VW software update EA189 EGR issue

Sue Maher

My VW golf suffered a power loss on the outside lane of the M50 with two infants in the back, luckily I made it in to the hard shoulder without having a serious accident. Took it to our VW dealer where we have a full service history and were advised that the EGR needed replacing at a cost of €1,200. The car had the EA189 software update in October 2017 and had it failed it within 2 years would have been 100% covered by VW, now VW will only offer 50% goodwill, the car was perfect before the update . This is a disgrace the software update puts a greater strain on the EGR and pushes them to failure which results in loss of power and puts the passengers lives at risk. I will be getting the work carried out and selling the car ASAP it’s the last VAG car I ever buy after owning six previously, I wouldn’t put my families lives at risk anymore.

kennethsmyth

Sue Maher wrote: »

My VW golf suffered a power loss on the outside lane of the M50 with two infants in the back, luckily I made it in to the hard shoulder without having a serious accident. Took it to our VW dealer where we have a full service history and were advised that the EGR needed replacing at a cost of €1,200. The car had the EA189 software update in October 2017 and had it failed it within 2 years would have been 100% covered by VW, now VW will only offer 50% goodwill, the car was perfect before the update . This is a disgrace the software update puts a greater strain on the EGR and pushes them to failure which results in loss of power and puts the passengers lives at risk. I will be getting the work carried out and selling the car ASAP it’s the last VAG car I ever buy after owning six previously, I wouldn’t put my families lives at risk anymore.

Let VW and garage know you are going small claims to either recover the cost or they can come to a full arrangement now. There is plenty of evidence elsewhere to prove your case. I would not be paying for this, if you are forced to I would take a claim to recover the cost.

One other thing, if you do get car fixed, keep for at least a year as you have now put 1,200 euros into it and need to recoup outlay.

kennethsmyth

Had to add, ensure that VW and garage are fully made aware by snail mail that you will not be letting this go. Dog with a bone is eventually sorted.

pete4130

True, Fight it tooth and nail. They rely on people just giving up.

I'm currently involved with a AU$50k refund with Toyota in Oz for their useless DPF system not working. They've refused to refund, so onto the small claims equivalent over here. Despite there being a class action ongoing against them for the exact issue I have.

They try to delay and delay until you give up. So don't give up.

kennethsmyth

OP obviously be polite but extremely firm and unwavering in what you expect them to do. Give them 14 days for a full response. If none or unsatisfactory then initiate small claim. Once initiated it’s up to them to respond to court, if they decide to not turn up etc. It tends to go against them. Do not contact them to remind them to turn up.

Toyotafanboi

I dont think small claims court would entertain this?

OP, what age and mileage is the car? This will have a bearing on the arguement. If you bought the car new from the dealer and have a full history with them, did they approach you with 50% goodwill or did you have to push them to get that?

You are outside VW's trust building guidelines by a few weeks. I reckon there's good scope to get this across the line with a conversation with your dealers service manager.

It's worth bearing in mind that EGR cooler failures were common on most of the EA189 engines before the emissions update ever existed and in fairness, yours has worked well for in excess of 2 years after the update so directly relating it to the update is actually a bit tricky.

You're likely to catch more flies with honey on this one IMO, deal with the dealer in person. You bought the car there, you service the car there, you played by VW's rules getting the update carried out, you are only marginally outside the full coverage limits. Could they give your goodwill application a second review, they'll likely see a bit of logic.

If you go in all small claims court or solicitors blazing you'll most likely be stone walled and that'll be effectively an end of it but in a much more longwinded and painful way.

kennethsmyth

Toyotafanboi wrote: »

I dont think small claims court would entertain this?

OP, what age and mileage is the car? This will have a bearing on the arguement. If you bought the car new from the dealer and have a full history with them, did they approach you with 50% goodwill or did you have to push them to get that?

You are outside VW's trust building guidelines by a few weeks. I reckon there's good scope to get this across the line with a conversation with your dealers service manager.

It's worth bearing in mind that EGR cooler failures were common on most of the EA189 engines before the emissions update ever existed and in fairness, yours has worked well for in excess of 2 years after the update so directly relating it to the update is actually a bit tricky.

You're likely to catch more flies with honey on this one IMO, deal with the dealer in person. You bought the car there, you service the car there, you played by VW's rules getting the update carried out, you are only marginally outside the full coverage limits. Could they give your goodwill application a second review, they'll likely see a bit of logic.

If you go in all small claims court or solicitors blazing you'll most likely be stone walled and that'll be effectively an end of it but in a much more longwinded and painful way.

Thats for the small claims court to decide, however you have a case that has plenty of evidence externally that an action by VW has damaged the car/reduced its lifespan and that the cost to fix it is €1,200 which is under the limit allowed by small claims court. I think the OP has a good chance here.

kennethsmyth

Agree you don't have to go in with guns blazing but at the same time if you feel that VW are taking the Mick (a couple of weeks outside warranty)
and don't come to a conclusion that you are happy with I wouldn't hesitate to cause them enough trouble that it eventually will have to be dealt with. Checked small claims does cover minor damage to property (this would be considered that). You would have to prove it, which while might look difficult the multiple issues shown online after the update can be used to provide the reasonable conclusion that the update has pushed the egr to prematurely fail.

Toyotafanboi

kennethsmyth wrote: »

you have a case that has plenty of evidence externally that an action by VW has damaged the car/reduced its lifespan and that the cost to fix it is €1,200 which is under the limit allowed by small claims court. I think the OP has a good chance here.

Could you link to some external evidence that proves that VW intentionally damaged the car?

kennethsmyth wrote: »

Agree you don't have to go in with guns blazing but at the same time if you feel that VW are taking the Mick (a couple of weeks outside warranty)

That's the biggest mistake. It's not a couple of weeks outside of warranty. It's a couple of weeks outside of an in house goodwill gesture period that isn't enforced by anyone. You are relying on VW's goodwill to get any further with this.

The car could be a decade outside of warranty. Even the newest EA189 engine stuff is 6-7 years old now except a few rare exceptions. OP's car could be a decade outside its warranty.

The age and mileage of the car will play a huge part in this. If the car is a ten year old 2009 model with 200k kms on the clock and the component has lasted a number of years after the update, 50% is probably fair from the manufacturer considering usage, wear and tear etc but the dealer could come to the table seeing as the OP is a loyal customer. However if the car is a 5 year old model with 75k kms, you may have expected more from the car.

As I said, the age and mileage are critical to where to take this arguement next.

TeaBagMania

VW pulled that same crap here in the states after dieselgate, their software "fix" crippled the car to an almost unusable state.

Also, VW has produced nothing but garbage since the mid 80's (minus the V10 turbo diesel engine)
Dump that POS VW and get a Hyundai or Kia

My 2018 golf highline, spontaneously combusted, less than 7k km, cold engine at the time of combustion & fire started (in engine bay) somewhere near the grill, as flames were coming out from grill to the right of the VW badge (looking from the front of car), some popping/cracking sound at start, no reason found for fire, VW not interested, it was a while ago now, but I'm still pissed about it, VW will never get another penny from me.