VW POLO weld fault

[Pedro!]

On the 26/05/06 I purchased a three year old VW Polo from my local VW dealership, this vehicle included a 12 months all components warranty and the car also has a 12 year body warranty.

The car had only clocked approx 18,500 miles when I purchased it, has been dealership (the one I bought it from) serviced regularly from new and was/is in pristine condition.

At the end of August during some heavy downpours of rain a back seat passenger of mine noticed the rear seats were wet! I promptly returned the car to the dealership who offered to investigate the matter, and after some inconvenience and two more visits the water leak was repaired.

I then began to notice a strange noise coming from the same area that the water leak was from every time I drove over uneven road surface, I'm not sure when this noise began as I normally have the radio on but didn't on this occasion. A few days later whilst trying to locate the noise I noticed the water leak had returned!

I swiftly returned the car to the garage and explained the problem and was asked to book in again for further inspection which I did, I also asked them to investigate the noise and wondered if the two problems were related.

When I picked up the car later the leak had been repaired again, but,...I was informed that the noise was the rear wheel arch area body panel spot welds that were faulty and required re-welding (or maybe that they were not welded originally when the car was manufactured, I suspect this is the case)

Initially (after a quick phone call to the VW body shop) I was told that this was not covered under any warranty and I would have to foot the bill, at which I expressed disbelief and stated that I was not prepared to do this.

Currently the situation is still amiable and the dealership that I purchased the car from have reported the fault to Volkswagen awaiting a reply regarding the problem and are attempting to find a satisfactory solution to the problem on my behalf.

I am still concerned that VW will refuse to meet the cost of this repair; I am also worried that the car may be dangerous to drive and, as it will soon be 6 months since I purchased the car and haven't lodged a complaint yet, am considering my position regarding the reversed burden of proof issue? Taking into account that I have reported the fault, well within the 6 month period, do I need proof of this?

Thanks for any advice anyone

Pedro!

[simonmanns]

Hi Pedro, I sent you an email about this and the Sale of Goods Act.

it is a common fault with vws as there wheel arches are moulded from the body its self and after a few years start to show the rust. however you should have some comeback as the vehicle was prchased from a vw garage and also should still be under the anti corrosion warranty and also as vw did not say in the first place that somebody had interfeared with the car you can confirm that anything wrong orthat has gone wrong is vws fault. they should have picked the faults up. the car should be covered by a 6 or 10 year warranty anti rust or similar warranty. the dealer is at fault . if they dont listen speak to vw as they do not like free bad publicity

[Jonnie Reclaim]

Hi, I would suggest the following.

1. Write to your VW dealer expressing your concerns and ask for a written description of the defect.
2. Ask for a meeting with the Area Engineer from VW who is responsible for the dealership.
3. Obtain independent report from AA/RAC or other independent auto engineer.
4. Complain to trading standards - they normally have an officer who deals specifically with the motor trade.
5. If you feel that this is a build defect, complain to VOSA.

You may need to prove that this defect was a build defect and present when you purchased the vehicle. If you can show that this defect is known to VW (i.e a common fault) this will help. You may try an internet search for this.

Good luck

Jon.

[Pedro!]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I have just got back from a holiday today and just before I went the VW dealership agreed to take care of the fault. They have had the vehicle while I was away and delivered it to my home (hopefully) with the fault rectified.

I haven't had a chance to inspect their work just yet but will be giving it a thorough going over tomorrow.

Once again thanks everyone.

Pedro!

p.s. that sentence regarding rust in the wheel arches concerns me a little!