Cabrio top woes, problem solved (sort of)

[kuklaki]

Yes, this info was swiped off of a post in VW Vortex, but the information is too good not to pass along. Apparently a lot of MK3 owners have had problems with the quality of their convertible tops, and a lawsuit arose. Here is the post:

Dear VW Cabrio group,
It's been over a year, but I finally have some good news to report.
The class action lawsuit against VW regarding the disintegrating vinyl
convertible tops is being settled! Thanks to plaintiff Belinda Arge (for
spending the time & effort to get this done!) and her attorney Mark
Anderson of Kemnitzer, Anderson, Barron, & Ogilvie, LLP, VW will be honoring
an "extended warranty" for VW Cabrio convertibles. The not-as-good-news is
that we still need to wait a few months for the legal machine to work. The
settlement needs to be approved by a judge. The preliminary hearing for
that is on January 7, 2004, with the final settlement approval hearing
scheduled for March 23rd. So it'll still be a couple more months until VW
actually sends notices out. However, this is now a matter of public record,
so those of you who've been waiting to get a replacement top can, if you
want, go ahead and get one with the knowledge that you will be reimbursed
under the terms of the settlement.
Here are the nitty gritty details you need to know to figure out how
much of a reimbursement you will qualify for:

* Volkswagen of America will provide for the free replacement of beige
and white convertible tops that developed black streaks, became sticky or
brittle within five (5) years of the original date of delivery (when the
cars were new);
* Volkswagen of America will pay 50% of the cost of replacing
convertible tops that developed the above-referenced conditions in the
period five (5)
years to ten (10) years after the original date of delivery;
* Volkswagen of America will reimburse Cabrio owners and former owners
(and lessees) 100% of the costs they incurred in replacing tops that
developed
the above-referenced conditions (parts, labor and towing) within five (5)
years from the original date of delivery; and
* Volkswagen of America will reimburse Cabrio owners and former owners
(and lessees) 50% of the costs they incurred in replacing tops that
developed the
above-referenced conditions (parts, labor and towing) during the period five
(5) years to (10) years from the original date of delivery.

Again, this has to be approved by a judge, but it is now in the
court records. If any VW dealers question you about this case, you can tell
them to check the San Francisco Superior Court records, case number is:
Civil No. CGC 03-417370.
Thank you all for your amazing patience and persistence. We'll be
doing a quick follow-up story on this issue sometime next week (probably to
coincide with the preliminary hearing date) and will of course do another
one in March once VW starts sending notices out. Please don't hesitate to
contact me if you have any questions! As many of you know, we've had a lot
of layoffs here at KRON so our schedules/assignments have been changing, but
I should still be here working on consumer stories at least through
February! Happy Holidays all!!

Teri Aitkins
Producer, KRON4
1001 Van Ness Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94109
aitkins@kron4.com - email