Oblivious Idiots
I received a letter in the mail from VW. Boldly written on the outside were the words “”Buyback”". Inside, the letter stated that my model VW was in demand on the used car market and for four days only my local dealer would offer generous trade in allowances towards the purchase of a NEW VW! WTF?
VWoA has had their head stuck up their posteriors for so long that the view looks normal for them.
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formerAuditech Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 4:55 am
Oblivious Idiots – this my friends is the biggest joke…….they sent those out to pretty much everyone…reguardless of what model you have. i had a friend in sales at the time these went out and they were sent out for no other reason then to bring you in to the dealer….they probably don’t have half a clue what exact model with options you have…..there is “no great buy back” and “your model is in demand”……that’s all pure BS. don’t fall victim to it……want a good deal? go check out Toyota or Nissan, or Mazada….just stay away from the hybrids, those are a joke.
VWVictim Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 5:54 am
Oblivious Idiots – After all the misery I’ve had with VW lemons and dealing with VWoA, they send me a phony “buyback” letter! This reconfirms my belief that VWoA is the absolute scum of the earth. The stench from Auburn Hills is overpowering.
297 Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 6:36 am
Oblivious Idiots – You’ll pardon me for saying, but that’s pretty much a gimmick done by all dealerships.
Or are you also stating that Toyota dealerships perform full research before sending you a flyer?
I would call this bad practice by all of them, not just VW.
VWVictim Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 6:42 am
Oblivious Idiots – Are you telling me that all the carmakers send out phony “buyback” letters?
297 Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 7:25 am
Oblivious Idiots – Phony? As in, they cull their database to see what you own and send out a mail-merge letter to you?
If so, then yes, all carmakers do that.
Beck Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 8:27 am
Oblivious Idiots – “”Volkswagens in demand in the used car market?!”"
I dont think so!
Just take a look at all the consumer publications. They pretty much all consider the late model VWs as cars to avoid. Plus the very low reliablity ratings of late from firms like JD Powers. makes it that everything is going against Volkswagen in the used car market.
It might have been a marketing idea from an outside ad firm originally, but someone in the Volkswagen system approved of sending it out. That’s where the problem lies lies lies lies………..
VWVictim Said,
May 3, 2005 @ 9:26 am
Oblivious Idiots – Phony as in printing “buyback” on the outside of the envelope.
formerAuditech Said,
May 4, 2005 @ 12:12 pm
Oblivious Idiots – Paul,
hate to say it, but you are wrong…….not all car makers do that……true some due. but not all. i have NEVER heard of Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Mazada, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Jaguar, Saab, Kia, Hyundai…..doing anything along those lines…and i have worked at dealers which all had those other product lines.
VW was really pushing this and it was nothing more than pure crap, and i agree with others here, they should have looked at their resale figures before pulling a scam such as this.
V-dubber Said,
May 5, 2005 @ 12:31 pm
Oblivious Idiots – I got one of those letters a while back. I didn’t get too worked up over it…just more junk mail.
What I find funny is the fact that every other month or so I get letters from companies offering extended warranties…someone must have told them I own a VW.
(and no, I don’t really find it funny)
formerAuditech Said,
May 5, 2005 @ 12:35 pm
Oblivious Idiots – yes, i love those “”warrenty companies”" they are the biggest joke stay the F away from them all…..i have never ever seen a good one that didn’t screw you over at least once……biggest scam ever……
heck i had one call me up trying to sell me an extened warrenty on my VW i owned at the time…..not funny except when you consider the only VW i owned at that time was a 1961 beetle.
peterd1965 Said,
May 6, 2005 @ 10:02 am
same old same old same old same old – Seven years – a former life in the car business:
A) I have seen every type of come on letter. I will be the first to agree that the fact that the Buy Back is coming from VW itself is unusual. Letters like that ususally come from an individual dealership while the manufcaturer turns their heads the other way.
B) Warranties hehehehe hhohoho hahhaaa pleaase maybe one person in five hundred actually benefits. Usually however the warranty has covered there odds better than a college football game bookie. If you had a dollar for every item on the list of things that the warranty does not cover you would have paid for everything that could ever go wrong with the car.
VWVictim Said,
May 10, 2005 @ 1:27 am
Oblivious Idiots – To top it all off, I just got a letter from VW Finance offering to refinance my house! Unbelievable! They must be absolutely desperate.
VWVictim Said,
June 1, 2005 @ 3:20 am
Oblivious Idiots – It never ends. I just got VW Driver magazine in the mail. It’s for VW “”enthusiasts”". There is a story about four people in the same country club owning Phaetons. circle jerk. And there is a “”feel good”" story about Len Hunt listening to VW enthusiasts. Next to my Passat it is the most pathetic thing i have ever seen.
Word to Len Hunt: build a damn car that works!
jasenm Said,
June 4, 2005 @ 2:43 am
simple marketing – everyone does it, no big deal. its called trying to generate biz and make you feel special. we get good biz off em!
Post edited 06/04/05 2:55 PM by jasenm
VWVictim Said,
July 12, 2005 @ 5:17 am
Desperation – I just got a letter in the mail from “”Len Hunt”". “”Len Hunt”" asked me personally to log onto VWoA’s web site and help them design the new Passat. Can you imagine that: “” Len Hunt”" asking me, VWVictim, to help them design the new Passat.
There is a pungent odor of desperation emenating from Auburn Hills.
After VAG pulls out of the American market, I am going to Auburn Hills to p*** on the remains.
297 Said,
July 12, 2005 @ 5:55 am
Oblivious Idiots – Flip side: VWoA wants to hear your opinions, similar to when Len Hunt was involved in a discussion on VWVortex.com that led to announcing the decision to offer the five-door GTI model in the US a year after the three-door debuts this year.
The news report
The Vortex thread: Why is everyone getting rid of the VW?
Some may find it spooky that a chief of VWoA browses the Vortex, but then again, isn’t it a good thing that someone that high up responds to consumers that complain the loudest (don’t even try to claim Vortex is pro-VW all the time, the complaints of car enthusiasts are for more whiny and more nitpicky than a regular consumer)?
So really, why not help them design a better Passat?
Edit: Len Hunt enters the thread on page 4
Post edited 07/12/05 6:16 PM by paultakeda
VWVictim Said,
July 12, 2005 @ 11:58 am
Oblivious Idiots – When a supposed VP of VWoA starts cruising the websites it is definately a sign of desperation. I suppose this is the same “”Len Hunt”" that wrote the letter requesting help in designing the Passat. Pathetic, simply pathetic. Surely the signs of an orginization in its dying stages.
PS It is obvious why everyone is getting rid of their VW’s They’re POS.
297 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 2:33 am
Oblivious Idiots – VWVictim, I gave you links so you could research it yourself. The supposed Len Hunt was actually Len Hunt. And again I put to you, if you really want VW to change, them taking an active interest in your input is a productive, positive thing.
VWVictim Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 3:31 am
Oblivious Idiots – Tens of thousands of people have had problem after problem with their VW’s. And you always seem to have perfect VW’s. It would be an enormous help to the VW buying public if you could share your secrets to always having a perfect VW.
I doubt that responding to the letter would have any affect whatsoever on the design of the Passat. Like the “”buyback”" letter and the driver magazine, it is a callous marketing tool.
297 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 4:21 am
Oblivious Idiots – Plastic interior bits that are shoddy means I don’t have a perfect VW.
The letter is indeed a marketing tool. It’s called consumer outreach. Why you continue to insist this is a bad thing or that it will be ignored points more towards wanting to remain a victim rather than getting up and doing something that may actually get somewhere.
VWVictim Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 5:34 am
Oblivious Idiots – My reason for posting on the web is to make people aware of VW’s longstanding practice of screwing the consumer. As I have stated in other posts, I feel a certain moral obligation to let people know the truth about VW. If I had seen sites like VWSUCKS.COM before I bought my two lemon VWs I would have saved myself years of misery. I would hope that someday VW would produce a quality automobile. I don’t see that happening in the forseeable future. The current scandal is going to have profound effects on VAG. VAG is going to have to make overwhelming changes to be able to compete in a 21st century global market. There is going to be much turmoil and acrimony between management and labor. Quality is going to get worse before it gets better. If in fact it gets better at all.
Now, and for the next few years is the absolute worse time to be buying a VW.
297 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 5:50 am
Oblivious Idiots – I’d have said the same thing but for a different reason, one that applies to any car, or really, any product: never buy the first year production model of anything.
North American MkV’s are in their first year, I would wait till 2007 to buy, 2008 if you want the 2.0T FSI variant that won’t be here till next year.
VWVictim Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 9:39 am
Perception and Reality – There is a difference between perception and reality. The reality is that the cars are still shoddily built with poor quality parts. The dealer network is still terrible, if not worse. And VWoA still insults its customer base who seek redress. They do not stand behind their product.
Putting a smiling face in front of all this does not change the underlying reality.
297 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 12:04 pm
Oblivious Idiots – The underlying reality that changes have occurred in the last few weeks that have yet to affect the present?
Considering VW’s shakeup and shakedown just started, what makes you think you’ll notice changes now? Instant gratification is a wonderful idea, but not realistic.
I would expect some changes by next year, but most of it over the next five.
297 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 12:15 pm
Oblivious Idiots – And by the way, my own experience is that while some of the plastic interior bits are shoddy, the rest of the car is very well-built (sometimes too well-built, I’ve removed solid metal bits in the engine bay whose sole design is to keep a tube from moving, even though the tube couldn’t possibly move without excessive external force other than wind.. they were in my way, took them off, never put ‘em back on).
I realize your handle describes how you want to be, but frankly, I’d stop playing victim and do something positive, like maybe following up on that letter about helping design a better Passat. If you’re not part of the solution….
Post edited 07/13/05 12:16 PM by paultakeda
peterd1965 Said,
July 13, 2005 @ 12:24 pm
Len’s Article in VW Driver – Actually I am glad if ANYONE is listening.
My first eidtion of VW’s magazine arrived a couple of weeks ago. New VW owners and CPO (me) get it…although I had to ask for it. Anyway Mr. Hunt has an interesting article and seems like a pretty genuine guy. In the article he talks about meeting a VW owner who explains that “”You buy a Honda, but you marry a Volkswagen”". Mr. Hunt enjoys the owners enthusiasm and the article talks about how marriages have their ups and downs.
Regrettably it seems that VW knows problems exist but seems to mask it by stating that they are “”drivers car”". (arguably not if you have the POS tiptronic, not very driver friendly and service doesn’t seem to care or even seem to agree that there might be a problem). Another angle that seemed a little disconcerting was the idea that Hondas and Toyota’s were mere appliances. Nuts and bolts without character.
When your car won’t start on a cold day, windshield wiper stops for no reason, transmission won’t shift, temp lights go on and off, would you rather have character or a car that works? I bet most people get tired of character real quick and their boss gets tired of hearing about chracter when they are late for work again. I had MG’s and Alfa’s as… second cars. They had so much character I needed – (god I am not typing this) a Ford Escort for character back up. To back up the Escort I had a Suzuki motorcycle that had a lot of character on cold days too.
jasenm Said,
July 16, 2005 @ 4:56 am
auditech – “HATE TO SAY IT BUT ALL CARMAKERS DONT DO THAT” GOD MAN YOURE WRONG AGAIN. WRONG WRONG WRONG. IT IS NOT DONE BY JUST SOME, BUT ALL. EVERY MAKE AND MODEL. AND IT IS DONE BY THE DEALERSHIP WITH MANUFACTUER GUIDELINES. IF ANYONE KNOWS, IT IS ME!!!! IT MAY NOT SAY “BUYBACK” IT MAY SAY “TRADE UP” AS WELL…. THE MITSUBISHI DEALER WE OWN NEXT DOOR IS DOING THE SAME ONE WE ARE, SO IS OUR CHRYSLER, HONDA AND FORD FRANSCHISES, IT IS DEALER CONTROLLED, BOSS. AUDITECH, TAKE OFF THE BLINDERS, YOURE GONNA GO OFF THE ROAD SOON.
jasenm Said,
July 16, 2005 @ 5:00 am
VW VICTIM – MAYBE YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO PAUL INSTEAD OF SCREAMING THE SAME OLD TIRED CRAP. WE GET YOUR POINT, AND IT’S A LOUSY ONE AT THAT. AND DONT ACT LIKE YOURE HERE SOLELY TO “”SAVE HUMANITY FROM THE EVIL VW EMPIRE”" BECK HAS A PATENT ON THAT B.S. LINE.
Post edited 07/16/05 5:34 PM by jasenm
jasenm Said,
July 16, 2005 @ 5:35 am
PAUL – WHY MUST YOU WAIT TILL 2008 FSI 2.0T? ITS USED IN AUDI NOW. AND IT COMES OUT IN 3 WEEKS, NOT NEXT YEAR. (PASSAT B6 RELEASE AUG 19, GLI JETTA 2.0T SEPT 2)
297 Said,
July 16, 2005 @ 10:40 am
Oblivious Idiots – I answered this in a prior thread, but the engine is not the issue. It’s the configuration. Putting an engine in another platform, with an entire array of electronics systems designed to meet North American standards — this is all a brand new bag. The entire combination needs a couple of years to work the unexpected problems out. This is my policy for any new car, not just VW, in case someone decides to try and toss that one in and call me a hypocrite.
Post edited 07/16/05 10:40 PM by paultakeda