VWoA wants your input

[Stonewall]

As some Vortexers know Len Hunt the VP of VWoA has been chatting with some members of the boards. Well I got the chance to exchange some PM's with him and he would really like out input on VW as a whole and what we would like to see from them (cars, service etc). So I told him I would ask around and get some opinions from VW owners and I was then asked to pass them onto his assistant. So here's your chance let to let VW hear your opinions as I believe now is the time they are listening more then ever. I also plugged our site so Mr. Hunt maybe even lurking around. Let me know what you think or if you think it is not worth your time or a bunch of BS don't bother posting, as I will just have a mod remove it so this thread can stay on topic. No major specific things please just how you feel about VW and how it could be better.
As was said before VW for me is not just a car but more of a lifestyle

[bart]

Re: VWoA wants your input

get rid of GL, GLS, GLI and crap like that, have it in europe where we have have whatever engine, with whatever options and whatever number of doors, OK!

[R_Ethug]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I'm 100% with bart on this.. as I'm sure you are too brent as we discussed this last weekend.

VW needs to offer more independant options to people.

[Mr. Burns]

Re: VWoA wants your input

Lupo, Lupo, Polo, Lupo!

[Smartiepants]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I'm 100% with bart on this.. as I'm sure you are too brent as we discussed this last weekend.

VW needs to offer more independant options to people.

This doesn't work here because they have to package them for safety law sort of things, or so I have heard.

[Smarty39]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I agree with Bart and Ryan, but I think that Smartiepants may be right. I think they have to sell the cars in pre-made packages like the GL and GLS to pass certain laws.

The one thing that I have noticed in the last two years or so, is that the customer service has started to drop considerably. When I bought my first Jetta almost 5 years ago the service was excellent. Now, since I bought my new Jetta, the service has slowly gotten worse. This however could be just bad experiences, but I am pretty sure a few of you feel the same way....especially if you have owned VW's for a long time.

[Canadian Turbo]

Re: VWoA wants your input

A few thoughts of mine, especially from someone who has bought his first non-vw in 9 years.

-VW needs to shorten product cycles and speed up changes (delayed intro in North America of Golf V and new GTI is ridiculous)
-VW needs more options on cars and perhaps a special order program
-VW needs to address service issues and improve customer satisfaction
-VW needs to respect the aftermarket and owners of modded cars a bit more

[Smartiepants]

Re: VWoA wants your input

A few thoughts of mine, especially from someone who has bought his first non-vw in 9 years.

-VW needs to shorten product cycles and speed up changes (delayed intro in North America of Golf V and new GTI is ridiculous)
-VW needs more options on cars and perhaps a special order program
-VW needs to address service issues and improve customer satisfaction
-VW needs to respect the aftermarket and owners of modded cars a bit more

I like that last one, most owners who modify their cars probably take better care than alot of people do.

[Canadian Turbo]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I like that last one, most owners who modify their cars probably take better care than alot of people do.

Yes and will buy more cars and parts if treated well!

[gaffer]

Re: VWoA wants your input

A few thoughts of mine, especially from someone who has bought his first non-vw in 9 years.

-VW needs to shorten product cycles and speed up changes (delayed intro in North America of Golf V and new GTI is ridiculous)
-VW needs more options on cars and perhaps a special order program
-VW needs to address service issues and improve customer satisfaction
-VW needs to respect the aftermarket and owners of modded cars a bit more

Took the words right out of my mouth. I dont know how VWoA expects its dealers to survive with product offerings like they have now, and the delay in getting them to market. That combined with the poor service from the dealer netowork is killing thier reputation.

VW is over promising & under delivering with the new product offerings, & in the mean time people, including my self are looking else where.

I think that VW needs to fill in some gaps in the NA market. What they need:
- Eurovan replacement.
- 5 door GTi (or any MKV Gto/Golf for that matter)
- New Jetta wagon ASAP
- Introduce the higher HP dielsels availabel in Europe to Canada. VW has a chance to seperate itself from the rest of the market & compete with hybrids as oil prices climb higher.

Andrew

[Kor]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I agree aftermarket tuners and enthusiasts should really be respected more.

Dealership attitude in general is probably poor at best in any case.

Recognize problems that frequently occur and do something about them sooner. VW is infamous for taking forever to recognize that the Coilpacks/MAF/WindowRegulators had issues. There are some transmission issues and others as well that constantly plague VW owners.

As far as product improvement, yes I agree that delaying the Golf/GTI and not marketing the Polo or Lupo seem like blunders in a market that buys a lot of hatches and small cars right now.

Although I can understand having to use option packages, not offering some options at all (options that their competitors do offer) such as OEM HID for example is also a mistake. Especially when these options are available in europe.

Basically treating Canada more like a european market would attract a lot of customers and at least set VW apart. People obviously don't like how domestic companies run things (the domestic companies are dying an slow death) so why emulate them?

[Tuna]

Re: VWoA wants your input

I agree first and foremost with Mike, I want the Polo and I want it NOW!

I also agree with Blair and Bart. I think the main issue with making big bundles like they do has less to do with laws and more to do with profit. When you make all the different options available that means you have to build more cars because someone may want leather but roll your own windows, while someone else want's cloth but keyless entry (just bad examples). That means they can't just prebuild a bunch and wait for buyers to come get them. I think that's why you see some of the domestic companies having a hard time.

I like Blairs preorder idea though and would work, and for people like me that can't even afford a new VW anymore would help keep costs down (for example, I like the TDI passat but you can only get it in one of the higher models, why can't they offer all the engines in ALL the models).

Oh yea, did I mention I want a Polo GTI? They really need a smaller car over here, I mean the new Jetta is bigger than the B3 Passat now. And it would allow a lot more people into the VW world (think Civic, echo, corrola, cobalt market).

Oh yea, and i'm not sure why they're not in the minivan market, i'm not a huge fan of minivans but that seems like a cash cow market to me.

I think i'm done now.

[bart]

Re: VWoA wants your input

This doesn't work here because they have to package them for safety law sort of things, or so I have heard.

a golf gl 4 door with crank windows is safer in a collision then a 2 door with recaro alcantara leather seats, hid, nav and power windows??? ummm no i dont think so. thats not the reason.

its probably because if we could customize them how we want, they would cost a bit more, longer waits, etc.

[Smartiepants]

Re: VWoA wants your input

We use the american safety standards, and they insist that things are tested as a model, mostly things like how the engine will crush in a front impact.

[Flanders]

Re: VWoA wants your input

The only thing I'm going to repeat is the dealership attitude towards customers. I don't go to the dealership anymore, because every time I take my car there, they screw something up. This might be scratching my paint, scuffing up my interior, or not fixing what I wanted fixed. Talking to the customer service representative gets me nowhere.

On the other hand, if we take our toyota to the toyota dealership, they treat my wife like a goddess. Free coffee, newspapers, and a loaner car. Gee...all the VW dealer gives me is the finger...