We recently went to France to see friends for the new year. Before we got half way to our destination past Rouen our Volkswagen Passat broke down, just cut out completely in a very busy part of the French motorway, thankfully a break down truck managed to get us off within 30 minutes.This added another 4 hours to our journey where upon friends had to drive out to us over 90 minute journey for them whilst we also had to transfer all our belongings to there car. Our holiday was ruined because of the distance from the garage to our friends. We had no car throughout the holiday. After New Year when we had to come back to the VW garage and we were charged nearly a £1000, we paid it because we needed the Passat back to get home. Within less then an hour the same thing happened our VW Passat just stopped and broke down like before. This time it was in a most dangerous hot spot where upon the the French police turned up from no where and physically lifted us over barriers whilst cordening off part of the motorway and flagging traffic into a single lane ( traumatic was not the word )
The police then showed us all the diesel that was pouring out of our VW Passat all up the motorway, i mean we had just paid just under £1000 pounds to fix it. We were towed again to another garage and we had to get back to England by Ferry and hire car which took us nearly 2 days. We asked Volkswagen UK if they would re patriotize our Passat back to the UK to save us any more grief and they refused, we explained to them that they never let us know that our Volkswagen Passat was one of the Passats that were recalled for dodgy fuel injectors because unless someone complains Volkswagen UK do not let you know individually that you are driving with dangerous fuel injectors. Anyhow I had to fly back to Paris get a hire car and drive all the way to this garage to pick up our VW Passat. This took me 2 days and an extreme amout of stress. I am writting this because I also informed Volkswagen UK that last year I broke down with the same Passat in Munich and the Volkswagen garage there made such a mess of my car I had to stay in Germany for a week over my holidays. This was the same problem that also happened in France. Volkswagen UK have said all 4 New Injectors have been put in yet i have proof in France that they only changed 2 of them, the only time the Passat has been in another Volkswagen garage was Munich but VW UK say there Munich VW garage did not fit them although we paid around £700 to them also. I asked VW UK after an inspection of the Passat if I have four new injectors fitted after the re call who has fitted the other 2, and do you know what Volkswagen UK have said . . . We have'nt got a clue. The bottom line to this story is are they bothered. Please take out plenty insurance when traveling abroad, don't rely on Volkswagen UK to get you back even when they have recalled faulty Volkswagen parts, and remember you can pay out a fortune to a Volkswagen garage and minutes later the car can break down again. . . so better still get a Toyota or Saab.