Faults:

Replaced gearbox (within dealer's warranty)

Air con has now failed.

General Comments:

The car performs well is comfortable and bright with good driver's position and all round visibility. Comfort and performance wise it's a massive improvement on the Renault Espace we had before. My local VW dealer is dire so I'm always worried when something goes wrong with it. Currently the aircon is on the blink and I have been warned that replacing the main unit costs £900. I wouldn't bother, but I've got three kids under 6 so if it gets hot in this car (and it is a mobile greenhouse) all hell breaks loose.

Faults:

Plastic apron around base of windscreen cannot be seated correctly and vibrates against glass at motorway speeds. It has been looked at on seven separate occasions, but dealer is not able to correct it. The noise is not acceptable and at £24,500 I feel VW should do more to inform dealers how to correct this fault.

General Comments:

Otherwise the car is very sound and I have no hesitation in recommending it to other families needing 7 seats.

Faults:

Rear seat row heat exchanger defective, leaked coolant including all over the interior. Carpets and trim panels also required replacement owing to damage. Two weeks required for repairs.

Central locking locks itself without warning on occasion... very dangerous! Never leave the key in the ignition when exiting the car.

Hose to air conditioning compressor failed at about 25K.

Front windscreen defroster (electrical) failed at 28K. Required replacement of main wiring harness.

General Comments:

The vehicle is comfortable for our family of 5 (plus many bags), handles well (for a van), and has decent fuel economy.

Unfortunately, it spent 4 weeks out of the first year in the garage for warranty repairs.

The middle console is not well designed. Rear & front defroster switches should be reversed. Drink holders are too flimsy and condensation drips onto the radio and CD player... probably not good in the long term. The warning blinker switch is also hidden under these circumstances. The controls for the automatic climate control are also somewhat Byzantine.