[greycross]

Hi All,

Took my T-Cross in for its second service at 2 years old the other day at 6.8k miles and got told it needs the rear brake discs and pads replacing due to corrosion. The dealer said that they were not covered under the Warranty (as I guess you would expect) and that the cost was £285.00 fitted.

I guess this is due to the car standing for extended periods during the various lockdowns over the last 18 months, even though I did take the car for a weekly run.

Anyway, I pointed out that I have a service and maintenance plan which was part of the deal when I bought the car, and the maintenance part should hopefully cover it.

This is where the fun starts, as although it specifies repairs to brakes are included, there is a global exclusion for "Excessive wear and tear".
This is the card that the dealer is now playing, usual VW penny pinching aftercare and customer service..

The discs do not have a lip on them and are definitely not worn, just the surface is corroded and breaking up and they make a noise when reversing.

They now want the car back so they can photograph and take measurements of both disc and pad thickness, as the maintenance teams are pushing back on the replacement. This is a bit annoying as they had the car all day last week, they knew I had a Maintenance plan, and they didn't do what was required then !!

So I was wondering a couple of things, as anyone else suffered with rusty corroded rear discs, and if anyone else has a maintenance plan and had the usual struggles with VW ?

 

[Halin9]

How could it possibly be " excessive wear and tear "...!...at 6800 miles..!
All right, they've rusted, probably through lack of use, but they shouldn't ...sounds like cheap brake material to me.
Keep pushing for free replacement...let us know..
Just a thought, do you leave the car outside or garaged..?

 

[IWRA]

Mine has been parked on the roadside for just over 2 years. I've done less than 4000 miles. No mention of rusty disks when I had it serviced under the service plan. It sounds like try on. Do you live near the seaside.

 

[Digitalracer]

Totally agree, with that mileage, no way can be classed as wear and tear. Mine look OK, 5.5k miles, 2nd service due in October and I have the 2 year cover too.
Will be interested to see the outcome.
Good luck 🤞

 

[PaleBlueDot]

It is only a servicing not an mot so you are under no obligation to go ahead with the replacement. Personally I would take the vehicle go for several long drives where you are exercising the brakes and unless you notice any braking performance issues forget about it. You will however certainly build up rust on the brake rotor if you are not driving the car for several days. If you really want to replace the discs etc take it to somewhere like quick fit for a cheaper bill.

 

[greycross]

Thought I would add some pictures of my discs so you guy's can see what has happened.

 

[ford_classic]

I have exactly the same problem, second service is due in 2 weeks and I expect the dealer will want to replace the discs.
I am not paying him £280, the brakes work ok at the moment and if I have to I will find somewhere cheaper.

 

[greycross]

Interesting to know you have a similar problem..

That kind of points to poor quality parts, not really fit for purpose.

Do you have a service plan, as I am told brakes are not included, but I have a service and maintenance plan, and am currently arguing with VW about the Maintenance bit as I feel they should be covered.

As others have said, at 6.8k miles it is not wear and tear..

Booked in next week, will see what they say.

 

[ford_classic]

I agree, brakes should last more than 5500 miles. Yes I have a service plan, paid for first 2 services.
If I decide to go elsewhere to have them done, what would be a good quality make to look for ?

 

[PaleBlueDot]

What actually happens when you use them , is braking performance normal?

 

[greycross]

They just make an awful noise..

I notice it more when going slow, especially reversing..

Handbrake holds well, but I guess rusty discs may improve that ?

 

[greycross]

Quick Update..

Car has been in to VW again today, they measured the thickness or the discs and pads and sent some pictures to VW HQ..

They said discs and pads were hardly worn, so they authorized replacement under the maintenance part of my plan.

So, result, nice new shiny discs and pads fitted to car free of charge.

They were very quick to point out that normal service plan would not have covered this, so really glad I added the maintenance bit on as saved me £285.00.

Job done !!

 

[Halin9]

Great result..well done..!

 

[gordonw1000]

Family one year old T-Cross less than 6k miles just had new rear pads & discs. £327 thank you. Handbrake v. poor from new, now great. Dealer (Western VW Edinburgh) blame owner during pandemic for local use but complete nonsense. Audi A1 traded in that had exactly the same use, never immobile for more than 2 days and plenty longer runs. Any VW employees out there who might spill the beans? Going to challenge this one wherever / however I can...

Quick update...

Have been doing some research and found the root cause - it turns out my car was parked up outside at the dealer for more
than 7 months before I took delivery ie from Feb to Sep 2020 - that would be with damp pads clamped to the discs.!!

6k miles in the year since delivery, yet dealer blamed us..!!!!!

Might be worth anyone fighting for compensation to find out the build date of the vehicle vs delivery date.

 

[ford_classic]

Well, going by the prices some are paying I did not bother the dealer with the discs. My son-in-law is an ex-mechanic and replaced them for me.
Took him less than an hour and £45 for parts, discs and pads.
Lucky, lucky.

 

[Rocker47]

Bonjour!

My two year old T-Cross with close to 30K kms (19K miles) on the clock had a similar problem a couple of months ago. On the way back from a 500 mile return trip I started hearing noises from the backr of the car when braking or turning. Nothing when driving normally on motorway or main roads. I took into the local VW dealer who had a quick look and said that a brake pad had come out of its housing which they replaced but asked me to bring in the car the following week and leave it with them for 4 days. A courtesy car (Polo) would be supplied FOC.
They said they had to send photographs to VW to determine how to deal with the problem and I feared that I would have to end up paying for repairs. The car was just over two years old, but I had taken the optional extra year sold by the dealer.
In any event, when picking up the car they said that they had replaced the discs and pads due to a problem with the handbrake cable which had been incorrectly set up in the factory. No charge was made and the car has been running perfectly since.

Otherwise, I am very happy with the car. Getting around 5.8L/100Km over the 30K kms which I don't think is too pad. Running almost exclusively on E10 unleaded.

 

[greycross]

Seems rear brake disc issues are common on the T-Cross then :-(

 

[Halin9]

Good that "Rocker" has a helpful dealer...👍. " Gordon" are you going back to VW with this new information..?

 

[gordonw1000]

Posting off very strong letter tomorrow to Customer Care Manager, Gordon

*UPDATE 9/11/21 * - no response from dealer 3 weeks on, have now forwarded my letter to VW Customer Services - awaiting reply....

UPDATE 24/1/22 - full refund now obtained - dealer only responded after head office intervention