Water held in doors because of bottom seals?

[Jasonpb]

Have exactly the same thing with my Golf R and I thought it was pretty crazy the amount of water that sits there until you open the door, it can't be good for the car especially if you don't often open all the doors to let the water drain out but hey you can only hope VW know what they are doing.

I won't be keeping the car longer than three years but I pitty the poor person who purchases it afterwards. On another note put your window down a day or two later after the cars been washed or it has rained, your window comes back up coated in water, never seen water sit that long in a door before in any of the previous cars I have owned.

[Ryan_R]

After I wash my car there's a bit there which I wipe out with a cloth - I noticed there was a bit more when the car was facing uphill - not a big deal imho as it doesn't happen when raining.

[dente]

On another note put your window down a day or two later after the cars been washed or it has rained, your window comes back up coated in water, never seen water sit that long in a door before in any of the previous cars I have owned.

Are you able to get some video of this? I will test it out next time it rains (if the door isn't needed to be opened before hand) and try and get some video also.

I have recently joined the NRMA to speak to one of their "experts" and they have referred me to a guy called Geoff Senz who is an automotive consultant (great waste of $75). He is able to come out and assess what is happening for a fee of $990.

I explained the issue to him and he said it is definitely not normal, and a "reasonable person" would not expect this to happen on a new car, but he needs to do some tests first to confirm what the issue is.

I don't really have the $990 to put into this, but I will see if it is needed by the Dept of Fair Trading for my case against VW, and if I have to bite the bullet and fork out, I will be putting this as a part of my case and any subsequent claim.

And before anyone says anything, this guy (http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f112...ler-53080.html) was patient and waited and waited and now has been told 4 more weeks of waiting. He should have already been offered a full refund at a minimum, and if he lodged his complaint with Fair Trading sooner, he could have always have cancelled it or put it on hold if a suitable resolution was forthcoming. Unfortunately it hasn't been and for the dealer to ask for the car back and then not waive excess recduction on the hire car etc is gob smacking.

The only person who is going to look out for you is you, and like the original poster said "they (the dealers) are your friend when the cheque is in your hands, but once it is in their hands you're on your own" (or something to that effect).

Making a purchase of this size is about trust. When situations like this happen, you are able to see what the business is about and you can gain more or, in somce cases, lose all trust entirely in the companies you are dealing with. The original poster in the thread above no doubt has and I have lost my trust with Volkswagen because of they way they have handled this situation.

Here are some links:
Guarantees on goods - NSW Fair Trading

In Particular:
For major problems with goods

You can:

* reject the goods and get a refund
* reject the goods and get an identical replacement, or one of similar value if reasonably available, or
* keep the goods and get compensation for the drop in value caused by the problem.

You get to choose, not the supplier or manufacturer.

A major problem with goods is when:

* a reasonable person would not have bought the goods if they had known about the problem. For example, no reasonable person would buy a washing machine if they knew the motor was going to burn out after three months In my case I did not expect water to leak from the doors after rain.

[markwid]

needed by the Dept of Fair Trading for my case against VW

Good luck with this...and sarcasm is intended.

[REXman]

Do I like my GOLF? Yes I do. Do I think its acceptable that they leak water, cant handle having the back windows or your ear drums will blow out, and that the DSG misses gears here and there?

None of the cars I have ever bought, driven or ridden in, have ever done these things.. and some were bombs!

Power to you, and if there is a resolution, you are the man!

[dave_r]

cant handle having the back windows or your ear drums will blow out

This seems to be a common fault. I had BA, BAII and FG XR6's and they all did that. It was made funnier in the press material that fraud went on about how they had some super great wind tunnel testing facility. The photos were impressive but I suspect none of the fraud nonengineers knew how to turn it on.

[Corey_R]

Here are some links:
Guarantees on goods - NSW Fair Trading

In Particular:
For major problems with goods

You can:

* reject the goods and get a refund
* reject the goods and get an identical replacement, or one of similar value if reasonably available, or
* keep the goods and get compensation for the drop in value caused by the problem.

You get to choose, not the supplier or manufacturer.

Please note that these are the new Australian Consumer Law which replaces the previous Commonwealth, State and Territory consumer protection legislation in fair trading acts and the Trade Practices Act 1974. The new law incorporates best practice from existing State and Territory legislation.

Please note that this only includes goods purchased from 1 January 2011.

The dealer in the other case you mentioned is working to the laws they are supposed to...

[Cossor]

After I wash my car there's a bit there which I wipe out with a cloth - I noticed there was a bit more when the car was facing uphill - not a big deal imho as it doesn't happen when raining.

Good wake up call
Include CHECK the rear doors, after washing!!
Also after driving in wet weather. (No comment re recent downpours and floods!)
So a small inspection required, as BLOCKED drainholes are a major cause of rust in doors.
Drainholes ARE there because no window seal is perfect, and this is not a reflection on system design.

[Ryan_R]

Slightly related - has anyone found that when they open the tailgate they find that the car gets quite dirty where the rear bumber meets the bottom of the hatch? Sorry it's a bit hard to describe - the horizontal metal bit just near the lip of the boot that you can't see when the tailgate is closed. When I wash the car, I open all the doors to make sure these hidden areas are clean and dry.

[Corey_R]

Slightly related - has anyone found that when they open the tailgate they find that the car gets quite dirty where the rear bumber meets the bottom of the hatch? Sorry it's a bit hard to describe - the horizontal metal bit just near the lip of the boot that you can't see when the tailgate is closed. When I wash the car, I open all the doors to make sure these hidden areas are clean and dry.

Yeah... does that on each of the many hatchback's I've owned over the decades...

[gldgti]

I've yet to see a wind-up window that doesn't let water inside the door — for this reason doors normally have protection (usually a bit of cheap plastic film) to keep water off the interior trim, and one or two holes to let the water drain out over the sill.

To this extent your dealer and VW are correct, but this draining should be continuous — not just when the door is opened.

Just checked mine and it has two drain holes in each door — when the doors are shut these holes are between the lower rubber strip and the door seal, so if you have a tight seal on the lower strip (have you had the doors adjusted because of wind noise, or do the doors actually contact the sill?) then the water will accumulate in/under the door until either it seeps into the car or the door is opened.

Incidentally, I've seen lower door panels eaten out by tinworm because the drain holes were either non-existent or blocked, so it's a good idea to check them now and then.

If you don't get anywhere with VW, a fairly simple cure might be to glue a small strip of thin neoprene to the lower seal either side of each drain hole to make a channel for water to escape.

HURRAH - someone with some common sense! Best post!

[Jasonpb]

Are you able to get some video of this? I will test it out next time it rains (if the door isn't needed to be opened before hand) and try and get some video also.

I have recently joined the NRMA to speak to one of their "experts" and they have referred me to a guy called Geoff Senz who is an automotive consultant (great waste of $75). He is able to come out and assess what is happening for a fee of $990.

I explained the issue to him and he said it is definitely not normal, and a "reasonable person" would not expect this to happen on a new car, but he needs to do some tests first to confirm what the issue is.

I don't really have the $990 to put into this, but I will see if it is needed by the Dept of Fair Trading for my case against VW, and if I have to bite the bullet and fork out, I will be putting this as a part of my case and any subsequent claim.

And before anyone says anything, this guy (http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f112...ler-53080.html) was patient and waited and waited and now has been told 4 more weeks of waiting. He should have already been offered a full refund at a minimum, and if he lodged his complaint with Fair Trading sooner, he could have always have cancelled it or put it on hold if a suitable resolution was forthcoming. Unfortunately it hasn't been and for the dealer to ask for the car back and then not waive excess recduction on the hire car etc is gob smacking.

The only person who is going to look out for you is you, and like the original poster said "they (the dealers) are your friend when the cheque is in your hands, but once it is in their hands you're on your own" (or something to that effect).

Making a purchase of this size is about trust. When situations like this happen, you are able to see what the business is about and you can gain more or, in somce cases, lose all trust entirely in the companies you are dealing with. The original poster in the thread above no doubt has and I have lost my trust with Volkswagen because of they way they have handled this situation.

Here are some links:
Guarantees on goods - NSW Fair Trading

In Particular:
For major problems with goods

You can:

* reject the goods and get a refund
* reject the goods and get an identical replacement, or one of similar value if reasonably available, or
* keep the goods and get compensation for the drop in value caused by the problem.

You get to choose, not the supplier or manufacturer.

A major problem with goods is when:

* a reasonable person would not have bought the goods if they had known about the problem. For example, no reasonable person would buy a washing machine if they knew the motor was going to burn out after three months In my case I did not expect water to leak from the doors after rain.

Well you might be waiting a bit for it to rain in Perth but if I remember I will make a video of it when it rains. I don't think there's a VW golf 6 out there that doesn't do this as the hole in the door that allows the water out appears to be blocked by the door seal when the door is closed, I know on other cars they generally have a hole in the door seal as well....

[elephino]

In Particular:
For major problems with goods

You can:

* reject the goods and get a refund
* reject the goods and get an identical replacement, or one of similar value if reasonably available, or
* keep the goods and get compensation for the drop in value caused by the problem.

You get to choose, not the supplier or manufacturer.

A major problem with goods is when:

* a reasonable person would not have bought the goods if they had known about the problem. For example, no reasonable person would buy a washing machine if they knew the motor was going to burn out after three months In my case I did not expect water to leak from the doors after rain.

You'll find that this issue is technically a minor issue as it doesn't impact on safety or the normal use of the car. As explained by others, the drain holes are normal and do work but they don't necessarily function fully as intended. This means that VW will get some time to rectify the issue - and that, assuming VW continue to state that it is 'normal', would be after Fair Trading find in your favour.

[kjh]

I've had my GTI for just on a week now and I've noticed that when I open my car doors, either after washing or having it sit in the rain, that there seems to be a reasonable amount of water trapped by the bottom door seals.
Depending on how much water has been on the car I can also hear it sloshing around in the doors then coming out of the drain holes in the bottom when the door is opened.

It looks like part of the new noise reduction work that VW did was this extra weather sealing on the doors including the bottom.
This wasn't on the previous MKV GTI that I had.
I'm wondering if this seal is pushing onto the holes covering them up.
Then when you open the door the hole in the bottom of the door is clear and the water come out.
Happens on both front doors and a bit on the rears as well.

Anyone else noticed this?

Yes, my MkVI GTI does this too - I just open all doors after washing it and it all drains out quickly. Haven't noticed it after leaving car in rain at all.

[Orient Express]

If it is any consolation, American GTI/Golf's do exactly the same thing.