Hi,
Just sharing my experience with a recent clutch slave cylinder failure I had with my 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 2.0L engine w manual transmission. Vehicle was purchased from a Canadian Volkswagen dealership in 2019.
Symptoms: Clutch pedal stuck in depressed position, vehicle unable to shift gears, hydraulic fluid leaking under hood/transmission case.
My vehicle was at 70,000km at the time of the failure, and powertrain warranty just 3 days short of expiration by sheer luck. Brought the vehicle to a local dealership and they expressed that the vehicle would not be covered under the powertrain warranty.
The Owner Warranty and Maintenance Manual and Volkswagen's internal "Warranty Policies and Procedures Manual" (VWC 2023), both explicitly state that powertrain warranty will cover failure of the following parts/components; transmission, transmission case, and “all internal parts” of the transmission and/or transmission case, as well as “all related seals and gaskets” of the mentioned components. The warranty covers said failure of parts due to poor material/workmanship.
Since the clutch slave cylinder and leaking hydraulic line are within the transmission case, the verbiage found within both manuals, convey an identical message; the repairs should in fact eligible for coverage as a 5 year powertrain warranty item.
Has anybody encountered a similar issue? And does anybody have any explanation as to why this vehicle would not be considered a failure of an internal part/relevant seal that is internal to the transmission/transmission case?
Definition of “internal” (Black’s Law Dictionary):
“Belating to the Interior j comprised within boundary lines; of interior concern or interest; domestic, as opposed to foreign.”
Definition of “internal” (Merriam-Webster):
“existing or situated within the limits or surface of something.”
To go a step further, a publication on Law Insider defines “internal parts” as such; “a subset of products that are parts and components inside a [system] and which are not visible to the user during normal operation of that [system]. For the avoidance of doubt, “normal operation” for purposes of this definition does not include inspection, calibration, maintenance, and service, or any other activity which would involve the removal or opening of a fastener or panel to gain access to the interior of the [system].”
The publication even makes use of warranty language detailing a transmission case’s internal parts, as an example to convey the definition of internal parts. Please see below:
Internal parts of a transmission example:
“Transmission: Transmission Case and all Internal Parts; Torque Converter; Drive/Flex Plate; Transmission Range Switch; Speed Sensors; Pressure Sensors; Transmission Control Module; Bell Housing; Oil Pan; Seals and Gaskets for listed components only.”
This is quite an expensive repair due to the internalized clutch components, and I am looking at $5000 CAD worth of repairs to replace the clutch slave cylinder/release bearing, clutch kit (due to contamination from the leak), to reassemble transmission, and bleed/refill the hydraulic lines. This is not including replacement of the contaminated flywheel. (The dealer's technician said that the flywheel was "okay".)
It is to my understanding that the slave cylinder is not a wear/tear item, and the line leakage is likely due to the poor plastic material of the slave cylinder. Either way, I would absolutely classify this as a relevant seal/gasket since the failure was likely an internal seal which caused a leak in the sealed hydraulic line.
I have spoken with the dealer and manufacturer on multiple occasions and they continuously have told me their "hands are tied" and the manufacturer tells me that if the dealership will not honor the repair under warranty, then it there is nothing that can be done. They have been quite literally useless in assisting me, and the dealership has lied to me multiple times, even stating that even if the failure was determined to be a warranty item, that the 5 year warranty term would only be honored up to the date that the repair is performed, and not the date that the vehicle was initially brought into the dealership.
Please let me know your thoughts and opinions. Thank you.
Just sharing my experience with a recent clutch slave cylinder failure I had with my 2019 Volkswagen Jetta GLI 2.0L engine w manual transmission. Vehicle was purchased from a Canadian Volkswagen dealership in 2019.
Symptoms: Clutch pedal stuck in depressed position, vehicle unable to shift gears, hydraulic fluid leaking under hood/transmission case.
My vehicle was at 70,000km at the time of the failure, and powertrain warranty just 3 days short of expiration by sheer luck. Brought the vehicle to a local dealership and they expressed that the vehicle would not be covered under the powertrain warranty.
The Owner Warranty and Maintenance Manual and Volkswagen's internal "Warranty Policies and Procedures Manual" (VWC 2023), both explicitly state that powertrain warranty will cover failure of the following parts/components; transmission, transmission case, and “all internal parts” of the transmission and/or transmission case, as well as “all related seals and gaskets” of the mentioned components. The warranty covers said failure of parts due to poor material/workmanship.
Since the clutch slave cylinder and leaking hydraulic line are within the transmission case, the verbiage found within both manuals, convey an identical message; the repairs should in fact eligible for coverage as a 5 year powertrain warranty item.
Has anybody encountered a similar issue? And does anybody have any explanation as to why this vehicle would not be considered a failure of an internal part/relevant seal that is internal to the transmission/transmission case?
Definition of “internal” (Black’s Law Dictionary):
“Belating to the Interior j comprised within boundary lines; of interior concern or interest; domestic, as opposed to foreign.”
Definition of “internal” (Merriam-Webster):
“existing or situated within the limits or surface of something.”
To go a step further, a publication on Law Insider defines “internal parts” as such; “a subset of products that are parts and components inside a [system] and which are not visible to the user during normal operation of that [system]. For the avoidance of doubt, “normal operation” for purposes of this definition does not include inspection, calibration, maintenance, and service, or any other activity which would involve the removal or opening of a fastener or panel to gain access to the interior of the [system].”
The publication even makes use of warranty language detailing a transmission case’s internal parts, as an example to convey the definition of internal parts. Please see below:
Internal parts of a transmission example:
“Transmission: Transmission Case and all Internal Parts; Torque Converter; Drive/Flex Plate; Transmission Range Switch; Speed Sensors; Pressure Sensors; Transmission Control Module; Bell Housing; Oil Pan; Seals and Gaskets for listed components only.”
This is quite an expensive repair due to the internalized clutch components, and I am looking at $5000 CAD worth of repairs to replace the clutch slave cylinder/release bearing, clutch kit (due to contamination from the leak), to reassemble transmission, and bleed/refill the hydraulic lines. This is not including replacement of the contaminated flywheel. (The dealer's technician said that the flywheel was "okay".)
It is to my understanding that the slave cylinder is not a wear/tear item, and the line leakage is likely due to the poor plastic material of the slave cylinder. Either way, I would absolutely classify this as a relevant seal/gasket since the failure was likely an internal seal which caused a leak in the sealed hydraulic line.
I have spoken with the dealer and manufacturer on multiple occasions and they continuously have told me their "hands are tied" and the manufacturer tells me that if the dealership will not honor the repair under warranty, then it there is nothing that can be done. They have been quite literally useless in assisting me, and the dealership has lied to me multiple times, even stating that even if the failure was determined to be a warranty item, that the 5 year warranty term would only be honored up to the date that the repair is performed, and not the date that the vehicle was initially brought into the dealership.
Please let me know your thoughts and opinions. Thank you.
