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2003 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT — SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER

fire · 897402 · 2011-12-29

Vehicle

Make
VOLKSWAGEN
Model
PASSAT
Year
2003
Manufacturer
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Component
SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
0
Fire
Yes
Crash
No
Police report
No
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

HEATER STOPPED WORKING AND BLEW COLD AIR. BROUGHT CAR INTO VW DEALER BE SERVICED. HEATING SYSTEM WAS FLUSHED WITH CLEANER. A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER "REPAIR," CAR WAS DRIVEN WITH THE PASSENGER SEAT HEATER ON AND A 1 1/4" HOLE BURNT THROUGH SEAT EXPOSING BURNT HEATING ELEMENT AND BURNT FOAM. HEATER STOPPED WORKING A COUPLE OF WEEKS AFTER ABOVE "REPAIR." RETURNED TO DEALER TO REDO REPAIR AND REQUESTED THE SEAT HEATER AND SEAT UPHOLSTERY LEATHER REPLACED. TOLD THAT IT WOULD COST $1000.00 AND THAT IT WOULD BE THE OWNER'S RESPONSIBILITY. CLEARLY THE SEAT HEATERS ON THIS CAR MODEL ARE DEFECTIVE GIVEN ALL THE COMPLAINTS AND PRIOR RECALLS. VW REPLACED THE DRIVER'S SEAT HEATER WITH A RECALL...WHICH LEADS TO THE OBVIOUS QUESTION: "WHY WEREN'T THE PASSENGER SIDE SEAT RECALLED AS WELL?" WAS THIS A CALCULATION ON THE PART OF VW CORPORATE....THAT THE COST OF REPLACING THE DRIVER SEATS THROUGH A RECALL WAS LESS THAT THE LIABILITY DUE TO BURNS/ACCIDENTS/LOSS OF LIFE...BUT THE COST OF REPLACING THE PASSENGER SEATS THROUGH A RECALL WAS CALCULATED TO BE MORE THAN THE LIABILITY THERE? THIS DOES NOT SMELL GOOD. CLASS ACTION SUIT SEEMS APPROPRIATE. *KB

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10441607
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown