muckingfuppet

And to finish the story, the car has sold. Or specifically to a dealer in px for a mk1 mx5. Smiles for miles!

Buy the plugs, and ask for a block exemption cert from the supplier. Any replacement parts used in a service must be of equal or greater quality than the OEM part, and in this instance, greater quality would seem to apply.

Cheers guys. The case is with the financial ombudsman so we will see if anything comes of it before it sells. If it sells first then so be it. Just sick of this at the moment, want shot of it. Seems to be plaguing me at the moment, had two new tyres last week off the back of the MOT, and theyve both bulged already.... It never ends!

Yeah the car is back to spec now apart from the wheel bearing (rear right). I don't really want the car any more truth be told, I've had too much hassle and if I'm honest it's too switched off. I want to get back into something RWD again, a proper drivers car, instead of a jumped up shopping car. Put me back in a mk1 mx5 and I'll be happy again.

So basically the upshot is the best that VW Finance can do is the original selling dealer buying the car back off me. I've rejected this offer and am awaiting a final decision notification from them, which will in due course all be forwarded to the financial ombudsman. In the mean time I have posted the car up for sale privately with VW finances permission and a settlement figure in hand. And to top it all off a wheel bearing is now on its way out, so back to my local garage she goes next week... So if anyone is interested in buying a VW Polo GTi...

Just a new block and head, both CAV spec. Intake manifold forward and exhaust manifold back, plus ancilliaries were transferred from the old engine to the new. I questioned them about the cat, and asked about the turbo as well seeing as that would have had bits of spark plug and piston flying through it. They couldn't answer, but I took the car off them anyway. I had been away again for 6 weeks, and I had asked them to do a couple of other bits while they had it (MoT amongst others), which they hadn't apparently managed to fit in, so I took the car to a local garage and gave them the money instead. Still pushing the route with VW Finance to get rid of the damn thing at this stage, I want nothing more to do with it or VW. As for warranty, I asked this also, apparently because it was an approved warranty repair, the new components are only covered for a year. Financial Ombudsman and Trading Standards have been involved now, just waiting on the paperwork to come through from the FO to get it all started in earnest with them.

Sounds more like a hunting idle rather than something caused by ancilliaries, my CAV engine was doing this when I picked it up from the garage on Wednesday. seems to have settled down and stopped now though...

I had this happen in my Polo GTi... Long and veiny of it was a replacement block and head from VW, manifolds back and forward were swapped to the new from the old. Work was covered under warranty, but it wasnt a complete job, I picked up the car yesterday morning and it is going straight back to the garage as it is hunting for an idle, and idling very high when in gear or neutral or park sat at lights etc. Check out the Polo Oil Consumption thread if you want the full read up, but its very very possible that a sparkplug failure was caused by excessive heat in the cylinder caused by it burning oil...

http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=395730 Check this thread out, converting a Cupra K1 to haldex AWD from an R32, different car I appreciate, however most of the work you will need to do is very similar and should give you some idea of what work will need doing.

Hallo, back again. Was deployed away, so to recap and update...: Spark plug electrode dropped out and punched a hole through the piston in cylinder number 2. Took the dealer 4 weeks to diagnose this and get the ball rolling with the warranty company for the replacement engine. Before I left I asked them to complete the other service items that needed doing, plus the recall on the DSG gearbox, and also to sort out the tracking and alignment. I then deployed out of country for 6 weeks, came back to the country on Monday morning and phoned the dealership... I was told that all the work had been completed "except for the alignment as we havent been able to squeeze that in yet". I replied that they had had the car for 6 weeks, and that it was unacceptable for that work to have not been completed, and that I would be picking the car up immediately and having the work completed elsewhere. I got delayed, ended up picking the car up yesterday lunchtime. On the paperwork the list of the work said that a replacement block and head had been fitted, but everything from the manifolds forward and back had been stripped off the old engine and refitted. I asked whether anyone had bothered checking the catalyst or turbo due to them possibly being fragged by bits flying out when the spark plug gave out, and was told that no they hadnt, but they must be alright because they were fine on the test drive. I expressed my concern and displeasure at this but took the car anyway. On the drive home however I noticed a couple of issues, the car wasnt idling smoothly, it was hunting between 600-1000rpm for an idle, and coming to a halt at the lights it was idling steady at 1200rpm. Knocking it into neutral or park, still idling at 1200 rpm. Handbrake on, footbrake off and it returns to a hunting idle again. Pushing down on the footbrake and knocking it back into neutral it returns to the high idle again. Phoned the garage this morning to let them know and it is now going back in to them Monday evening for continuation work. I have made it clear that I will not be paying for any of this as it is an extension of work that should have been completed properly. My guess would be a sensor somewhere is either bust or not fitted correctly on the rebuild, educated guess the supercharger idle bypass valve or something in that region, but we shall see. Phoned VW Finance to let them know the score also, they havent yet resolved the issue so I have contacted the Financial Ombudsman and got the ball rolling there, although in fairness to them VW Finance are the only ones making an effort to sort it out. I have had a callback from my complain handler this afternoon. He is still having trouble with the original Nuneaton dealer who sold me the car, so we will see what happens when he eventually is able to make headway. Stay tuned....

Not sure what the standard warranty is that people have been given with their replacement engines, I have been told by the repairing dealership this morning after I phoned them that I will be given a 2 year/unlimited mileage warranty on the components that are being changed. I asked if anybody had checked the exhaust system and cat, my concern being that as a spark plug has disintegrated and gone through the engine, and that bits of piston had also flown about that shrapnel had gone back through and damaged the cat. The service advisor said she would ask someone to look into it.... Nice to know that they are covering all the bases...

Buy an OBD2 reader, plug it in and go for a drive, get up to your speed and itll log whats going on in the engine and any error codes it throws up.

Indoor or outdoor track? Outdoor is so much better, been at Thruxton on 60mph karts where they have a speed trap on the back straight, got clocked at just over 56mph...

No it doesn't. Basically because the fault appeared within 6 months of purchase, the onus falls on the dealer to prove that it wasnt underlying at the point of purchase. Regardless of any warranty, if you are sold a product that is faulty at the point of sale then the dealer is in breach of contract under consumer law which obligates them to offer a refund if demanded. This particular dealer is trying to refute that it was faulty, but hasn't been able to prove it so far, so I am taking the case to trading standards and citizens advice tomorrow to start legal action against them.

I only did a quote with them to get a ballpark of what I would be offered in sale for the vehicle is all. A warranty underwriter, apparently Mondial, underwrite the approved warranties for VW, as I said I'm going to citizens advice tomorrow to start the ball rolling. Unfortunately on my pennies, paying for a solicitor wouldn't be viable. So trading standards and financial ombudsman it is.

That was verbally on the phone, and I asked which engine, she had to go away and call me back. Was told an exact like for like swap, so I'm thinking it'll be a CAVE engine. Had an email from the Nuneaton dealership today in response to my request for a letter of deadlock. The upshot from them is that he is disputing the fact that it was not of merchantable quality at the time of purchase, and at best is going to offer to purchase the vehicle off me at trade market rate. This works out at around £7800 going on a rough quote from webuyanycar.com. I am getting on the phone to citizens advice again tomorrow to start proceedings with trading standards and try to force the refund out of it.

So the upshot is I'm getting a new engine. A direct like for like replacement, because the failure was a spark plug that put through a piston, and wasn't an oil related failure apparently I don't qualify for an updated engine. Now pursuing with the route of rejecting the vehicle through the dealer and trading standards.

That makes for a good bit of ammunition. Thing is, when I bought it I had a service plan thrown in and it had a 40k service done about a month after I bought it, all stamped up in the book so it should have had the plugs done. Interesting to see what comes of this though.

Just had a phonecall from the dealership that is working on the car, they have finally stripped it down and determined there was in fact extra damage inside (shock). I asked what and was told (nervously) it was the piston that had gone, so my guess would be the electrode punched its way through the crown. They are waiting at the moment for the warranty provider to determine whether it is more economical to replace the engine or rebuild it.

I have a penguin sat in the cupholders, absorbs moisture in the air, and when its full the penguin turns blue. Stick it in the microwave for 5 mins to dry out, and repeat! Never had an issue since!

Dealer started finally looking at it after they got a kick up the arse from VW UK about it, waiting to hear back now. VW Finance also gave me a "goodwill" gesture of £75 to cover to cost of insuring the courtesy car for the time being.

So a brief update, I have just gotten off the phone to the financial ombudsmen. The advice from them was that because I have started complaints procedures with the finance company, they have up to 8 weeks to find a resolution. So at current that puts me at around the start of December to be able to pursue anything further from that direction. I was also advised however to get in touch with trading standards regarding the dealership, which I have now done. I have been told to expect a callback from them within 24 hours to get the ball rolling with respect to raising a complaint around the dealership. So, we shall see.

Furbytom - Bought at just under 3 years old as an approved used vehicle, was supplied with 12 months approved warranty. goneoffSki - I believe it is supplied by VW. I will be back on the phone tomorrow morning to the customer relations manager to force a decision one way or another. If they still refuse the refund then the financial ombudsman and trading standards are getting brought into the matter.

No no, Mr Martin is the Brand Manager, one step up again. But agreed, it is still sales, and unfortunately it is their decision about whether the refund happens or not amicably.

As promised the correspondence, in date order. My name omitted, left the dealer and brand managers name in for any future reference. 29/9/14: Dear Mr Martin, My name is ***, and I have been put in your direction by Mr Lowe with reference to rejecting a car I purchased from yourselves in December last year. Long and short I have a 2011 Polo GTi, bought Used Approved your dealer in December, on HP finance. Around February/March time I took it in to my local dealer (Salisbury) because I was concerned by the amount of oil it was burning, approximately a litre in 600 miles that I had measured against the trip. I had to do a test mileage for them so they could determine the usage, and it turned out it was burning more than what was considered acceptable by VWUK. Unfortunately I then had to go to Canada with work for 3 months, so the car was left with a friend to keep it ticking over while I was away. I came back and got the car booked in for the first remedial action which was some sort of modification to the crankcase oil breather. I was then told to do another test mileage to see if this had rectified the issue. Part way through this test mileage, I was out in the car, and I had basically an engine failure. It coughed and misfired, warning lights on the dash, started running only on 3 cylinders. I managed to limp it home and booked in to the garage to get it investigated. Last week when I had it recovered to the dealership for investigation. I had a phonecall later in the day from the service advisor with these problems: VAGCOM had shown cylinders 1 & 2 misfiring. Coilpacks from these were moved to 3 & 4, and caused 3 & 4 to start misfiring, so were duly replaced. VAGCOM was still registering cylinder 2 as misfiring, and on inspecting the spark plug the technician found that the electrode was missing. They then compression tested the engine and found cylinder 2 had lost all compression. At current they are waiting to get the car fitted in to do an inspection of the chamber to determine any piston, bore or valve damage there is. At this stage though I have lost all confidence and faith in the car and the brand and I am writing to you to request that I reject the car as unfit for purpose. I wait for your response, Many thanks, ***. 30/09/2014: Good morning Mr *** I am sorry to read of the situation regarding your Polo Gti. Please be assured that you have a Volkswagen Approved Warranty with your purchase to cover any mechanical failures. Unfortunately motor vehicles do break down from time to time, however you have a comprehensive warranty for peace of mind motoring. Andrew Lowe, sales manager should be contacting you regarding this if not done so already. Kind regards Mike 30/09/2014: Mr Martin, Thankyou for your timely reply. I understand that mechanical failures happen from time to time, I am a mechanical engineer by trade and as such see such examples on a daily basis. This also gives me the benefit of insight into material wear and fatigue. My issue is that I started having these problems so soon after the purchase. Having since done some research into the matter, it has become clear that the oil consumption and occasional failure of the spark plugs and coil packs is an underlying issue that plagues the 1.4TSi engine found in the GTI series, which has been recognised by Volkswagen UK. I was not made aware of these issues by your salesman, and as such was at the very least mis sold the vehicle. Under the current legislation as it stands, The Sale of Goods Act 1979, the vehicle just be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose, and as described. Seeing as the vehicle had such a failure at such a premature time, it would appear the vehicle at the very least is not fit for purpose. I would ask you reconsider my request for a refund and return of the vehicle. If needs be I am prepared to take this further to resolve the situation. Many thanks, *** 03/10/2014: Dear Mr ***, Please be assured that under no circumstances has your vehicle been miss-sold. Any motor vehicle is obviously subject to wear and tear items along with potential mechanical breakdowns. Your vehicle, registered 09/11/2013 is almost 3 and a half years old. It was sold to you on 06/12/2013 having covered 39204 miles and I believe it has now done just over 50,000 miles. Any mechanical failure covered under your warranty will of course be rectified. It is not a case of ‘not fit for purpose’ it has unfortunately incurred a mechanical breakdown/failure that is being investigated by your local Volkswagen Retailer. Clearly, there is always a cost to motoring and therefore unable to give you a full refund. However If you would like to discuss a purchase price from us taking into account todays trade market value for the age and mileage we would be happy to discuss this. Andy Lowe sales manager can discuss this with you at your convenience. Kind regards Mike 04/10/2014: Dear Mr Martin, If I have not been mis sold the vehicle then could you please explain why I was not made aware of the issues that accompany these versions of the GTi engine? I find it almost insulting that you suggest that a problem with these engines, that has been recognised by Volkswagen UK, is a "wear and tear" item. The car as you rightly stated is just three and a half years old, and has covered only a slightly above average mileage for its age. Couple this with Volkswagens reputation for reliability and build quality, I seriously begin to question why I would ever return to the brand after this experience. I would suggest that seeing as these issues became apparent with the vehicle within 3 months of my purchase that it is indeed unfit for purpose. I bought the vehicle to use daily, not to have to return it to my local dealership every few weeks due to a recognised mechanical failure. As such I have been in discussion with Volkswagen Finance, and made them fully aware of the situation with the vehicle. They are aware that the vehicle has been off the road, and have so far been most supportive in resolving this. I would point out at this stage that as the vehicle was purchased under Hire Purchase finance, I am aware that I have the right to reject the vehicle at any stage of the agreement if it develops a serious enough fault, regardless of warranty offered. I ask you one last time to consider my request for a refund of the vehicle before I am forced to pursue matters further through citizens advice and trading standards. Regards, *** 06/10/2014: Dear Mr *** I can confirm that the electrode ‘broken off’ one of the spark plugs is not an inherent problem with your Polo or indeed any Volkswagen vehicle, but a failure in the Spark Plug itself, and therefore I can only refer you to my previous emails regarding any mechanical failures being covered under the warranty, will be rectified free of charge. Whilst I accept that any mechanical breakdown or failure of parts is not ideal, mechanical items do malfunction/breakdown from time to time and the warranty, like all warranties, are there for some peace of mind. Kind regards Mike 06/10/2014: Dear Mr Martin, I haven't claimed the broken spark plug to be an inherent problem at any stage. I take issue with the oil consumption however as being the underlying issue. As I have stated previously, being sold a vehicle with this issue that is only 3 and a half years old, and only 50000 miles is simply unacceptable. This is not an issue of fair wear and tear, it is an issue of being sold a defective product. Warranty or no warranty, I have been sold a vehicle with underlying mechanical issues, and as such I am well within my rights to ask you again for a refund. Regards, *** 06/10/2014: Dear Mr *** I confirm once again, we have not miss-sold your vehicle and we will not issue a full refund. However and without wishing to repeat myself, should you wish to discuss purchase price, I am happy for the sales manager to discuss this with you. Regards Mike 06/10/2014: Dear Mr Martin, It is clear that we are not going to reach a satisfactory resolution amicably, and as such this conversation has run its course. Please be advised I will now be escalating matters until such times as this is resolved. Regards, *** Make of this what you will, but to me it smacks of terrible customer service and a failure to recognise basic consumer law.