Creaky Seats :-(

Chat about your 9n Polo (inc GT and Fun)
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Nelson_Wilbury
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Creaky Seats :-(

Post by Nelson_Wilbury »

Had the o/s seat base replaced on my car at 4,000 miles. Now 4,000 miles later the top part is now also creaking!! :evil:

Couple of other things I noticed...
* Not sure with type of servicing i'm on but where I have my mileage counter thing is there is a 1000 mile countdown to the first service.
* Both doors now continously rattle (even without my Traveling Wilburys CD on :lol: Fan of the classics :P )
* The engine does seem to 'shudder' very easily on anything less than 1700 revs. Is this normal or just me?
* The washer pipe has popped off again :x
* If you put the heater fan speed above '1' setting you get an annoying whistling noise from inside the dash, can the blower motor be claimed under warranty if this happens?

Anyway, car will be having its first service on Monday, has a list of other little probs. Why is the build quality not as good as it once was :cry:
Last edited by Nelson_Wilbury on Sat Feb 15, 2003 11:02 pm, edited 1 time in total.
dxg
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Post by dxg »

Ah, "Tweeter and the Monkey Man" - remember that well from my student days...

I saw a set of San Marinos on a W8(?) Passat (while testing driving _another_ Lupo GTi) this morning - very nice wheels, but not real split rims.

So here I am again, back at thinking about selling and jumping back a generation to get to the quality. It's definately not there in the current generation. Have a look at polo9n.com - they're saying the same.

Do you get steering "shudder" at anything above 80? My dealer claims it's normal and won't do anything about it, but it definately isn't - hence, time to think about selling again. Bombing up the M1 this morning to look at this Lupo just reminded me how bad it really is. It got so bad that a Citroen MPV thing beat me out in a confidence test at around 95...

Deek.
Nelson_Wilbury
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Post by Nelson_Wilbury »

dxg wrote:Ah, "Tweeter and the Monkey Man" - remember that well from my student days...

I saw a set of San Marinos on a W8(?) Passat (while testing driving _another_ Lupo GTi) this morning - very nice wheels, but not real split rims.

So here I am again, back at thinking about selling and jumping back a generation to get to the quality. It's definately not there in the current generation. Have a look at polo9n.com - they're saying the same.

Do you get steering "shudder" at anything above 80? My dealer claims it's normal and won't do anything about it, but it definately isn't - hence, time to think about selling again. Bombing up the M1 this morning to look at this Lupo just reminded me how bad it really is. It got so bad that a Citroen MPV thing beat me out in a confidence test at around 95...

Deek.
Hello Deek,

Ah, yes. Just listening to that song on the way back from my sisters, lol!
I think the Wilburys was Dylan at his raunchiest; 'You don't need no wax job, your smooth enough for me, if you need your oil changed, I'll do it for you for free' :lol: And why did 'End Of The Line' come on when I reversed into a pole a few months back? 'It's AAALLLLRRIGHT!!' :roll:

I really do hope the quality issue is just a small phase that most cars go through :oops: Remember, the MK3 Golf wasn't without problems at the start but if it continues my next car might be an Ibiza, at least your getting the right quality for the right money!!

I have taken my car above 80 very few times but I did get it to 96mph a few months back and I don't remember any steering wheel shudder. I usually chicken out above 80 anyway as I don't want to lose my licience, 6 points and all, lol!
dxg
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Post by dxg »

I make it a point to confirm the top speed figures in every car I've ever owned (all three of them :roll: ). But I only ever do it once, just to prove
that point. It all started with an assumption that manufacturers could never be accurate about such a figure. Surely variations between individual cars would cause it to vary? But ever since my old 903cc, pushrod Fiat Uno topped out at exactly the 87 it said it would in the handbook, I've been intriged by this issue.

The 95 ish yesterday was the fastest I've been in the polo yet. And I don't think I'll be doing it again. My previous Fiats have never felt composed or safe at high speed, but at least you weren't worried about the risk of something critical failing or shearing off!! :cry: I would be one way to get a replacement car, I suppose. :roll:

Besides on the rare occasions when the M1's flowing well, it averages around 80-85 in my neck of the woods. Early yesterday morning was one of those occasions :wink:

Deek.

(I was introduced to the Wilburys by a friend who claimed I "needed to understand what "real music" was all about". I'm still not convinced the Wilbury's were best way to do that. He just claimed that all I listened to was "white man's blues" (this coming from the whitest guy you've ever met - from North Queensferry of all places!) To this day, I don't understand how the Wilbury's could have rectified that situation, though.)

From memory:

"Now tweeter and the monkey man were hard up for cash. They stayed out all night selling cocaine and hash" :oops: Really! Shouldn't these musical emmerasy(sp?) have known better at their age :roll:

Don't get me wrong though - I loved that album. Shame I lost my copy really...
Nelson_Wilbury
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Post by Nelson_Wilbury »

dxg wrote:I make it a point to confirm the top speed figures in every car I've ever owned (all three of them :roll: ). But I only ever do it once, just to prove
that point. It all started with an assumption that manufacturers could never be accurate about such a figure. Surely variations between individual cars would cause it to vary? But ever since my old 903cc, pushrod Fiat Uno topped out at exactly the 87 it said it would in the handbook, I've been intriged by this issue.

The 95 ish yesterday was the fastest I've been in the polo yet. And I don't think I'll be doing it again. My previous Fiats have never felt composed or safe at high speed, but at least you weren't worried about the risk of something critical failing or shearing off!! :cry: I would be one way to get a replacement car, I suppose. :roll:
The qouted top speed for my car is 94mph, I got 96mph. I think the top speed for the 75bhp Polo is 107mph? I don't really believe what your dealer says as if I had that trouble I would have slowed down straight away, remember I've only been driving for sixth months, or perhaps i'm just a risk taker 8) :lol:

dxg wrote:(I was introduced to the Wilburys by a friend who claimed I "needed to understand what "real music" was all about". I'm still not convinced the Wilbury's were best way to do that. He just claimed that all I listened to was "white man's blues" (this coming from the whitest guy you've ever met - from North Queensferry of all places!) To this day, I don't understand how the Wilbury's could have rectified that situation, though.)

From memory:

"Now tweeter and the monkey man were hard up for cash. They stayed out all night selling cocaine and hash" :oops: Really! Shouldn't these musical emmerasy(sp?) have known better at their age :roll:

Don't get me wrong though - I loved that album. Shame I lost my copy really...
Lol, The Wilburys were never a serious band (Tweeter and The Monkey Man, End Of The Line, Dirty World etc etc), they did make some excellent music though. Agree what you say though, it was real music but at the same time it WASN'T! :lol:

If you had that on CD then try and find it!! Last time I looked they were making £40 each on ebay!! I got sealed copies of Vol. 1 and Vol. 3 for £28 but thats only cause the CD stall bloke didn't know there true value :twisted:

If you want a couple of CDR's done you are more than welcome to relive your youth :wink:
mole
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Post by mole »

Nelson, it's on the variable that it countsdown from 1000 miles. Mine was on variable for the first two services. After the second the display started counting down 10,000 miles and also the days which I assume is because they have now put it on fixed??

dxg, I get a judder above 80, don't think it's normal at all but haven't told them about it because I had forgotten all about it over the last few months as I've never had the chance to go above 80, I can get almost 80 down the lanes where I live, then it's either towns or carpark motorways. I need to take the car in soon though because the passenger seat no longer folds forward to allow ppl access to the back, I will mention it then now I haven't got my alloys on and they can't blame it on them.

I've had 115mph out of mine on an Autobahn with no speed limit ;) Don't know VWs stated top speed for the 1.4 but I'm sure it's not 115.
dxg
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Post by dxg »

Mole,

I'd be really interested in what they say to you.

My first thought was that the wheels aren't balanced - but wouldn't this give shudder at all speeds?

I've heard of some Polos having warped discs, but this would give shuder under breaking only (I think...)

Other things might be the actual drive shafts not being balanced or straight. No whining or other noise with it, so it's not CV joints or bearings - I'd had both those failures on previous cars, so I know it's not that.

I guess it's something between the clutch and the road, otherwise the shudder would be related to engine revs and not the road speed?? There's not much else that it could be!


I'm pretty much like you - forget all about it until a motorway journey comes up and then spend the next week cursing the car.

That little Lupo went _so well_ yesterday morning. Really seriously tempted. I used to know someone with a 944. The Lupo was the first car I'd been in since that one that pins you back in the seats. I'm not kidding - it was that fast to accelerate! Mind you, the 944 had seen better days and was just about to fall apart!!

So, do I save up for a few more months, clear the finance on the polo, sell it private and buy something outside of VW? Or do I buy the Lupo, take a hit on several grand's of depreciation in seven months and start again with the finance (and give VW another chance)?

Can't decide. :(

Deek.

(To get 115 out of a 1.4 with a top speed of 107 is a bit of a result!)
Nelson_Wilbury
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Post by Nelson_Wilbury »

dxg, personally. I'd wait a couple more months and try and get your local dealer to let you borrow one of their latest demonstrators for a few days. Just to see if the quality has improved.

Personally I wouldn't buy a Lupo as I believe production is ceasing in a couple of years time. Also, no matter how good it is to drive it still looks rather odd :roll:
mole
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Post by mole »

That was my first thought also. But I have since put my old steel wheels on and the problem is still there. Those wheels have just been re-balanced when the snow tyres were fitted and altho those tyres are pretty noisy, they wouldn't cause that I'm sure.

I also noticed it *more* under braking which worried me, as I have heard about warped disks. This was only at the speeds where the judder is, not for instance, if I braked at 30mph.

See what they say when I take it in, after I clean her up. After taking the stickers off of the tailgate yesterday, I spent another 2 hours polishing it. No not the whole car, the tailgate only!

My dad's got a Subaru Impreza, slightly tuned, which certainly pins you back in your seat :D Huge grin factor that car.
I'd seriosuly consider the Lupo though if I was you. Never been in one, but from looking at them, they are nice cars. They look small to me, but as I said, never been in one.

I didn't think you could go wrong with VW, but it would seem that so many ppl on here are having problems, like yourself.

It's a tough choice!!!
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Post by polo2k »

the vibration could be any one of about a million things so apart from the obvious isk them to check the likes of wheel bearings, if the calipers are on there right (tight and straight), drive shaft out of balence/secure at both ends like i said it could be any thing really id say your best bet is to get a tech or higher to drive the car WITH YOU and replicate the problem. then if they carry on saying that its normal tell them that you want to try another polo, if its there too then complain like hell about vw quqlity if not go wild at them for selling you a dud dub and ask the boss man, who shoukd be aware of all this by now, that you want the number for VAGUK
then try and stifle the smile as he leaves to change his trousers :twisted:
mole
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Post by mole »

Wise words 2k.
I will get them to look. It def wasn't there when I first bought the car.
Only after a few k I think it appeared. 20k later I still haven't got them to look at it!
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