First Gear problem

[spacecadet]

I have a scirocco GT 2.0 TSI manual - 11 plate with 30k on the clock and..... 3 months out of warranty. It's a real struggle to get the car in to first gear - all other gears are fine. I have had a few near misses because the car is actually in third when i pull off..... VW have ruled out the clutch and now want to charge me £900 to diagnose the problem by taking the gearbox apart, and any fix will obviously cost more. The dealer has offered a third off any bill, but VW customer services won't contribute at all until the problem is diagnosed, and then it's like pinning down jelly getting any kind of contribution commitment or even likely level. So £900 of dead money and a potential costly repair.
I don't think this is good enough. I bought a VW for reliability and am faced with this. The car was bought second hand as an ex-VW car from a main VW dealer and serviced bang on time with VW.
Any advice would be appreciated - with a likely cause and fix, or in dealing with VW! Thanks.

[salsajoe]

Sorry to hear about the problem. How long have you had the car and does the second hand VW warranty still cover it? I assume not. If the VW dealer has acknowledged there is a problem then VW customer service should respond with an offer at this stage. Although out of warranty the sale of goods act still applies - merchantable quality. If it is a major part that is failing then VW and the dealer must accept responsibility. Looks like the dealer is accepting some responsibility but you should go for more than the current contribution. Also worth getting the dealer to have another conversation with VW about the issue to try to pin them down a bit more. For more common faults that have emerged VW provide the parts without cost to the owner eg new engine at £6000 where timing chain tensioner related failures have occurred. Have not come across manual gearboxes failing though. Worth trawling the net for any evidence before going back to VW customer services.

[spacecadet]

Thanks for your reply.
I bought it at a year old and had the balance of the warranty to March 2014. Vw customer service aren't budging as they say they don't pay for diagnostics and may contribute to an identified repair. Not good enough for me. I don't see how a gearbox problem is anything other than a fault or failure - not wear and tear. I could take a risk but I have to stump up £900 they've had the car since Wednesday and no resolution, no courtesy car. Just £69 charge for test drive and visual check.
An independent reckons it could be the brushes as it's only first gear? Why do VW need to take the whole thing apart to diagnose?
I'm seriously thinking of selling the car.... I love it but it shouldn't be having these problems - with the car or vw gutted.

[spacecadet]

An update.

I took the car to a local garage with a proper mechanic. He immediately thought it might be the linkages. Tightened these up, no tools, no parts. Fixed. £40.

Are VW taking advantage of a hapless female who knows nothing about cars? And what do they do for a £69 diagnostic? I am outraged. VW here I come.....

[shshivji]

An update.

I took the car to a local garage with a proper mechanic. He immediately thought it might be the linkages. Tightened these up, no tools, no parts. Fixed. £40.

Are VW taking advantage of a hapless female who knows nothing about cars? And what do they do for a £69 diagnostic? I am outraged. VW here I come.....

As I've always said, most techs who work at dealers don't have a clue, find your self a good independent and stick with them as they are going be to far more helpful. This is not the first time I've heard this sort of thing, I get in allot of cars that have been incorrectly diagnosed by a dealer.

I'm glad you have managed to get it sorted!

Shak