Volkswagen Sucks

I drive a 2006 Volkswagen Passat and if you are ever thinking of getting a Volkswagen, don't. The dealer in Ann Arbor and downtown Chicago both suck for different reasons, but the manufacturer really sucks. I drive a brand new car and my check engine light comes on all the time. I've been caught up in a battle with Volkswagen customer care and the corporate headquarters in Michigan since summer over why I think Volkswagen should replace my car. At the beginning of this argument, I didn't really think they should necessarily replace it. Now I am so annoyed that I feel entitled to a new car. The problem is, until my check engine light comes on for the same reason three times, I can't really go after them under Michigan lemon law. Every time the check engine light comes on, it's for a different reason - I'm hung up on a technicality in the way the law is written. This, however, is a matter of interpretation and I personally think I can argue that they should replace my car under the law. I can argue for almost anything, so, this technicality in the law hasn't stopped me from arguing with them and sending a letter to the head of the corporate office in Rochester. The people at customer care are complete assholes. They have threatened to stop talking to me if I threaten them with a lawsuit again. I tried the better business bureau but I don't want to deal with arbitration.

Anyway, two days ago, I dropped my car off at the dealer in Chicago for an oil change and 20K service. I asked for the price sheet and list of everything included in the service. I was hesitant to take my car there - the last time I took it there for the check engine light, the dealer drove all of the gas out of it. When I picked it up, the car was 2 miles to empty - the refuel light comes on at 45 miles. I registered a complaint with the idiots at customer care. So, I thought the price was kind of high so I called the dealer in Michigan to see how much the service is there. Much to my surprise, it was $230 cheaper in Ann Arbor. While I agree that the cost of labor could be more in Chicago, this seemed ridiculous to me. So I asked them in Chicago why it cost so much more and asked if I could fax the price sheet from Ann Arbor over for comparison because I just didn't see that the Chicago dealer was providing $230 more worth of service. Was I taking this too far - trying to get cheaper car service, or was I being taken advantage of by the asshole at the dealership who apparently thought I was stupid?

I faxed the price sheet from my work email - which happens to state "Attorny at Law" in the signature line. Ten minutes later the dealer called to apologize - saying, we are so sorry, we quoted you the wrong price. (I thought, yeah, I know you did). The price we quoted was for the wrong engine - and we will give you an additional discount. Clearly this person thought I was just a stupid woman who didn't know what I was doing. Little did he know.... I don't appreciate being taken advantage of in these types of situations. It really pisses me off. Sometimes, it comes in handy to be able to sneak in there somewhere that I am a lawyer. Anyway, I picked up my car, only to find that they had driven it 40 miles, which seems a bit excessive for the "road test" portion of the service. I won't bother registering another complaint though. They make it more trouble than it is worth. One time, the so called "highest" person that I could possibly talk to at Volkswagen customer care told me that they don't have anyone in the company who handles replacement vehicles and he flat out refused to connect me to anyone else. What a crock of shit. So, I'll just keep waiting for my check engine light to continue to come on until I can eventually get myself a new car - and you know I will!