[Steve-B]

Righto, need some advice please! My clutch has started to slip slightly. Car is ~ Golf GTi PD150.

My car was registered 01/03/04, and I bought it used, from a dealer this May ('05), it had covered 11,000miles. Due to motorway driving, the mileage is now 24,800. I had it serviced in October, at a different dealer, with no problems reported. Over the last few weeks, my clutch has started to slip, and the biting point is very high.

I took to the dealer this morning (where I bought it from), they took it for a drive, and said, although they couldn't get the clutch to slip, the clutch was certainly worn, due to the high biting point.

I then asked if this was covered under the warranty, they said no, unless it was a faulty clutch. To find this out, they'd have to strip it down and check it all, if it was just wear and tear, then i'd have to pay ?546.17p for a new clutch.

I explained that the car was still on the original tyres, discs and pads, and that this was unacceptable for a car which is only 21 months old. They said they could only give me an answer once they stripped it all down. At this point, i said i'd call them back - i'm not authorising any work until they say it's all under warranty.........

Anyone else agree the original clutch should last longer than 21 months / 24,800 miles? Under the sale of goods act, an item should be good enough to provide a reasonable length of service, before needing renewing, anyone agree. Any ideas?

Cheers, Steve.

 

[Steve-B]

Anyone got VW HQ customer Service Tel No.? Cheers

 

[Vee]

Forget the fact that it was bought Approved Used - it is still under the original warranty.

In my experience, you authorise the investigation if under the Approved Used Warranty and pay if the problem is not covered.

(As a result, I'll never pay the dealer premium fro buying Approved Used again).

Your car is still under the original warranty so you shouldnl't have to authorise anything.

IMO the dealer is misleading you.

VW Customer Service phone number came up in a thread recently, do a search & you'll find it.

 

[Steve-B]

Yeah, i'm not interested in the Approved one, it was the original warranty i'm looking at. 21 months / 24,800miles for a clutch? My mates done 60k and still on original clutch in his Ford Focus TDCi. Is the number for Customer Service - 0800 711 811?

 

[20valve]

Yes, thats the number.

Clutches are a difficult area because they are a wear & tear item. Of course it should of lasted longer than 24k miles.

The dealers hands are tied untill you contact VW Customer care. When you do this they will give you a case number/ref. Explain to them your problem,they will then contact the dealer that your car is at & they will then make a decission on wether they will pay for it or not.

 

[nosaj]

from my experience you will have to sign for the investigation to be done before they can contact the warrenty people

then if its not covered you will have to pay

i had done 70k on mine and i wasnt willing to let them investigate as if it wasnt covered to have a new one fitted it would have been ?928 for a new clutch

got a lot better deal else where []

and vw will only tell ya that a clutch isnt covered under any type of warrenty

had big argument over mine , and was told they have so many people burning the clutches out that they can not cover them

example i was told about by them

little old lady bought a golf 1.6 and with in 1 year she had 2 new clutches due to her riding the clutch and using it as a brake to hold herself at the lights on hills instead of taking it out of gear and pulling the hand brake up

and also a few storys of gti's needing new clutches due to they way they was driven

i do see ya point thou with the amount of miles you have done

so i think ya have a no win situation with getting it done under warrenty

 

[talk-torque]

I had a similar experience with my previous car, a 150PD. The clutch bite point became very high, and I was occasionally getting a little slip, partly because I was effectively riding the clutch between fast, close changes. The symptoms disappeared after a short time, and I put it down to the clutch mechanism self-adjusting. Give it a little time - you might be lucky like me.

 

[20valve]

A warranty is defined as a failure of a component due to a manufacturing defect.........you wont find any warranty that will cover a clutch after its 6 months old.

Unless it can be proven as a defective clutch that is.....

 

[Steve-B]

Phoned VW Customer Services, they said no. I mentioned the Sale of Goods Act 1979 (Ammend.'94), whereas the item should be fit for it's purpose for a reasonable length of time before needing replacement, they said fair enough, I need to contact the dealer over this, because the sale of goods were through the dealer itself.

It's frustrating, i've no problem with dealers or VW, i had it serviced at VW in October, for which I paid ?226 for what was basically an Oil and filter change, but that's something I accept.

Even the tyres, pads, discs, wiper blades etc are all original. So next step is to talk to the dealer again. VW mentioned the dealer may cover some costs, as I bought it from them. They quoted me ?546.17p for a new clutch, if it was wear & tear.

I'll keep you all posted. Thanls for the replies.

 

[JoeBickley]

Long shot i know but is it worth trying another dealer?

My 50k lube service is costing me half what you paid for the same thing. And when i went to my dealer with some mildy corroded anni wheels and a shed load of other stuff they just did it not questions asked.

Joe

 

[Richie]

clutches are only covered upto 6,000 miles or the first 12 months..

hope that helps.

 

[20valve]

clutches are only covered upto 6,000 miles or the first 12 months..

hope that helps.

Wrong, its 6 month or 7500 mls, which ever comes first

 

[Richie]

knew it was something like that.. lol

both have been passed in this instance..

 

[JBS-Sales]

Well I will tell you that I have seen a little Fabia rolled through the garage door with 1700 miles on the clock with smoke coming out from all angles.

The clutch totally had it.

The lady driving said "no I dont ride my clutch it must be faulty" but this was not covered under any warranty.

This was totally burnt out.

As an ex workmate would say "driver error"

Sarah

 

[Steve-B]

To be honest, i'm not bothered whether the clutch is covered or not, I know it's wear and tear, but for a clutch to go after 24,000miles, mostly motorway ones too, is ridiculous. Cars i've owned in the past, have gone 65,000 to 80,000 without the need for one (2 Vauxhalls and 1 Volvo).

The only reason I went for an '04 plate, with 11,000miles on, was for the reassurance that the car would be free from hassle for a good 3-4 years. How wrong was I? This is what i'll be saying to the dealer tomorrow anyway.

I'm also going to try another dealer, a large franchise one, rather than the family one I use, they might not be bothered as much, plus they did my last service, so should have checked clutch travel as part of it.

 

[Steve-B]

So is the ?546 they told me for the clutch cheap as far as the dealers goes?

 

[Richie]

lol read JBS's post and was about to respond but noticed sarah wrote it so i wont bother now lol..

don't want to get myself in trouble with the females on the board..

 

[BORA_TOM]

The thing is you don't know how it was treated for the first 11000 this is when the majority of the wear could have happened

 

[Steve-B]

True, but then it should fall back on the garage to ensure that the car is in a re-sellable condition, i.e. not with a knackered clutch.  I think the garage should replace it as a goodwill gesture.  I paid ?15k cash for the car, surely it's the least they could do.

 

[BORA_TOM]

True but then they don't kow how you've driven it for those 13k miles, I know it's harsh but sometimes cars hand you a bbad deal like this as i've learned