Aircon issue and Warranty

[LeebzP]

Hi guys. My Polo's aircon stopped working. So I booked it in and the service technician says that the condenser pipe was hit by a stone and caused a leak. Personally, I feel like that is just a "go-to" excuse for not having to honour the warranty. If i decline the quotation and go get it fixed elsewhere, will it void their non-existent warranty? Or maybe I'm just being too fussy. I don't drive on gravel roads to begin with.

[OomStu_ZA]

Not that I am mechanically minded but would ask them to show me exactly where the damage is that caused the problem. From there I'd make the call to fight or play ball. Common sense should prevail.

[LeebzP]

I asked the sales technician to show me because I wasnt convinced that the radiator would be located behind the condenser. It turned out to be true. Then I asked her to explain how a rock can damage the piping to which she told me it's made out of plastic. I didnt wanna play ball, so I declined the quotation. I will get a qualified mechanic to check if such damage is possible before accepting the quote.

[RUM4MO]

Getting an AC part replaced by an independent auto HVAC professional will probably mean that if you have any other issues with the AC during your warranty period then VW SA will decline to fix FOC - but you might never have another AC failure while under VW warranty, so if that suits you then just get a proper HVAC professional to repair your AC system. I'm assuming here that a VW dealership would spot that some part had been replaced - they might not. Also in reality if you had another issue with your AC system, completely unrelated with this area of the system, then VW should still honour any warranty work required, but it is VW that we are talking about here, so they will be cunning as foxes and/or slippery as eels - as any business seems to be when it comes to FOC repairs.

[monkeyhanger]

As long as the offending part replaced is genuine and fitted properly, how would they know for future issues you may possibly have? They won't have logged a warranty claim and then noted on a system that you declined, and I'm sure they won't remember you a year or 2 on if you do have further issues.

You could always use another dealership in the unlikely event that you have another AC related issue, so you are not remembered.

At the end of the day, this is shoddy design to put a relatively delicate plastic pipe in the firing line of stones.

A lot of Audis have very open front grilles, with a lot of exposure to the components behind. There've been a few S3s with intercooler system issues on the forums attributed to stone chip damage. Poorly designed for the intended purpose.

[LeebzP]

Thank you so much for the advice. I'll weigh my options. I'm leaning more into buying one and getting an HVAC professional to install it because VW's pricing is ridiculously high.

[RUM4MO]

Thank you so much for the advice. I'll weigh my options. I'm leaning more into buying one and getting an HVAC professional to install it because VW's pricing is ridiculously high.

Good plan! Your VW dealership will be the only place I'd expect for some of these "bespoke to that car" parts.