Hard Start / No Start - Is your intercooler frozen? Check Here!

[Dpthomas]

What a ridiculous proposal, for someone who paid $25k for a car that's less than a year old, and that got an above-average reliability score in Consumer Reports.

I've had four GM vehicles since 1999 with not a single breakdown or stranding event. A couple of hundred thousand miles between the vehicles. Oil and filter changes, tire rotations and routine wear items like brakes and wipers have been the only maintenance items. With today's technology, there's no excuse for a new car to not be 100% reliable.

 

[740GLE]

so you've bought a VW why?

 

[El Dobro]

Temporary insanity.

 

[TDI Koche]

FYI, VW is putting a new engine in mine. It's been determined that the ingestion of water into the cylinder caused the breakage of the glow plug that then caused the damage to the piston, cylinder wall, head and so on. I will have have to pay tax and a customer participation fee of $100. Overall this will cost me about $540. I'm ok with that considering the alternative.

I haven't seen my car since January 12th(I think), and I'm currently on my third loner. 16,349 Miles total.

 

[740GLE]

what's the cost of $540 for? tow? sounds like you shouldn't have to pay one cent for this.

 

[VeeDubTDI]

Wow. All things considered I guess $540 isn't too bad.

 

[MonsterTDI09]

Good for you.I guess there was no rush on there part.Now you have wait another month to get your back.

 

[MayorDJQ]

FYI, VW is putting a new engine in mine. It's been determined that the ingestion of water into the cylinder caused the breakage of the glow plug that then caused the damage to the piston, cylinder wall, head and so on. I will have have to pay tax and a customer participation fee of $100. Overall this will cost me about $540. I'm ok with that considering the alternative.

I haven't seen my car since January 12th(I think), and I'm currently on my third loner. 16,349 Miles total.

What the hell is the "customer participation fee"? Did you go to mediation?

Also, what are they making you pay sales tax for? You're not buying anything: VW and/or the dealer should be paying any tax involved with tue diagnosis and repairs. Are these charges coming from VW Corporate or the dealer? You may want to make a call to VWoA.

FWIW, when I needed a new ECU in my '09, I didn't pay a dime to the dealer.

 

[dweisel]

What the hell is the "customer participation fee"?

Customer participation is like when VW told me they would pay $4,000 toward fixing the $8,000 hpfp failure damage. Customer paticipation deals are never good for the customer.

dweisel

 

[MonsterTDI09]

Customer participation Is this some program were they give you parts and work on your own car

 

[740GLE]

I think the customer participation was covered when I signed over 25K!

 

[TDI Koche]

Wow. All things considered I guess $540 isn't too bad.

My thoughts exactly. I'm out of warranty and it would cost me more than that just to retain an attorney.

Good for you.I guess there was no rush on there part.Now you have wait another month to get your back.

Tell me about it. VWoA sure can drag their feet.

What the hell is the "customer participation fee"? Did you go to mediation?

Also, what are they making you pay sales tax for? You're not buying anything: VW and/or the dealer should be paying any tax involved with tue diagnosis and repairs. Are these charges coming from VW Corporate or the dealer? You may want to make a call to VWoA.

I did and this came from them. I got a call from VWoA before the dealer called to let me know what VWoA decided.

Customer participation is like when VW told me they would pay $4,000 toward fixing the $8,000 hpfp failure damage. Customer paticipation deals are never good for the customer.

I really didn't think $500 for a $8000+ jobs was a bad deal.

Customer participation Is this some program were they give you parts and work on your own car

I'm glad it didn't shake out that way.

 

[bhutchins]

I filed a claim with Better Business Bureau (BBB.org) regarding piston slap on my 2001 silverado. through BBB's non-binding arbitration, GM ended up puting in a new engine at no cost to me, and providing a rental car. BBB is US and Canada

 

[eRock]

so any fix on icing up yet or we will see next winter?

 

[UberVW_TDI]

I plan on calling VWoA soon. They were supposed to call me in March to give me an update on this issue. I'll post any news.

 

[jchall]

so any fix on icing up yet or we will see next winter?

I was wondering the same thing. The fix was supposedly coming out in March of this year. Maybe VW's fix is called "Sping" and warmer temperatures.

Maybe I'll ask the service manager at the stealership about this when I go in for my upcoming 10k mile service. I don't really expect a difinitive or honest answer from him since when I was getting my 6k/3mo courtesy check he asked me if my car was leased or purchased, when I told him purchased he said with purchased vehicles he reccomended oil changes at 5k miles instead of 10k. I questioned this on a follow up email regarding the satisfaction of my service appointment. My feeling is that so they can extract more $$$ from the customer, their response follows.

"Thank you for filling out our satisfaction survey. As I am sure that you are already aware you can service your car however often you like as long as you stay within the VW maintenance guidelines. We recommend to change your oil every 5k as there is more to a oil change than just changing the oil and filter. I have reviewed your last repair order and your comments on this survey and can only tell you that yes we are aware of the 2 concerns that you spoke of and VW is working on a fix. With the mileage so low on your car I am certain that there is no water in your inter cooler. If at any point there is a service action or recall and your car is within the vin range VW will contact you so we can correct the concern. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me directly.
J** S****"

I know this is a little off topic and I apologize in advance, but does anyone know what "more" is included in an oil chnge other than the filter and oil, besides the sealing washer that should be changed if they drain the oil from the pan rather than an extractor?

Again, I apolgize for this being off topic, but their oil change reccomendation has really gotten my radar up. They did however address that there is a IC icinng problem and VW is working on a fix.

 

[quietpeen]

The dealer recommends changing oil at every 5k for the purpose of making money.

 

[MonsterTDI09]

What does mileage have to do with water in the I/C They so full of it.They like to play word games, in the manual it doesn't say you can't change your oil early but it does say not past 10k.

 

[busdrvr]

Found out that the 09 JSW I purchased from a GM dealer in NW WI had MOH in August 10. Found was a bent Con rod in #3. Mileage was ~23K. All four con rods replaced.

Original owner brought in with check engine light and rough idle.

Talked to the shop manager at the VW dealer who did the work and he suspects hydro-lock from condensate or possibly bad injector. He said they removed an air line that brings cool air from the front of the compartment to try and lessen the condensation problem and that he expects VW to come out with some kit to alleviate.

I don't know what is more shocking, that this nice newer vehicle has had major engine repairs or that I found this thread and now see that many TDI owners are having the same serious issues. Add this VIN to the list I guess.

 

[740GLE]

I can smell the rising resale value of these cars!!!!

 

[MayorDJQ]

I can smell the rising resale value of these cars!!!!

Precisely.

I was wondering the same thing. The fix was supposedly coming out in March of this year. Maybe VW's fix is called "Sping" and warmer temperatures.

Maybe I'll ask the service manager at the stealership about this when I go in for my upcoming 10k mile service. I don't really expect a difinitive or honest answer from him since when I was getting my 6k/3mo courtesy check he asked me if my car was leased or purchased, when I told him purchased he said with purchased vehicles he reccomended oil changes at 5k miles instead of 10k. I questioned this on a follow up email regarding the satisfaction of my service appointment. My feeling is that so they can extract more $$$ from the customer, their response follows.

"Thank you for filling out our satisfaction survey. As I am sure that you are already aware you can service your car however often you like as long as you stay within the VW maintenance guidelines. We recommend to change your oil every 5k as there is more to a oil change than just changing the oil and filter. I have reviewed your last repair order and your comments on this survey and can only tell you that yes we are aware of the 2 concerns that you spoke of and VW is working on a fix. With the mileage so low on your car I am certain that there is no water in your inter cooler. If at any point there is a service action or recall and your car is within the vin range VW will contact you so we can correct the concern. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me directly.
J** S****"

I know this is a little off topic and I apologize in advance, but does anyone know what "more" is included in an oil chnge other than the filter and oil, besides the sealing washer that should be changed if they drain the oil from the pan rather than an extractor?

Again, I apolgize for this being off topic, but their oil change reccomendation has really gotten my radar up. They did however address that there is a IC icinng problem and VW is working on a fix.

You dealer is trying to scam you. Why would it matter if the car was leased or purchased? They know that most people who lease a car are going to do the bare minimum of service to it. Also, most people only keep a leased car for a year or two, which means that the dealer won't make much profit on it.

But for those of us who purchase a car, the dealers know that historically TDI owners keep their cars much longer. If they can get you in every 5k, then in the first 30k they can overcharge you for something at 5, 15, and 25K miles and make more money.

 

[GraniteRooster]

What temp & humidity did this happen at? What were the conditions like before you parked it?

I keep thinking there's something else going on that's not right in your car and the few others who have had problems. Maybe due to stuck open or leaking EGR valve(s) causing the LP-EGR to be active all the time? This is what prompted my earlier post above.

Interesting suggestion - I missed your post earlier. Perhaps it could be sticky valves, or maybe it really is highly variable with individual driving pattern and microclimate. In my case, I start my drive in the Upper Valley @ 5am or so - temps were below freezing that day on the drive in (mid twenties?) and humidity was high but not precipitating. I don't recall the exact humidity, but it did not rain that day. At lunchtime when stumbled was near 50F on the blacktop of the parking lot.

 

[TDI Koche]

For me it was like clockwork, always right before a snow fall while driving. Then the car would sit for a bit and it would always begin to precipitate(always snow) before we would try to start the car and have the no start/very hard start problem. Every time it happened like that. Temps were always below freezing, anywhere between 15F and 30F.

My new engine is in and done, the dealer is going to put some miles on it today to make sure everything is ok. I talked to the tech on the phone just a bit ago and he said VWoA had him leave the air box hose off for now until the "fix" is ready. Hopefully soon.

 

[sgoldste01]

...I talked to the tech on the phone just a bit ago and he said VWoA had him leave the air box hose off for now until the "fix" is ready. Hopefully soon.

Really?! Should we all disconnect our air box hoses?

 

[GraniteRooster]

Really?! Should we all disconnect our air box hoses?

Mod is worthless, as tested by ItchyTweed earlier in this thread. At best a move to distract/placate owners until a fix that actually does something comes out. They did it to my car too.

 

[MayorDJQ]

Really?! Should we all disconnect our air box hoses?

The pre-filterbox elbow. This idea popped up months ago, but it did nothing to mitigate the problem.

 

[busdrvr]

For me it was like clockwork, always right before a snow fall while driving. Then the car would sit for a bit and it would always begin to precipitate(always snow) before we would try to start the car and have the no start/very hard start problem. Every time it happened like that. Temps were always below freezing, anywhere between 15F and 30F.
My new engine is in and done, the dealer is going to put some miles on it today to make sure everything is ok. I talked to the tech on the phone just a bit ago and he said VWoA had him leave the air box hose off for now until the "fix" is ready. Hopefully soon.

Wow, I've been keeping track of your situation and I'm glad you are close to resolution.
My recently purchased 09 jsw tdi also had major damage in August (bent con rod, all4 R&R)@23K and as a new owner I was shocked to find out the cars history. Too late I might add
During my inquiries into the exact nature of the problems and work done on my car I was told by the shop floor mgr in Chippewa Falls WI where the lions share of the warranty work was done that they also disconnected the cold air intake elbow to possibly prevent condensate formation, This was done in consult. with the VW field rep., I think?
Since I purchased the vehicle from a GM dealer I suspect that they replaced the elbow when it was traded in and it is now installed in place.
I spoke with two separate local service mgrs yesterday plus VW cust. care and asked about the removal and operation of the vehicle and none of the 3 thought that it should remain off(removed). I am also concerned about the warranty if something should happen again and its determined that the elbow was not in its proper place. Currently at 35K today.
BTW all 3 partys claimed no real experience with this type of problem or acknowledged that VW is working on it, which contradicts the C.F.WI floor mgrs story.
So your dealers recommendation has really made me think about what is best going forward. As I look out my window today in SE Wisconsin we have 33 degrees with moderate rain /sleet/snow.
I may even call your dealer to get some more info. So.... thanks!

 

[MayorDJQ]

The "Elbow" is pre-filter, so if it's removed, air will still pass through the air filter. It should have absolutely no affect on future warranty issues whether the elbow was in place or removed.

 

[busdrvr]

Mod is worthless, as tested by ItchyTweed earlier in this thread. At best a move to distract/placate owners until a fix that actually does something comes out. They did it to my car too.

So you operate with it off? Are you in/out of 36k/60k warranty?

I understand it is a red herring most likely

 

[busdrvr]

The "Elbow" is pre-filter, so if it's removed, air will still pass through the air filter. It should have absolutely no affect on future warranty issues whether the elbow was in place or removed.

Understand, thanks......

good to see that vw seems to be taking care of tdikoche even though he's beyond 60K