Where's the love? How do I fall back in love with my Tiguan.

[Jude Starr]

So, I have been without my Tiguan for the past 3+ weeks after a rather major issue which has taken some time to sort out.

At first we thought the head gasket had gone...mechanic thought it unlikely, and sure enough when he took the head off the gasket was fine. Then we thought maybe a warp or crack in the head, but no, pressure testing indicated no issues there. Mechanic also noticed that the head had been off previously, which had us a bit puzzled.

Everything has been gone through with a fine tooth comb, and nothing was found to be wrong. Then, mechanic discovered that there had been a recall on this model, and the head had been replaced under this recall (which explains the head having been off before). Unfortunately, whichever dealer did the work (long before I bought the car second hand) didn't quite tension the head down correctly, leading, slowly and surely, to the issues I eventually experienced.

I have only had the car for about 6 months. Now, as well as being justifiably irritated at this turn of events, which should never have occurred, and will cost me thousands of dollars to fix (not my mechanic's fault, I know), I find have fallen a bit out of love with the car and have even considered getting rid and getting something else. Irrational? Yes. But it is what it is.

So I need to know, what can I do (if anything) to fall back in love with Ludwig, or is the relationship doomed and are we headed for the divorce court (car yard). :S

[LunchboxVRS]

If the problem is now fixed I'd do a mod or two. Maybe something small, not sure what if any you have done so far so can't suggest anything. Or you could go a bit bigger. Maybe a tune will get the blood flowing again.

[Dutch77]

If you've got to pony up the cash to get it fixed before potentially moving it on (and thereby hopefully eliminating any ongoing problems) then as per above - consider what sort of mods, performance or cosmetic wise, you could do to turn Ludwig into a beast that you love for probably thousands less than you'll lose on a change over to something mundane.

[Jude Starr]

I did think of mods, but to be honest, he is only an auto, which is fine for a workhorse (which is what I bought him for), but not really worth doing much to. If he was manual, I might have thought more seriously about it. Anyway, I have another car for more "fun" driving.

Ludwig is for getting me to and from work, but as I spend a fair bit of time with him (350kms + per week) I really want to enjoy the experience - just not sure if I can love/trust him any more. *sigh* Feeling really conflicted about this.

[Naresh]

I plan on having a remap done really soon so that will help get over my disappointment in performance from the 140 diesel.

[MGV]

What MY do you have? Petrol engine? Possible experiencing a similar issue...

[baboo]

A tune is worth the money. It really makes the diesel comes alive.
I've asked the tuning company to customize the tune to suit my needs. I like torque down low and more response instead of peak power.

[JustCruisn]

Go drive a Toyota for a day. That will make you love your VW more.

[Jude Starr]

What MY do you have? Petrol engine? Possible experiencing a similar issue...

Mine is a diesel, but it could still be the same prob with yours...worth checking the tensioning on the head (if it hasn't already been pulled apart of course).

[Jude Starr]

Go drive a Toyota for a day. That will make you love your VW more.

Hahaha! You could be right.

[MGV]

...if it hasn't already been pulled apart of course

I called by to check on mine yesterday, and to grab a few items i left in it. took a phone-pic while there:



Best of luck with yours!

[Transporter]

To the OP;

I deeply sympathize with you.
But, you didn't tell us what problems you've had? The age of the car? Is it still under the warranty? How many kilometers the car done?

I figured out that, you were probably losing the coolant from the cooling system, am I right? In which case; taking the cylinder head off, I would do only when all other checks on the cooling system were done and I'm almost 100% sure that the cyl. head or head gasket is the cause of the fault.

So, what was the problem and how it was showing/affecting the car?

[Jude Starr]

The only issue I really had was coolant levels, it wasn't overheating or losing compression of affecting performance at all. There was a slight leak at the coolant bottle, so we assumed that it was that and just made sure we kept the levels checked (it was a pretty slow leak), until I had time to book it in and get it seen to.

Then it just died; wouldn't start at all. So called RACQ, who thought it might be battery. Battery was replaced and car started, but now running rough as guts and a large amount of white steam was issuing from the exhaust. RACQ guy found there was water in the oil (indicating gasket and/or head issues) so car was dispatched to the mechanics where it has been ever since...actually he has come home today, all fixed. Haven't driven it yet...maybe that will help me come to some sort of decision.