My car is dead...again

[dasmurph]

Hey everyone! As most of you know I have a Gecko Green 2006 New beetle that I just love more than about anything. Also, as a lot of you probably know, I've had a lot of MAJOR problems with it. It's been towed to the dealer 3 times and brought to the dealer for other issues about 4 or 5 additional times. I take extremely good care of my car and follow the maintenance 100%.

Well, these last few weeks have been beyond hectic for me. I moved last weekend, work full time, go to school full time, it's mid-term week at school and I'm going to Boston tomorrow. So on my way home from work to go clean up the old place and take a mid-term at school, my Beetle decides to stop working again. The red thermometer light came on started blinking and chirping at me. I IMMEDIATLY pulled over, turned it off, and had it towed back to the dealer. I sat for 2 hours waiting for the tow truck, missed my mid-term and got NOTHING I had planned done.

My question is this...how upset would the average person on here be if this was them? I'm pretty much livid and am trying my hardest not to just drive it off a cliff, but it's hard. I know it's a VW and you can't count on them to be 100% reliable all the time, but it's not dumb little things that are happening to me, it's major mechanical things that prevent me from driving the car. I am not trying to bash VW or anything and trust me, there is no other car I would rather drive...But I'm paying a LOT of money for a car that doesn't work a LOT of the time...any advice, info, or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

[slothfulchemist]

I would be livid if I were you. In my opinion, you definitely have a LEMON, whether your state's laws agree is the important question. You shouldn't feel bad about being angry at VW. No offense to your beloved car is intended, but you ended up with a crappy car that cost a lot of money. Unfortunately, i don't have wisdom or useful information. Maybe it would be possible to get a replacement Beetle under the Lemon Laws, but if the problems are always different, I'm not sure if that will work.

I hope things get better for you and your beetle, but yes, you should be angry and frustrated.

[dnyed]

What the heck?


Stop taking it to Dick Hannah! Try another dealer! Call VWOA! Get a different New Beetle! (they suit you! )

And, best of luck. I know how disappointed you must be. You have a beautiful New Beetle, and I truly hope they can figger out what's wrong.

[BettyBug]

Lemons exist - and it sounds like you found one... file the papers for the lemon law, then go find yourself your next NB!

[dasmurph]

Thank you all for your responses. I really do feel like I have a lemon, not only because of what's been happening to my car, but because my roommate has an '06 beetle and my partner has an '05 Jetta and neither of them have had the problems I'm having. I thought about filing lemon law paperwork for the last set of problems I've had but stopped after I had my car back for a while and it was working fine. I'm thinking of starting the process up again after this though because I think I'm being shown that this car is just going to be one of the machines that never works right.

Deb, I am waiting a call back from the service manager at Dick Hannah. When my car was towed in yesterday, I was really angry and told her I never wanted to see that car again. She said she was going to call her 'rep' and demand that I get a new New Beetle. I'm not holding my breath at all, but I sure hope they work with me!

I'll keep you all updated as I get more info. I'm supposed to be finding out what will happen by the end of the day today, but like I said, I get on a plane to Boston tomorrow at the butt-crack of dawn so unless they get this taken care of today, I'm holding on to their loaner car 'til I get back on Wednesday!

[my99vdub]

woo-hoo! Beantown!!

good luck with your NB (or the new NB)

[Lnzbug]

Man that totally bites. I would get the lemon paperwork going ASAP. If that was me I bet you'd hear me yelling all the way to the east coast!

[gilligan]

yep lemon law that beotch.

[callisto9]

oh that sucks. i would do what you can to get that beetle dumped for a new one. i know the desire to drive a new beetle, but you need to get rid of that thing. can you get another one? i know it's not that simple, but i'd start reading up on your state's lemon laws.

[digitalputty]

That really stinks. Out of curiosity tho ... was the coolant low? Mine did that a while back and the coolant was low.

[ilpotosino]

you are living in America! use your warranty, demand for another car while yours is in the shop! call VW asistance and speak out!

[dasmurph]

Thanks again everyone for your responses...here is the latest. I did speak with the service manager who along with every service rep in the dealer knows me by name. She said that she couldn't do anything but would contact her 'Rep' and demand that I get a new New Beetle. I told her that I'm a repeat VW owner and still love the cars, but I do NOT want my current one back. She said she completely understood and would make sure I got taken care of.

All of this happened last Thursday I belive. She called me on Saturday to let me know that the were testing the car but evidentally it wouldn't duplicate the problem. She also said the computer was not spitting back any codes. She said she'd wait until Monday and they'd drive it more and run more tests. I still haven't heard anything and am getting rather aggrivated and nervous. Should I be worried that they can't get it to duplicate in the shop? She swears up and down that she believes me but I'm not so sure she does. I would not and really don't think I could even make this up!! Also, what should I do about contacting them since they're not calling me? Since I have a loaner car should I just leave it alone until I hear something or should I call them and find out what the heck is going on?

I really hate to keep asking all of these questions but I'm getting really aggrivated and fed up. I want a beetle more than anything, but I want it to work. If they refuse to help me out, I don't know what to do. I looked at the Washington state lemon law and it seems I would qualify for it, but it's a long process and am hoping that VW helps me out. If they don't, isnt' it reasonable to expect the dealer would help me out? I've bought 3 cars from them, my partner and roommate even bought cars from them...It would seem to me that maybe they'd be able to help but say they HAVE to go through VW...UGH what a mess...

[Beetlemania]

You'd think a lot of things about the way things should work, and it's unfortnate that they don't. It's completely reasonable on your part to expect them to take care of this, one way or another. But it seems that corporations and businesses have learned what they can get away with, and you know there are people out there that will pitch a fit and end up selling a problem car for next to nothing then go to another dishonest dealer to get their next one. Either that or cover up the problems on the car they're trying to sell to some poor soul. You're doing the right thing by pursuing the proper channels and trying to get this taken care of the right way. At some point it just has to work out in your favor, the question really is at which step that will happen. We can only hope the dealership or VWoA admits fault before the legal system has to step in.

Best of luck!

[CaptainXeroid]

Originally Posted by d_merry

...I looked at the Washington state lemon law and it seems I would qualify for it...

I'm not a lawyer, but I play one on the internet. I was reading the law in another window, and I concur according to RCW 19.118.041 paragraph 2. Source

I recommend you ask for an appointment with the general manager or owner of the dealer. Let that person know that while you like VWs and that you are a repeat customer you cannot continue to drive a car with these kinds of defects.

Emphasize that your Bug is a lemon and that you hope that the dealer and VW will do the right thing and replace your Bug without your having to invoke the Lemon Law. After your meeting, you should probably follow up with a certified letter of your understanding of the meeting so you can add to your paper trail in case you do have to get 'legal' on them.

I wish you more success in the future than you've had so far.

[dnyed]

Those pesky first-year models.



David's was the very first '06 I had ever seen, the day I met him in December 2005. I wouldn't let him leave until I saw it. (We met at the service department). I even took the picture that day, that he has as his avatar.


I hope, truly hope, David, that you get this resolved. I care about you.

[AriesGuy85]

Sounds def like a Lemon. My 2006 Pkg 2 New Beetle has been nothing but grand. I hope it all works out for you buddy.

[HudsonValleyVDub]

Although it changes from state to state, you have to have the same problem fixed at least 3 times by the dealer to have a lemon law case. Unfortunately, if you've had different little things go wrong, you'd have better luck dealing solely with the dealer. Hopefully they'll take care of such a good customer. It does happen, I know. My wifes 04 Quest was replaced after about 6 months with another 04. About 7 months later, that vehicle was also replaced...this time with an 05. All done by the dealer without having to go the lemon law route.

[mentalVdub]

Originally Posted by d_merry

...But I'm paying a LOT of money for a car that doesn't work a LOT of the time...any advice, info, or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated!

buy a Honda

[bugsy98nb]

Originally Posted by mentalVdub

buy a Honda

hes better with the Vw

[The Cheat]

well, as a vw tech, i can say that there are good apples and bad apples when it comes to vw. the only way to really pick a vw out is to go with the vibes. if you don't get good vibes, run! these cars give off energy i'm convinced. i've been lucky thus far and not had to deal with a potential lemon situation...i don't know if i'd be as nice as you've been with it.

if you want a car that's dead-nuts reliable 99.9% of the time under any circumstance, will never leave you stranded, and does everything quite acceptably, then hell yeah, buy a honda. i've got a 1994 acura integra with almost 300k on it, and it runs as good as new. i don't foresee it breaking down anytime soon...not before 400k anyways.

for some of us though, there is no substitute for german engineering. we can live with the quirks (though when your car spends more time in the dealer's garage then yours, it's time to run for the hills). we can deal with the small idiosyncracies that make up vw as a company. we don't mind a recall here and there...means vw is improving the products.

however, you have people like me who love both sides (and yes, you can love both sides...it's called being open). i LOVE the way my integra handles and feels. to me, it feels (and handles) like a go-kart, it gets great mileage, has plenty of power, and has never let any of its 3 owners down. i do LOVE my jetta as well. it's got gobs of torque, it eats asphalt like whitney houston eats crack rocks on a binge, the exhaust note is enough to make my jeans get tight when i stomp on it, and the mk3 bodystyle is timeless. each car does something extremely well, and much better than the other car. for me, nothing beats double wishbone rear suspension, which is something honda has perfected over the years...this is why the integra will eat alive the mk3 down the backroads. however, once you get the car straightened out...vr power baby! vw's are known for high-torque motors, even in the 4-cylinders, and the vr6 is NO exception to that. it's a double-edged sword, and i could go on about things that EACH company does better than the other, but that is a different thread entirely.

no matter which way you go, your car isn't going to be perfect. no car is. if there were perfect cars, i'd be out of a job (and that would suck ). the trick is to find a car that does what YOU need it to do, and make sure it does it reliably, regardless of make or model.

i wish you the best of luck david, if there is anything i can do as a vw tech, please let me know...whether it be an explanation of any work being done, or just a friendly face.