VW Golf TSI servicing
Discussion
I have a 2018 Golf 1.4 TSI, recently extended a package with VW that includes major and minor service, 2 MOT's and 2 year warranty for peace for mind.
At a recent service, was told the rear brake pads were 90% worn, no hard sell tactics and they were transparent that their costs would be a fair bit higher than using a local garage. So I've decided to have the rear pads changed by a local garage.
However the main dealer have also said the timing belt is due imminently based on VW's guidance for my model at 5 years old (current mileage just under 30k). Their quote is just over £1k which is hefty, they said it's gone up a fair bit since COVID and a 10% discount is viable though that still means its 900 quid plus...
So my connundrum; if I use a non-main dealer to have the timing belt done, I save money but it may invalidate my warranty if anything goes wrong afterwards e.g: VW will say sorry you didn't use one of our main dealers so can't help you. Or do I take the hit this time and then once the current package runs out at some point in the next 2 years then just use indies for servicing?
Fwiw, I own the car outright and planning to hold onto it for quite a while having purchased it at 3 years old.
At a recent service, was told the rear brake pads were 90% worn, no hard sell tactics and they were transparent that their costs would be a fair bit higher than using a local garage. So I've decided to have the rear pads changed by a local garage.
However the main dealer have also said the timing belt is due imminently based on VW's guidance for my model at 5 years old (current mileage just under 30k). Their quote is just over £1k which is hefty, they said it's gone up a fair bit since COVID and a 10% discount is viable though that still means its 900 quid plus...
So my connundrum; if I use a non-main dealer to have the timing belt done, I save money but it may invalidate my warranty if anything goes wrong afterwards e.g: VW will say sorry you didn't use one of our main dealers so can't help you. Or do I take the hit this time and then once the current package runs out at some point in the next 2 years then just use indies for servicing?
Fwiw, I own the car outright and planning to hold onto it for quite a while having purchased it at 3 years old.
If it's the same as the timing belt on my 1.5 tsi it's not like a normal one and only some places can do it.
You need a laptop and a special device on my car, plus the training to operate it.
As it's only every 5 years, I plan to get mine done at the main dealer - I'll only need one in the life of the car due to my high mileage and don't want any issues if I need a warranty claim or to seek goodwill from VW.
The difference between a VW main dealer and independent is a few hundred £. Over the life of the car it isn't much.
The VW package of the two services and warranty is good, I plan to take one out next year when my current service plan/warranty expire.
Once a car reaches 6 years old you can't have a VW extended warranty anymore and goodwill payments won't exist, so could go to an independent then with no issues if you were planning to keep the car a long time.
You need a laptop and a special device on my car, plus the training to operate it.
As it's only every 5 years, I plan to get mine done at the main dealer - I'll only need one in the life of the car due to my high mileage and don't want any issues if I need a warranty claim or to seek goodwill from VW.
The difference between a VW main dealer and independent is a few hundred £. Over the life of the car it isn't much.
The VW package of the two services and warranty is good, I plan to take one out next year when my current service plan/warranty expire.
Once a car reaches 6 years old you can't have a VW extended warranty anymore and goodwill payments won't exist, so could go to an independent then with no issues if you were planning to keep the car a long time.
Edited by Whataguy on Wednesday 5th July 11:49
Whataguy said:
Once a car reaches 6 years old you can't have a VW extended warranty anymore
"All In" needs to be renewed before the car is 6yrs old so can run to just under 8yrs old. It's just about to expire on wife's Tiguan - the dealer somehow managd to apply it the day before it was 6yrs old even though my reading of the scheme was that they shouldn't have been able to do that as it already had extended warranty.I don't know what the limit is for the exteneded warranty on its own, but I was able to get a quote the other day for the Tiguan, but it was almost a grand (there might be cheaper options - I think I went for 'everything' one).
Re the cambelt - I'm not sure but isn't it only the 1.5 that's very expensive? Although maybe it's any model with ACT.
The dealers seem to have gone mad - someone on a Tiguan forum I use just paid £1200 for belt and pump on a diesel, I paid £499 3yrs ago at the dealer, which was 10% off the fixed price of £549 at the time.
The whole cambelt change thing in the UK is very frustrating - I got into an email conversation with someone in VW Germany and he seemed baffled by why I would want to change it based on time. When I said VW UK tell owners to do it he stopped responding!
Sheepshanks said:
"All In" needs to be renewed before the car is 6yrs old so can run to just under 8yrs old.
Thanks, frustratingly on my car the current warranty expires when the car is just over 4.5 years old, so I can extend it to 6.5 years but not beyond that.I will be up around 90/100k miles then, so it would have been good to get coverage for another two years but there are would have been likely to be many wear/tear exclusions due to miles.
Thanks guys, Il look into an indie but whether they are 'VW-Approved' is another question so am swaying towards just using the same main dealer for peace of mind.
In the grand scheme of things, I paid a reasonable price for the car 2 years back from a main dealer with full VW history, 2 year warranty etc the prices since then went absolutely bonkers for similar age/spec cars so the belt will be a pricey hit but guess it all balances. Does anyone know of the water pump will also be another significant item that needs to be changed soon?
Interestingly VW say my Aircon regas is due soon....local garage can't help apparently as my golf uses the 'new gas'......
In the grand scheme of things, I paid a reasonable price for the car 2 years back from a main dealer with full VW history, 2 year warranty etc the prices since then went absolutely bonkers for similar age/spec cars so the belt will be a pricey hit but guess it all balances. Does anyone know of the water pump will also be another significant item that needs to be changed soon?
Interestingly VW say my Aircon regas is due soon....local garage can't help apparently as my golf uses the 'new gas'......
I think this will come down to the realistic life you expect to get from the car, for your own purposes.
The timing belts themselves are advertised as "lifetime" by manufacturers and in technical publicity materials for engines like the EA211.
The VAG UK brands' advice for replacement at either 4 or 5 years or 200,000km, whichever is soonest, is therefore considered very conservative. VAG brands in other European markets advise to check after 200,000km by inspecting the full length of the belt periodically from that time, with a reduction to 120,000km for high dust conditions. There are loads of threads about this online and the consensus is that it's a personal choice.
I am always happy when I buy a used car that has had the cambelt replaced, but it's a bonus and in my experience makes little difference to trade prices. I'd therefore only do it myself if it was a car I was likely to keep for some years.
I replaced the belt on my 2013 VW Transporter EA189 2.0 TDI in 2018 at 45k miles. It's now on 62k miles and theoretically due, but I will leave it for several more years before I consider changing again.
My 2016 VW Golf GTD EA211 2.0 TDI had its belt replaced by a previous owner in 2021 at 39k miles. It's now on 53k miles and I don't think I would replace again in 2026 unless I expected to get many more years from it.
The timing belts themselves are advertised as "lifetime" by manufacturers and in technical publicity materials for engines like the EA211.
The VAG UK brands' advice for replacement at either 4 or 5 years or 200,000km, whichever is soonest, is therefore considered very conservative. VAG brands in other European markets advise to check after 200,000km by inspecting the full length of the belt periodically from that time, with a reduction to 120,000km for high dust conditions. There are loads of threads about this online and the consensus is that it's a personal choice.
I am always happy when I buy a used car that has had the cambelt replaced, but it's a bonus and in my experience makes little difference to trade prices. I'd therefore only do it myself if it was a car I was likely to keep for some years.
I replaced the belt on my 2013 VW Transporter EA189 2.0 TDI in 2018 at 45k miles. It's now on 62k miles and theoretically due, but I will leave it for several more years before I consider changing again.
My 2016 VW Golf GTD EA211 2.0 TDI had its belt replaced by a previous owner in 2021 at 39k miles. It's now on 53k miles and I don't think I would replace again in 2026 unless I expected to get many more years from it.
I don't drive a lot (circa 6k miles a year), putting aside whether that could be worse or better for the belt, I do plan to keep the car for quite a few years as it does the job and is our sole family car for now.
So...I may just get it done....slightly frustrating as it's been marked as Red on the recent minor service so guess will have to get it done to cover myself from a warranty/good will perspective.
So...I may just get it done....slightly frustrating as it's been marked as Red on the recent minor service so guess will have to get it done to cover myself from a warranty/good will perspective.
Narrowing it down further then, perhaps it depends on how long you plan for the car to be under warranty and specifically for that to cover a cambelt failure?
Is it worth continuing warranty cover, and what scenario are you insuring against? Much of the normal wear and tear any car is likely to experience in the 5-10 year age bracket is unlikely to be covered by warranty / insurance. It is helpful for catastrophic failures of course, but as you are finding it does come with stipulations that don't suit everyone.
A 1.4 TSI Mk7 Golf is a very common car with good quality parts availability, community knowledge and reliability.
Without wanting to be a kiss of death to mine or your car's reliability (!), I think a combination of independent servicing / maintenance and self-insuring is likely a lot cheaper than VW franchise care and a branded warranty that effectively amounts to a third party insurance policy with common exclusions.
Is it worth continuing warranty cover, and what scenario are you insuring against? Much of the normal wear and tear any car is likely to experience in the 5-10 year age bracket is unlikely to be covered by warranty / insurance. It is helpful for catastrophic failures of course, but as you are finding it does come with stipulations that don't suit everyone.
A 1.4 TSI Mk7 Golf is a very common car with good quality parts availability, community knowledge and reliability.
Without wanting to be a kiss of death to mine or your car's reliability (!), I think a combination of independent servicing / maintenance and self-insuring is likely a lot cheaper than VW franchise care and a branded warranty that effectively amounts to a third party insurance policy with common exclusions.
DanSkoda said:
Audi just sent a bulletin out yesterday saying the 5 year interval recommendation has been scrapped and from now on dealers are to follow the factory intervals on the service schedule.
Just saw on the Tiguan forum someone saying his car was booked in for cambelt change next week and the dealer called and cancelled it!There's now a discussion in the thread where people are saying he really ought to get it done regardless. Must admit I'd be nervous as we've ben so brainwasked by VW saying it was vital, plus I had a Vx Cavalier that broke its belt 3 times - once leaving me in the central reservation of the M62.
The Cardinal said:
Narrowing it down further then, perhaps it depends on how long you plan for the car to be under warranty and specifically for that to cover a cambelt failure?
Is it worth continuing warranty cover, and what scenario are you insuring against? Much of the normal wear and tear any car is likely to experience in the 5-10 year age bracket is unlikely to be covered by warranty / insurance. It is helpful for catastrophic failures of course, but as you are finding it does come with stipulations that don't suit everyone.
A 1.4 TSI Mk7 Golf is a very common car with good quality parts availability, community knowledge and reliability.
Without wanting to be a kiss of death to mine or your car's reliability (!), I think a combination of independent servicing / maintenance and self-insuring is likely a lot cheaper than VW franchise care and a branded warranty that effectively amounts to a third party insurance policy with common exclusions.
I think biggest concerns would be any issues with the 1.4 TSI engine...though mine is a 125 and not aware of any major issues for this variant? I also have DSG, the maindealer said mine is a 'for life' variant or whatever the correct terminology is and is not due an oil change based on VW guidance. Timing belt is important though, if it wasn't changed and engine went kaput the VW technician mentioned it's a £10k replacement?! (Assuming that's 'Vw' prices)Is it worth continuing warranty cover, and what scenario are you insuring against? Much of the normal wear and tear any car is likely to experience in the 5-10 year age bracket is unlikely to be covered by warranty / insurance. It is helpful for catastrophic failures of course, but as you are finding it does come with stipulations that don't suit everyone.
A 1.4 TSI Mk7 Golf is a very common car with good quality parts availability, community knowledge and reliability.
Without wanting to be a kiss of death to mine or your car's reliability (!), I think a combination of independent servicing / maintenance and self-insuring is likely a lot cheaper than VW franchise care and a branded warranty that effectively amounts to a third party insurance policy with common exclusions.
My current 2 year plan was started in April so I will run with it to April 2025, major items will have VW do them and items such as tyres/brakes will have them done at Indies. Once the current plan ends will find a good indie.
stevemcs said:
The 1.4/1.5 personally i'd be brave enough to leave, the 2.0 TDi i would be changing every 4 years.
Are you seeing any of the 3cyl 1.0 yet? We've got one of those in the family about to turn 5yrs old (done 60K miles)..
I'm amazed at the Tiguan forum poster saying the dealer called him to cancel the job next week. I wonder if there's something else going on - maybe one of the parts is in short supply or something? Or perhaps they're seeing a bunch of failures just after the job's been done.
My wife's got a 2013 1.4tsi act Golf and I got the cam belt changed at my local garage (Volvo specialist) about 5 years ago, so its probably due again. They never mentioned any problems or needing special tools when changing it, although we didn't get the water pump changed at the time because of some issue that I've forgotten.
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