2018 egolf issue: mild vibration and noise from fan/ac & rus

[newfly]

I just bought a 2018 egolf. Leased a 16 for 3 years and decided to bite the bullet and buy the 18 (versus leasing)

I noticed that on my 18, i can feel the steering wheel vibrates a bit along with some noise when the car is not moving/idle. i am pretty sure the vibration and noise is constant but when you're moving, other road noise kinda overwhelm the fan/ac noise.

If i turn off the fan , the car is silent and no vibration. Took it to the dealership and the service manager says its "normal". My 16 had similar issue but less so. i was hoping a technical can take a look and diagnose the problem but the service manager just write me off immediately. Hmm...

Anyone else experience this? With or without AC on, i can feel the vibration. More so with AC or Heat on.

I also noted rust near what i think looks like the CV boots meets the axle? the dealership just brushed me off as well, giving me a lecture on metal will rust. Arg... I tried to politely ask about the rust warranty but he didn't bite.

I opened a case with VW NA. the representative on the phone is helpful and he said new car should have have rust and he escalated it to the district manager. Lets see.

Frustrated with a 1 day old car! I should have paid more attention during test drive. Since i am very familiar with egolf, i didn't pay too much attention.

 

[BomBoi]

This sounds the same for me as well . i felt it on my brake pedal at stop lights . it only happens when the fan is going and the service writer said it is normal fan operation.

 

[newfly]

Thanks for confirming. I still want to get vw to check it out. The VW NA is very responsive and promised me he will get the technician to fully check out the car for the rust and vibration issue.

 

[newfly]

Update: the tech was able to reproduce the steering wheel vibration and diagnose the problem to one of the heat pump 2 water pumps. Supposed the 'return' pump is making all the noise and vibration. Parts ordered and they will replace the pump when the parts arrived. I'm really hoping this will fix the problem.

 

[JoulesThief]

The heat pump on my 2015 is noisy, too. It might just be you got a really bad one, but I don't see how it would get into the steering and suspension components, to the steering wheel.

 

[newfly]

>I don't see how it would get into the steering and suspension components, to the steering wheel.

I am puzzled as well. If you open the hood, and touch the steering column ( looks like a ball joint), you can feel the pulsation from the heat pump. I suspect since the heat pump is mounted to the main frame, the vibration transmit to the rest of the components.

Anyhow, i'll update once i get my car back. I sure hope the problem is resolved.

 

[newfly]

After a couple of visits and a 2 weeks total in the shop, the noise and vibration issues is finally resolved !
VW replaced the secondary water pump (for the heat pump) and the entire rack and pinion assembly. kudos to NW NA especially when the dealership insisted the problem is "normal".

 

[sktrojan]

Hi newfly. Do you know whether your eGolf came with a heat pump? Or did you add it as an option?

I'm not getting vibrations, but I do hear a low pitch hum when I have the AC/Heater on in my 2018 eGolf. When the AC/Heater is off, the hum is gone. My issue sounds similar to yours.

BTW, who is VW NA? I will contact them like you did if the dealer shrugs me off.

Thanks in-advance for your help.

 

[newfly]

i have a 2018, which comes with heat pump standard.

VW NA = Volkswagen North America. https://www.vw.com/contact/ CAll the 1-800-822-8987 and open a CASE.

Good Luck

 

[sktrojan]

Thank you for the information, I appreciate it.

 

[2016golfse]

i have a 2018, which comes with heat pump standard.

Heat pump is standard on all 2015-2018 SEL's and the extremely rare 2017 LE.
All SE models and the 2015 LE do not have a heat pump.

 

[sktrojan]

Thanks 2016golfse. That's what I thought. I have a 2018 SE and I didn't think it had a heat pump, as I thought they were an option for the SE trim (and my paperwork makes no mention of it including one).

Now I'm re-thinking the hum in my SE if I don't have a heat pump. Looks like I'll have to have the dealer try and diagnose the issue.

 

[Sparklebeard]

i have a 2018, which comes with heat pump standard.

Heat pump is standard on all 2015-2018 SEL's and the extremely rare 2017 LE.
All SE models and the 2015 LE do not have a heat pump.

I had no idea this was an advantage of the SEL over the SE! Glad I got the SEL 16 even more so now