[volkswagendude]

Actually not unusual at all. Every single VW I have owned, from Golf lll, to B5.5 Passat, Jetta lV and the Touareg have bubbled by the 5-6th year in that vicinity.

I had my Touareg repaired this year in fact, and it was covered under the factory 12 year/unlimited mileage, rust perforation warranty.

 

[volkswagendude]

Yes I see what you are saying. Looking behind the plate and even around the license plate lights is the last place one would inspect, but in fact, it should be the first!

 

[volkswagendude]

Called the dealership. They said a hole has to be present. Bubbling doesn't count. Sigh....

This is not the case here. In my neighborhood, a mature bubble counts as perforation. I have made 3 successful claims on my Touareg thus far. Behind the license plate, one small bubble below the door handle, and one lower corner of the door, leading edge.

I've been very satisfied with VW honouring their perforation warranty.
In fact so much so, this might be the defining reason why I'll go back to VW on my next vehicle purchase.

I'm the type of individual to remember the good, as opposed to remembering one bad, and forever making a big fuss of it.

 

[volkswagendude]

Rovi, I remember way in the beginning hearing the same thing. "I don't think it will get approved, but worth a shot". The way it works here is, they at the dealer, snap a pic of the bubble and surrounding area, and send it to the VW head regional. They are the ones who decide, not the dealer. I'm wondering if it is the same with you guys?

It would be great if you could post a pic of the bubble on here. I'm curious to see how mature it is.

 

[volkswagendude]

Dude, that's a lot!!!!!


Mine was at the same spot, but 1cm higher up. I also had 1/2-2/3 less than yours. They covered it with absolutely no hesitation!

Best of luck, hope your local VW representative owns up to this. Seeing a $60000+ vehicle on the road with a bubble like yours is bad advertising for VW IMHO. It would be in there best interest to fix it ASAP.

 

[volkswagendude]

LOL @ albeit small....yeah whatever..

I feel confident that they will cover it.

If that ain't perforation, than I don't know what I ain't. I mean, if you take a fine screw driver, and put a few pounds of pressure on that bubble with the palm of your hand, it will go right through!.

The other side of the sheet metal in that particular location is toast. That is what the perforation warranty is all about. Inside-out, not outside-in.

AND oh, BTW, if you let it go too long, there are VW dealerships out there that would pull the "neglect' card on you.

You have some VW dealerships saying it's too early to repair, and others that would say you neglected it. Follow what I'm sayin'?

 

[volkswagendude]

So okay,


Say the local rep says no because he's a prick.

What's my recourse?

I'll be very honest with you, as to what I would do, no word of a lie.

If this were to happen to me, where the regional VW head office would refuse my claim, I would first send out a nice letter to them, then I would never buy a VW ever again. Then, I would simply go out of my way for the next 10 years, to notify everyone and anyone, on how the 12 year/unlimited mileage perforation warranty is just a scam.

Thankfully, the above is just fiction, and VW's 12 year warranty truly is in fact, the best in the business. At least here in my neck of the woods it is. The problem seems to be amateurs representing the company at the service technical end. I hope that you guys there have the same module of how things work as we do here. By module I mean a VW head office with professionals, who know what is. I have zero complaints with VW head office here, and would in fact buy a VW again, do to my satisfaction with them. These are the things that count big points with me. Not how I get treated during an oil change.

Here's to hoping the same holds true where you live.

 

[volkswagendude]

When you say inside of your rear doors, do you mean under the sheet metal, or simply on the surface? Any painted body panel applies to the perforation warranty, but the rust must begin from the other side of the sheet metal, not the surface (like a stone chip turning to rust ). The latter would disqualify.

 

[volkswagendude]

No, it shouldn't be, as I'm not the original owner of mine either. However, don't add fuel to the small fire by going out of your way to tell them this.
You love your ride, present your Touareg nice and clean to them, as though you care about it(which I do hope in fact that you do), and they should treat you fairly.

Make no mistake, if you present them with a 10 year old Jetta, rusting and bubbling everywhere, and you are the 3rd owner, don't expect them to cover anything. Hell, I'm sure if you are even the original owner, and present them with an 11 year old rust bucket, with one more year until warranty expiration, they will laugh you off the lot. Just sayin', there is a level of common sense here that for sure is taken into account in the decision making process.

I don't want to brag, but mine is one of the cleanest, nicest Touareg's in the region. When I take mine to the VW dealership for whatever reason, the techs run out and in awe at the sound and condition of my ride. Their zzzzzzzz 2012- 2013 T3 TDI's take a back seat to my modded 05 V8 upon arrival .

 

[volkswagendude]

No joke at all, is it just me or does it seem like these Reps are always on vacation? Lol

 

[volkswagendude]

One other place to look for rust on older Touaregs, as I have just discovered, is the rear anti-roll bar.

They snap clean in two!!

Duuuuude, do you live by the Ocean??

The UK dude with Air Suspension corrosion nipple problem, did in fact live by the ocean. Not only that, he admitted they salted the roads in that region on those days..

Bad and rare combination that for any vehicle!

 

[volkswagendude]

Alas they are right.

They pulled the back interior panel off and there is very clearly zero rust occurring from the inside out.

Time to call some body shops.

Well at least now we know....This is also a learning experience to all who are reading this thread as well.

Not quite the happy ending, but at least there is now closure.

 

[volkswagendude]

The second owner is bull... It does not matter. My VW dealer stated that the rust warranty is cover only if the rust is through with a hole. I recall this being a 10 year rust warranty by VW. I suggest asking to speak to a regional VW rep as the original manufacture warranty applies the current owner of the vehicle. I am a second owner and have never had any pushback on warranty coverage.

12 year/unlimited mileage.

They should really repair it as soon as it is an official bubble. It's always been the case with my experiences here. If you take a sharp object and push with some hand force on bubbling sheet metal, more often than not, it will puncture and you will have a hole. Waiting for the bubble to actually become a hole could take years on its own, all depending...

As long as it's not a bubble caused by stone chips from the outside, the dealer should honour the repair, otherwise, IMHO, it's all false advertising.

Of course, there are the classic cases where a dude buys a used 10 year old Jetta, with 30 bubbles on it, and presents this to the dealer. Make no mistake, in that instance, they will laugh you off the lot.