ok so i heard back from the regional manager after i presented my case that i tried to have my headliner repaired at 59k miles and was told by Don Hewwit ( yes i'm name dropping now because they have lied to me repeatedly, avoid at all costs! I'll provide a full list of dealers i've used in texas to avoid at all cost later) that it would be 1,500 completely leaving out that i could call vw. the bs answer i received from the regional rep was hilarious. i'll try my best to get it summarized here in it's entirety.
regional rep: Sir we can't do anything for your car because you are at 106k miles at the time of request so i'm denying your claim.
me: well great because i took it in at 59k miles so lets get it fixed!
regional rep: sir i can't you were outside of the new car warranty of 50k miles.
me: so all the 50 plus guys on the tdi forums are all liars is what you're telling me? none of them had their headliner's replaced outside of the factory warranty?
regional rep: no sir that's not what i'm saying. i'm sure they did have theirs replaced but this is a case by case process.
me: ok so let's take this case by case then and get mine fixed. i brought it in at 59k miles and was lied to by the dealer. now i know it could have been assisted in the repair let's get this done.
regional rep: sir i can't because you were over the new car warranty.
me: but you just said it was a case by case basis.
regional rep: i know i did but you were outside of the warranty and you declined the repair.
me: you bet i declined it, it was $1,500 for a item you and they KNEW was defective and they lied to me telling me the only options i had was to pay for it or leave it, even though i was well within my certified preowned warranty.
regional rep: sir the certified preowned warranty does not cover the headliner.
me: nice of you to mention that because i emailed you and asked you twice to show me where it says that. i even sent you a copy of my certified prowned book and informed you i've read it three times. it never mentions the headliner.
regional rep: sir if you had a problem with the dealer you should have called the number in the back of your owner's manual like we showed you when you bought the car.
me: so all dealers are liars?
regional rep: no i'm not saying that i
me: yes you are. if you look at the documentation i sent it took me anywhere from 10-30k miles and taking the car back to the same lying dealer 3-5 times to realize they had NO clue as to how to fix the airbag. You're telling me i can't trust any repairs to my vehicles EVER!
regional rep: sir this is a case by case issue and i don't have an official diagnosis of your headliner at 59k miles.
me: so let me get this straight, Don Hewitt is a liar then who will rip me off at any cost?
regional rep: sir that's not what i'm saying i
me: yes it is. because the paper print out from Don Hewitt i sent you saying the headliner would cost 1,500 to repair, you're telling me doesn't validate it was broken. This implies that Don Hewitt will repair anything that doesn't need to be repaired if i'm dumb enough to pay them.
regional rep: sir that's not what i'm saying i
me: so then we can both agree it was probably broke if they were offering to repair it.
regional rep: Yes i'm sure it was broke but sir this is a case by case basis and you declined the repair. we take into account how my vw cars your family owns and how often you bring your car in to get things like your oil changed.
me: Of course i declined the repair! why would i pay for something YOU KNEW was defective, built defective and was being repaired all across the country? Don Hewitt lied to me as well when they told me the only options were to pay to have it repaired or leave it broke when they knew VW was fixing them around the country. Also you're telling me you're penalizing me because i do my own oil changes? does your stupid model take into account that your hourly rate for these guys in austin is $125 an hour? i'm not paying you guys that rate to do something i can do myself in 30 minutes.
regional rep: no sir it doesn't. i'm sorry you feel this way.
me: so this is worth the risk to you that i'll be telling EVERYONE i know to never buy a vw and that i will never be buying a vw again.
regional rep: if that's what you feel you have to do i
me: no i'm asking you right now, is it worth the risk? in case you haven't noticed you have 3.4% of the us market share and have had little to no growth for 30 years. is it worth the risk.
regional rep: i'm sorry you're not happy with our decisions but we have models in place to work these through.
me: just like your case by case but not in your case method. i'm fine with it, its your decision.
I will be following up with vw with the same synopsis but in more detail along with seeing who i report the following dealers to at the BBB and the local chamber of commerce-
Don Hewwit - georgetown
Sterling vw - abilene
Also sad for vw as my wife drives 27-30k miles per year for work and recreation. we were looking to rotate diesel jettas every 100-120k miles depending on the individual car and have the $ to buy new each time. I've estimated, without inflation which i will be adding soon, at 26k a car they just lost approximately $350k worth of business. This does not include my parents or sister who will never buy a VW (they've already owned 2) and any one else who listens to my story on social media.
avoid as well
any dealer in austin - extremely high hourly rates. ex don hewwit is 125. mac haik ford next door is 75 or it was when i was having the items repaired on my f150 at the time of my jetta purchase in 10.
vw in north richland hills - repaired my sun roof only to have it not seal correctly the next day.
good dealers
autobahn fort worth
ok dealer - only taken this in to have the diagnostics run twice for VW cause they lost the first one and tried to blame the dealer for never calling them back.
garlyn shelton temple.
I would HIGHLY advise all of you to avoid the dealer like the plague especially in Texas. I've grown up always being critical of the dealers and auto company but i never expected to be treated this way. Document everything although in my case, it doesn't look like it will get you anywhere. they just ignore it.