That's a terrible failure rate!!Even if the cars were relentlessly thrashed they should last far longer.

I've got an 03 Passat TDI, with 137K on the clock and the original dmf, with no issues at all and I don't exactly baby the car. My wife has also just sold her Mk5 Golf TDI - the dmf started going on that at 110K and was close to the end when we traded it in at 120K. In contrast, my wife is a much more careful driver and gentle with the clutch.

I know it does depend on driving style, but to me it is ongoing evidence of VW cutting the quality of the parts they fit.......but not the prices they charge. Keep going after them - my experience with VW is that you have to keep on at them to get anywhere at all. Too many people are fobbed off and pay up for repairs caused by inferior parts and poor design. I know all manufacturers are having issues with dmf's, but VW's are not cheap cars and you're meant to be buying a quality product.....'meant to' being the operative phrase.

Only this week on the BBC, VW were shown up with the ongoing ESP issue on Mk5 Golfs and Tourans, with them trying charge owners for replacements when it is quite clearly a bad design, and service history is irelevant.

It’s funny how VAG get lambasted over the Siemens G201 pressure sensor ABS pump issue when all sorts of other companies use the same pump and have had the same issue, it is the usual VAG whipping boy syndrome and Honest John is prone to this himself.

Perhaps you will recall that VW ran many adverts stating "If only everything was as reliable as a Volkswagen"

The memory of this campaign, whether conscious or subliminal, is why customers are so upset when their VW fails to meet their expectation. Especially as this expectation is used to justify the price premium over "lesser" brands.

Anyone who expects VW products to be reliable and backed by their maker (as Toyota and Honda do) is seriously naive...

Quite so.

Advertisers and politicians rely on the gullibility of a large percentage of the general public.

Expertise in exploiting this goes back to P T Barnum and beyond.

Excellent Crasher, and quite right too.

From my perspective i don't expect a maker to get everything right every time i expect there to be mistakes and failures that crop up too regularly, its bound to happen no matter how much testing goes on.

For me its how the maker and their dealers treat their customers in the years after warranty expires that make all the difference and turn a brand into a quality brand, thats why Honda and Toyota stand head and shoulders above the rest.

Many buyers only keep their vehicles for the warranty period whether they buy privately or get them as company or lease cars, if they find certain brands given them all they need, even if for a short three year warranty and find the car good for their needs then thats great.

It doesn't always follow that any particular brand will be such a good choice for years 3 to 7 if the maker sticks their head in the sand and deny a problem exists or goodwill help for stricken customers, this where the two Japanese brands lead the way in quality customer care, and *most but not all others lag sadly behind, indeed Toyota president famously apologised for the fall in standards a few years ago and the company continue to astound in ther generous goodwill when high mileage failures of cars well out of warranty arise...compare with customer care from European makers of all hues.

*i don't know about Subaru, buyers complaining about failures or customer care are thin on the ground but then as you mention cars have low sales, indeed the opposite is true whenever Subaru is mentioned owners come forward with nothing but praise so maybe i should include them with Toyota and Honda.

Edited by gordonbennet on 27/01/2013 at 07:17

If VAG are making such a hash of it from all angles, why are they doing so well? The 2L 16 PD TDI is nowhere near as bad as people make out. The sheer number of these engines produced in a mass of different versions is bound to cause a perception of problems because there are so many of them. Granted the oil pump drive/balancer shaft issue on the Passat and A4/A6 was a low point and the Siemens injectors a serious cock up (a third party supplier fault again and Siemens, AGAIN!) and some head leaking issues but compared to the life you would get out of the average VAG engine 20 years ago it is remarkable, we see lots with 200K coming up. I think the worse mistake VAG have made in recent years is following this crazy LongLife servicing idea; it has caused more engine damage than any one single factor I have ever known. At least I think manufacturers in general are beginning to realise you just can’t give people 20K oil change intervals no matter what tricks you try..