ComplaintsforVolkswagen of Alamo Heights

• Initial Complaint

  04/23/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Purchased a 2021 VW with Certified pre-owned warranty within the last 4 months, before I arrived home 3 hours away there was already a $1000 headlight that needed to be replaced. Within 1 month the *** light, check engine light, and sputtering began happening. The car rough idled and jerked when trying to go over 50mph. I called to request repair and even selling the car back just for what I owe and they wouldn't help. They said that they could only pay off my car if I bought another one from there for $300 more than I pay currently a month.

  

  Business response

  06/18/2024

  ********,

   

  We understand your concerns and sympathize with you.  This vehicle went through and passed Volkswagen's certification process.  As part of that inspection the vehicle is checked for both safety and mechanical issues.  Unfortunately, I am unable to speak to the headlight issue that you encountered on your way home there was nothing notated by my service technician about an issue with the headlights.  While every effort is made to ensure that every vehicle we sell is inspected and held to the highest of standards, unfortunately there are sometimes things that happen after the sale that cannot be predicted.  Thankfully this vehicle was Certified which means that if there was an EPC issue or Check Engine light that came on then that would more than likely be covered by the Certified Preowned Warranty.  We would be more than happy to revisit the idea of taking that vehicle back on trade in and trying to get you a new vehicle if you would like but, I cannot say for sure whether or not the payment would go up and if so by how much.  Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or if you would like us to see what we might be able to do for you as far as a trade in.  Thank you for being a valued customer.

• Initial Complaint

  03/12/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I bought a 2018 **** Focus on February 19, 2024 at Volkswagen of Alamo Heights. It broke down on me on March 02, 2024 (Possible transmission issues). I had it towed to Volkswagen on March 04, 2024--I was not given a loaner vehicle due to not being a premium customer. My car is now waiting to get diagnosed (which will take up to 2-3 weeks) not including repairs. I've asked Volkswagen to help with a loaner vehicle or to pay for repairs since it's within the 30 days of purchase; however, they have not responded in assisting me. This has caused such an inconvenience financially and mentally and would like to get refunded the vehicle and put this issue behind me and not have to deal with Volkswagen or ***** ever again.

  

  Business response

  06/18/2024

   ******,

   

  We appreciate you bringing your issues to our attention.  We have already assisted in getting the vehicle repaired however, I would still like to address your concerns.  You purchased a preowned 2018 **** Focus from us on February 19, 2024.  Our business office offered you an opportunity to purchase an extended service contract that you declined.  Unfortunately, we cannot provide loaner vehicles for non-warranty repairs on non-VW vehicles as Volkswagen of America's Loaner programs restricts that.  If you would have taken advantage of an extended service contract, then that would have provided you a rental car for covered repairs.  As of today, the work on your vehicle has long been completed and I hope that you are still enjoying your **** Focus.  If you have any questions or need anything else going forward feel free to contact me directly.

   

• Initial Complaint

  10/23/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We took our son's vehicle to Alamo Heights Volkswagen on March 8, 2023 for repair. The vehicle would lose complete acceleration power, the engine would continue to run. The service ***** called and said that after their diagnostic check we needed a new turbo installed. Turbo was replaced, and vehicle was fixed and ready for pickup. I picked up the vehicle and drove a couple of miles down the road and the vehicle malfunctioned again with the same issue we took the vehicle in for. I took vehicle back, after several weeks they called and said the vehicle was ready for pick up. This time they said that their diagnostic check said that the "gateway control module" was bad. I was not notified about this module repair until I went to pick up the vehicle. After several days the vehicle malfunctioned again for the same thing. Again the vehicle was in the shop for several weeks. I was then notified that the vehicle was ready for pickup. The service manager said they had replaced the *** (engine control module) I was not notified about the part being replaced until I picked up the vehicle. A few weeks went by and the vehicle again, malfunctioned for the same exact issue. Took vehicle back, after a couple of weeks, I was called that the vehicle was ready for pickup. The service technician said that the service manager had called Onion creek VW in ****** to see if any wiring work was done. The service manager had worked an issue with some wire bundle which they figured was the issue. After two weeks, vehicle malfunctioned again for the same issue. I called service manager on Monday October 16, 2023 and voiced my concerns about the vehicle. Service manager told me he could not fix the vehicle, and would call me back on a conference call, never called. To this day I have not heard from him. To be fair to all parties, I feel we are owed a refund and insist that they refund half of the money paid, this vehicle is not safe for anyone to drive.

  

  Business response

  11/29/2023

  Good Afternoon , we have met with Mr. and ***************** and come to agreement that has satisfied all parties . The ****** did spend quite a bit of money on the 2014 Jetta in our shop . The car would run for a while before it would die out again after several thousand miles . We did a few repairs after the fact at no charge as well with no success . 

  Both parties agreed that it was neither in their best interest or ours to try keep repairing a car with "Ghost " issues . No amount of money or time would guarantee that everyone could feel like the mechanical would not come back .

  We purchased the car from the ******** at an agreed upon amount and sent the car to auction . 

  I believe both parties were satisfied with the outcome . 

  *****************************

   

   

   

   

   

   

  Customer response

  11/29/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  01/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Oct 4 my son lost his keys. Locksmith rekeyed the ignition to the 2011 VW GTI. After rekeying, the car started, drove a few feet & stalled. On Oct 5, called VW & asked if we could tow car for diagnosis. Was told this was a security issue w the aftermarket key & easy fix. Confirmed car arrived. Was never called so I followed up & they said they did not have my car. After a few hours they found it. Had never been checkedin. Paid $400 for new key. A few days later, key rec'd & after programming they said the car needed a new instrument cluster but would be hard to find due to supply issues. Estimate of approx $3k to START. I was told their highly trained VW mechanics were confident they would find additional issues. Service advisor suggested we scrap the car & buy a new one because this was a total loss. Said they would confirm when a panel was located but they were out of production due to ************* A few days later they asked if I had made a decision. I was still waiting on whether a panel was available. At this point, after being told the fix would be an additional $3k to START, we decided to buy a new car & sell to a scrap yard. Towed the car home until scrap yard could pick up for $500. Bought a new car (another dealer). A few days later my 18 year old, non-mechanic son went to push the car out of the way & decided to research the issue. He managed to RECONNECT a few disconnected wires & the *** STARTED! The only thing wrong was the locksmith didn't correctly reconnect the ************** HIGHLY TRAINED HEAD MECHANIC SAID it COULD NOT BE FIXED! We were forced to buy a new car we didn't need, based on their insistence this car was not repairable. The $400 key didn't even work but the locksmith key that shouldn't have due to "security issues" did. I called the ******* acted like this was no big deal & he never even offered an apology. Was supposed to call me back w a resolution but never did. Had secretary issue refund. Still waiting on an apology.

  

  Business response

  02/01/2023

  To Whom It May ******** much of  Mrs's ******* statement is correct and we understand her frustration. We did recommend an instrument cluster for her GTI . That was based on our shop ********* recommendation, but he was unaware that someone had been already working on the cluster and had disconnected the cluster. That is not what we usually see when someone brings in a car for a key issue.  We did not diagnose the new key , the customer ordered the key through the parts department. We agree that it was a bad situation for the customer, and we had four or five conversations with the customer after the fact. We offered to refund of all her money spent in our service department and parts department. We did offer to help in any other way possible, short of paying for the car she bought at another dealership. 

  We understand that she was in a time crunch with her son moving out of state , but we had no part in their decision to purchase a vehicle . 

  Customer response

  02/01/2023

  Complaint: 18659630
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  The dealership absolutely did know about the situation with the locksmith working on the car. I called them before I even arranged for the car to be taken to them to explain what happened. The tech told me that this "happens all the time when people get a locksmith to reprogram the key, as it is a security feature."  I then spoke with w a 2nd service advisor when the 1st one "lost" my car by not logging it into the system. I explained the situation to him. Once my car was back with the actual mechanic, the advisor called me again with some additional questions about what happened.  So they were FULLY aware of what transpired that brought me to this place to begin with.   The service advisor was the person who called me and said his LEAD mechanic stated this car was a total loss and would not be repaired.  He then went on to say, that at this point, our only option was to scrap the car and purchase a new one.  This WOULD have NEVER happened had a reasonably intelligent mechanic or SERVICE MANAGER knew what they were doing.  My 18 year old, inexperienced son figured it out in less than 15 minutes. 
  

  With that said, I am not surprised they lied in response to my complaint.  It adds insult to injury.  We did not have multiple conversations about a resolution. We spoke once initially and then again, WHEN I CALLED THEM back after not getting a call back that was promised.  At that point the ** promised to call me the following day, after he decided how they could proceed. He never called. They should have offered to buy back the car I purchased and they can take the loss on what they are able to sell it for.  That would have been the "sorry" apologetic thing to do.  Please beware of this scam of a business.   If anyone wants to buy a 2016 Jeep Patriot please let me know. SMH
  

  
  Regards,
  
  ***************************

• Initial Complaint

  07/22/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 4/28/22 our 2013 VW Passat was towed to the Volkswagen of Alamo Heights dealership for our appointment on 4/29/22. We were called by our VW rep, and told the water pump was in need of repair. *** issue was okayed for repair and on 5/11/2022 a Volkswagen employee was involved a traffic accident while test driving our car after repairs. We were told that they would repair it and there was nothing for us to worry about their insurance would take it. Months passed and the dealership's rep and manager often did not return our calls or give updates, we often had to drive 46 miles to speak with them. Twice I asked if they would park the car in the shade due to the fact that is was over 100 degrees almost everyday. We were denied. 7/1/22 we were called and told the car was ready for pickup. *** car was waxed and it looked very shiny. We asked to test drive the car with VW rep. *** alignment was completely off and that was new. *** service center fixed the alignment while we waited. *** car was waxed and shiny when we picked it up. We drove the car 46 minutes home and heard a weird scrapping sound while driving, pulled over and the front driver's side engine panel was rubbing on the ground. We tucked it back up and drive home but it fell back down. When we got home we realized the majority of the engine protection panel under the car was missing, since then both wheel covers (which should be connected to the center the panel have fallen and need to be duct taped into place to hold them up due to the missing center engine panel. Also, there were scratches on the rim of the front passenger tire. When I looked at the pictures of the car at the dealership after the accident, I realized the dealership rotated my tires (without permission) to hide the damaged rim. As the wax wore off the paint is flaking on both rear view mirrors and there are scratches on the back bumper of the car. ***re is also cracking in the dashboard and bubbling tint on 3 of the 6 windows.

  

  Business response

  08/01/2022

  To Whom it May ************* , attached is our response .

   

  Customer response

  08/03/2022

  Complaint: 17609994
  
  I am rejecting this response because: The reason in the letter from VW to rotate our tires without our knowledge or approval was "in order to make the vehicle track straight". Yet, in the same letter VW admits to the Passat needing the alignment after we test drove the car together. So this leaves us still with the thought that they are either unable to thoroughly check after repairs or not honest with why it was done. They also ignored complaints of the other windows bubbling, the mirror paint bubbling, the dashboard cracking after admitting it was parked in the sun for 2 months. Either way, we agree that they should replace the rim and the back scratches, and possibly the underside of the car. We sent pictures of the missing under panel the car if they wanted to see it. Due to their admitted aversion of fixing the clearly damaged rim, we have reason to not feel comfortable with the care provided by the dealership and would like to have a third party look at repairs to the car.
  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************

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