There are weaknesses not only in the VW Golf emergency call assistant. Apparently the same difficulties arise with two other brands of the group.
The problems with the electronic emergency call assistant eCall concern not only the new VW Golf, but also other car models of the group. According to information from company circles, there are the same difficulties with models of the subsidiaries Audi and Seat.
Accordingly, it concerns the Audi A3 and the Seat Leon, which are based on the same basic kit as the Golf 8. According to a report by the industry newspaper “Automobilwoche”, the Skoda Octavia model is also checked for problems with eCall.
On Friday it became known that Volkswagen had to prepare for a recall of the Golf 8 that had just started. According to the company, it was determined in the course of internal investigations that unreliable data transmission to the control unit can occur in individual vehicles of the model.
Therefore, the function of the emergency assistant cannot be fully guaranteed. “In exchange with the responsible authorities, we check the further procedure for the affected vehicles,” said a VW spokesman for the “Automobilwoche”. A decision by the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA) on a recall and a remedial action via software update is expected in the coming days.
The company imposed a freeze on delivery of the new model. The Golf production continued for the time being – but all new cars would be put in stock for now, it said. The works council warned – also with a view to the massive sales crisis in the auto industry and the full stock due to corona effects – against further setbacks for Golf production at the Wolfsburg main plant.
The current underutilization with several canceled shifts could worsen. The employee representative therefore calls for an additional mass model to be established in Wolfsburg in the medium term. The Golf is considered the most important product of the largest German industrial group.
