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Comments
I think about this coil pack thing when I drive, but I'm seldom far from home.Z But I have a 10 hour round trip planned for late February, and I'm going to be majorly p*ssed if one goes during that trip. I'm still debating whether to just buy one and throw it in my glove box.
How VW can say this isn't a safety concern is a bit silly. It's not a safety concern if it blows in your garage at home. Could happen at speed, in a bad neighborhood (isn't AAA fighting a court battle over some tow operator who didn't take a woman from some terrible neighborhood, resulting in a murder?), in terrible weather.
I hope it doesn't happen, but what if this happens to some poor soul in the mountains during a snowstorm? Without a cellphone (there are still a few of us who refuse to carry) or with a dead phone battery? Man, it's the Donner party, all over again.
Thanks for any help!
2021 VW Arteon SEL 4-motion, 2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech
They offered their conventional deal at the time of $50 over invoice (actually $200 or so after tacking on ad fees and the like) which was still very good since other area dealers were drawing the line closer to $1,000 over. When I brought my car in for servicing a few times, they also seemed pretty good. They provided me with a loaner as well, which is more than I can say about the dealership in North Attleboro.
Happy hunting.
I was impressed with VW Gallery and would purchase another car from them, but unfortunately, this is my last VW due to the coil pack issue and VWs refusal to issue a recall.
-Craig
Now I'm happily enjoying my 99 passat, it's paid for and still only has 32K miles on it. But when I think of replacing it with a new car between VW's problems and appealing new models like the 9-3, Mazda 6, Rx-8, G35 and all, it's hard to justify giving VW my money again. We'll see if VW changes their tune.
I still love driving my Passat and I have a very good dealer that takes care of it so hopefully, I will be fine if it happens. I just need to not think about it as it doesnt help you to worry about something you cant do anything about.
On second thought, do they mean a thirty day production run at the VW assembly line or a 30 day on the coil pack manufacturer's production line? If the latter, how does that translate to the former? 30 days of production at Bremi (the coil pack manufacturer) could translate to one month, 6 months, or a year of VW 1.8T production! Who knows?
I still say that VW should be more forthcoming with info to address this issue. Right now, it's all hearsay, innuendo, and stonewalling.
I really have to doubt the comment that the coilpack production issue fell in a 30 day window. It cant be a 30 day VW production run as the 2001.5 models that were built in 03/01 have them as well as the 2002s for many months of production. If true, would have to be the manufacturer. It would be nice if at least VW said that those vehicles with the 1.8t having a build date from X to Y will get replacement coil packs once production can keep up with demand.
My guess is the service manager just said that as that doesnt sound to bad. Sounds like someone caught it and corrected it but that some cars happened to get them.
If I want the transmission to be replaced, I am not going to send my car to VW in Wellesley, MA where I bought my car. Today, I sent my car to this dealership for first service at 5,000 miles. On the way to home, I heard very stranger noise when I applied brakes. After driving car home, there were very strong bad burn rubber smell. Two months ago, they changed my car’s heating ventilation unit but they installed new one ugly. The technicians in VW in Wellesley, MA, are terrible. Dose anyone have good one for recommendation? Thanks lot!
I bought my 03 passat in VW Wellesley, MA. I am happy with the salesman. His name is Bret. 781-237-3553. However, I do not like their service department. I had very bad experiences with the Norwood VW and Natick VW dealers. Brookline VW dealer is ok, Boston VW dealer in Allston is not too bad either. Good luck.
Sounds like South Shore, Colonial, and Brookline VW would all be good choices for service.
Thanks again!
Thanks!
The cloth is not comfortable (in my opinion of course). It's too "sticky". And it's a lint magnet.
I find the seats (leather in my case) uncomfortable. There is an extreme lack in thigh support. Any trip longer than a hour results in leg fatigue.
There are others that say they're the most comfortable they've driven. But they pale in comparison (comfort-wise) to our '01 RX300.
-Craig
I would definitely pick leather over VW cloth though, for pure convenience.
When I first got the car, it took about 3 weeks to get that "sweet" spot, and I have driven up to 5 hours straight without back pain. Turning on the seat heater also helps with stiffness in the back on long drives.
I feel I must do an extended drive before I purchase this car, to know if I can live with the seats. A dealer test drive isn't long enough, and I don't know any Passat owners personally. Do any rental car companies have Passats?
As for the seats, I'm fine with the firmness and i like the lumbar support, but i think the seat cushion is too short.
I have never seen a VW in any rental car fleet actually.
04 FEB 2003
VOLKSWAGEN AND AUDI TO REPLACE ALL IGNITION COIL PARTS ON 2001, 2002 AND SOME 2003 MODELS
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – Volkswagen of America, Inc. and Audi of America, Inc. today announced a customer service action in which the companies will ultimately replace the ignition coils in all 2001 and 2002 model year cars equipped with certain engines that have been experiencing a higher-than-normal failure rate. Also affected are very early production 2003 models.
The companies are currently notifying all customers potentially affected and are initially replacing those ignition coils that fail at no cost. The updated customer service action, replacing all ignition coils whether they fail or not, will be implemented in the coming months.
“We know that some ignition coils installed in our cars are not up to our high quality standards, and we are determined to do the right thing for our customers. The right thing to do is to fix every single car with these coils by replacing them whether they are broken yet or not. That is exactly what we will do as soon as we have the parts,” said Gerd Klauss, president and CEO, Volkswagen of America, Inc.
The vehicles affected in this action include cars equipped with 1.8 liter engines, which includes the Audi TT and A4; and the VW Golf/GTI, Jetta, New Beetle and Passat. The companies also included the Passat W8 engine, all VW’s equipped with the 2.8 liter VR6; as well as the Audi 3.0 liter V6 engine. In total, approximately 530,000 cars are affected by this action.
The ignition coils provide electricity to the engine’s spark plugs during operation. Volkswagen and Audi have recognized through service reports that the ignition coils used in the products listed above have a higher-than-normal failure rate. If an ignition coil fails, the check engine light/malfunction indicator lamp will blink. The car’s performance may, in some cases, become rough and/or the engine will lose some power and the car should be taken to an authorized dealer for repair. The engine and its electronic controls are designed to keep the vehicle running. Some deterioration in performance, however, can be expected.
Volkswagen and Audi are announcing the following customer service action:
The supplier is working triple shifts and seven days a week to make as many new parts as possible. Additionally, a second supplier has been activated.
Soon customers will be notified by mail that Volkswagen and Audi will proactively begin replacing all ignition coils in cars potentially affected, whether a failure has occurred or not. This action will begin in the coming months as soon as replacement ignition coil supply volumes will allow.
In order to minimize inconvenience to customers during repair, Volkswagen and Audi dealers will offer alternative transportation at no cost.
Customers with questions should call VW Customer Relations toll-free at (800) 822-8987 or Audi Customer Relations toll-free at (800) 822-2834.
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If you could, get a link and repost. Thanks.
VW Logo
-Craig
http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=694575&postid=623563- 1#6235631
http://subscribers.wardsauto.com/Microsites/index.asp?srid=10088&- amp;pageid=5991&siteid=26&magazineid=1004&srtype=1
I had no interest in 4 Motion, so this really narrowed down my choices. There simply weren't that many v-6's in the FWD flavor.
Here's some questions for you to answer:
1) are you a gearhead and plan on modifying your car for more speed? If yes, then you want the 1.8T as it's more easily modified ("chipped") for greater performance.
2) are you adverse to engine noise, however quiet? If yes, then you want the v-6, as it's slightly quieter and smoother.
3) do you like to have a big smile pasted on your face when you drive? If yes, then you can buy either of these engines!
You really need to do a back to back comparison and then your decision will be easy. I got the 1.8T and I love it. YMMV.
I am 5'10" and weigh 200.
Outrun is right about the leather, it seems "hard". It also seems to wear well. I had 2 kids fill the back seat with puke (I mean it was 1" deep) and I was in a panic, but amazingly it cleaned up really, really well. I didn't give the stuff time to dry, but I have had the same situation with cloth seats and you can never get out the smell.
If one wants to rent a Passat check into flying to Frankfurt.
It also appears from the post about the coil packs that the 2.8 V6 (not the VR) is the only one not on the list. I'm wondering if that is a mistake, or if my engine uses different packs than all the others.
I have owned cars with sunroofs and never used them. Nor do leather seats have any particular value to me.... I don't have small children anymore. From what I can see, the Passat cloth seats are the same size as the leather seats and have the same adjustments, albeit manual.... so the comfort and tailorability should be similar.
The great thing about the Passat is that even the "stripper" GL comes with all the important stuff like multiple airbags, ABS, traction control, etc.
Can anyone recommand any auto shop specializing in VW repair in the northwestern Boston or Nashua area?
Any help is greatly appreciated!
In addition, power seats have increased thigh support in that the front of the seat can be raised & lowered.
VW will never learn...
-Craig
On the other hand, the ability to easily make subtle adjustments to seat position is useful on long trips.
I guess this is the dark side to the Passat pricing vs. features equation: lots of stuff on the base model, but it costs $7000 to get a power driver seat. This really should be an available option on any model.
-Craig
I'm looking at getting a '03 passat glx and noticed that the tires are Continentals. Dealer told me they were better than the Michelins.
Any experience with these? How do they compare to the Michelins? Do different passat trim levels get different tires? I realize the glx gets bigger tires, but I'm asking about the tire manufacturer itself. Thanks.