And Today in the Dealers…

[Tarquers]

Dropped in for a seat buckle replacement and could not resist a picture, seems the roof sag still out there.

In other news, Ford/VW JV for transporter is full speed ahead, as is Amarok/Ranger and Caddy/??? Also able to climb over a T7 multi van. Honestly feels the same size as the T6 in terms of vertical interior space so expect to see a camper appearing soon although no gossip on the subject from the dealer.

 

[Corradobrit]

At least there is no corrosion.

I'll get my coat.....

 

[dspuk]

Our roof sags after 3 or 4 days an inch or so. No biggie as we rarely sit in once place that long. This is just dealer laziness who have the roof up 24/7 and should redo the roof every so often.

 

[RockinNRollin]

Yeah from my perspective, the Cali roof isn't intended to be raised for weeks on end - I don't see the sag a major problem for the intended use of these vehicles. Bit of a poor show from the dealer though; like having the tyres deflated!

 

[WelshGas]

Our roof sags after 3 or 4 days an inch or so. No biggie as we rarely sit in once place that long. This is just dealer laziness who have the roof up 24/7 and should redo the roof every so often.

On my T5.1 it automatically re-tensions, if required, approximately every 10/12 hrs after last Ignition Off. No user input required.

 

[ArunAlec]

At least there is no corrosion.

I'll get my coat.....

Yet

 

[RockinNRollin]

At the risk of both opening a can of worms and going off on a tangent, but is there anything preventative that can be done with the roof? I have used ACF50 in the past on motorcycles as it's a bit of a "wonder stuff" that is supposed to be safe on all materials except for brakes, resists corrosion and provides light lubrication. I almost wonder if spraying that around the roof opening (avoiding the fabric obviously) might help. I assume the metal on the seal gets exposed due to flexing, which in turn is caused by distortion/grabbing against the frame as the roof opens and closes? Once split, water gets in, corrosion starts etc. etc. and we're off. Or have I got the wrong end of the stick completely . . .

 

[ArunAlec]

At the risk of both opening a can of worms and going off on a tangent, but is there anything preventative that can be done with the roof? I have used ACF50 in the past on motorcycles as it's a bit of a "wonder stuff" that is supposed to be safe on all materials except for brakes, resists corrosion and provides light lubrication. I almost wonder if spraying that around the roof opening (avoiding the fabric obviously) might help. I assume the metal on the seal gets exposed due to flexing, which in turn is caused by distortion/grabbing against the frame as the roof opens and closes? Once split, water gets in, corrosion starts etc. etc. and we're off. Or have I got the wrong end of the stick completely . . .

I used ACF50 on the scissor mechanism but not on the rubber seal. I would think any movement of the rubber and the steel inner would soon penetrate any ACF coating. If you have the roof edge recall and had tape fitted (or had it from new), then corrosion shouldn’t be a problem?

 

[RockinNRollin]

Mine is on order so will be brand new, but I believe even the new ones with the tape are still prone to the issue?

I just wondered if regular ACF50 is a good preventative measure.

 

[ArunAlec]

Mine is on order so will be brand new, but I believe even the new ones with the tape are still prone to the issue?

I just wondered if regular ACF50 is a good preventative measure.

I would be wary of doing anything that would give VW the chance of getting out of a warranty claim. So spraying ACF on the seal might not be a good idea. Also if the new roof has taped edges watch out that the ACF doesn’t penetrate and lift the adhesive.

 

[RockinNRollin]

Feels like being stuck between a rock and a hard place (or a roof and a frame); don't treat it but risk the issue surfacing and the associated aggro, or treat it but risk aggro if it then needs seeing anyway. I guess the practical approach would be to leave it while in warranty and take a view once "on the other side",

 

[flying banana]

Our roof sags after 3 or 4 days an inch or so. No biggie as we rarely sit in once place that long. This is just dealer laziness who have the roof up 24/7 and should redo the roof every so often.

Indiscreet. My t6 roof after being up for a week is still tight as a drum. Doesn't move a mm. I've seen one sagged on one side also in the dealers

Our roof sags after 3 or 4 days an inch or so. No biggie as we rarely sit in once place that long. This is just dealer laziness who have the roof up 24/7 and should redo the roof every so often.

Disagree. My 2016 t6 stays tight as a drum for many days. I also spotted the one sided 6.1 sag in sheffield one morning

 

[andyinluton]

Our T5.1 never dropped a millimetre
First T6.1 sagged until it had new rams and pump after that it was always tight.
New T6.1 seems to be tight all the time

 

[dspuk]

Indiscreet. My t6 roof after being up for a week is still tight as a drum. Doesn't move a mm. I've seen one sagged on one side also in the dealers
Disagree. My 2016 t6 stays tight as a drum for many days. I also spotted the one sided 6.1 sag in sheffield one morning

View attachment 107180

Ah well. It’s no biggie for us. Only happened once after 3 days and was an inch at most.

 

[dspuk]

On my T5.1 it automatically re-tensions, if required, approximately every 10/12 hrs after last Ignition Off. No user input required

I believe the 6.1 is the same but never happened on ours. Maybe needs to be more than the inch it lost - it just lost tension really and after a quick button push was fixed.

I have to say would have preferred to remove the question totally and just had a manual option.

But as mentioned above, only happened once, have never really worried about it.

 

[Steve1]

On my T5.1 it automatically re-tensions, if required, approximately every 10/12 hrs after last Ignition Off. No user input required.

I've always wondered if my one will do that, does it have to drop far enough that the "open" tick on the control panel goes off ? It has never got that far down yet, the worst I have seen is a slight wrinkle in the material on one side rather than full tenison.

 

[WelshGas]

I've always wondered if my one will do that, does it have to drop far enough that the "open" tick on the control panel goes off ? It has never got that far down yet, the worst I have seen is a slight wrinkle in the material on one side rather than full tenison.

Mines done it once, in the middle of the night, in Southern Italy with daytime temperatures over 35c, after being up for 6 days. Didn’t notice any drooping of either side.

 

[soulstyledevon]

Dropped in for a seat buckle replacement and could not resist a picture, seems the roof sag still out there.

In other news, Ford/VW JV for transporter is full speed ahead, as is Amarok/Ranger and Caddy/??? Also able to climb over a T7 multi van. Honestly feels the same size as the T6 in terms of vertical interior space so expect to see a camper appearing soon although no gossip on the subject from the dealer.

View attachment 107178

Interesting about the multivan space vs transporter.
Could be interesting, let’s just hope it has the manual roof…

 

[Corradobrit]

Interesting about the multivan space vs transporter.

Have to take that with a pinch of salt. There is 25% less cargo space between a T7 multivan and a T6.1 Transporter, primarily because the front seats are set much further back in the chassis.

 

[Tarquers]

Have to take that with a pinch of salt. There is 25% less cargo space between a T7 multivan and a T6.1 Transporter, primarily because the front seats are set much further back in the chassis.

yes you are right.....

the T7 has 2,425 mm of space behind the front seats compared to the T6.1 2,439 mm (according to VW specifications).

 

[Corradobrit]

yes you are right.....

the T7 has 2,425 mm of space behind the front seats compared to the T6.1 2,439 mm (according to VW specifications).

My VW specs say the T6.1 L1 distance is 2,532mm.
In addition a German comparison report says the cargo volume in a T6.1 Multivan is 4405 liters but only 3305 liters in the T7 (I assume this is the std model and not the long overhang version)

VW T6.1 Multivan/VW T7 Multivan: Vergleich | autozeitung.de

Während der VW T7.1 Multivan bereits vom Band läuft, wird weiterhin der VW T6.1 Multivan gebaut. Der Vergleich klärt Vorzüge und Unterschiede.

www.autozeitung.de

 

[Kayleigh]

Have to take that with a pinch of salt. There is 25% less cargo space between a T7 multivan and a T6.1 Transporter, primarily because the front seats are set much further back in the chassis.

T6 California is about 4 metres cubed and short T7 is about 3.3, I believe.

 

[pete&gill]

At the risk of both opening a can of worms and going off on a tangent, but is there anything preventative that can be done with the roof? I have used ACF50 in the past on motorcycles as it's a bit of a "wonder stuff" that is supposed to be safe on all materials except for brakes, resists corrosion and provides light lubrication. I almost wonder if spraying that around the roof opening (avoiding the fabric obviously) might help. I assume the metal on the seal gets exposed due to flexing, which in turn is caused by distortion/grabbing against the frame as the roof opens and closes? Once split, water gets in, corrosion starts etc. etc. and we're off. Or have I got the wrong end of the stick completely . . .

Our van developed minor roof corrosion in 3 or 4 places just outside the 6 year limit of persuading VW to accept responsibility.

I have used ACF 50 on the upper edge of the seal with some success. I have probably treated it 3 or 4 times and it seems to have slowed down progress, so that it is still only a minor issue now at 15 years old.

I haven't pulled the seal off, except once for a short length to have a look when the issue first arose. I just pick a hot day during a spell of good weather ease the nick open and squirt ACF50 in with a hypodermic nurdle.
Here are pics of the 2 worst bits now 8 or 9 years on.

 

[Tarquers]

So interesting comment on interior height on this video at 3:00 confirming the interior height is the same.

 

[soulstyledevon]

So interesting comment on interior height on this video at 3:00 confirming the interior height is the same.

What’s the length of the LWB version…?