R36 Seat Problem - Summary of Owners

[R34]

I will be dropping my R36 off at my dealership on the 28th of this month for the State Service Manager to review my crushed and deformed bolsters.
As he only knows of one other instance of this happening I thought it would be beneficial to list those owners who have had this premature seat crush problem.

Maybe limit the thread to the facts only so I can print out the thread for him to see.

Suggested format

Name: Chris(first or forum name)
Driver seat problem: Y
Passenger seat problem: Y to a lesser extent
Age of vehicle at occurrence: 5 months
Kms travelled at occurrence: 7,000
Date of occurrence: Noticed in November 2010 (delivery June 2010)
Issue raised with dealer: Y at first 15,000km service
Issue raised with VWA: Y
Satisfactory resolution of problem: Awaiting inspection and decision by State Service Manager
Expand
Collapse of the right hand side driver's bolster. Material has creased as well
The left hand seat is going the same to a lesser extent
Maybe people could PM me their names and VIN numbers so I can forward those on as well.

My preference would be to make VWA aware of this problem and develop a permanent fix rather than simply replacing/fixing the seat for it to happen again in 6 months.

[Pana]

Name Pete / Pana (forum name)
Driver seat problem YES
Passenger seat problem NO
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 19 months
Kms travelled at occurrence - 30000
Date of occurrence - Jan 2011
Issue raised with dealer NO - waiting for next service
Issue raised with VWA NO
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Expand side bolster on base of seat on right hand side is no longer rigid like the bolster on the left hand side or the bolsters on the passenger seat. Material looks loose as there is no longer a definite shape to the bolster.

[Noodlemofe]

Name Dan / Noodlemofe (forum name)
Driver seat problem Yes
Passenger seat problem: No
Age of vehicle at occurrence: less than 12 months
Kms travelled at occurrence around 7000
Date of occurrence: First noticed mid 2010
Issue raised with dealer: Not yet - waiting for next service
Issue raised with VWA: No
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Expand As per Pete's seat, the right sided base of seat bolster lost rigidity approx 9 months into ownership. At this point I began being very careful when sitting, but despite this the underlying cushioning has lost all shape and form. I have not had this problem with any other vehicles I've owned, and would not be considered to be a "larger seated gentleman".

[R34]

Posted on behalf of Gripmoto (who is travelling OS)
Name Gripmoto (forum name)
Driver seat problem ]Yes
Passenger seat problem: No
Age of vehicle at occurrence: 18 months
Kms travelled at occurrence around 30000

Expand
Is anyone else disappointed with the trim quality of the front seats in the R36. The foam on the edge of the seat base has collapsed, from where I get in and out, this is after 18 months 30 000k. The trim here is fine just the foam under is stuffed so the trim is very baggy. Also the side of the back of the seat has nearly worn through where there is a piece of hard trim you can feel under the trim. This sure is caused from me getting in and out, I feel it is bad design. VW does not want to know about it at all, wear and tear they say although they will not talk to me about it, just through the dealer. I know Subaru does cover this type of thing.

[PowerHungry]

Name Powerhungry
Driver seat problem YES
Passenger seat problem NO
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 24 mths
Kms travelled at occurrence - 40000
Date of occurrence - Mar 2011 (likely 3-4mths earlier)
Issue raised with dealer NO
Issue raised with VWA NO
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Expand side bolster on base of seat on right hand side is no longer rigid like the bolster on the left hand side or the bolsters on the passenger seat. Only checked it because of this thread. Does make it easier getting in and out. Being a gradual change meant I didn't notice it earlier.

[Sqeaky]

Name Tony / Sqeaky (forum name)
Driver seat problem YES
Passenger seat problem NOT YET (doesnt get used as much but I assume same problem will occur in time)
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 16 months
Kms travelled at occurrence - 19,000
Date of occurrence - Jan 2011
Issue raised with dealer NO - waiting for next service
Issue raised with VWA NO
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Side bolster on base of seat on right hand side is losing its form and no longer feels firm.

[2muchcoffeeman]

Name Chris
Driver seat problem- Yes
Passenger seat problem- No
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 14 months
Kms travelled at occurrence - 8000
Date of occurrence - Jan 2011
Issue raised with dealer- Yes
Issue raised with VWA- I guess the dealer has
Satisfactory resolution of problem- Yes
Expand- As per all others. Failure of RHS bolster. My dealer has agreed to replace the bolster.

[Dr Block]

Name Scott
Driver seat problem YES
Passenger seat problem NO
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 8 months
Kms travelled at occurrence - 17000
Date of occurrence - Jan 2011
Issue raised with dealer NO - waiting for next service
Issue raised with VWA NO
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Expand As per all others. Failure of RHS bolster. Has still retained form, upon applying pressure inside of bolster has collapsed. Can also see a crease in the bolster on the inside edge.

[HASH]

Name Hash
Driver seat problem YES
Passenger seat problem NO
Age of vehicle at occurrence - 13 months
Kms travelled at occurrence - 45000
Date of occurrence - Jan 2011
Issue raised with dealer Yes - photo taken but I have not heard back
Issue raised with VWA NO
Satisfactory resolution of problem N/A
Expand As per all others. Failure of RHS bolster. Has still retained form, upon applying pressure inside of bolster has collapsed. Can also see a crease in the bolster on the inside edge.

[Burkey]

Name: Burkey
Driver seat problem: Yes
Passenger seat problem: Yes to a lesser extent
Age of vehicle at occurrence: 33 months
Kms travelled at occurrence: 51,000
Date of occurrence: Noticed in Jan 2011 (delivery July 200
Issue raised with dealer: Y
Issue raised with VWA: Dealer has raised issue with VWA
Satisfactory resolution of problem: Have been told VWA do not have a track record of fixing this type of issue
Expand Looks fine, until you touch it and then it is mush under the fabric.

The guys at McCarrolls were almost apologetic that it would not go well with VWA.

[2muchcoffeeman]

My dealer has agreed to replace the bolster in my car.

Not sure if it involves VWA or they're doing it because they're a client of mine and I have a good relationship with them.

Nevertheless, I'm pleased it will be fixed at the next service.

[Jayse]

Hey guys,

Been a lil absent of late...was just going to say i took my car in for a couple of warranty claims yesterday (park brake that would not engage or disengage at random times, horn that started sounding like a daihatsu charade, and this right bolster of the driver's seat issue) All will be taken care of as warranty faults. The horn has to be ordered in from Sydney, and the bolster will be ordered in from Germany (approx $260incl GST). The park brake fault turned out to be a faulty parkbrake switch and was replaced on the day.

Hope you other guys get your bolsters attended to!

Cheers,

Jayson

[GC0001]

I run the R36 owners forum (R36owners.net) and folk in the Uk have been experiencing the same issues. My seat bolster was ruined at about 15k and a year old. Fabric still had form but no resistance as the foam had destroyed; you'll notice the difference in the seats by sitting in the passenger seat for comparison.


Took it to the dealers and it was repaired under warranty perfectly; 10k on and its just as bad as it was before...totally worn out. I think it needs a firmer foam.

[R34]

Good News
VWA are replacing the defective seat parts on my car.
If they replace mine it means all yours should get done too

[Steve]

Well, don't I feel stupid. I posted in the other thread saying that I didn't have a problem. Now I'm back in Australia I can say that I definitely do have a problem!

Name: Steve.
Driver seat problem: Yes.
Passenger seat problem: No.
Age of vehicle at occurrence: I've had it since June 2008 and I've only noticed it because I read this thread a few weeks ago.
Kms travelled at occurrence: 28000.
Date of occurrence: Delivered June 2008, noticed march 2010.
Issue raised with dealer: No, I haven't spoken to them yet.
Issue raised with VWA: No, not yet.
Satisfactory resolution of problem: See above.
Expand:
The lower right bolster on the driver's seat is soft and easily deformed relative to the lower left and right bolsters of the front passenger seat. It looks good, but upon inspection it feels pretty average