I bought a diesel Volkswagen Passat estate car around a year ago from a local car dealership. While my wife and I were out for a test drive, I made sure to ask the salesman if the car had been affected by the VW emissions scandal. The salesman told us that it was not as they had checked. However, I recently received a letter from Volkswagen stating that my car was indeed affected. We would not have bought the car had we known that it was affected. What are my rights in terms of the dealership? I have no written or recorded record of the conversation, but my wife and I were both present when he made the statement.

This is a very long story so please bear with me, I am now at my wits end and could use some advice if anyone could please help. March 2013, I heard from a friend who worked at the local VW garage that there was a 2007 VW Caravelle coming in as a part exchange. I'd been after one for a while so once it was in I went to look at it. It was a lovely bus, first owners were no other than Ant and Dec so it had all the bells and whistles. On the test drive it went well, I noticed the automatic gearbox was a little 'laggy' when I got back I discussed this with the guy I know, he said it would come with warranty and I specified that it had a gearbox and engine service as a condition of sale. I agreed a deal, part exchanged my trusty Passat and the finance went through. Fast forward a week, I collected the vehicle, after a few days I noticed the gaerbox was still laggy, and it was a bit clunky sometimes selecting the gears. I decided to read up and find out it is a common fault, due to the gearboxes not being serviced. I went back with the vehicle to ask what, if anything they had found when they serviced it, he went to check, and then came back and told me it wasn't a serviceable item and they hadn't done it. I wasn't happy, VW sell the items to service it, I demanded it be inspected. I was sent to a different garage, my local one didn't have the commercial facility (probably why they didn't service it), and it was plugged into the diagnostic machine which found NO FAULTS! I was amazed, and over the next few weeks it got worse, sometimes missing a gear and 'slamming' into one eventually. All this time I was told not to woory, it was under warranty. Now, the only spanner in the works for me since all this is that I had the vehicle remapped for economy when I bought it. I discussed this with another member of staff who I knew at the dealership and she suggested I use one of the mechanics, he was doing it for a lot of customers who weren't happy with the DPF units clogging up, you know, out of the back door. I declined and took it to the leading comapny in the UK for the work done, it was significantly better with the (blocked) DPF removed and I gained at least another 5mpg. He said it was a cracking engine, it was a shame it was joined to that shoddy gearbox. another month or so passes, I use it less because of the gearbox problem, but all the time I'm assured that if anything goes wrong I have a warranty. We had booked our holiday to France so we had fingers crossed, what could possibly go wrong? Well, everything actually. August 2013, I had driven through the night and in the early hours of the morning there was a noticeable whine coming from the transmission. Now, I'm pretty good with mechanics and can notice the smallest thing, my wife usually tells me to shut up. On this occasion she looked at me and said she could hear it too, oh dear. I carried on at a gentle pace, that wasn't enough though. I pulled out on an incline to overtake 2 HGV's and as I was passing the first one the gearbox kicked down, TWICE, which was like hitting a brick wall. A split second later there was a bang and I lost everything, luckily the truck reacted well and let me across to the hard shoulder. After a long wait we were recovered and the guy diagnosed transmission failure. DO NOT break down on a French bank holiday, we had 9 hours in a compound in rural France, and after lots of shouting we were sent a taxi to take us into the nearest town for a hire car, a Vauxhall Corsa, I kid you not. Five of us, luggage, bikes, bedding. We had to leave so much, holiday ruined. September 2013, it is recovered to my nearest VW Van Centre, Preston, a few days after I get home from the worst holiday ever. I find that the warranty is an external one, not a VW one. An inspection takes place and the first thing they find is engine damage, caused by the failed gearbox. This is where it gets sneaky. The warranty firm find out it has had the remap and DPF removal, there is no evidence anywhere in the vehicle, they must have phoned the specialists within a certain radius. They proceeded to tell him that they were selling the vehicle and had he done any work on it, he told them he had, and sent them the sheet with all of the work on. Funny thing is I wasn't hiding it, it was well within the parameters (there are two engine outputs, mine was the lower one, same engine, different settings). Claim refused, the guy at Preston VW thought it was quite funny, how nice. I dig my heels in and take it to VW, but from the outset I'm struggling. I bought what is essentially a commercial vehicle from a passenger car dealership. They are different divisions, none of them will admit any liability for the vehicle. When I eventually get someone to investigate they contact the guy at Preston and they go from his (one sided) findings, at this point the gearbox hasn't been touched. They reject any fault. I decide to get some legal advice, this ended up costing me £1200, and I've had to lease another vehicle to replace this one, we are childminders and it is a necessity. The solicitor takes everything on board, he is in contact with VW UK, Lancaster VW, Preston Van Centre and VW Finance. To put it bluntly they all call me a liar and a chancer, they stand by the vehicle having no gearbox fault. I'm told I can have it removed and inspected at one of their chosen places at my own cost. I refuse saying it is their responsibility. My solicitor gets in touch with me and says that they have sent him a quotation in the paperwork for the cost to repair, £2300. He advises me to just cut my losses and have it done, I'll only end up paying him the money to fight it, so I reluctantly agree. He is paid his dues, and I call to book the job in. Oh, wait a minute, that was just a quotation, they wouldn't actually do that job. They would however fit a new engine for £7500+vat. At this point I'm absolutely furious, they have deliberately lied to my solicitor, and there is no mention of the faulty gearbox anywhere! At this point I stop paying for it out of protest, pay the 1/3 so they can't take it back, and dig my heels in. . . September 2015. I'd recieved a letter from a collection firm asking to recover the vehicle, at this point it was still sat in the yard at Preston VW, deteriorating every day. One morning I get a knock at the door, my 9 year old son answered it and it was a pair of 'men in black'. They said they'd come to get the vehicle or recover the money, just over £6k. Considering I owed £10k I was just about to agree a payment (the £4k would have it fixed with used parts, so I thought I'd cut my losses) but then they find it is a clerical error. I then tell them I'm in dispute with VW and they tell me they can't be involved and leave! March 2016, I have correspondence from a solicitor saying they want the full amount, or hand the vehicle back to be sold. Now at this point I have had it recovered at my cost to a TOP SECRET location, the engine is removed, as is the gearbox. I refuse to hand it back in pieces to be sold for a pittance, leaving me with a huge balance to pay, I tell him that under no circumstances will I hand it back. I then recieve a very generous offer from a friend as he can see how much stress this has caused, he will lend me the £6k they were collecting last time. I contact the solicitor and offer this in full and final settlement and I will fix the vehicle. To my surprise they refuse, and I now have in front of me a county court hearing for return of goods. My question is, can I fight this and have my say? What chance do I have? It kills me to think they will get away with selling me a faulty vehicle and I still have to pay for it, pay for a replacement vehicle, deal with the stress, the hours and hours of my time I've put in to fight this. It is a matter of principal now, I'm just scared that if I get turned over by them I'll have nothing and still owe thousands. HELP!

VW shares are down 30% so far this week. Volkswagen is facing multiple investigations in the United States, including, reports say, a criminal probe from the Department of Justice. They follow an admission by the world's biggest carmaker that it deceived US regulators in exhaust emissions tests. A DoJ criminal investigation would be serious, as federal authorities can bring charges with severe penalties against a firm and individuals. Late on Tuesday, New York state's top lawyer announced an investigation. . I've said time and time again that there is nothing special about German cars and that it was Germany themselves who made up the saying 'German engineering', so not only are there attempts to con the world that their products are better, we now find they deliberately lie and cheat about their products with fraudulent dirty tricks in order to increase sales. What could be the wider implication of all this for VW motorists in the UK? When the modification software is removed, what If the cars no longer meet MoT emission regulations, they should be refused a pass certificate so will owners be entitled to their money back, or if they do meet the regulations, will the higher emissions put them into a higher road tax bracket and if so, who will pay. VW can't just modify the software on the cars to meet emissions regs as that reduces the engine power output so owners will not be driving the car they were sold. This could turn into a very complicated tangle and VWs announcement of £4.7bn set aside might be equal to a waiters tip when the full implication are known.

I'm hoping for some advice. I had a car on finance from 2008 to 2010.i lost my job and was struggling with payments. The car was then repossessed in 2010, but from reading the forums I'm a bit concerned about the following: It looks like I should have received a default letter, but didn't get one? The car was taken from private land (a private parking space in the courtyard for the flat I own) It contained my personal possessions, which I never got back When I called 1 day after it was repossessed and offered to pay (I could borrow money from parents) they refused saying it was too late. I then paid around 5k back when the car was auctioned. This was all back in 2010 and I've written to them in the past a couple of times but never had a response. Ive also tried to email them this week asking for details of the default letter and how to ask for a subject access request, but yet to have any sort of response. Based on the above, is there anything I might be able to do here?

Hi All I wanted to get some feedback from people as i feel like i want to take action against Volkswagen. My mum purchased an ex demo car from Shepherds Volkswagen in Bishops Stortford (now managed by the Vindis franchise). It came with a three your warranty and the car has literally just passed it's warranty by about eight months. In the last few months the car paintwork is bubbling. Back panels, side panels, roof etc. VW have acknowledged this is a problem and offered to contribute half of the repair bill. They have also acknowledged through their dealers that "something was done to the car" (ie it was resprayed) before they sold it to my mum. They have even offered to discount a new car in acknowledgement that it is poorly done. My question is that if the work is that poor and job was done by a dealer then surely they should put this right fully? Who buys a car where the paint bubbles, fractures and peels away within four years? No one! And why do people buy Volkwwagens - because they are allegedly well built and manufactured. I've done a lot of reading online and this seems to be a known poor quality area for VW. I am so angry that my mum has purchased a car from a reputable manufacturer, thinking it will last her and now they know it's a problem, only want to cover half of it. Please can you let me know any thoughts on how i can get this sorted or take it further. Nick

Since I bought my 1.4 TDI PD VW Polo in 2002 (yes I know its old but its only done 17,000 miles) I have changed the engine oil every year using the recommended 5w40 semi synthetic 505.01 oil (Millers). I have always bought a 5 litre container of oil but the engine only needs about 4 litres so I always have about a litre left, this builds up so about every fourth year it has built up so I dont have buy for that particular year.I now have a build up of about 3 litres and as it is near to oil change time I went to buy a 5 litre container of the recommended oil only to find Millers have discontinued it and say I should now use their recommended full synthetic (not semi) oil See here Millers Oils XFE - PD 5w-40 Semi-synthetic Engine Oil So now to my questions I presume it is OK to mix synthetic and semi synthetic oils. If the answer to this question is no would it be OK to mix a different manufacturers semi synthetic oil with the Millers oil ALSO I am sure a few years ago I read that if you had used semi synthetic oil for a number of years and you changed to full synthetic there was a chance you could get oil leaks, any truth in this or is it a "old wifes tale". Thanks

Hi Hopefully someone can help me. I purchased a new 2013 VW Beetle on a lease and picked up the car on 23rd March this year. Very happy with the car apart from the clock. Basically, each time I drive, the clock (to tell the time) disappears and is replaced by a reading in KPH. There is no other place on the car to tell the time other than this clock. I went back to the dealership about this and they got one of their tech guys to have a look at it and he basically told me it's for European driving, they have to show by law readings in MPH and KPH. That's fine, however I have a manual dial on the dash which tell you MPH on the outer circle and KPH on the inner circle which basically means I have KPH in two places which is not necessary. I contacted the dealership again about this and asked them how I was supposed to tell the time whilst I was driving and I was told 'look at your watch'! I was furious when they said this, basically they are telling me to take my hand off the wheel when hurtling down the motorway! Anyway, I then contacted VW head office who have agreed that their 'may' be a fault and have referred me back to the dealership....... This has now been going on since the end of March and VW do not know if it's a fault or the car was designed like that. All other new beetles have the functionality of being able to tell the time whilst you're driving, however on my particular model, you can't but they cannot establish if its a fault! VW have told me (6 weeks ago now), they they have ordered a new dash pod from Germany to see if this is what the car needs, however they have run a few computer tests on my car's dash and there are no faults. I'm at the stage now where I'm tearing my hair out, a dash pod has been ordered and is en route from Germany (it's taking ages), when it gets here, they don't know if I need it and still cannot tell me if it's a fault. They've told me that no-one else has complained about this problem and will not recall the car until they receive 5 complaints! This is so frustrating! The car manual shows me how to tell the time and change the time and nowhere in the book does it say that the clock disappears! I'm at the stage where I want the car replacing, however they've told me they won't do this. All I want to do is drive and to be able to tell the time! Can anyone help please!

Volkswagen Group UK Ltd t/a Audi Yeomans Drive Blakelands Milton Keynes MK14 5AN Date: 27 March 2013 Media: Internet (on own site) Sector: Motoring Number of complaints: 1 Complaint Ref: A12-210019 Ad Claims on http://www.audi.co.uk, under the heading "Audi A3 TDI - the most fuel efficient Audi ever" stated "The A3 16 TDI is the most fuel-efficient Audi ever returning a quite remarkable 68.9mpg on a combined cycle". Issue The complainant, who had bought the car, challenged whether the claim "68.9mpg" was misleading and could be substantiated, because they had not been able to achieve that fuel consumption. CAP Code (Edition 12) 3.13.103.73.9 Response Volkswagen Group UK Ltd (VW) said the fuel consumption figure quoted was obtained from the manufacturer's tests carried out in accordance with Directive 93/116/EC as amended by Regulation (EC) 692/2008. VW explained that the complaint that a customer had been unable to achieve a quoted fuel consumption figure in real-life driving was occasionally encountered by motor vehicle manufacturers and distributors. Fuel consumption figures did not give an accurate representation of the actual fuel consumption which could be expected from any particular vehicle and were provided only to enable comparisons between different vehicles or models. They pointed out that the VCA (the designated UK Vehicle Type Approval authority) themselves made clear that new car fuel consumption and CO2 emissions official figures were not fully representative of real life driving conditions because of the need to maintain strict comparability of results achieved by the standard tests that were carried out. There were also infinite variations in driving styles and in road, car and weather conditions, all of which could have a bearing on the results achieved. For these reasons the consumption achieved on the road would not necessarily accord with the official test results. They believed that the basis of the VCA guidance was well known by consumers and said the use of such figures in this context and in motor vehicle advertising generally, without explanation as to the way such figures were produced or whether they were representative of real-life driving, was completely standard across the industry. Assessment Upheld The ASA noted that, as VW had explained, the means by which fuel efficiency figures for vehicles should be calculated was set out in European legislation. In practice this was a set of test drive cycles conducted under controlled conditions that produced figures that showed the vehicle's efficiency in urban and extra-urban (faster moving) scenarios. These two figures were then averaged to give a third figure, known as the combined figure, and it was that figure which was given in the website claim. We understood the website had given the correct figure for the model advertised. We understood that such figures, by their nature, had to be generated under test conditions so that consumers could compare them on a like-for-like basis. However, we considered that it was unlikely to be clear to the average consumer that the figure quoted was based on a standardised test and was not necessarily representative of what they would achieve when driving the car themselves. For that reason we considered that VW should have qualified the figure to make clear to readers that it was based on an EU test for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results. Because they had not done so we concluded that the claim breached the Code. The claim breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1, 3.3 (Misleading advertising), 3.9 and 3.10 (Qualification) We also investigated the claim under CAP Code (Edition 12) rule 3.7 (Substantiation) but did not find it in breach. Action We told VW to ensure they qualified official fuel consumption figures to make clear that they were official EU test figures to be used as a guide for comparative purposes and may not reflect real driving results

Hi all, Got an interesting one here. I bought a VW about 18months ago now. At the time of purchase I queried the service history as it looked like it hadnt been serviced within the manufacturers timescales. The dealer said that it had and I got him to confirm that to me in writing. I am now in a position where the car has developed a fault and it is just outside of its warranty. On speaking to VW UK they advise that they would not get involved in a goodwill repair because it missed its first service interval. Therefore I can only conclude that I have been mis-sold the vehicle and have solid evidence to prove this. My intention will be to write to the dealer asking for a) it to be repaired at their cost - but also the service history is now worthless and also VW would normally consider my vehicle for goodwill cover for another 2 years which they will now not do due to the service history issue. I was also therefore going to ask for a) free service for 2 years as service history is worthless and b) extended warranty to cover the 2 years that VW would consider goodwill for. The alternative option I would accept is a full refund. My question is a) is this the right approach and b) am I asking for enough/too much or what? Many thanks, JChaplin