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Comments
I have a problem that I am waiting for a call back on for service, but would like your thoughts. The car just started to have a suspension issue, it feels like a wheel is comimg off! What I am getting is a bumping up and down when driving that gets faster in frequency the faster I drive. Can't go more than about 45 or it is too big a jolt. Any thoughts on what it could be?
I have a call in to the service dept. I will request they come to my house and flat bed as I don't want to try to drive it the 20 plus miles to them. Do I have the right to ask them to deliver a loaner since I am not going to get to them? Also, is it true I should get a Phaeton or Tourag?
You certainly should go to the Dealership with your car...And, I am certain that they will provide a "Loaner". Although it is considered part of the PHAETON program to provide a PHAETON or Touareg as a Loaner; this is totally up to the local Dealer. VWOA cannot force the Dealer to do this.
A couple of questions...How long have you had your PHAETON? Did you get it from the Servicing Dealer? Are they the "Ship To" Dealer, ie. the original owner, or did they get it from another Dealer? Have you had any other issues that are similar? Are you getting any "Fault" readings?
If not, this needs to be addressed as well...
I specifically asked my dealer about this prior to buying the car. He gave me the VOA paperwork regarding service loaners.
I mention this because my "selling" dealer will not be/never be my "servicing" dealer and I wanted to avoid problems in the future.
I am bringing in my Phaeton Friday for an incredibly loud screaching coming out of the front right wheel.
Secondly, driving a smaller loaner car just makes me appreciate my Phaeton more when I get it back. If I took a different Phaeton home, then everyone would be asking me if I traded again and it would amplify that I have a problem with the one I own. Then I would be forced to explain that my car is in the shop for problems.
dcowan is absolutely correct. You cannot even find a Phaeton on a dealer lot not to mention getting one as a loaner ! The real beef is if VW is expected to provide Phaeton owners with a loaner, and what should you expect as a loaner ? If I owned a Phaeton, my realistic expectation will be a Passat/Jetta or even an Audi, but not the Beetle.
As to Service Loaners...We have purchased our original, plain vanilla, Silver PHAETON that I got over a year ago...I have urged that this be done for months; so it is certainly not the norm.
I do not believe that VWOA can actually demand that an independent, franchised Dealer do anything. They can, however; require Dealers to be compliant with certain Brand Standards that allow the Dealer to participate in certain VWOA Programs. We will be going thru such an audit tommorow and Thursday...If they are going to look for my loaner tomorrow they will have to go one of my W12 customer's office, because we are picking his car up for a 10K Maintenance. That is the way we do things, but I cannot speak for the Dealer body at large.
I would bet...common sense just dictates it...that there will fewer PHAETON Dealers at the end of the year. ALL DEALERS will be able to provide Service, but only those dedicated to the product will be permitted to sell...Just my opine.
And finally, the PHAETON requires a Sales Professional that is a bit apart from the Sales Rep that handles the rest of the carlines. This is why VWOA has suggested having PHAETON SPECIALISTS...A PHAETON client is certainly going to have certain expectations when making this acquisition...He/She is going to expect that their Sales Professional understand their tastes, concerns, interests, and priorities...Common language & diction, dress,
and experiences, ie. wine, food, music, and to a greater or lesser degree, education are prerequisites...If you are NOT introduced to an individual that meets the preceeding profile; try another store.
Is it it a 2004 or 2005?
Will check on the close for you when I get mine back...
The tail lights might be better with two circular lights rather than the circles within a rectangle design. It would be congruent with the headlights.
Finally, the front overhang should be reduced, perhaps by using the 2 inch shorter A8 motor and the A8 front differential which moves the front wheels 2 or 3 inches forward relative to the motor. This is what Bentley did with the new Flying Spur. Shown overlayed with the Phaeton, below...
well, i have just read that the dresden factory is now being identified to manufacture the new bentley 4 door based on the bentley 2 door continenatl.
both of these cars are in fact vw phaetons,or at least 80 % of the parts ,including engine ,interiors,etc,
the reason for this is that sales of phaetons continue to fall and the writing is on the wall. and they have to save the dresden fty. somehow.
i think that bentleys volume will not keep the factory alive for long ,but a good try anyhow.
now,the new bentley 4 door will sell for approx. 150.0
so,a vw phaeton for 58. or so is not such a bad deal when compared to the bentley and its vw parts content.
and any bentley dealer can now rip you off in style.
so if you have a phaeton ,guess what,you now own a bentley with a different brand.
by the way ,in my quest to get a phaeton,even thou i do not need another car but just love this car,i went back to a vw dealer, another dissapointment ?---yeeesssss.
but ,they had a 2005 in stock ,on the floor for a change,with minimal equipment and a msrp of $68.0 but no more than $3.0 off.
i think that this car makes sense only if it is fully equipped and sells for say $55 to 58.0 and no more.and i did say fully equipped.with the fancy color paint ,etc....
after all, it will devaluate to 30. in less than 2 days.
so far ,my projections for this car have been right on the money.
and,if what i suspect happens ,the vw may in fact ,somehow ,become a sort of cult classic car.
the shape is different from the 4 door bentley ,but the parts are the same ,only the sheetmetal changes.
think gm and their various different shapes utilizing the same platform and parts.it eaas a kamakaze decision for gm ,but i suspect not so for vw.
now if they were only smart enough to see this,and slightly reposition the phaeton as a poor man's bentley ???/
and yes ,it will affect the bentley image negatively,but i think not really. the bentley can be the aspiration of many while the vw is the reality.
M
No this is not my W12 Phaeton. The wing and wheels are mods.
Are we cleared for takeoff Charlie? Hehehee.
M
However; it certainly is not secondary to your command of the English language, spelling, diction, writing skills, or concerns about the poor folks that have to read/translate your gibberish...
Please try to extend some courtesy, and put a little care into your posts...doing so would make them much more valuable...
Very nice!!!
My local VW dealer once again has a couple of brand new Phaetons (just barely concealed from the road that passes by the front of the dealership). Maybe, if I could wait long enough, I could get one of these babies for a deep unhealable discount -- like they did last year.
The Phaeton is a beautiful car -- and although hardly anyone agrees with me -- it is a bargain.
But, what do I know? I thought the W8 was a heck of a lot of car for the money, especially in sport package with 6spd manual configurations.
Y'all seem to think the Phaeton is already dead -- maybe so -- but, it is a "reasonable" alternative to the 7 series and even its fraternal twin A8L, though.
I sold two this month and took orders for two more, and with absolutely 0 funny money. VWOA continues to aggressively support the Lease options; so that is good.
Any changes to the PHAETON in 2007 I predict will come in the form of a more sporty model...maybe a fastback Continental GT...we'll just have to wait and see.
Although the All Wheel drive component has certainly held greater import in the Mid-West & East, my West Coast clients have loved it with all of the rain we had in January. The response that I received with the PHAETON at The San Jose Auto Show was extraordinary. And, although I had the car there in 2004, with all of the press during the year there was significantly more recognition. Now with some good ads...
I agree.
M
[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v222/bigbadbob/phaeton-pho- tos.gif[/IMG]
Now, make it stop!
Getting back you on my service issue from two weeks ago. It turned out the suspension bumping up and down as I drove was due a big chunk of ice that was in the front left wheel throwing off the balance. In fact they said I had ice in all the wheels. As you might guess I live in the north east and we have had a couple of good snow storms. Still, I have lived here for many years and never had this happen in any other car. Service experience was spotty, but it all worked out.
Now, a new question. I have always had this, just didn't both to ask:
Do any of you owners hear a sound coming from the dash, mine seems to be located on the left side, that sound like a motor/fan running all the time? It is not all that loud, but I hear it. Pitch varies in a consistent way, kind of rises and falls in volume. I would guess it is some sort of climate control motor as it does seem to be behind the small left hand side dash airvent that is covered by the sliding panel. Rode in a 7 series BMW last night and an LS430 a few weeks ago, and while I like my car more, both were a quieter, with no extra fan/motor noises anywhere! Any input folks???
Glad to hear that it was benign, and you will know for the future to check that after plowing thru the snow and when there is no relief from higher temps...
As to the noise, I cannot offer much. I have none; so I would suggest that you have it checked at your next service, or if it is really getting on your nerves, call your PHAETON Specialist and have him/her give a listen...
i no longer have a secretary and staff who edited and corrected my english .i retired a while ago to have fun.and drive cars ,motorcycle and other for fun.
my spelling ----i write and do not go back.so,sorry.
my diction......because i was born in a spanish speaking country and speak other languages ,and was raised with them ,english is not my primary tongue.it is my third.
all i can say is that i try my best .but,yes i do write and do not go back to re-read my posts all of the time.
as far as my posts are concerned ,they are right on. go back and re read them,or as you say ,try to.
you are attacking the messenger and not the substance.
the phaeton is ,or has been ,a poor example of marketing ,i.e. product positionning,advertising,branding ,and other.
and ,mechanically it is a flawed car due to an overabundance of gimmicks many of which have not been fully sorted out before the car was released.
i like the car but it is on the way out.
i have driven it here in the usa and in europe and it is ok to go straight....but cannot turn .
it is flawed in other ways also..........the software for one ,etc.......
have to run....going kayaking in key largo in a couple of hours.
If anyone wants to talk about CARS here, it's way past time we got back on topic.
Thanks.