On 12/28/2007 the oil cooler on my 2004 Passat failed and allowed large quantities of oil to leak into the coolant. The oil cooler repair was covered under VW's powertrain warranty. Per the Passat owner's manual and per verbal confirmation from Tony Scavarda of VW, when a part covered under warranty fails and causes damage to other parts, those other parts are covered under warranty as well.
In this case the dealer, Flow Volkswagen of Greensboro, NC, replaced not only the oil cooler but also the coolant reservoir, and flushed the cooling system 3 times. During the service they telephoned me at work and gave me a quote of nearly $300 to replace the thermostat because they felt it could have been damaged by the fouled coolant. At that time I was not aware that the thermostat was covered under warranty, nor did I know that the dealer already had the thermostat completely out of the vehicle. The dealer's service technician noted that the coolant was the consistency of mud.
The $300 quote that the Flow Volkswagen dealer gave me involved a double charge on the labor as well as violated VW's warranty policy that the thermostat should have been covered. The dealer was already going to charge VW for the removal of the thermostat and other cooling system components, yet they were calling to ask me to pay for the labor as well as for the warranty covered part itself (the thermostat) that was damaged by the oil cooler's leak. During the phone call when I was given the quote the Flow Volkswagen service personnel told me that the thermostat might be okay since they were cleaning it. Based on the high replacement cost and the other incorrect information I had been given, I opted not to pay to replace the thermostat.
In August of 2008, the Passat's check engine light came on. I reviewed the previous service records and decided it was time to discuss the thermostat issue with the service manager at Flow Volkswagen. As it turned out according to Flow Volkswagen this time, the thermostat was causing the check engine light to come on, and the total repair cost would be a whopping $478!!!!!
The service manager at Flow Volkswagen had no interest in assisting me in any way, and he conveniently could not find where they had quoted me nearly $300 to replace the thermostat even though it was already out of the vehicle as part of the warranty repair. On a related note, he was also completely unconcerned that his service technician had also overfilled my oil by a full quart.
I've called Volkswagen 4 times now to get assistance, and their final answer is that they can't help because the dealer says the thermostat should not be covered under warranty. The coolant was the consistency of mud, the coolant reservoir had to be replaced because its drain hole was clogged with the mud like coolant, but the thermostat that was operating in the mud like coolant caused by the faulty oil cooler was not covered??!!
In spite of the fact their policy is clear in the owner's manual, and in spite of the fact Tony Scavarda of Volkswagen confirmed that a warranty covered part which breaks and damages other parts results in the other parts being covered as well, VW says they can't help.
I will be pursuing the matter further with VW and with th BBB and perhaps state agencies as well, but as of now I have to warn everyone who may read this to steer clear of Volkswagen. I have had other issues with Flow VW dealers in this area, and the response from VW itself appears that they must kow tow to the dealers as opposed to setting the policy for the dealers.
This is completely unacceptable, so I strongly advise anyone to avoid buying a Volkswagen.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
On 12/28/2007 the oil cooler on my 2004 Passat failed and allowed large quantities of oil to leak into the coolant. The oil cooler repair was covered under VW's powertrain warranty. Per the Passat owner's manual and per verbal confirmation from Tony Scavarda of VW, when a part covered under warranty fails and causes damage to other parts, those other parts are covered under warranty as well.
In this case the dealer, Flow Volkswagen of Greensboro, NC, replaced not only the oil cooler but also the coolant reservoir, and flushed the cooling system 3 times. During the service they telephoned me at work and gave me a quote of nearly $300 to replace the thermostat because they felt it could have been damaged by the fouled coolant. At that time I was not aware that the thermostat was covered under warranty, nor did I know that the dealer already had the thermostat completely out of the vehicle. The dealer's service technician noted that the coolant was the consistency of mud.
The $300 quote that the Flow Volkswagen dealer gave me involved a double charge on the labor as well as violated VW's warranty policy that the thermostat should have been covered. The dealer was already going to charge VW for the removal of the thermostat and other cooling system components, yet they were calling to ask me to pay for the labor as well as for the warranty covered part itself (the thermostat) that was damaged by the oil cooler's leak. During the phone call when I was given the quote the Flow Volkswagen service personnel told me that the thermostat might be okay since they were cleaning it. Based on the high replacement cost and the other incorrect information I had been given, I opted not to pay to replace the thermostat.
In August of 2008, the Passat's check engine light came on. I reviewed the previous service records and decided it was time to discuss the thermostat issue with the service manager at Flow Volkswagen. As it turned out according to Flow Volkswagen this time, the thermostat was causing the check engine light to come on, and the total repair cost would be a whopping $478!!!!!
The service manager at Flow Volkswagen had no interest in assisting me in any way, and he conveniently could not find where they had quoted me nearly $300 to replace the thermostat even though it was already out of the vehicle as part of the warranty repair. On a related note, he was also completely unconcerned that his service technician had also overfilled my oil by a full quart.
I've called Volkswagen 4 times now to get assistance, and their final answer is that they can't help because the dealer says the thermostat should not be covered under warranty. The coolant was the consistency of mud, the coolant reservoir had to be replaced because its drain hole was clogged with the mud like coolant, but the thermostat that was operating in the mud like coolant caused by the faulty oil cooler was not covered??!!
In spite of the fact their policy is clear in the owner's manual, and in spite of the fact Tony Scavarda of Volkswagen confirmed that a warranty covered part which breaks and damages other parts results in the other parts being covered as well, VW says they can't help.
I will be pursuing the matter further with VW and with th BBB and perhaps state agencies as well, but as of now I have to warn everyone who may read this to steer clear of Volkswagen. I have had other issues with Flow VW dealers in this area, and the response from VW itself appears that they must kow tow to the dealers as opposed to setting the policy for the dealers.
This is completely unacceptable, so I strongly advise anyone to avoid buying a Volkswagen.
- Chris C., Jamestown, NC, US