In Sept 2017, the clockspring and airbag inflator in my 2015 EOS randomly disconnected from the steering wheel. No Bluetooth, no horn, no nothing. So, I take it to the dealership... I also did my homework and found that literally every other model year had the exact same issue and was recalled for it. I also learned that the Takata airbag problems can and often do effect the airbag inflator. They said the clockspring problem my EOS was having was definitely not the same thing that everyone else's EOS was recalled for; and moreover, that this was also definitely not connected to the Takata airbag recall.
K.
Welp. April 2018 rolls around, and on my way into work one morning, I turned the wheel sharp and hard to the left in order to avoid an accident. I heard a loud POP behind my steering wheel, and lo & behold, the airbag light comes on the dashboard. Take it to the dealership, and they wanted over $200 (or was it $250?) just to run the diagnostics on my car, to figure out what the issue was. Meanwhile, the manager of the service department said that since the radio and Bluetooth was still working this time, it definitely wasn't the clockspring; and that the computer diagnostic was just absolutely critical. Which is wild, because he could definitely diagnose what the issue wasn't just by my description standing in the lobby, but ok.
I said absolutely not, but that if I get in an accident and die because of some airbag issue, my parents know to sue the everliving f*ck out of VW and that dealership specifically, because honestly WTF. As an aside, I feel like it should be illegal to charge anyone to run diagnostics on a car when the airbag light is on; just on principle; and because of the implications.
Moving on.
I chose to simply not have it repaired or even looked at. The last time they fixed my steering wheel/airbag, I paid over $800, and I just didn't have that kind of money. In fact, I still don't have that kind of money.
In July 2018, my big 50k miles service came up, and the car needed the works- tires and all. I told the service folks to do whatever needed to be done and when I came to pick it up, I was happy to see that the airbag light was off. So, I figured maybe they had fixed the problem, considering my bill totalled up to be over $1600. I was in a rush, and didn't look at the itemization. 2 days later, as I was driving home from work, I drove over a hump in the road, like I and about a billion other drivers do every day, and there was a slight jarring (as always). That's all it took to loosen whatever they had reconnected, and the airbag light came on.
I called the service department, and they swore the light was never on to begin with when they serviced my car, and that I had no way of proving that it was. But that I needed to bring it in immediately so they could run diagnostics on it... you know, for $200++.
Yesterday (March 2019), I received a letter in the mail, saying that the driver-side frontal airbag inflator (Takata) in my 2015 VW EOS is defective and that I need to take my car in for a free repair/replacement of the inflator immediately.
While I do feel partially vindicated, I am still seriously, SERIOUSLY pissed off by the fact that VW has known about this clockspring/airbag inflator/steering column issue since 2012. And it doesn't just impact the EOS. However, I am also BEYOND IRATE about the fact that thus far, the 2015-2016 model year is the ONLY one that has not been recalled for the clockspring issue; despite the fact that EVERY OTHER MODEL YEAR has been recalled for it, multiple times. And not just the EOS!
VW is the worst car manufacturer I've ever come across, and if I was not so upside-down on what I owe on this POS, I'd get rid of it in a heartbeat. That being said, I don't want to inflict this kind of constant PITA and headaches on another person. That has bad karma written all over it.
In Sept 2017, the clockspring and airbag inflator in my 2015 EOS randomly disconnected from the steering wheel. No Bluetooth, no horn, no nothing. So, I take it to the dealership... I also did my homework and found that literally every other model year had the exact same issue and was recalled for it. I also learned that the Takata airbag problems can and often do effect the airbag inflator. They said the clockspring problem my EOS was having was definitely not the same thing that everyone else's EOS was recalled for; and moreover, that this was also definitely not connected to the Takata airbag recall.
K.
Welp. April 2018 rolls around, and on my way into work one morning, I turned the wheel sharp and hard to the left in order to avoid an accident. I heard a loud POP behind my steering wheel, and lo & behold, the airbag light comes on the dashboard. Take it to the dealership, and they wanted over $200 (or was it $250?) just to run the diagnostics on my car, to figure out what the issue was. Meanwhile, the manager of the service department said that since the radio and Bluetooth was still working this time, it definitely wasn't the clockspring; and that the computer diagnostic was just absolutely critical. Which is wild, because he could definitely diagnose what the issue wasn't just by my description standing in the lobby, but ok.
I said absolutely not, but that if I get in an accident and die because of some airbag issue, my parents know to sue the everliving f*ck out of VW and that dealership specifically, because honestly WTF. As an aside, I feel like it should be illegal to charge anyone to run diagnostics on a car when the airbag light is on; just on principle; and because of the implications.
Moving on.
I chose to simply not have it repaired or even looked at. The last time they fixed my steering wheel/airbag, I paid over $800, and I just didn't have that kind of money. In fact, I still don't have that kind of money.
In July 2018, my big 50k miles service came up, and the car needed the works- tires and all. I told the service folks to do whatever needed to be done and when I came to pick it up, I was happy to see that the airbag light was off. So, I figured maybe they had fixed the problem, considering my bill totalled up to be over $1600. I was in a rush, and didn't look at the itemization. 2 days later, as I was driving home from work, I drove over a hump in the road, like I and about a billion other drivers do every day, and there was a slight jarring (as always). That's all it took to loosen whatever they had reconnected, and the airbag light came on.
I called the service department, and they swore the light was never on to begin with when they serviced my car, and that I had no way of proving that it was. But that I needed to bring it in immediately so they could run diagnostics on it... you know, for $200++.
Yesterday (March 2019), I received a letter in the mail, saying that the driver-side frontal airbag inflator (Takata) in my 2015 VW EOS is defective and that I need to take my car in for a free repair/replacement of the inflator immediately.
While I do feel partially vindicated, I am still seriously, SERIOUSLY pissed off by the fact that VW has known about this clockspring/airbag inflator/steering column issue since 2012. And it doesn't just impact the EOS. However, I am also BEYOND IRATE about the fact that thus far, the 2015-2016 model year is the ONLY one that has not been recalled for the clockspring issue; despite the fact that EVERY OTHER MODEL YEAR has been recalled for it, multiple times. And not just the EOS!
VW is the worst car manufacturer I've ever come across, and if I was not so upside-down on what I owe on this POS, I'd get rid of it in a heartbeat. That being said, I don't want to inflict this kind of constant PITA and headaches on another person. That has bad karma written all over it.
- Megan B., Md, US