complaint to dealership help

fsdss

i am about to complain to the vw dealership where i bought my then brand new car 18 months ago at a cost of £20k, but need help as to what to expect etc.

my car has been in 14 times this year alone having warranty repairs done to it - ranging from airbag warning lights / heating system failure, smelly smoke coming out of the engine/ new clutch just to name a few. i have rarely had my car this year as it has been in the garage for weeks on end. put it this way.....it was in for 5 weeks (with me having a courtesy car) having a part replaced and had it home for a week when it broke down again!! i got it back 2 weeks ago on weds, on the saturday it broke down again when on holiday and had to be recovered to vw - where it had a new clutch system and flywheel on the warranty, we didn't have the car for 5 days of our holiday nor a courtesy car. i got it back on the weds .....and you've guessed it....it broke down on sunday (thankfully we got home).
its not undriveable at the moment (airbag warning lights and strange mouldy type smell coming out of the airvents), when i turn on the engine i am greeted with numerous bing bonging of the various warning sytems in the programme.

now vw have been good so far :rolleyes:, they are coming for it on monday (as they are giving me another courtesy car)....

now all this is, apart from being upsetting, is costing us a pretty package....12 times i have driven the 50mile round trip to take my car to the dealership, not forgetting the couple of times i have done again using the courtesy car. on a couple of occasions, i have had to have public transport home (train for me and the children) and taxi from station to my fairly isolated home (no bus service) 7 miles journey.
my earning potential has decreased as i have had to close my business for 2 days as i couldnt get there to appointment, i also missed one day at my othe (PT) work due to this and had to take emergency annual leave.

the kids (3 and 7) and i have, in the past, sat all day in the dealership waiting for the car from 9 - 4.30pm , which was pure bliss...not!

on holiday it cost us a packet too but reduced the cost by getting the bus and only a couple of taxi's. but its all mounting up.

anyone have any constructive comments which i could place in my letter.

thanks

Doozergirl

I'd complain to VW themselves, rather than the dealer. It seems like you've already done quite a lot of complaining to the dealer!

fsdss

believe it or not, i haven't actually made any official complaints to anyone so far.....but i think they are expecting one

moggylover

Used to work for a motor manufacturer (Citroen) in Customer Relations - and your legal contract is with the dealer - and that is who you should ask to replace the vehicle if that is what you want done.

It may also be worth writing to the manufacturer to list the problems you have had, and they will probably get a technical rep. to investigate with the dealership.

Probably write to the dealer, listing all the problems, and the expenses you have incurred, and copy this to the manufacturer, customer relations department, asking them to look in to this.

Funny it should be a VW - I have a neighbour who bought a new VW about 18 months ago - and they are not at all pleased with theirs, and his brthr-in-law bought the same model about the same time and is not pleased with his!

They are slipping - obviously.

lisasdiary

I will first ask was the car new?
If so you may be able to go down the route off changing car as they have a prcedure if the car has been in more than i think its 5 times so thats you covered . If not new is it still under warranty? If it is a vw warranty they are usually very good! Ask for a copy off warranty .

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

Car isn't fit for purpose. Return vehicle, demand refund.

Crabman

I'd be asking for consequential loss beyond what could be deemed reasonable - petrol isn't cheap these days especially when you've had to make 50 mile trips to the garage & use taxi/public transport too.

fsdss

lisasdiary wrote: »

I will first ask was the car new?

yes the car was brand new, i dont know if it helps but it currently has 21000 miles on the clock and (i think) a year and a half left on the warranty

crabman (love the name BTW;)) - i have no idea what each trip has amounted to but its probably amounting to £100 so far on public transport. its easily done a tank of diesel to and fro from the garage (approx £70), and thats excluding the courtesy cars that i had.

Conor_3

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers! wrote: »

Car isn't fit for purpose. Return vehicle, demand refund.

I wouldn't be so sure. Half of that post is a worn clutch. Not only one but two. You can kill a clutch in a few thousand miles if you're a crap driver.

fsdss

Conor wrote: »

I wouldn't be so sure. Half of that post is a worn clutch. Not only one but two. You can kill a clutch in a few thousand miles if you're a crap driver.

not a crap driver - i hold an advanced driving ticket, never had an accident, not even a near miss.

never had a breakdown in my life until this car!, never a new clutch replaced or any real problems with any car i have ever owned. and therefore i would think that if i was a crap driver, i would have killed quite a few by now!!! i am quite strict on maintainenance too (oil levels / tyre pressures etc).
the clutch is the minor problem (replaced under warranty due to faulty part was put on the documentation i signed) and was only replaced once not twice.
the airbags / heating system are the main problems - despite having whole new systems been fitted, i still have stinky smoke coming out of the internal air vents when i switch on the engine, it smells like mouldy washing that has been sitting damp for a week and is unpleasant.

photome

fsdss wrote: »

not a crap driver - i hold an advanced driving ticket, never had an accident, not even a near miss.

never had a breakdown in my life until this car!, never a new clutch replaced or any real problems with any car i have ever owned. and therefore i would think that if i was a crap driver, i would have killed quite a few by now!!! i am quite strict on maintainenance too (oil levels / tyre pressures etc).
the clutch is the minor problem (replaced under warranty due to faulty part was put on the documentation i signed) and was only replaced once not twice.
the airbags / heating system are the main problems - despite having whole new systems been fitted, i still have stinky smoke coming out of the internal air vents when i switch on the engine, it smells like mouldy washing that has been sitting damp for a week and is unpleasant.

I shouldnt worry about conor he is the resident pain in the a... he will be telling you that you have left a dead cat in the engine compartment next.