The 75A3 recall has been in place since the beginning of September. In the last few days, almost all Grand Californias owners have received a letter from Volkswagen stating that due to faulty bonding, the skylight cover may come off completely. The inspection of the windows is mandatory!

Unfortunately, there are once again many assumptions and misrepresentations about the scope of this measure circulating on the Internet. Therefore, here is a detailed execution of the action.

Error cause / consequences

Error cause

In some cases, too little adhesive was used in the window production process. Volkswagen emphasizes at this point that the fault was caused by the supplier.

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Driving wind can cause up to the complete loss of the skylight cover.

Which vehicles are affected

Affected models are 600 and 680 built between December 2019 – July 2020 and December 2020 – April 2021.

What does the Volkswagen partner check?

On the affected vehicles, the bonding of the skylights is checked. Depending on the result, two possible solutions are available.

Solution 1

If the bonding is faulty, a new window will be installed by Volkswagen.

Solution 2

If the bonding is intact, the window is additionally secured by means of rivets.

Although Volkswagen’s documentation only mentions specific model periods, owners of a Grand California from current model years also receive a request to visit the workshop. This is also the case with our Grand California, which was built in November 2021 and therefore does not actually fall within the timeframe specified by Volkswagen. This appears to be a preventive measure. I’ve read a lot on the subject of rivets, such as people saying, “You must always insist on a new window,” or “Don’t put up with rivets.” Wait a minute at this point!

1. If you get a new window installed because the bonding is really defective, it will also have rivets, so not only the repaired windows.
2. The rivets are applied to all vehicles as a preventive measure.
   

Therefore, the replacement of an intact window does not make sense! The action reads much worse and is made much bigger than it is. Volkswagen emphasizes in the TPI:

Yes, the vehicle can continue to be used until the inspection / repair. However, before driving off, it must be ensured that the crank roof windows are correctly locked and manually checked. The skylight in the wet room is not affected.

Photos of the roof hatch with performed action