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"Normal" GTI Issues

scotthilly

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Chicago, IL
Car(s)
2019 GTI SE
Hey everyone,

I've got a 2019 GTI SE with a 6MT, with honestly a host of issues. I bought it new this past June (leftover), and have got 10,200 miles on it. I've taken it to the dealer for it's 10k and for another visit, and they keep telling me the issues I'm experiencing are normal. I hoped I'd check with everyone on here to see if you all have any further recommendations for how to deal with them, or if you experienced dealer fixes.

Creaks are all over the place. I've got squeaks from my backseat (only fixed when the seats are folded), from the sunroof, and the door creaking is horrific. I applied wax to the doorsills, which worked for about a week - now it's back and even worse, even after applying more. It seems like the sunroof creaks are reduced when I close the shade, but I could be wrong. I removed the plastic trim from the glovebox that is known to rattle, to no avail. When I start the car occasionally I'll get a super loud juddering that I think comes from the cargo cover - sounds like a bus going over bumps, and this sound continues over big bumps themselves.

I also had the fuel line rattle, horribly bad. Took it in and they checked and said it was fine - it stopped after that, except for occasional rattles around 2500 rpm.

Lastly, I've had major carplay issues. About once a week, my carplay screen goes black, bluetooth won't connect to my phone, and there's nothing I can do other than shut the car off, exit, lock it, wait a minute, then re-enter and it works fine.

I love the car but these issues are ridiculous, worse than nearly any car I've been in. I guess what I'm asking is if this stuff just always happens, and those of you that had it, what were solutions? I've searched a ton of posts, and the door creaking is really the only place I could find solutions for. Those of you that went to the dealer, did they ever fix any of this for you? Thanks all.
 

JC_451

Autocross Champion
Location
NJ, one of the nice parts.
Car(s)
2017 GTI Sport
The kind of stuff you're taking the car to the dealer for makes them no money so they're not going to put in the time to run down these kind of problems.

If they do indulge you you'll get the most inexperienced tech to start pulling things apart, which might end up making things worse.

A lot of this stuff probably is "normal." It's not a luxury car.
 

scotthilly

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Chicago, IL
Car(s)
2019 GTI SE
The kind of stuff you're taking the car to the dealer for makes them no money so they're not going to put in the time to run down these kind of problems.

If they do indulge you you'll get the most inexperienced tech to start pulling things apart, which might end up making things worse.

A lot of this stuff probably is "normal." It's not a luxury car.
I know it isn't a luxury car, but man. My first car in high school was a 2008 Honda Ridgeline, and it's still perfect at 160k miles. Even my families old 2014 Ford Flex was perfect when we sold it at 85,000, and I don't really associate Ford with quality. Seriously, mine makes me feel like I'm in a rusted out 06 Elantra someone's using for Uber sometimes.
 

Elwood

3-7-77
Location
Long Beach, CA
Do a hard restart on the radio (holding down the power button for 10-15 seconds to get it completely off) and make sure you have a good cable.

Wax on the door seals is new to me. Liquid silicone lubricant rubbed into the seal works very well, but now you have to get the old wax off first.

Lots of posts on sunroof rattles. I ended up installing some felt pads above the headliner.

I think the problem is that the car sat outside in the sun and cooked for a log time. Its dried out and probably some plastic bits warped from the heat.
 

Subliminal

Autocross Champion
Location
Vegas
Car(s)
Slow FWD VW Hatch
Does anyone else usually have to press the driver's window switch down twice before it'll actually go all the way down? The first time it usually just goes down a tiny bit as if I didn't push the switch down all the way. After the first time it'll work fine the rest of the drive
 

jimlloyd40

Autocross Champion
Location
Phoenix
Car(s)
2018 SE DSG
Does anyone else usually have to press the driver's window switch down twice before it'll actually go all the way down? The first time it usually just goes down a tiny bit as if I didn't push the switch down all the way. After the first time it'll work fine the rest of the drive
My driver window switch needed to be replaced and every so often I have to reset it again.
 

EricsVdub

Go Kart Champion
Location
Chicago 'burbs
Car(s)
2019 GTI SE Exp pkg
Sounds like I made the same impulse buy as the OP. Bought a 2019 GTI SE 6MT in early 2020 also, but I haven't experienced any of those issues. Can't say I'm surprised that the stealership is no help though.
 

dequardo

Autocross Newbie
Location
America’s Dairyland
Car(s)
‘21 GLI Autobahn GLI
Windows and sunroofs sometimes need to be recalibrated. Hold switch that is causing problems down or up for 10 seconds.
 

scotthilly

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Chicago, IL
Car(s)
2019 GTI SE
Sounds like I made the same impulse buy as the OP. Bought a 2019 GTI SE 6MT in early 2020 also, but I haven't experienced any of those issues. Can't say I'm surprised that the stealership is no help though.
Haha, you're spot on. I'm about graduate college and it was a total impulse buy. Can't say I regret it, but maybe not the most responsible financial decision. If not for the insane deal and 0% they gave me, I wouldn't have it.
 

George Ab

Drag Racing Champion
Location
Pacific NW
Sorry to hear this. I almost feel guilty that my 2015 GTI purchased in 2014 has been problem free other then coils at 40K miles. So no, NOT normal.
Unfortunately sounds like the dealership is a complete waste of time. I would start with one problem and keep at it until it is resolved and then move onto next. Good input on providing boot up infotainment unit. It is fairly easy to remove the rear seat. You may want to remove the rear seat and look to see if you can find the source of vibration. I would start with removing the lower portion to see if it goes away to try to narrow down where to look. On the sunroof, this guy has good input and did a fix on sunroof you may want to look into.

 
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EricsVdub

Go Kart Champion
Location
Chicago 'burbs
Car(s)
2019 GTI SE Exp pkg
I don't regret it either. I've always liked the GTI, just never got around to buying one until now. I love the car so far, which is probably easier without all the issues. Sorry you're experiencing that, hope it gets resolved for you. You might want to escalate to VW since the dealer hasn't been much help.
 

DSC808

Autocross Champion
Location
HI State
Car(s)
2016 GTI SE MT
When I get squeeks I apply gummi pledge to all the rubber seals on the car. All doors, trunk and sunroof. Goes away for 6 months or so then slowly squeeks back. Then just reapply. Kinda annoying but take like 10 minutes.
 

Drincc

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Vancouver, Canada
Car(s)
2019 GTI
Bought a dead stock new 2019 GTI DSG on impulse (Bought an unexpected roach of a 4runner, sold it at a loss, then had knee issues dump me out of a manual Corolla in the span of a month), and the only problem I need to bring up to my dealer is the right front "Oh shit" handle not holding in the up position. I'm used to NVH imperfections, but that trim stuff should be given a once over by the dealer especially within warranty.

Maybe the dealer you went to is just ass.
 
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