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GTEMK8 - Engine needs to keep running issue

UPL02

New member
Mmm, unfortunately yesterday the error came up again, and today it has not disappeared :cry:
Let's see for how many kilometers it will remain there.
As soon as the message reappeared at the end of November, I booked a slot at the dealer but they didn't have free time at that moment and I had to wait until yesterday.
In the mean time I drove in EV mode to avoid the popup go away by itself; 3 days ago I tried with Hybrid and it was still there.

Of course when the dealer had the car (for 2 days, yesterday and today!) it NEVER appeared. :mad:
I picked up the car and no errors whatsoever.

They also told me TPI 2064560/2 doesn't apply to my Golf model and it is for a different one... even though I didn't have the popup to come out multiple times (like the TPI implies) it doesn't seem to me to be unrelated at all. 🤷‍♂️

Anyway, in the end I went home without any explanation (apart from that they didn't find any errors) and 2 days without my Golf.

Just a quick update on this. Local dealer has now fixed the issue. The car now stays in e-mode.

They didn’t replace the 12v battery, but they had had a notification through from VW on how to fix this. Am not entirely sure what they did but the customer service guy said they applied some adaptations, whatever that is.

I’ll take it as they reprogrammed something 🤷‍♂️

By the sounds of it, with VW issuing a notification about this it seems like it’s now a known and potentially growing issue.

Are you really sure they fixed it? Because in my case it is now the second time in a row it disappears by itself.

Probably you were more lucky than me. I wish these VW notifications could be identifiable in some ways, so I could suggest them and avoid losing days for issues that come up and go away when they are not looking!

Also, it is not possible to speak with VW customer services about technical issues, because they forward you to your local dealer. On the other side, if I was in the dealer shoes, how could I do if I do not see any errors and the equipment says everything is working well?

Rhetorical question.
 

jonfl

New member
Are you really sure they fixed it? Because in my case it is now the second time in a row it disappears by itself.

Probably you were more lucky than me. I wish these VW notifications could be identifiable in some ways, so I could suggest them and avoid losing days for issues that come up and go away when they are not looking!
Yes, very sure. I wasn’t able to drive in E-mode at all for over 3 months. I can now.

My issue seems different to yours, as you described above being able to drive in E-mode which stopped the pop up. I couldn’t drive in that mode at all, only in Hybrid.
 

Massimo 2323

Drag Racing Champion
Hi UPL02. I still didn't bring the car in for the software update but have a service on the 4 of January. I have not had this message popup in a while now. I do remember if it happens there is no way to go back to E-Mode until it has done it's job whatever that is. The last time I had these messages they appeared everyday for a week even after I had done well over 50-80km daily at speed over 100km/h..
 

UPL02

New member
have a service on the 4 of January
Let me know if they're more helpful than mine. They're now ignoring me, even though I sent them a video of the issue; I don't know actually what could I do. Drive and let the error go away another time and then pray it doesn't come back again?
 

UPL02

New member
So, I'm posting again just to vent my frustration. The popup message is still pestering me since the end of November.
After my last post, I used the E-Mode to keep the "error" there and allow the dealer to see it (since earlier he said he didn't, see above).

About 3 weeks ago, I eventually brought the car in and explained them again to check for the popup when driving with the ICE (Hybrid mode). After 4 days without any message and seeing using the (holy) We Connect app that the petrol consumption was 0 l/100 km (so they didn't even try to use the Hybrid mode), I phoned in for explanations and they said there were no errors or issues. So I went there the same day.
I drove with the "technician" (I have to use quotes...) and unexpectedly (sarcasm) the infamous popup message came up immediately! He travelled a bit and tried to speed up but - of course - the engine never shut off, neither when parked with the gearbox in "P" mode.

When he got out of the car he said it is a NORMAL behaviour because - according to him - the electric motor and the ICE work together to provide the optimum performance. I asked why the car cannot "sail" anymore (i.e. turn off the ICE when on straights) but I wasn't given an answer.
I tried to insist in all the possible ways and when I mentioned the fact the car always correctly worked until November, then he said that the car may have received an update that blocked/changed the behaviour.

These guys - an official VAG service center - do not know how an hybrid vehicle works. In their opinion, a mild hybrid vehicle has a start/stop system, while a plug-in hybrid car with more than 10 kWh of batteries should not turn the thermal motor off when not necessary! 🤦‍♂️

Well, it's not the end of the story. I insisted they try to call the VW technical department to explain the issue (even though they still didn't think it was an issue)... do you guess what they suggested to do after 3 days of waiting? Sit down.
They said that the VAG service should try with another (similar) car! What answer is that?!? I was baffled and of course they have not another plug-in vehicle to try... :mad:

Depressed, I eventually tried also with the VW Customer Care by phone, but they don't offer any technical help and they restrict themselves to accept what the "technical department" (quotes again) has suggested to do. So, basically, anything! 😤

TL;DR: we have a good car, but the people behind don't even know how it works. I hope the error goes away soon on its own, but if it hasn't gone away until now, I don't believe it will do it quickly...

I still didn't bring the car in for the software update but have a service on the 4 of January
Did you try to ask them about the message, possibly? Maybe in your country there are more skilled guys...
 

m4in

Go Kart Newbie
Why don't you go to a different garage/dealership?

If i get the impression that someone is incompetent, then i won't go there. That's why we skipped the two closest dealerships and bought from the third, 50ish miles away. I'd take it somewhere else.
 

Maturedriver

Go Kart Champion
UPLO2 it might be a good idea to join a GTE specific forum. I have found SpeakEV - Volkswagen EV Forum - Volkswagen GTE useful. Not a very active forum but the members are very helpful and knowledgeable.
 

UPL02

New member
Why don't you go to a different garage/dealership?
Of course, but this is the first time the Pandora's box has been opened for me.
I wanted to share that also because I was baffled by the VW "technical department" answer, if the dealer didn't lie to me (but he also would have to lie to the VW customer care).

Anyway they highlighted that the car hasn't issues and can drive normally (yeah, "normally" for them!), at least this is what the VW customer care said to me.

I have found SpeakEV - Volkswagen EV Forum - Volkswagen GTE useful.
Will try that too, thanks. At the moment there are not threads related to this issue, unfortunately.
 

m4in

Go Kart Newbie
I wanted to share that also because I was baffled by the VW "technical department" answer, if the dealer didn't lie to me (but he also would have to lie to the VW customer care).

I don't see why they wouldn't. They can't really tell them something different to what they told you. A crooked dealership is crooked.

I suppose they're not even lying, since your car "technically" is driving normally (not in limp mode). If i were you, i'd not even bother getting annoyed - just take it to a different dealership/garage. If your car has a fault (which it appears to have) and the dealership is claiming that everything's correct.. Nah, not worth the bother. Get a second opinion and insist to show the fault to the mechanic when you take it in.
 
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