Front wheel arch corrosion

[iwilkins]

This may be a silly question but has anyone come up with a way to prevent the plastic arch liner rubbing ?

Is it just a matter of removing it and greasing up maybe ?  I'd like to try and put some preventative measures in place on mine but i'm not even sure where it bubbles to start looking at a solution.

[Saint Steve]

Im gonna remove the arch liner nxt time i have the front tyres replaced, and investigate...

[sprout99]

This may be a silly question but has anyone come up with a way to prevent the plastic arch liner rubbing ?

Is it just a matter of removing it and greasing up maybe ?  I'd like to try and put some preventative measures in place on mine but i'm not even sure where it bubbles to start looking at a solution.

the mk6 has a spacer block - i believe as aprt of the work they modiy the edge of the liner and waxoyl the inner surface of the wing

[Snoopy]

The mk6 does have a spacer block but so does the mk5,
The mk6 also has a spacer on the back of the wing/door pillar the mk5 does not but that has no effect on the arch liner as it does not come anywere near it.

The top spacer is stupid anyway on the mk6 as its a material that acts like a sponge and sokes up water and muck So it causes rot!
I bought new ones for my mk6 and before fitting them i used them like a sponge and totally soaked them with a product called fabsil, its a water repellent they use on tent fabric. They now don't exorb water and just repel it.


Top wing spacer on a mk6 golf.

[Marlowe]

Sorry to revive this with my first post, but it looks like I've fallen victim to what seems to be a sadly increasing for 5 year old plus MK5 GTIs, and would really appreciate any advice that you can offer (what follows is my post from over at MK5GTI - hope that's okay mods).

I washed & polished my 06 GTI 2 weeks ago and noticed for the first time the dreaded bubbles appearing on the nearside front arch. When I looked inside the arch and saw the line of rust forming there I was unimpressed to say the least - the car is an obsessively maintained low mileage GTI which has been driven carefully in its 5 years of ownership.

Anyway, long story short, took it to my local VW Body Specialist (Gilders). 2 Weeks later I've got what looks like the default speel from VW - it's not covered under the 12 year corrosion warranty as it's a 'Mechanical Defect' caused by the wheel arch liner rubbing the arch, which means, as it's now out of the 3 year warranty that would have covered this issue, it's not VW's problem.

I rang Customer Service to play merry hell up, as it looks like UBZRM did before me. They knew about the problem immediately - they're obviously now getting a lot of claims in. The poor guy who answered could only keep reiterating 'but it's a mechanical defect' as I politely expressed my dissatisfaction, asked exactly how a clearly well known 'manufacturing defect' (there's been no fault in the assembly or manufacture of the plastic wheel arch liner - it does it's job fine) was not addressed during its servicing in the form of a TSB / Recall at VAG dealerships in both Wolverhampton and Sheffield. No explanation given.

In the end he gave up and has now referred it to their 'claims manager' who will apparently get back to me in 24-48 hours. Ideally I'd like VW to accept responsibility and fix the issue before the rust spreads, but they clearly don't want to  accept fault - farcical given that I know the cost price they'd pay for a whole new wing is in the region of £80.

As this seems to be a (sadly) common issue now emerging for the 5yr+ GTIs, I was just wondering if anyone had any words of wisdom for me (apart from chill out - sorry, I know I'm ranting a bit and will stick my soap box away in a minute), and also just to emphasise that sadly UB7RM hasn't been alone in the issue.

If you have had issues, can you advise me how you got VW to accept liability?

If you haven't had issues and have a MK5 GTI please for the love of god check under your arches. I never thought rust would be an issue on a 5 year old car from a reputable manufacturer - boy have I learnt my lesson in the last fortnight!

[kingbilly]

This is from Volkswagen UK website -

Body protection warranty

All current Volkswagen vehicles are fully protected during manufacture against through corrosion for 12 years from the date of first registration (6 years for the Sharan models).
 
The only preconditions are:
ʉۢThe defect must be reported to a member of the Volkswagen Authorised Network as soon as it is discovered and within the warranty period.
•The perforation must not have been caused originally by damage, neglect, insufficient care or maintenance or by external rusting.
•A member of the Volkswagen Authorised Network must be advised about any rusting as soon as it is found.
•All body repairs will be carried out promptly in accordance with the manufacturer's specification and procedures, using only approved parts and materials, so the original level of anti-corrosion protection is maintained.

http://www.volkswagen.co.uk/owners/warranty/factory/terms

Doesn't say anything about excluding Mechanical Defects...get VW to produce proof in writing that these defects are excluded and that you the customer was aware of it.

Good luck.

[Marlowe]

Thanks Kingbilly; I remember reading that in the logbook when I double-checked that the car did carry 12 years, but I neglected to mention that one during my minor rant earlier. I'll certainly add that to my ammunition.

Fingers crossed that the claims manager is more reasonable in person than his department clearly was when the original warranty tender for the repair was made by my local dealership.

[kingbilly]

Marlowe,

From your post #34 above you appear to be saying that if you had approached your dealer with this "Mechanical Defect" within the 3 year factory warranty they would have honoured a repair.

Take a read of this - http://www.oft.gov.uk/business-advice/treating-customers-fairly/sogahome/sogaexplained - paragraph 12 Guarantees/Warranties.

This is an official Government site.

Good luck.

[Marlowe]

Thanks again - that seems to be their rationale (of course VW know that the rust appears unlikely to form within the first 3 years - it seems to only be becoming a common fault now). The rust is relatively small at present and my local dealership were satisfied that I had reported it as soon as I had become aware - i.e the moment bubbling started to form on the exterior of the wheel arch.

I'm expecting a call either today or tomorrow from their Claims Manager. I expect another argument, and then probably to have to resort to harassing VW UK's head office with wordy letters to express my discontent.

Thanks for the advice - I'm hoping it'll help me out when dealing with them again.

[kingbilly]

marlowe,

i have sent you a pm