Lunched a gearbox in the Arteon

[DreamensioN]

tl;dr Arteon is at VW dealership waiting on a new gearbox from Germany

For weeks (maybe even months) now - I've noticed the gear shifting in the Arteon becoming more noticeable, especially on the downshifts. It was never at the point where I thought it was a problem - it was just noticeable. Then the other day I go to the shops and at slow speed, I noticed a real jerk with the gear upshift. It was at this point I think "Yeah that's not right"

I then start driving home and I can feel something is different with the car - it didn't have the power it did. At about 500m from home, pull up to a roundabout to give way to traffic, and I get a "Gearbox Fault" (or maybe it said Gearbox Failure) warning come up right in the middle of the dash, and the car goes into neutral. Luckily I still had enough momentum to keep rolling and pull over.

I put the car in park, turn it off and back on again - and surprisingly the gearbox comes back. I'm able to limp the car home, but there is a noticeable loss of power. I pull into my garage, shut down the car and get out - and I notice all this clear fluid (like oil) dripping out everywhere under the car. I'm figuring it's DSG fluid or something (as it clearly wasn't engine oil).

I call VW Roadside assist and the car gets towed to the dealership where I get all my servicing done. They call me today after they've had a look at it...the gearbox is completely blown. They said there's a hole that has blown out the side of it.

Because it's a 2017 model, the car is out of it's 3yr manufacturers warranty, but I bought the extended warranty for 1yr (which is basically just insurance for mechanical repairs), however this only covers up to $5000 worth. Talking to the lady at the VW dealership - she reckons VW Australia (should) cover this as it's a....wait for it.... known fault . Worse case is VWA covers most of it and we use the $5000 from my "extended warranty" to cover the gap so I'm not out of pocket.

It could be up to 2 months before I get my car back. Luckily we are a 2 car family and we're also in lockdown here in QLD - so there's no immediate need for another vehicle. But I will likely use my 10 days car rental from VW Roadside Assist, and then whatever the dealership can loan me until my new gearbox comes from Germany.

So guys - something to be mindful of and/or - if you have a chance to extend your warranty - lol...do it.