Buyback day is Tuesday - 12 in. of snow forecast - What to do?

Kylerk

Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2012
Location
Northern NJ
TDI
2013 Passat SE w/SR & Nav.
Well, I have been waiting for Tuesday (3/14/17) for 7+ long months and there is a nor'easter forecast that's supposed to dump 12+ inches of snow here in northern NJ that day. What should I do? Re-schedule on the web site tomorrow (Monday) on my own? Which the web site warns will push me back at least another 2 weeks. Or, should I wait and see if they cancel and hope that they can re-schedule something better? I set the 3/14 appointment way back on 2/3/17 and it was the best I could get, and I don't want to have to wait another 5+ weeks. Anyone else experience something like this for their Buyback day? Thanks.
 

Mark_J

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 17, 2003
Location
Deer Park, Washington
TDI
2015 TDI Passat SEL Premium, 2017 Fiat Spider, 2017 Ford F350 6.7 Diesel crew cab PU, 2016 Harley Trike, 2016 Tesla Model X P90D (I know went to the dark side)
I live in snow country and turned mine in while snowing heavily, windy, and cold and got 15" that day. Looks like you must live in snow country too so as long as the roads are plowed, which they are very good at here, I would keep the appointment. But if you can, call or stop by the VW dealer and talk to the emissions rep and see if they are planning on being there or not. If they are, then I would go. Also see if they are willing to give you their cell, and if so, call them that morning if it looks dicey. Here is the forecast for you "The Weather Channel currently says as many as eight to 12 inches could fall in the region but the National Weather Service has less severe predictions". But as we all know they can be way off. We had a predications for 6" one night and I got a foot of snow. So it's a roll of the dice. Good luck.
 

Yukon4Runner

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2016
Location
Connecticut
TDI
2010 Golf (buyback) 2015 Golf Sportwagen (buyback buy)
What benefit is there to reschedule before the storm vs after the storm? No need to light your hair on fire...show up for appointment as scheduled. If the buyback specialist is not there due to weather, then reschedule.
 

phrinda

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2011
Location
Connecticut
TDI
2011 Golf TDI- bought back
I had the same issue when I turned in my golf. I called the dealership I think two days before my turn-in to question about snow contingencies. They assured me that they would be open that the ambassador would be present. Then I just asked them if I could drop off my golf (had really old tires) the night prior to the storm/appt. I dropped it off the night prior and then drove to the appointment in my Alltrack (which was a lot of fun as the roads were completely unplowed). When I got to the appointment, since I dropped the car off the day before, the buyback guy had already done everything that he needed with the car and we were in and out in just a few minutes.
 

kr70

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 3, 2012
Location
huntingdon pa
TDI
2005 passat tdi, 2013 passat tdi SE
Me. If I had to I'd sleep in my car at the dealership instead of waiting another 5 weeks!
 

k1xv

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2009
Location
southern Vermont
TDI
09 TDI sedan, sold back 12/16. Present cars 2013 BMW X5 diesel, 2015 Corvette convertible
What time is your appointment? When is the snow supposed to start? How far of a drive is it from home to the dealer?
 

k1xv

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2009
Location
southern Vermont
TDI
09 TDI sedan, sold back 12/16. Present cars 2013 BMW X5 diesel, 2015 Corvette convertible
Given the storm predictions for northern NJ, it is likely all appointments will be postponed. I would not want to venture on the roads for unnecessary travel. I used to live in northern NJ, and a storm this size results in road closures.
 

sardo_67

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2010
Location
CT
TDI
2015 Golf SEL 6spd
I don't get what the issue is, drive it there, turn it in. simple.

if you're that worried drive it there a day early and leave it overnight.

mine is the 15th and I'm in CT which may be up to 12+.
 

Kylerk

Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2012
Location
Northern NJ
TDI
2013 Passat SE w/SR & Nav.
What time is your appointment? When is the snow supposed to start? How far of a drive is it from home to the dealer?
Appointment is for 1:30PM, and the dealership is only ~7 miles away. I live ~10 miles west of the Empire state building, not exactly snow country - it's a very congested area that's difficult to travel when conditions are bad. And since my car has been garaged for the past 4 months I left my winter tires off this year and gave them to a friend with a non-diesel Passat. According to the latest forecast we should get 18 inches and blizzard conditions tomorrow from 5AM to 1PM. Since we have had 5 days warning for this storm I'm sure everything will be closed.

One advantage of living in an area like this is there are 9 VW dealers in NJ within 25 miles of my house. When I scheduled I checked a couple of the others and they were doing buybacks on the same days as the one I chose - Tues. & Thurs. within a 3 week period starting tomorrow. I'm going to cancel and I think there's a good chance that when I re-schedule I can get a Tues. or Thurs. slot in the next 3 weeks.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply.
 

bennybmn

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2012
Location
Long Island, NY
TDI
(Formerly) '11 Jetta 6 speed, Alltrack 6MT
When you reschedule, is your appointment gone the moment you hit the pink "cancel and reschedule" button on the website? I'm considering the same thing. Mine is thursday and my new car isn't here yet. But I wish I could get an idea of when the next available appointment was before I commit to cancelling.

Any to everyone else, it's not "that simple." People in NY and NJ are idiots in the snow and clog things up. I don't want to literally get stuck overnight like some folks did in 2013... Plus they often issue states of emergency so you'd be on the roads illegally. Growing up in Vermont we used to go driving in the snow on purpose. Not down here...
 

yamaguy

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2011
Location
Chicagoland
TDI
2012 Passat SE 6man TDI, 2014 F-350 PSD, 2003 F-350 7.3 PSD, John Deere 2032R, Cub Cadet 882
I would do what a few others have said and call and see if You can bring it today. Then you just have to worry about getting yourself there tomorrow.
 

jekl843

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 12, 2014
Location
CT
TDI
2011 Golf TDI (sold), 2002 Jetta TDI 5spd, 2017 GTI SE 6spd
I live in southwestern CT and I was scheduled for a buyback appt @ Prestige VW in Stamford CT on Tues 3/14 at 1:30PM. I just got a call from VW Corp saying that the dealership informed them they were going to be closed on Tuesday and Wednesday due to the impending snow storm and asked me to reschedule. They could accommodate me as soon as this Thursday 3/16 but I decided to schedule for next Tuesday 3/21.

I have the ol' girl for one more week! :D
 

Trade Wind

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2016
Location
Minnesota
TDI
RIP 2012 Passat SE 6 spd MT
When you reschedule, is your appointment gone the moment you hit the pink "cancel and reschedule" button on the website? I'm considering the same thing. Mine is thursday and my new car isn't here yet. But I wish I could get an idea of when the next available appointment was before I commit to cancelling....
When you cancel, the appointment appears as available for anyone to take. It will be there as long as no one else takes it.

You are pretty safe canceling, looking over what appointments are available, and then if you don't like them, taking back your original time slot. As long as you do it quickly.
 

edge130

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2009
Location
northern NJ
TDI
Wife's 2009 Jetta TDI sedan (2009 - 2017)
Why not call them early when they open up, speak to the settlement specialist, see if they can move up your appointment. Hopefully the snowfall won't be so bad in the morning.
I was told by my settlement specialist they have leeway on the scheduled day and can jockey those appointments. I dont think they have power to do anything a few days before or after scheduled day. They are restricted by their system.
 

bennybmn

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2012
Location
Long Island, NY
TDI
(Formerly) '11 Jetta 6 speed, Alltrack 6MT
When you cancel, the appointment appears as available for anyone to take. It will be there as long as no one else takes it.
You are pretty safe canceling, looking over what appointments are available, and then if you don't like them, taking back your original time slot. As long as you do it quickly.
Thanks! It's good to hear from someone who's been to the other side ? It's scary thinking of hitting the button not knowing what will happen.
 

BPofMD

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 12, 2013
Location
Maryland
TDI
2012 Passat SE
Well, I have been waiting for Tuesday (3/14/17) for 7+ long months and there is a nor'easter forecast that's supposed to dump 12+ inches of snow here in northern NJ that day. What should I do? Re-schedule on the web site tomorrow (Monday) on my own? Which the web site warns will push me back at least another 2 weeks. Or, should I wait and see if they cancel and hope that they can re-schedule something better? I set the 3/14 appointment way back on 2/3/17 and it was the best I could get, and I don't want to have to wait another 5+ weeks. Anyone else experience something like this for their Buyback day? Thanks.
So - how much white crap did you get? Here just south of Baltimore we got only 1 1/2 " of slush!! Did you make your appt?
 

PacCoastFwy923

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2008
Location
Oakland
TDI
2015 Passat SE TDI 6-speed manual; 2006 mkV Jetta TDI / 5-speed / Pkg 2
"Don't drive if you don't have to..."

...to make way for the dozens of TDI owners who have to get to their buyback appointments with bald tires, inop window defrosters, and questionable brakes. :D
 

bennybmn

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2012
Location
Long Island, NY
TDI
(Formerly) '11 Jetta 6 speed, Alltrack 6MT
When you cancel, the appointment appears as available for anyone to take. It will be there as long as no one else takes it.
You are pretty safe canceling, looking over what appointments are available, and then if you don't like them, taking back your original time slot. As long as you do it quickly.
Thanks! It's good to hear from someone who's been to the other side �� It's scary thinking of hitting the button not knowing what will happen.
So I postponed to April 6... When I clicked cancel, an "are you sure?" warning came up saying the new appointment will be at least 2 weeks from today, so I don't think it's possible to select your old appointment time, maybe if you do it over the phone with the good folks at VW... But starting march 31 they had appointments available every Thursday thru April. So if you're OK with two week intervals, and you don't think your dealership will be crazy busy, I think you can rely on getting one soon.


We actually have less snow than before the storm. It shifted west just enough that we got mostly rain. Brooklyn got 18"!
 

psd1

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2011
Location
OR
TDI
2006 Jetta 2013 Passat SE 6Man
Well, I had my buyback scheduled last month and had to cancel because the interstate was closed. When I spoke to the claims person she said if I could get it in the next day they would take it...road still sucked. Next Monday it is!

P.S. Good that our weather forecasters are so good at their jobs...:rolleyes:
 

Trade Wind

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 16, 2016
Location
Minnesota
TDI
RIP 2012 Passat SE 6 spd MT
I was able to "take my old appointment." I swapped two cars because I got an extra $500 on one due to the mileage adjustment. I did it online, did not have to call. It worked for me, but obviously proceed at your own risk.
 
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Rather Be Biking

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2008
Location
Upstate, NY
TDI
09 JSW Manual
I drove mine to the dealer the night before a big snow storm on the almost bald tires and stashed it in the back of the dealer's lot. Then I just drive over in another car (with the snows from my TDI) during the storm, shoveled it the TDI and drove it 100 yards or so to the front door and turned it in. After conducting business, drove off into the snow on my merry way. ;)
 
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