GTI gear oil recall and suspension problems

[Bradders]

Reet,
Ive had the car just over 18 months now and over the last few weeks there has been a nocking from the o/s/f when going over grates and bumps in the roads (yorkshire roads are toss).

So i took the car into hayseldens at barnsley where a technician took it out they diagnosed problem as the anti roll bar drop links which they changed as i waited. great, all fine and no nocks.
has anyone else had suspension problems?

Then this morning i got a phone call from them to say that my car hasnt been in for the recall on the gear oil and could i book it in for it to be changed.
i havent read on here about gear oil been recalled only that people have had gear boxes or gear box internals changed due to problems.

has anyone elses been recalled?

Does anyone know how long the recall has been out and if it is on a batch of cars or all cars? mine is a 2006 56 plate.

cheers. Brad.

[Rich_T]

Hi Brad

was not aware of any recalls myself, mines an 06 plate. The suspension on my car makes the odd noise from time to time say once every couple of days, probably will get it checked out next time its serviced, but knowing the main dealers they wont be able to find anything anyway...

[Bradders]

mines booked in for the oil doing on monday so ill question them on the recall and let ya know.

[whitegtipolo]

mine knocks bad these days but garage says no problem given up with them at vw! said to em its drop links! but they said no! wen is the recall due from mine 2007 model!

[juniorc1884]

I had my car serviced a few weeks back and upon picking my car up was informed that a recall procedure had taken place and it was the gear oil!

No idea how long it's been out there for though!

[polo226kph]

VW changed my GTI's gearbox oil for the 2nd gear crunching. I reported the problem several times before and VW said there is nothing wrong and that I am not suposed to drive the car that hard. At the first service the service receptionist never logged the problem on the service sheet before he printed it. Eventually VW "UPGRADED" the gearbox oil because I couldn't change to 2nd when the revs were above 2000rpm. The engine now also vibrates when the revs go past 1500rpm and there is a resonance sound when I let go of the accelerator pedal either when standing still or while driving when changing gears. I can hear and feel the resonance sound and vibration through the gear lever and clutch pedal. When I drive slowly over speed humps there is thumping(knock) comming from the front/middle. While I am driving in 5th gear and I pulse the accelerator pedal I can feel the vibration going on and off when pushing the gear lever to the front right.

[flyfs6]

Not clear yet if all the cars are affected under the gearbox oil recall. I just came on to post up about it as well.

I was informed by the new dealer I've taken my car to told me that there is a recall and promptly diagnosed the other problem with mine. (they seem clue'd on). My gearbox has already been stripped/repaired by another dealer but I was never happy with the way it selected gears, then I heard something snap etc. But when I called VW CS they said no recall, but when they checked with their technical team they confirmed that there is a recall.

Its more a service recall than a proper recall, hence VW wont contact customers. But given the number of issues they should really be getting in touch with us.

Will keep you guys posted.

[MateyGuv]

Just got confirmation of this from a friend who works for VW. A recall is definately open for certain chassis number Polo's for the gearbox oil but "There will be no active customer notification" basically if you dont bring it up VW wont tell you about it.
The campaign number is 35A7 2016720/6 and the bulliten was released 22nd March 2008.

Bit of blurb from the bulliten.....

Technical background

On 5 speed manual gearboxes of a limited production period the friction values and thus the locking effect of the baulk ring may be reduced because of the combination of baulk ring (1/2 gear) and synthetic gear oil. When changing quickly from 1st to 2nd gear this can lead to noises and premature wear..

Remedy

Not all vehicles of the listed chassis number ranges are necessarily affected by this campaign! Before repair it must be checked with the Service Online or FISH (VSI) system whether the vehicle of the listed chassis number range is affected by this campaign!

Customer notification

There will be no active customer notification. Make sure ALL effected vehicles are checked and repaired as part of a workshop visit. Please also inform your new and used car department, so that these vehicles can be checked and repaired straight away and not only before the sale

They basically need to change the gearbox oil to mineral rather than synthetic.

If your car has already had this recall completed there will/should be a sticker placed to the left side of the spare wheel cavity which states 35A7 and then stamped

If you dont have this sticker and your car is built upto 2008 get it booked in. Please dont come straight out with this info cause I should not technically have it! Maybe start out with "my car makes a strange noise when I change from 1st to 2nd" then if the dealer doesnt have a clue mention this recall.

Cant find any info about a suspension recall though

[Bradders]

so i took the car in today for the gear oil changing,
it took quite a while but the free coffee and biscuits made up for it!!!
i questioned the service guy about the recall but he just said that it was recent. and that they only did the recall work if you take the car in for a service or work doing.
some good work in the post above, its nice to have insider info !!!!

[Bradders]

sorry,

@ mateyguv the suspension wasnt a recall, just some problems i was having with a nock i was just seeing if anyone else had had the same problem

cheers bud.

[loud]

so i took the car in today for the gear oil changing,
it took quite a while but the free coffee and biscuits made up for it!!!
i questioned the service guy about the recall but he just said that it was recent. and that they only did the recall work if you take the car in for a service or work doing.
some good work in the post above, its nice to have insider info !!!!

haven't checked if mine has the sticker yet but does this mean if it hasn't been done they won't do it unless you are having other work done by them already?

never noticed any problems with 1st and 2nd but my reverse can be pretty stiff to take out of gear after reversing, although the gearbox probably just needs to be used more and loosen up

[whitegtipolo]

mine went in for the modified gbox mount cos it was knocking and they said my car not in the chassis range for the oil mod as it has the right stuff in?? mines 07 reg they checked on computer data base thingy Oh and they are fitting a new rear screen as the heater elements at the top burnt out??

[Bradders]

My gearbox seems smoother than before as it used to be slightly notchy, and as for hammering it in first to second gear i cant get it to crunch like before.
they also applied the sticker when the car went in.

[alexperkins]

Anyone know the best gearbox oil to change in my 9n3 GTi?
VW won't change my gearbox oil sadly

Genuine VW gearbox oil is what you should use

[alexperkins]

Is if 75w90?

Yes

Something like Castrol Syntrans is a good alternative