New Gti on tow truck

My new GTI has broken down
started last night with intermitent cutting out. It would start again but would not maintain revs and kept stalling ..so Volkswagen assist has had it towed to liverpool Mcgraths Volkswagen
I have been told by the service manager that dirty fuel has caused a fuel pump malfunction and it has to be replaced along with a fuel filter and a tank clean ...


My current 2 air cooleds have never been on a towtruck and 32 years of aircooled rides only once have I needed a towie (for a thrust bearing)

Is this my welcome to the watercooled world??????? 😠

probably not. but dirty fuel is killing all sorts of stuff at the moment. (my mates 70 with kadrons died on the highway last week).

I think that is code for "not covered by warranty"

I would want some serious proof about that one

Ah, i just re-read the original post, then your post Biz.

Why should that be covered by warranty?? Bad fuel is not the manufactures problem... However the filter should do its job - yet you need to read the service centers policy about parts. You would probably have a hard time getting this under warranty, and it may be more of an insurance thing.

But definatly ask to see the pump and the filter etc. and ask to see the fuel... its probably been "tipped out" hahaha. (hopefully into oil drains if they are truthful, but more likely into a mechanics car...)

Just telling you what I have seen...

Hope your back on the road soon.

The olny cars i have heard that have troule with "dirty fuel" are 40year pld VWs that the ownders have run the tank dry on and the crud from the tank - not the actual fuel - has clagged it up.

This car would be lucky to have 1,500km's on it so it aint crud from the tank

Whatever - Silver will sort them out 😘

reading and ringing around I have discovered that there is an issue with the fuel pumps in mk5 gti's, so they have a history of failing!
and rather than a recall they have opted to replace when they malfunction. very Disappointed the fuel filter doesn't work
also as the dealer supplied me with a full tank when I took delivery there is reasonable doubt that this was not my fault
this better be warranty.
I have not thrown out the old carpet roll yet

there is some pretty shocking fuel out there, also im not sure how the pump is set up in a mk5 gti, but if its an intank like in a commodore, the filter is after the pump, all it has is a little piece of gauze at the pickup so it basically sucks up anything in there. i did my mates fuel pump in a VS commo and then 2 weeks later it failed again, it wasnt crud in the tank as we flushed it clean (also was only a new tank as he had a rear ender 6 months prior) but when we pulled the pump out, we cut it open and there was heaps of muck in it...... he used to fill up at all the little cheap servos.... doesnt anymore😂😂

I'd be demanding warranty. It's probably some BS with the computer or something and they don't wanna take responsibility.

Good luck with it all Silver. I would kick up a hell of a stink about the dealer putting a full tank of something in it also.
I always wanted the GTI but not so sure now, i guess i'll stick to my 68 Beetle.

mickmick wrote:I would kick up a hell of a stink about the dealer putting a full tank of something in it also.

Dealerships always put in a full tank on delivery. its usually part of the agreement, and just common courtesy.

should have bought an Mitsubishi EVO.................the only problem I have had with mine is keeping it under 150kph !😂

Craig Torrens wrote:should have bought an Mitsubishi EVO.................the only problem I have had with mine is keeping it under 150kph !😂

......R32 does that easy!😂

yeah when the fuel pump works ! 🥲

Silver,hope they fix it under warranty for you............................if not then take it else where as a dealer will charge a bomb in labour.

hey JVL what came 1st,2nd and 3rd at the Bathurst 12hr ? 😂

Craig Torrens wrote:yeah when the fuel pump works ! 🥲

Silver,hope they fix it under warranty for you............................if not then take it else where as a dealer will charge a bomb in labour.

hey JVL what came 1st,2nd and 3rd at the Bathurst 12hr ? 😂

cant argue that sir! but in 04 who won Production showroom and was added weight to hhmm?😂......also check the EVO on my105.com

Out of all the VAG watercoolers ive had over the years ive never had this problem. I have also heard the Mk5's do have this problem but im sure they will cover it under warranty. If not sue the petrol station you got the fuel from.

So my Beetle with no fuel filter fitted since 1970 has been pretty lucky then.

I have ony used tow truck two times for breakdown in 15 years of VW's. Once for flat tyre with no spare (RACV totalcare) and another time for crapped waterpump in Subaru engine. No digs at me for water cool issues I see them coming already.

helbus wrote:So my Beetle with no fuel filter fitted since 1970 has been pretty lucky then.

I have ony used tow truck two times for breakdown in 15 years of VW's. Once for flat tyre with no spare (RACV totalcare) and another time for crapped waterpump in Subaru engine. No digs at me for water cool issues I see them coming already.

this is why i love old motors with no water. 90% of the time you can get it runnin again if you break down.

30%? Quid Pro Quo Dr Silver....lol
Sounds like they are trying to avoid liability...and save a few bucks...actually sounds like bullshit. If it's under warranty then it's their fault.
Who's to say that one alleged tank of dirty fuel would cause the pump to fail? And who says it wasn't their 'complimentary' tank of fuel that caused it?
I'd look for others that have had similar failures under warranty.
Do you know any good Jedi mind tricks?
Keep the bastards honest!

Surely the Dealer will repair it under warranty. They get paid for the work & parts by Volkswagen Australia. Its not like it is going to cost the dealer anything to repair it, and they get good PR out of by way of a happy customer.

Hi ho Silver

Send them this topic, it may change their mind about customer relations.

Steve

Euro_67 wrote:Surely the Dealer will repair it under warranty. They get paid for the work & parts by Volkswagen Australia. Its not like it is going to cost the dealer anything to repair it, and they get good PR out of by way of a happy customer.

only prob with it is, if VW aust. deem it to be from a dirty batch of fuel and not from a manufacturers fault in the pump, then either the dealer or customer are then responsible to wear the cost. now from what i can see its clearly not your fault and if its the dealers fault then they will try and weasel their way out of wearing the cost as vw Aust will not be paying for the parts and labor.

i work in a ford dealership at the moment, and if its one thing that works well, its a hissy fit, if they try and jab you with the cost of it, i would go off, speak to all the higher powers and go off at them too, soon enough they will want the problem to go away and just do what you want. Another way to get some action, is to write a letter/email to their customer care department, that way all the big bosses get their asses kicked too and things get done much quicker.

adam

If its small enough to go through a fuel filter then it shouldnt have any problems getting through a fuel pump!!!!

The car is only 8 tanks of fuel old and 6 of them were put in by McGraths this will be interesting

colonel mustard wrote:Dealerships always put in a full tank on delivery. its usually part of the agreement, and just common courtesy.

you worked at mazda too long

theyre good like that, the clunking in the boot when we brought ours home was actually a bottle of bubbly rolling round in the boot, and the car was put right in the center of the show room 😂
but not all dealerships are like that
a mate picked up his new falcon a few months back and barely made it to the servo down the road, and ive heard that kinda shit happend to other people as well
there was a big thread of people whinging about it on boostcruising with all breeds of cars including one BMW

^^^ what do you mean by that???

I actually went back yesterday for the first time in 6 months to drop off some uniforms - I'm so glad I left, best choice I have made in a long time.

silver wrote:The car is only 8 tanks of fuel old and 6 of them were put in by McGraths this will be interesting

Why 6 tanks by the dealer ?

What i was trying to say earlier is VWA fund the warranty, and would only know about the possibility of dirty fuel if the dealer informs them. The way I see it, the dealer has no gain in telling VWA it might be caused by dirty fuel, it will just put them in the middle of a dispute between a customer and manufacturer/importer.
Given there is talk of the fuel pump failing prematurely on the web, I reckon they will just swap it out under warranty.

colonel mustard wrote:^^^ what do you mean by that???

I actually went back yesterday for the first time in 6 months to drop off some uniforms - I'm so glad I left, best choice I have made in a long time.

i just mean mazda usually look after their customers pretty well compared to most
dad has had mazdas for over 20 years now
and im just cheap, i buy mazdas with ford badges 😂

nissan service is pretty good to but i hate dealing with ford here, which is why i went to mazda for parts till they shut down a few months ago

having had various company cars with old jobs i had to deal with the local nissan, mitsubishi, toyota and ford dealerships

The Result
$1008.00
new fuel pump filters and labour
I was given a specimen jar of my dirty petrol and shown/given the old pump (the filter in the pump was black)
the fuel looked like pond water in the bottom of the jar

So as the car was a demo with about 2k on it the dealer would have put 5 tanks of fuel in it
on delivery they put another tank in it (6)
I have put two in it .
I was low on the tank when the problem happened (I was seeing how many K's a tank I was getting (450))
so the first time I run it low it screws the fuel pump
The owner of the local service station has not had any problems with his fuel (BP) and my three other cars have all been fine
I spoke to 3 local mechanics and they have not had any dirty fuel repairs from the BP
I am going to consult with MTA tomorrow and fair trading I suppose
I think maybe a shared liability with the Dealer would be a fair outcome as there is reasonable doubt it is not solely my fault
not in his opinion

When I collected the Car after the repair The dealer put half a tank in it........ OH NO!

I have sent this link to VWA

The question I would ask.

Are the filters there to protect the pump and injectors?

Answer no! - No point having them. Why am I paying for filters to be fitted to the new car?

Answer yes! - Then new questions. Why am I replacing a pump so early? Is it warranty? OG filters failed?

Hi Silver

I use the same BP servo as you, Ive never had a problem.

Steve

By law the BP has to have a quality check every 3 months
the dealers private tanks do not have to be checked ever.

I wouldnt have paid and called VWA. This is unacceptable on the dealers behalf!

I am sure VWA will come thru on this although its such a waste of time to go thru this hassle 🙁

silver wrote:By law the BP has to have a quality check every 3 months
the dealers private tanks do not have to be checked ever.

Correction the Bp does regular monthly checks on the fuel and bi annual checks by a third party on fuel quality and calibration the owner even did a test on the "Ultimate" tank today in my presence performing a dip test with a chemical paste the result was negative = zero contaminants
the matter in the specimen jar does not appear to be water it will not mix when shaken
I showed a VW mechanic (not authorised) the parts, fuel and invoice he was surprised the job took 384 mins for which i was charged $500

I have spoken to VWA customer service who will look in to it for me? 😂

does there dip tester thing go real far down?
all the shit settles on the bottom then when the tankers come and fill it up it all stirs up

thats why u never fill up at a servo just after a tankers been

I got 120,000 kms on the original petrol filter on my EF falcon before it started to run rough. I changed the filter and it still ran rough. Probably could have got another 60,000 out of it 😂

The Result;
While it is difficult to place the blame on anyone regarding the issue of bad fuel. Mcgraths Volkswagen have offered to perform the 15,000k service on my car free of charge, this will include all fluids, parts and labour. I have accepted this offer. considering this is normally an expensive service
I appreciate the efforts by Mcgraths to follow up on this issue.

I think that the dealer is taking you for a ride. I've never seen a modern car whose pump was not protected by a filter and if there is a filter in place nothing solid should have gotten to the pump. The worst that should have happened is a clogged filter.

The 15000 mile service is an oil change, tire rotation and a trivial "safety inspection." Hardly worth $500.

GeorgeL wrote:I think that the dealer is taking you for a ride. I've never seen a modern car whose pump was not protected by a filter and if there is a filter in place nothing solid should have gotten to the pump. The worst that should have happened is a clogged filter.

The 15000 mile service is an oil change, tire rotation and a trivial "safety inspection." Hardly worth $500.

I agree..