[RoadMonkey]

I have previously posted (Volkswagen Polo 1.0L TSI : Official Review) a couple of times in the Polo TSI thread about my troubles but now my troubles have escalated to VW itself so I felt like I should post a summary of my experience and feelings wrt VW in this thread.

Here's a small video of the problem I'm facing :

https://youtu.be/lVBc7WoeDCM

Now, I'm not feeling upset about the problem. It's a BCM failure. Could happen to anyone. We can argue about the likelihood of something like that happening across other brands but that's beside the point. It happens. It also needs to be resolved. My problem was with the "VW experience".

The car started showing problems in the last week of July. We'd just moved to a new city, the dealership is unfamiliar (I'd built personal connections at the prev dealership). I took my car to them on the 31st. They refused to have a look on a Saturday afternoon owing to a lot of piled up work. They said they'll call me with an appointment as soon as they get their scanner. Alright. Then they didn't call or communicate for an entire week. My car was just lying useless with me. No diagnosis, no preliminary checkup, nothing. I dropped a few emails to VW customer care in a passive aggressive tone and within a couple of hours, on a Saturday evening, the dealership sent two technicians to check it. Suddenly it being a Saturday was not an inconvenience. They checked the wiring for rat bites, other wiring issues, nothing seemed to be wrong and asked me to bring it to the dealership on Monday.

So I promptly took it there on Monday, lo and behold, the scanner had arrived. It could've arrived any time, given the town it supposedly came from is ~150 kms away. They diagnosed it as a BCM failure and said I can take my car back, they'll place an order under warranty for BCM replacement. That was on 11th of August and I took my car back on the 12th. I called on 18th to check if there's any update on the BCM and the SA told me there's no update, it'll arrive when it arrives. Wonderful! So my car bought in October 2020 is lying useless, and I can't even know when it'll become useful again.

This has been a particularly unpleasant experience because extensive travel requirements had recently arisen for us. And while we do have a second car ('10 Ritz Zxi), we would've preferred to travel the ~1500kms we had to last week on the newer, better and comfier car. I don't expect a car that won't ever break down, but I do expect it to be brought back to working condition in a timely fashion.

Thankfully my father bought the Zxi variant with airbags and ABS all those years ago, otherwise it would've also meant that we had to travel on the less safe car because the safer car can't be relied on. This brings up the question of, is "safety" worth it if it comes at the price of reliability? My family was against buying anything that's not a Maruti/Honda/Hyundai. I stuck to my guns about wanting a safe, fun to drive vehicle. Now I feel embarrassed to have stuck by my decision of wanting a VW and am definitely going to be hesitant about buying another one in the future. We might be looking to upgrade the Ritz in a few years and Tiguan/Kushaq have just been struck off my list.

Being able to drive a less fun-to-drive car is still better than having a FTD car that you can't even drive.

[Goldenboy]

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

I have previously posted (Volkswagen Polo 1.0L TSI : Official Review) a couple of times in the Polo TSI thread about my troubles but now my troubles have escalated to VW itself so I felt like I should post a summary of my experience and feelings wrt VW in this thread.

Being able to drive a less fun-to-drive car is still better than having a FTD car that you can't even drive.

Thank you for sharing this. Reliability and quick repairs are such important aspects of car ownership. They have become even more important after the pandemic, when we don't want to have to rely on public transport and Ola/Uber. I really hope VW and Skoda work on reducing their repair lead times, because it is simply unacceptable that a new car cannot be used for so much time!

I am fairly certain that if you had a similar issue with Maruti, it would be resolved in a week at the most.

[GTO]

Thanks for sharing, RoadMonkey! Moving your post out to a new thread. A new thread means 100X the views & 100X the visibility in search engines, including Google. Will add to homepage tomorrow .

Was this just after a lockdown in your city? German cars are going berserk in these low voltage times. They absolutely hate weak batteries & low voltage levels for sustained periods. I read somewhere about a technician stating that 50% of the current warning lights & errors on German cars are due to low voltage; in many cases, a battery swap solves the problem. But in others, it leads to permanent electronic part failure.

@ BHPians, if you should spot any good post in an existing thread that deserves its own new thread, please report the post and we'll move it out for greater visibility.

Thank you!

[RoadMonkey]

Originally Posted by Goldenboy

I really hope VW and Skoda work on reducing their repair lead times, because it is simply unacceptable that a new car cannot be used for so much time!

I am fairly certain that if you had a similar issue with Maruti, it would be resolved in a week at the most.

We test drove the Brezza twice, it being a safe offering from MSIL. My father didn't find it a substantial upgrade on the Ritz and it was chalked off. Now after this VW experience, he's considering the Brezza again instead of something else as an upgrade to his Ritz. The experience with VW has definitely reduced our risk appetite with cars

Originally Posted by GTO

Thanks for sharing, RoadMonkey! Moving your post out to a new thread. A new thread means 100X the views & 100X the visibility in search engines, including Google. Will add to homepage tomorrow .

Was this just after a lockdown in your city? German cars are going berserk in these low voltage times. They absolutely hate weak batteries & low voltage levels for sustained periods. I read somewhere about a technician stating that 50% of the current warning lights & errors on German cars are due to low voltage; in many cases, a battery swap solves the problem. But in others, it leads to permanent electronic part failure.

Thank you! Any traction will be very helpful.

No it was not, lockdown ended back in June and the car never went more than 5 days without being driven. I'd in fact driven the car 2k KMs in July itself with extended highway runs. I faced the EPS light and limp mode issue the day after ~400km travel. 4 days later, the emissions light was on and the host of issues I am talking about. I'll take extra care from now on, but we can safely reject low voltage battery being an issue. During the lockdown, my father used to take the car to his office, being an essential worker.

I knew the risk I was taking buying a German car, but I did not expect a company claiming to start its second innings in the country being so lethargic with resolution of said breakdowns.

[fluidicjoy]

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

Now, I'm not feeling upset about the problem. It's a BCM failure. Could happen to anyone. We can argue about the likelihood of something like that happening across other brands but that's beside the point. It happens. It also needs to be resolved. My problem was with the "VW experience".

So I promptly took it there on Monday, lo and behold, the scanner had arrived. It could've arrived any time, given the town it supposedly came from is ~150 kms away. They diagnosed it as a BCM failure and said I can take my car back, they'll place an order under warranty for BCM replacement. That was on 11th of August and I took my car back on the 12th. I called on 18th to check if there's any update on the BCM and the SA told me there's no update, it'll arrive when it arrives. Wonderful! So my car bought in October 2020 is lying useless, and I can't even know when it'll become useful again.

Being able to drive a less fun-to-drive car is still better than having a FTD car that you can't even drive.

I remember reading about your trouble in the 1.0L TSI thread but I was sincerely hoping the problem was already resolved. I was in a similar boat when I bought the car in September and had a windshield damage, but the dealership took literally a month to find the replacement part for our new lot of vehicles. In that case, it wasn't a problem with the dealership, but a problem with the company part allocation to begin with.

In my experience with ordering Volkswagen parts, the dealership usually gets an ETA against your order. For most major dealerships, local parts if available are dispatched in under 3-4 days, while for niche and unavailable parts, the parts portal provides an ETA which is often two dates in a major month. Request for this ETA from the dealer. It should pressure them into making sure the part has been ordered and arrived. Quite often, the dealer does receive parts but they are very quick to even realise it has arrived. This has happened in my case quite a few times. However from experience, it can still take quite a lot of time.

I think there are quite a few other things you can do if you're feeling upto it. You can easily find a similar 6R0 937 087S BCM High (one in my Highline+ TSI AT) locally and swap it under 20 minutes and have everything restored back. There's an excellent thread on this forum already. You can even find a BCM from a scrap car for a few thousand rupees and keep it spare if you wish. That way, you'll at least have a working car that you can drive around, because keeping it lying around can have its own share of complications like rat bites etc.. Have they swapped the BCM and seen if the problem is fixed? In that case swapping the BCM beforehand will also tell you if the diagnosis is 100% correct and the problem is resolved. I hope it indeed is a BCM failure and nothing else, but only trying will confirm this and save potential time if anything else is needed.

It would also be great if you can share the fault codes on ODIS etc. which the dealer technicians recorded so we all can have a look. Just want to say, hang in there mate! This too shall pass.

[RoadMonkey]

Originally Posted by fluidicjoy

dealership usually gets an ETA against your order. For most major dealerships, local parts if available are dispatched in under 3-4 days, while for niche and unavailable parts, the parts portal provides an ETA which is often two dates in a major month. Request for this ETA from the dealer.

I think there are quite a few other things you can do if you're feeling upto it. You can easily find a similar 6R0 937 087S BCM High (one in my Highline+ TSI AT) locally and swap it under 20 minutes and have everything restored back. ... Have they swapped the BCM and seen if the problem is fixed? In that case swapping the BCM beforehand will also tell you if the diagnosis is 100% correct and the problem is resolved. I hope it indeed is a BCM failure and nothing else, but only trying will confirm this and save potential time if anything else is needed.

It would also be great if you can share the fault codes on ODIS etc. which the dealer technicians recorded so we all can have a look. Just want to say, hang in there mate! This too shall pass.

Hello! The dealership had given me ETA of a week, I asked them after said week and the SA said he's got no updates. They've ordered the part and maybe it'll ship from Germany so he can't give dates. I pushed for more but he was unresponsive to any queries I might've had and just kept repeating that they'll tell me as soon as it arrives.

It's going to be hard to find a Polo Highline in my tier 3 city. Doubt anyone's going to let me swap out BCM and see if it works. The dealership didn't tell me much about what they did, the technician I've been in contact with isn't picking up his phone. We had a few emergency health visits scheduled at the time so I could not enquire in detail as to what they'd done and how'd they figure it out.

I also really doubt they'll let me know the fault codes. The technician to use the scanner came from the Patiala dealership and probably went away after diagnosis. I did not expect maintaining a new VW to be this much of a hassle, it was definitely easier at Panipat and I'd built good cordial relations with all their SAs. Maruti technicians have always been forthcoming with me, willing to explain the problem whereas the VW guys have been pretty vague.

I've to start the car every day and take it around for a local run or the battery would die out. Apparently something's not turning off and draining the battery all.the.time. I'm sure this is going to ruin the battery and I'll have to replace it soon.

I hope this is a one off thing and I can enjoy the car in peace for at least 5 more years. If it happens to break down one more time, I'm not sure I'll be able to keep it after that. I'm starting to get worried. All the perks of the car are useless if I can't drive it.

[Storm2.0]

I can understand the predicament you are in OP. I think what's more painful is the embarrassment and the lost opportunities to use this car for long trips.
I suggest you get your vehicle checked at an FNG just to make sure if it's really a BCM or is it just something else.

[sarfraz1997]

Have they inspected the entire CANBUS line? A cut there could be causing all of these issues as well.

[JediKnight]

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

This brings up the question of, is "safety" worth it if it comes at the price of reliability?

The most important safety feature of a car is reliability. An unreliable car is unsafe not matter what its GNCAP score or how many gizmos it has. 6 six airbags wont help if they don't deploy. A 5 start GNCAP score is useless if the car make you and your family, stranded in a remote location in the middle of the night.

[SedanGuy]

I totally relate with you buddy. After years behind Maruti Suzukis and Hyundais, I really wanted an enthusiast vehicle and after a lot of deliberation we decided to buy the Rapid TSI. I bought my Rapid in Jan this year and the very first concern I shared with the SA was about all the after sales horror stories with parts availability and reliability issues. He convinced me by saying that all the parts are now available within a day or two because of the localisation and what not.

Even i faced the EPC issue and had to fight tooth and nail to get a settlement for my issue and ever since I am really worried about the reliability of my car. Its always in the back of mind before a big drive or road trip. Not just the vehicle breaking down, I am also worried about the car sitting in the workshop for long durations. I still believe VAG has to up their game in terms of parts availability before they plan on expanding. Especially when they have ambitious plans of acquiring 5% market share. Hopefully that infrastructure is put in place quickly, considering the hype created by Kushaq and Tiagun.

[RoadMonkey]

Originally Posted by Storm2.0

I can understand the predicament you are in OP. I think what's more painful is the embarrassment and the lost opportunities to use this car for long trips.
I suggest you get your vehicle checked at an FNG just to make sure if it's really a BCM or is it just something else.

The battery's dead now. There are no good FNGs around, none that can handle a VW. All the garages specialise in MS. Yes, I just had an emergency trip yesterday and I shudder to think how stressful my life can become if a VW is the only car I have.

Originally Posted by sarfraz1997

Have they inspected the entire CANBUS line? A cut there could be causing all of these issues as well.

The mechanic inspected as much as he could for cuts of all sorts. They sounded certain about it being a BCM issue.

Originally Posted by JediKnight

The most important safety feature of a car is reliability. An unreliable car is unsafe not matter what its GNCAP score or how many gizmos it has. 6 six airbags wont help if they don't deploy. A 5 start GNCAP score is useless if the car make you and your family, stranded in a remote location in the middle of the night.

Yes, I realise that now. I did not think a brand new car could be unreliable, even if German. I knew that in the long run, a Japnese car would be a better bet but I really did not see this coming. I picked Polo out of Polo/Jazz, I even have a thread on this. I definitely wish I'd succeeded in convincing my mother for a used Honda City CVT.

Originally Posted by SedanGuy

Its always in the back of mind before a big drive or road trip. Not just the vehicle breaking down, I am also worried about the car sitting in the workshop for long durations. I still believe VAG has to up their game in terms of parts availability before they plan on expanding. Especially when they have ambitious plans of acquiring 5% market share.

Yes, exactly. As much as I enjoy the car, that worry of unreliability does not let me enjoy it fully. Now that the resolution is turning out to be painful and long, I wonder whether I'll be able to ever enjoy the car completely. The driving experience isn't the only deciding factor of your car ownership experience. I'll take this as a lesson going forward. Once life gets busier, I won't have the energy and time to get my car's troubles resolved like I can now, I'll also need the car regularly for work. I definitely will not be recommending or considering the Kushaq/Taigun as a primary car to anyone.

Edit: Update! I called the SA, he said they've received the delivery date of BCM as the 30th of August. They'll get it by the 4th of September. They tried the BCM of the demo car in mine and everything worked fine, so the diagnosis is correct.

There is an electrical component which isn't turning off, thereby draining the battery. I'll need to jump start it after not having driven it just for 1 day. The battery is continuously getting drained by something and the SA had no idea why or what it was. Could this be related to the BCM only? Or is this an auxiliary problem?

[Mahven]

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

We might be looking to upgrade the Ritz in a few years and Tiguan/Kushaq have just been struck off my list.

Being able to drive a less fun-to-drive car is still better than having a FTD car that you can't even drive.

And rightfully so, given the hassle Skoda Kushaq customers are facing lately, these 'European Damsel twin' of companies better get their game-plans right.
I would also like to sneak in another point of not to take for granted the customers of New India. We are constantly treated cheaply with infinitesimal and lame updates - All generation Polo lineup so far. I hope someone from Skoda and VW are reading threads like these.

[jetsetgo08]

First of all, an unfortunate ordeal that you are going through for no fault of yours. I will let others pitch in on the advice of getting VW India's attention and resolve the problem at the earliest.

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

This brings up the question of, is "safety" worth it if it comes at the price of reliability? My family was against buying anything that's not a Maruti/Honda/Hyundai.

However, regarding this, my say is that buying the safest car with least amount of electronics intrusion(read base variants, manual Transmission) should help from getting stranded. If one has creature comforts and complex electronics as a priority, they would rather tread the tried and tested route only( make no mistake BCM is by no means a comfort feature).

[RoadMonkey]

Originally Posted by jetsetgo08

However, regarding this, my say is that buying the safest car with least amount of electronics intrusion(read base variants, manual Transmission) should help from getting stranded. If one has creature comforts and complex electronics as a priority, they would rather tread the tried and tested route only( make no mistake BCM is by no means a comfort feature).

Polo is by no means a car one chooses for its "features". I agree with you, and I am a sucker for cars that aren't electronically complex. However, I do need an automatic and opted for the TSI AT precisely because the AT box is from Aisin, Toyota. My first preference would've been a Yaris CVT had my budget allowed me to get one. Failing that, a Honda City CVT.

I am not at all impressed by the snazzy new tech in cars. I just want one that drives well and is mechanically solid. Unfortunately, that's not what the market wants. Cars are competing in the gadget industry now and Tesla has set a benchmark for others to achieve. Given the cult following Tesla has developed, do you blame others for trying to imitate?

[jetsetgo08]

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

Polo is by no means a car one chooses for its "features". I agree with you, and I am a sucker for cars that aren't electronically complex.

How ironic, there is an another thread on TCU failure in a Baleno. So much for reliability.

Originally Posted by RoadMonkey

Given the cult following Tesla has developed, do you blame others for trying to imitate?

Pardon me, if you misunderstood my earlier post. That was written with the intention that you would replace your Ritz in the near future and will help in getting the right balance of features-safety in your next car.