After an extensive recall last year, Volkswagen's defective gearbox is once again causing problems in China.
It's what's on the inside that counts Image: VW China |
The German automaker has made plans to recall a further 640,309 vehicles in China to address a problem caused by synthetic oil in the gearbox.
VW has warned consumers that high heat and humidity could also cause an electrical fault in some of its Chinese-made models.
Amongst the recalled models are the popular Golf, Lavida and Beetle, as well as a number of Audi cars. Local dealers will replace the synthetic oil with a mineral oil, which they believe will ease the problem.
While the overwheleming majority of models are manufactured domestically, some of the problem parts originated in Germany.
Last year, the state broadcaster released a series of watchdog programs that accused VW, amongst others, of poor customer care in China. The program drew attention to problems with the dual-clutch transmission system in many VW cars and eventually led to a 380,000 vehicle recall that reportedly cost the company around $600m.
Financial implications aside, damaged public perception of the German automaker, which has frequently cited China as the key to its global domination plans, will also bring about untold costs.
Volkswagen have released an official list of affected cars and recall details on their China group site.