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Post by lindabop on Jan 28, 2015 22:29:38 GMT 1
RPM sorry about tea maker!
thank you for your helpful reply. I just want to establish if the clutch failure is genuinely my fault through my driving style/wear and tear which if it the case would be fine (well not brilliant but at least I know the £600 bill is my own fault!) or a faulty part, guess I didn't like the idea that VW were making a fool out of me! And it probably has come across as wanting to point the blame at VW. I'm just so annoyed with them, cos they totally dismissed me and maintain it has to be wear and tear and that's final! I have owned the car for the last 15 months, there is nothing in the paper work to suggest its not the original clutch. But then again when I got it I had to have the rear wheel bearing replaced twice and finally a new hub and have no paper work to prove this, VW said they keep it all on there system. So for all I know the car may have had 3 new clutches before I got it! I don't thing I'm a bad driver, been driving for 12 years and never had this kind of trouble and this is the newest car I've had!
rvr I totally understand your not making light of the situation, your just being totally realistic. I no I'm not going to get anywhere with the claim, especially as I had it repaired at an independent garage. Just hacked off the way they totally dismiss it as wear and tear.
thanks guys I do appreciate your help.
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Post by Karl on Jan 28, 2015 22:42:30 GMT 1
Ah It's becoming clearer now , so your the second owner of a 4 + old vehicle
And have had the clutch renewed at an independent repairer
Then expect your local main agent to foot the bill , after the event
Did you buy the vehicle from said vw agent or have or spend any money routine servicing etc ?
Then now I can see why you had the response you did
If we had someone off the street turned up with a used clutch in there boot and asked for a reimbursement It would be a sorry sir/madam there's nothing I can do
How could you prove its even from your car !!!!!!
It certainly looks like a defective/manufacturing pressure plate
But if you where looking for a contribution from vw you should have really had them
investigate/repair.... But you'd still need to agree to cover cost of removal/inspection/replacement
Then they could have asked vw for a goodwill
I'd suspect replacement of this part would be on prior approval anyway even if it was within warranty period
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remmington
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Post by remmington on Jan 28, 2015 23:06:31 GMT 1
Even if most customers can't except the fact.
99.9% of premature clutch failure is down to driving style.
I really hate engaging customers over clutch warranty claims.
Because when I send the parts back to my supplier they nearly always get rejected.
Nasty subject...
Clutches are expensive.
Talking to customers about "bad driving". Is critical and inflammatory by its nature (which gets there back up).
Garages and supplying dealers are on a hiding to nothing with customers who have clutches that fail at low mileages.
When faced with the situation.
I just write the bill out, and brace myself for torrent of abuse I am about to get! (poor me!)
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Post by lindabop on Jan 28, 2015 23:09:07 GMT 1
Yeah I know they should of done the work but I just couldn't make the 140 mile round trip with a new baby,I panicked when it broke down and sent it to the local garage to get sorted asap,I need a car living where I do. Wouldn't make any difference if I had put it to vw cos they are adamant its wear and tear anyway. I totally understand I have no way of proving the clutch is from my car but I honestly have better things to do with my time than try and con Mr VW with a clutch that aint mine,but I guess there are people that would and probably do! But do you know they have never questioned that it might not even be the clutch of my car.
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Post by lindabop on Jan 28, 2015 23:19:32 GMT 1
So just out of interest cos I know very little and and to preserve my new clutch what is bad driving in regards to clutch?
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remmington
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Posts: 4,971
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Post by remmington on Jan 28, 2015 23:30:33 GMT 1
So just out of interest cos I know very little and and to preserve my new clutch what is bad driving in regards to clutch? Very sensible question!1. Position seat so you can get your left leg clear of the clutch pedal when driving. Never rest your foot on the clutch pedal while driving 2. When engaging drive (1st gear or reverse). Not too many revs when drawing away. 3. Never engage a higher gear than you need. Use all gears (no upward jumps from 3rd to 5th). 4. No fast acceleration or deceleration 5. No labouring engine in a higher gear at slow speeds. Or holding car back with the brakes in a higher gear (down hills) 6. Choose the right gear for the road conditions and engine speed and load. 7. Release handbrake (yes people burn clutches out driving about with the handbrake part engaged) 8. Never let anybody else drive your car. People not used to your car will do all of the above.Don't buy a diesel car, it is difficult with the torque created from a modern diesel engine to get all of the above correct all of the time, this is why lorries are nearly all semi autos now. .
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Post by lindabop on Jan 28, 2015 23:39:51 GMT 1
Had visions of you cursing such a stupid question! I wouldn't say im particularly bad for doing any of those,maybe the jumping gears 3-5 or 6-4. Slap on the wrist for me. Thank you for that.
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Post by lindabop on Jan 28, 2015 23:43:23 GMT 1
Just saw your bit about not buying a diesel! Ive had diesel cars for years, I do 40 miles a day just on the school run so need the economy of a diesel! Maybe I'll plump for a petrol automatic next time,what I save on replacing a clutch I'll put towards petrol!
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remmington
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Posts: 4,971
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Post by remmington on Jan 28, 2015 23:44:50 GMT 1
Had visions of you cursing such a stupid question! I wouldn't say im particularly bad for doing any of those,maybe the jumping gears 3-5 or 6-4. Slap on the wrist for me. Thank you for that. No it was not a stupid question! I applaud you for asking it!The stupid thing would be to spend a lot of money on a new clutch. And if you are guilty of abusing the original clutch. Do the same thing again. I own a garage. I spend allot of time. Explaining to customers how they can get best value from the money they have spent with us.
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remmington
Apprentice
Owns Spark Eroder
Posts: 4,971
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Post by remmington on Jan 28, 2015 23:47:36 GMT 1
Just saw your bit about not buying a diesel! Ive had diesel cars for years, I do 40 miles a day just on the school run so need the economy of a diesel! Maybe I'll plump for a petrol automatic next time,what I save on replacing a clutch I'll put towards petrol! There is no reason to buy a diesel! Petrol cars do high MPG. Petrol is cheaper than diesel at the pumps. Plus if you think your clutch was expensive, you want to see some of the bills we write out for diesel engine repairs on newer cars than you own. Diesel is history....
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Post by lindabop on Jan 29, 2015 0:01:35 GMT 1
Fair point about petrol being cheaper than diesel! suppose ive always just thought diesels were more economic for mpg and never really worked out the difference between petrol and diesel! Here's another question (you'll regret being so helpful, its much appreciated though) EGR Value,is that more problematic on a diesel? Your probably going to tell me petrol cars don't even have an egr valve?! Mother in law had hers replaced last wk on a 3 year old vw jetta.
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Post by Karl on Jan 29, 2015 0:05:14 GMT 1
Just saw your bit about not buying a diesel! Ive had diesel cars for years, I do 40 miles a day just on the school run so need the economy of a diesel! Maybe I'll plump for a petrol automatic next time,what I save on replacing a clutch I'll put towards petrol! There is no reason to buy a diesel! Petrol cars do high MPG. Petrol is cheaper than diesel at the pumps. Plus if you think your clutch was expensive, you want to see some of the bills we write out for diesel engine repairs on newer cars than you own. Diesel is history.... There was a tv program on this week about the way the government "led people towards diesels " Air Pollution is no better now than years ago , even with cleaner diesel technology I thought they'd go into the higher maintance/running costs but didn't ?
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Post by Karl on Jan 29, 2015 0:10:18 GMT 1
Fair point about petrol being cheaper than diesel! suppose ive always just thought diesels were more economic for mpg and never really worked out the difference between petrol and diesel! Here's another question (you'll regret being so helpful, its much appreciated though) EGR Value,is that more problematic on a diesel? Your probably going to tell me petrol cars don't even have an egr valve?! Mother in law had hers replaced last wk on a 3 year old vw jetta. Yes very problematic on all diesels and all manufacturers The EGR reuses or should I say replaces some fresh air drawn into the engine as "used up exhaust gas" will not burn again , but in doing so helps reduce NOx gases ( nasty byproduct of engine combustion) Some petrols do use them too , but not so many The diesel ones fail due to the harsh conditions they are expected to operate in
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Post by lindabop on Jan 29, 2015 0:19:30 GMT 1
Brilliant thank you! I am away to get my calculator out and do some sums!how much is a litre of petrol these days?!
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Post by wheelnut on Jan 29, 2015 1:11:05 GMT 1
Don't rush out to spend money to get rid of the diesel. Now that you've sorted the clutch you should get several years of service (provided you do normal maintenance).
You do 40 miles a day and that should be enough to get it warmed up so that you get the economy advantage of diesels. On the other hand, if that 40 miles consists of two school runs, 10 miles each way, morning and evening, that might not be enough to get the diesel warm enough. It takes about 15 miles for the lubricating oil to warm up fully.
Your biggest potential problem is the DPF (diesel particulate filter) which is a type of filter in the exhaust. It traps soot in the exhaust and needs to "regenerate" itself every now and then. This means that it cleans itself by burning off the soot and it can only do that at high temperatures. If your DPF fails to regenerate it will eventually clog up and it could cost £1,000 to get it sorted.
I have a diesel BMW that gives me incredible economy, 60MPG at 80 70+MPH on the motorway. However I use it mainly for long journeys and I have an old petrol Nissan for hacking around town.
In your case I think if you can buy a diesel car less than three years old and sell it before it's six years old, you should be OK, with two important provisos: it must be well serviced and it must get a continuous long run (25+ miles) every few weeks.
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