2013 VW Beetle steering lock service question

[67rustavenger]

[gustn101]

Thanks for reposting. I know nothing about cars, which is why I'm scared this is a serious issue that my dealership is ignoring.

I still have warranty, though I'm not sure if this is covered by it. I made several calls and chats to dealerships and vw service and these are the responses I'm getting:
-I can't look at it if the message is no longer there. I need the message to stay permanently to see what's wrong.
-I would wait until it's a constant issue
-Your vehicle does not have a steering lock
-The only service reminder message you should be getting is for maintenance.
-We can look at it although I don't know if anything needs to be fixed.

[ps2375]

Try to find a local person with VAG-Com to scan the car and get the code. There is a forum on VWVortex.com to help you locate some one. If the there is an intermittent code, it'll be logged on one or more of the cars ecm's and you can then lookup the code to see what might be causing it and what it is about. The dealer would most likely charge you an hours service rate to do the same and then lie to about not finding anything.(Some not all)

Generally the generic scanners can only scan the main(engine) ecu and the code may or may not be there. If there is no MIL(aka CEL), it isn't an active code or may not even cause that to trip.

BTW, where are you located?

[TDCTDI]

I've already seen quite a few of the start buttons go bad & will display the same lights, they're frequent enough that the local dealers keep them in stock.
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[gustn101]

THANK YOU!!! I'm in Kent, WA. I'm scheduled for service next week but I'm wondering if this is an emergency.

I read in the owners manual that anything steering related isn't safe to drive in, such as red or yellow steering lock lights, blinking or not. The manual doesn't cover the blinking message I got in text though. It hasn't happened since but I've only tried 3-4 more times throughout the days. Do you know if not holding the push start for long enough causes such message to pop up? It's never done that before, but is this a possibility?

Also, my dealership told me they'll have to run diagnostics and some things might not be covered. I thought the manufacturer's 3yrs/36000mi plan covered everything from bumper to bumper and all services (parts and labor) and fluid refills related to it except for the bumper itself. Is this not true?

[ps2375]

[73sports]

[TDCTDI]

[gustn101]

This is all such great information I would've totally missed. Thanks everyone for all the help!

On my end, I think it all comes down to if this can wait or not. Is this a safety hazard? What could this potentially do if I don't go in anytime soon?

I don't know if I need to take it to the dealership immediately, as in this week.

[73sports]

I think the biggest problem that could happen is that if the lock jams or fails in the locked position, the column won't unlock; the access/start module will see this, and not let the car start. (You know if it did some fool would try to drive the car with a locked column.) Depending on where you and the car are, that could make for a bad time.
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