Mk V Golf brakes

[paropilot]

This hint is safety related. My new Golf V TDI required a new brake servo at about 4000 miles. The original began hissing and the air leak upset the engine management. Driving out after the servo replacement I noticed the brake pedal felt soft and took the vehicle back. On taking back the car its brake pedal felt no different, engaging the brakes at about 50mm of travel but continuing downwards for another 50mm or so until it hit the floor.

The senior technician came out with me and assured me that the system was fine and that I would get used to the different feel of the car.

I was a qualified aircraft engineer but this guy had me doubting my own judgment. So I had the vehicle inspected by an independent motor engineer who confirmed that there was something badly wrong with the braking system. The dealer kept it for a couple of days, then admitted that the system had not been properly bled after the servo installation. He told me that new Golf brakes have no bleeder at the disc and must be bled six times, the last using a computer. Take note, those who try some DIY on these vehicles (and why not, if this is the experts' handiwork?)

Asked what would have happened had I not had some engineering knowledge, he said he could only apologise.

We have had Golfs since the Mk 1. This one goes well, it's comfy and handy, but it's a plastic rattlebox built for profit not reliability. Once the warranty runs out the Golf goes too, next time it's Toyota or Lexus and hope their dealers know what they are doing.

[shark_90]

Thankyou for letting us know how you feel about the Golf!

If you want to know more about Lexus, I suggest you have a look around this site.

This thread here:

http://www.tyresmoke.net/forum/general-cars/113948-lexus-48-hour-test-drive.html

has 700 posts so may take you a while to read, but it should give you an idea of what the customer service and dealers are like

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