VW Passat alignment

vwsmiles

Three weeks ago, I bought a new 2000 passat GLS, 4
cylinder, 5 speed manual transmission. I love the
car to pieces but have had to bring it back 4
times now for alignment issues (and stereo problems
but I think those have been fixed). The car
doesn't seem to be able to go straight in any lane
for more than a couple of seconds. It drifts to
the right more than the left. The dealer is
telling me (over and over again) that it's due to
the curve of the road and that the car is within
the alignment specs. I'm not buying it. I've
driven far too many miles and types of cars to know
that something feels wrong, especially for brand
new car. They've aligned the car 4 times now and
to me it still veers off to the right almost. They
even had my car sent out to an "independent
alignment specialist" when they discovered their
machine was out of calibration. I've never driven
VW's before so I'm looking for someone who maybe
can give me some insight. Is it normal for the new
Passats to be so sensitive to the curve of the
road? But, if they are, then why does the car not
pull to both sides equally? I've been seeing lemons
in my sleep and have heard from some people that
something larger is wrong like a bent axle, etc.
The dealer rotated the Continental tires (never put
on a new set, though) and checked tire pressure.
They've had my car forever, it seems. I did drive
another Passat (same exact car) with the same
tires and it held straight for longer than mine
does. When is enough enough? Thanks for any help!

pat455

Have you taken a look at the posts in our current topic on problems with the VW Passat. This problem rings a bell with me and may have already been discussed there.

You can think of Town Hall as sort of a social situation where folks gather to discuss lots of things about lots of topics. Just like if you are a party, the best thing to do is to look around for a conversation (topic) that is interesting to you and join in. This usually will get you a lot more responses than starting up a whole new topic directed at no one in particular.

If you have not found it already, you might also like to check out the Our Turn Conference - this is a place in Town Hall that is solely focused women's automotive issues of all types. We have an automotive technician co-hosting that conference, and she may have some advice for you as well.

Good luck, and welcome to Town Hall!

Pat
Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference

doagzombie

The exact same problem has developed at about 5,000 miles on my 2000 Passat 1.8 5 speed wagon. I returned from the dealer today and they, of course, insisted that I was imagining things and charged me $85.00 for an alignment that did nothing. So it's back to the dealer tomorrow.

I expected that when I replaced my Camry with a Passat that it would not be as reliable as the Camry, but I never thought that a car with superior, European handling characteristics would not be able to travel in a straight line.

There have been several postings about this problem in www.vwvortex.com, although I couldn't find anything about it in the Passat Problems thread here in the Edmund's Town Hall. Please keep us posted on your progress in remedying this problem.