What Problems Are You Having with Your Buyback Cars?

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
The left the hoods up in some locations (like Texas) to try and keep rodents out, I was told. Don't know about the open doors, haven't seen that. One of the lots was near my work and I went past it a number of times when it was full. Never saw any activity at the cars, just a guard sitting near the entrance to the lot.
 

mydecember1985

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Location
Florida
TDI
2013 JSW 6MT ;2011 JSW (buy-back May 2017)
My DPF died on me. It was so young.... so innocent

2013 JSW
6SPD MT
38,300 miles on car
9,800 miles post-fix

Within a few weeks of buying the car in October, I noticed regens were happening about every 210-240 miles. Almost twice the frequency of our '11 that we turned in during buyback. Just assumed it was part of the software patch. I am religious about letting them complete. Maybe 1 in 10 I cut off after only a few minutes of cycling. Other times, I just pass by the house and drive an extra 15 miles til I hear the fans quiet down. Service rep says so many people have no idea what a regen is and even less know not to interrupt them so it's odd that mine failed.

Light came on 2 weeks ago. Made appointment. Dealer did a forced regen. Reset light. Drive home. comes back on next day. appointment to ditch it overnight 2 days later. Got news yesterday that they found excess soot in the DPF. No cracks. Deemed it needed to be replaced. I asked if technician pressure tested the charge side. Said no but might try it next time it's in.

Backorder for DPFs is currently 4-6 weeks. I will park it as much as possible but drive it ~2 days a week when the wife needs her car.

Technician didn't put it back together very well. I can easily hear the turbo dumping pressure out of the exhaust/DPF. Video here
https://youtu.be/W2IQ7kFHsKY

awaiting response if dealer wants to investigate leak

NOTES:
I do use 2oz OptiLube XL fuel additive (did not tell dealer) each fill up
Oil is VW 507.00 spec Motul Xclean 8100 5W-30. Changed at 6,000 miles since purchase. Now just over 3,500 miles on that oil.


First time that light comes on out of warranty, that DPF's gonna disappear.
 

JesseTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2018
Location
Missouri
TDI
2012 Golf TDI, Premium package
I'm about 4 months away from my CPO Warranty expiring and the only things I have needed done are a new blower motor (the old one started to squeak when it got really cold out) and a underhood Fuze block (exterior light Fuze melted and damaged the block). I still have 32k left on the Dieselgate warranty, Im going to see how long my DPF lasts since it was replaced just before I bought it and I had it tuned about 20k miles later. We will see.
 

GoThingNC

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Location
Raleigh NC
TDI
2011 JSW-Toffee Brown
Headliner is falling down.
Luckily the fix is being covered by the CPO warranty.

Had it for a year now, and put 11,000 miles on the Golf and that is the only problem I had.

Not like my old Mini Cooper, was lucky to go 2 months without a mechanical issue.
 

nicklockard

Torque Dorque
Joined
Aug 15, 2004
Location
Arizona
TDI
SOLD 2010 Touareg Tdi w/factory Tow PCKG
2010 V6 3.0 Tdi Touareg-Dieselgate buyback

I bought a 2010 Dieselgate buyback car--2010 3.0 v6 tdi Touareg. So far, it's had 3 visits to the dealer for persistent EGR cooler issues. They've replaced it twice.

I'm hoping to get the DPF and all emissions equipment replaced on warranty. Otherwise, car runs great. A check-engine-light on the dash means it's a Volkswagen. How else would you know if it's a genuine VW product?
 

JesseTDI

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 23, 2018
Location
Missouri
TDI
2012 Golf TDI, Premium package
Add a frozen rear brake caliper on mine, just had it fixed yesterday. Only cost me $50 for the deductible.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
We've heard a lot of reports of '12-'14 Passats boiling coolant post-fix because of the tune, clogging heater cores. This was already a weak link in those cars. A tune fixes it, but a lot of people don't want to jeopardize the warranty.
 

Matt927

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Location
Northeast
TDI
several
2013 Golf TDI.

Just threw another P2002 code yesterday. Going to sit at the dealer for 30 days until they get a DPF in stock.

This is the second DPF replaced under the emissions warranty, fix was done at approximately 44k and the original DPF lasted to 60k. Now with 40k on the replacement DPF, it too has failed. At this point, I will not be keeping the vehicle past the expiration of the extended emissions warranty with DPFs needing replacement every 40k.
 

flargabarg

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2005
TDI
2011 Touareg Lux TDI
Multiple DPFs make it seem as if there is an underlying problem that is contaminating them such as excess fuel or oil leakage.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Or a faulty turbo that's pushing unburned fuel into the DPF. Unfortunately it may be difficult to get the dealer to accurately diagnose. Mostly because they're not interested.
 

Matt927

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Location
Northeast
TDI
several
My dealer is actually fantastic, with the same tech working on my TDIs for nearly a decade. I will certainly mention the suggestion above though.

I use zero oil between changes, car gets great mileage and runs well.
 

Matt927

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2013
Location
Northeast
TDI
several
Quick update.

Picked up vehicle today, in total only 1 week down. They had originally thought 30-60 days to receive the DPF in stock. DPF came in this morning.

DPF contamination/damage was caused by leaking EGR connecting pipe. So not an outright internal DPF failure as I thought.
 

tom Wielert

New member
Joined
Sep 4, 2020
Location
Klamath Falls. Or
TDI
2015 Passat
Anyone know what is not covered under emissions extension warranty. Air conditioner, water pump, power steering system, transmission, brakes system, exhaust system, rear axle, wiper motor, electric door and window system. Am I missing anything. I have a 2015 Passat with 46,000 miles. Love the car but might not be able to afford to keep it on the road. Since replacing the air conditioner and water pump, which cost $2400, I do have a 3 year 50,000 mile warranty for the ac and water pump. I do not like any of the new vw cars. You would think after 5 years of discontinuing the tdi, Volkswagen should have an engine close to the performance of the tdi. 20 miles less per gallon and no power on the new 2.0 is unacceptable. I would trade mine in today if the 2.0 tdi was available. I will take my car to a local mechanic and have him perform non warranty work. Midas will handle brakes and exhaust. I rather replace all of the above parts before I buy a new vw. Over the past year I have been to the dealership 7 times for repairs, which is 75 miles away. I have driven all the new cars and am not impressed.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
Other than the exhaust (at least the DPF and CAT parts) which are covered, nothing else you mention is covered as part of the emissions warranty.
 

Lightflyer1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 13, 2005
Location
Round Rock, Texas
TDI
2015 Beetle tdi dsg
There are a lot of people who can't afford to pay for repairs themselves on almost any new car for things like this. I have noticed this with BMW's too. Lots sell right after the warranty runs out when the cost of services is sky high. They usually just trade them in for a new one under warranty. In order to own any car not covered by warranty you need to be able to do at least some of the work yourself, or suffer to pay others to do it.

When you had the water pump repaired did they also do a full timing belt kit? I would have sprung for the kit to ensure it was all done new. They had to do all the labor anyway.
 

mydecember1985

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Location
Florida
TDI
2013 JSW 6MT ;2011 JSW (buy-back May 2017)
Update on mine: DPF came in after about 6-1/2 weeks. Dropped it off in the late afternoon and had it back by the next morning.
 

shoestring

Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2020
Location
Georgetown, TX
TDI
2014 Jetta
Headliner is falling down.
Luckily the fix is being covered by the CPO warranty.

Had it for a year now, and put 11,000 miles on the Golf and that is the only problem I had.

Not like my old Mini Cooper, was lucky to go 2 months without a mechanical issue.
Did the dealership give you any trouble over the headliner? Are the headliners fixed or replaced?
 

GoThingNC

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 28, 2010
Location
Raleigh NC
TDI
2011 JSW-Toffee Brown
Did the dealership give you any trouble over the headliner? Are the headliners fixed or replaced?
Dealership replaced the headliner, took about a week to get the parts and a day for the replacement. No problems at all, just had to pay the $50 deductible.
 

shoestring

Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2020
Location
Georgetown, TX
TDI
2014 Jetta
Dealership replaced the headliner, took about a week to get the parts and a day for the replacement. No problems at all, just had to pay the $50 deductible.
I was just following up on this post. I also had a headliner replaced with no issues from the dealership. 50$ and a full day and the job was done. I am still having slight issues with the backup camera/radio head unit not always wanting to go to backup camera when backing or coming out of backup camera when going forward. I'm not sure if this is a camera issue or a radio head issue. The camera is not very good quality compared to what is out now. I am wondering if it is worth it to have the dealership go through the radio issues again or replace them with a newer version or aftermarket version.

Have you guys replaced your radio head unit with something aftermarket?
 

shoestring

Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2020
Location
Georgetown, TX
TDI
2014 Jetta
My DPF died on me. It was so young.... so innocent

2013 JSW
6SPD MT
38,300 miles on car
9,800 miles post-fix

Within a few weeks of buying the car in October, I noticed regens were happening about every 210-240 miles. Almost twice the frequency of our '11 that we turned in during buyback.

How often should regens happen? I have been monitoring my new to me Jetta and since purchase, I don't think we make it past about 170 miles. I think our MPGS is around 35 to 40 depending on how much stop and go traffic we are driving in. MPGS seems low to me. The car had about 25000 miles on it when purchased and now is close to 30K so fluid changes are about to happen.

Shoestring
 

Lightflyer1

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 13, 2005
Location
Round Rock, Texas
TDI
2015 Beetle tdi dsg
Shoestring,

That sounds about right for city driving, it is somewhat longer on all highway trips. My 2015 Beetle is about the same. By the way I have VCDS if you ever need it! Round Rock isn't that far.
 

joeyvans

Member
Joined
Nov 17, 2020
Location
Fargo, ND
TDI
2012 VW JSW DSG TDI
Good thread here.... mainly just posting as a reminder to revisit, but do have a question as well.

I bought a '12 JSW TDI with the dreaded panoramic sunroof about a month ago. I am the first owner since the emissions update was performed in January 2020. Was not purchased from a VW dealer, so not a CPO. There was obvious evidence of the sunroof leaking while sitting, but the interior has been cleaned up very nice since. Because of this, I was able to get a better price on the car. They did do me a favor and run a heavy stream of water over it for about 10 minutes, which showed no evidence of leaking. I'm wondering if somewhere along the line, the drains were cleared and it is functioning as is should. I will check the drains this winter in the comfort of my heated garage.

Anyways.... I have done an oil/filter change, fuel filter change, and cabin filter change. Air filter looked new, so I didn't change that. My concern is with the DSG. I confirmed that the DSG had its 40,000 miles service at 39,067 miles, but that was back in January 2016. There is only 47,000 miles on the clock now. Judging by the carfax, the car sat in Michigan for nearly 2 1/2 years. Yikes, I know! I probably should have walked away because of this. So... my question is... DSG is recommended every 40,000 miles. It has only been 8,000 miles... but can condensation or other contaminants be introduced to a sealed transmission if sitting for an extended amount of time like this? Will DSG fluid deteriorate after a long layover and lose its effectiveness?

Thanks in advance!
 
Last edited:

mydecember1985

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Location
Florida
TDI
2013 JSW 6MT ;2011 JSW (buy-back May 2017)
My concern is with the DSG. I confirmed that the DSG had its 40,000 miles service at 39,067 miles, but that was back in January 2016. There is only 47,000 miles on the clock now. Judging by the carfax, the car sat in Michigan for nearly 2 1/2 years. Yikes, I know! I probably should have walked away because of this.
These cars didn't sit in Michigan for 2 years unless you live in that area. Check the carfax of pretty much any VW out there on autotrader and you'll see it was titled in Michigan during dieselgate. I think that's where VWoA headquarters are, so it was just titled as being there. Mine came from a storage lot north of LA. Car was originally from Pleasanton area. Dealer purchased it from VW to refurbish and sell off their lot. I deposited on it before it hit the lot.
Look at where the original owner was and it's likely within 500 miles of the last known location. Truck driver I know here in FL was hauling them north to southern GA. Many went to the crusher, but he saw them stashing a decent percentage.
 

mydecember1985

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2015
Location
Florida
TDI
2013 JSW 6MT ;2011 JSW (buy-back May 2017)
How often should regens happen? I have been monitoring my new to me Jetta and since purchase, I don't think we make it past about 170 miles.
Pre-fix on my '11, they were happening once, sometimes twice a tank. About 400-500 miles. Post-fix with this '13, they're averaging 190-260 since I got the new DPF. I think mine might've been doomed by the original owner. 4 years and 25,000 miles. Just wasn't driven enough to burn it out and all the regens were probably cut short.

Your mileage is about right to fairly good if you have a DSG and driving city-ish. My worst tank was 39.5ish and best around 44. That's 70% rural roads, cautious driving, and a lot of coasting in neutral. I could easily see hitting mid-30s in a small city.

Cold weather will affect MPG, too. I see about a consistent 2-3MPG drop during these mid-30s cold spells here in FL.
 
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