the repair. So with that I rang Sevenoaks to get a quote, but the guy with all the paper work and pictures is on holiday. Anyway I asked for a rough estimate, and the guy said to fully replace both arches, and paint them ect would come in at around £1000. With my 70% off I only have to pay £300 but still that is quite a bit of money for something that is not my fault. I am waiting on a quote from Abridge VW in Loughton (the place where I brought the car) to see if they can do it cheaper.

The thing that confuses me, is that surely they know that stones, mud ect are going to get flung up at the arches, I mean it is impossible not to. So then that must mean that VW are a faulty because the trim was ether not correctly installed or it is a poor design???

I have tried ringing my local citizens advice bureau, but it is ether engaged or they don’t pick up. If i could give them some advice it would be to hire more staff to answer the damn phones!

So with that what do you guys suggest I do?

Should I fight some more to see if the repairs can get done under warranty?

Should i try and ask for more of a discount?

Or should I go to an indie garage and get a quote from them to see if VW will match it? VW Beadles in Dartford have a huge sign that says we will match any quote from an independent garage for servicing (not too sure if it says repairs)

Any advice would be great thanks.

In my opinion, this is a load of rubbish (highlighted red & bold). If a stone hitting the inside of a wheelarch during normal driving is enough to make a piece of trim move and therefore void a warranty, then i would argue that you have been supplied a car that is 'not fit for purpose.' Given that the car was designed primarily to be driven on a road, and therefore come in to contact with general road debris from time to time, then either the car wasn't screwed together properly in the first place, or it has been poorly repaired.

I would also argue that seeing as the other wheel arches have come into contact with very similar road debris (by virtue of the fact that they're fitted to the same car), then why haven't they rusted?

Don't give up!

[iwilkins]

+1 for what Musicman said

I'd also consider that the front wings are also only about £150-180 sprayed and I believe are a fairly easy bolt on.

It's also worth considering getting someone like chips away to do a repair.  I found some rusting, about 2 inches, on my 07 car.  I just got a halfords touch up kit and self repaired for £10.  Doesn't show on the main paintwork as it's only under the arch.

[tuscan_thunder]

My front left arch is rusting - no damage to the arch from rubbing etc.

VW refusing to pay out as car doesn't have full service history (I bought it from an independent not that long ago)

How full service can prevent this issue is beyond me.  It's not been repaired at any point and I've taken paint readings etc (this is an area I have some knowledge with).  It's like banging your head against a brick wall with VW sometimes. 

[Davstylee]

My front left arch is rusting - no damage to the arch from rubbing etc.

VW refusing to pay out as car doesn't have full service history (I bought it from an independent not that long ago)

How full service can prevent this issue is beyond me.  It's not been repaired at any point and I've taken paint readings etc (this is an area I have some knowledge with).  It's like banging your head against a brick wall with VW sometimes. 

Sorry to hear that mate. If you are a getting a no from a VW garage, try ringing VW customer care, thats what I did. VW then offered me a 70% discount on the repairs, but I am complaining again stating the great line stated above "not fit for purpose" just waiting on my VW case manager to contact me.

[tuscan_thunder]

cheers dude. 

I will try VW HQ but have another dealer to try first.  My concern is that VW bodyshop simply won't do a good enough job: through my work I see the work they put out and it's horrific.

If VW themselves offer support, I'll need to have a good feeling from the dealership to allow them near the car - might just bite to bullet and get a decent bodyshop to repair it. 

best of luck with yours - keep us updated and I'll do the same.

[Snoopy]

Looking at how badly and how different the front wheel arches fit on mk5 and mk6 golfs (even seems to varie from side to side on the same cars  ) i think its a cheak for VW to blaim them as they don't fit properly anyway!

[Davstylee]

Right an update, I rang VW again to state the whole “not fit for purpose", but they wouldn't budge. So looks like I am going to have to settle for the 70% discount, which is better than a kick in the teeth I guess.

Just wondering if anyone knows if VW will price match a repair quote from an indie garage?

[Davstylee]

Hey guys, another update for you.

Had a right result, VW customer care rang me to ask how the whole booking in the car for the repairs was going. I informed them that I was waiting for VW in Sevenoaks to contact me with a quote, but had been waiting for about 2 days. So VW contacted them directly and I just got a call from them. Sevenoaks have said they will also contribute 10% towards the cost of the repairs and VW said they would match that. So now all in all I am getting a 90% discount towards to cost of repairs. Get in. 

Just need to book in the car for the repair now.

So my advice to anyone who is experiencing rust, and have originally been turned down when trying to claim under the body protection warranty, is to ring VW customer care and moan a lot. That’s what I done and I am now getting a 90% discount which is a win in my books.

[musicman87]

Result! Thats good news! Get it booked in and make sure you get a warranty on the repair! Don't want it all happening again in another 12 months!