Where Your Author Requires Another Volkswagen Quality Remedy

Well hello! It’s been over a year since we’ve had an update on the 2019 VW Golf Sportwagen seen here. In our last installment, I was filled with optimistical-ness at the prospect of years of trouble-free ownership. After all, surely all the kinks were worked out on this end-of-model Golf that was in production since 2013.

Spoilers: I was wrong.

In case you missed it, I’ll catch you up to speed. After the December 2019 purchase of the rigorously CPO-tested Golf, I noticed a lot of clicking in the headliner. Literally many trips to the dealer later, the source was identified: An improperly cured factory headliner that was too thin in the area over the driver’s head. The headliner had cracked; its pieces clicked against one another in an inharmonious plastic cacophony. I got an entirely new headliner out of the affair, as appropriate.

And now a new issue has arisen! Where do you think the issue might be? Shoddy turbo? Bad window regulator? Nope, it’s in the roof once again. It started a few weeks ago when I noticed a musty smell in the car upon entry. It was sort of a “plant-based” musty smell, and would dissipate after the car was driven any distance. Bits and pieces are dropping off trees in Ohio like crazy this time of year, so I assumed some tree parts were stuck in or under the floor mats. I cleaned the mats and the carpet underneath, and figured I’d give it a day to settle back to its normal vinyl Volkswagen smell.

Alas, no. The next time I got in the car (last week), the smell was worse than ever. I figured something was wet, and checked carpets, sills, the cargo area, and around the spare wheel. No moisture to be found! What gives? Then, by chance, I caught a glimpse of the headliner as I was about to back out of the driveway. Lo and behold, a nasty sight.

Water damage. All along the width of the headliner, just before the hatch. The affected area was probably up to about five inches deep, and is contained to that area for One Simple Reason: I park on a slight incline in the driveway. I booked an appointment with the dealer immediately, but the soonest I could get in is this coming Friday, May 14th.

Either the roof is leaking itself, or I’ve got a Golf with sunroof drain pinch issues. The TSB posted there covers only through 2018. However, the 2019 is identical and some research says the TSB was updated to include 2019. Seems as though the drain hose gets pinched by foam blocks that hold up the headliner, which of course causes an H2O uh oh in the roof. I’m sort of wondering if the drain placement was fine from the factory, but then the pinch occurred at the new headliner’s installment. Then, only heavy spring rains this year brought it to attention.

The Golf has about 8,000 miles now, so it makes sense it’s due for its second headliner, right? We’ll see by the end of this week, but I hope the dealer service department doesn’t push back on the repair. I made sure to book the same service manager I had previously, too. Wish me luck.

[Images: Corey Lewis / The Truth About Cars]