Volkswagen Jetta Complaints
10,351 consumer complaints on file.
- #10061934March 11, 2004SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:ROTOR, ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
PURCHASED 2004 VW JETTA GLI ON 3/5/04 WITH DELIVERY ON 3/7/04. CAR HAD 41 MILES AT DELIVERY. BY MONDAY, 3/8/04 NOTICED BURNING SMELL ON DRIVER'S SIDE OF CAR WHILE SHIFITING BETWEEN 1ST & 3RD GEARS. ALSO NOTICED VIBRATION IN BRAKE PEDAL AT IDLE AND VIBRATION IN STEERING COLUMN WHILE BRAKING. COMPLAINED AT DEALERSHIP THAT CAR WAS FAILING WITH 181 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. SERVICE TECH TEST DROVE THE CAR WITH ME. COULD NOT IDENTIFY BURNING SMELL, BUT SUGGESTED I TRY DRIVING THE CAR WITHOUT THE SEAT HEATERS ON TO SEE IF IT MADE ANY DIFFERENCE (IT DIDN'T). DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THERE'D BE A CONNECTION BETWEEN RPM'S AND THE SEAT HEATERS. WILL HAVE TO GO GET A FIRE EXTINGUISHER TO CARRY IN THE CAR AS A PRECAUTION, I SUPPOSE. MAJOR PROBLEM WAS THE VIBRATION IN STEERING WHEEL UPON BRAKING. TURNS OUT ALL 4 BRAKE ROTORS WERE WARPED (AT 181 MILES???). TECHNICIAN REPLACED ALL 4 BRAKE ROTORS AND FRONT BRAKE PADS. VIBRATION IN BRAKE PEDAL AT IDLE WAS EXPLAINED AS BRAKE VACUUM PUMP REGENERATING PRESSURE. SALES MANAGER I SPOKE WITH COULDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY I WAS UPSET SINCE THEY WERE WILLING TO FIX THE CAR.*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10061943March 11, 2004ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
ENGINE CONTROL COMPUTER FAILED RESULTING IN VERY HARD TO START OR NO START CONDITIONS. VEHICLE HAS BEEN OUT OF SERVICE FOR 2 WEEKS WAITING ON PARTS. VEHICLE ONLY HAS 1600 MILES ON IT. WAS SUGGESTED TO BY THE DEALER TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE WHILE WAITING FOR PARTS.*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10062904March 10, 2004SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:MASTER CYLINDER
WHILE DRIVING, PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE BRAKE PEDAL AND THE VEHICLE DID NOT STOP AT THE DESIRED STOPPING POINT. MASTER CYLINDER WAS REPLACED TWICE. *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10061865March 10, 2004AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
I WAS DRIVING DOWN A CITY STREET AND STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. I PROCEEDED TO MAKE A RIGHT HAND TURN; ABOUT MIDWAY THROUGH THE TURN MY DRIVERS' SIDE FRONT AND REAR SIDE CURTAIN AIR BAGS AS WELL AS THE DRIVERS' SEAT AIRBAG DEPLOYED. THERE IS A POT HOLE AT THAT INTERSECTION, HOWEVER I DO NOT REMEMBER HITTING IT, I ONLY REMEMBER GETTING HIT IN THE HEAD BY THE AIRBAG. IF I HAD HIT THE POT HOLE, THE AIRBAGS STILL SHOULD HAVE NOT DEPLOYED BECAUSE I WAS ONLY GOING AT MOST 10MPH, THE RIMS NOR THE TIRES WERE DAMAGED. THERE WAS NO DAMAGE TO THE CAR AT ALL BESIDES THE AIRBAGS. THE POLICE WERE CONTACTED, THEY WOULD NOT FILL OUT A COMPLAINT SINCE THERE WASN'T ACTUALLY AN ACCIDENT. I THEN CONTACTED THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID THEY WOULD FIX IT SINCE IT'S UNDER WARRANTY. HOWEVER VW AMERICA HAD A DIFFERENT IDEA. THEY TOLD THE DEALERSHIP NOT TO FIX IT AND THAT WE WOULD HAVE TO FILE WITH OUR INSURANCE BECAUSE THERE WERE CRASH DATA CODES. THEY DID NOT BOTHER READING THE CODES TO SEE HOW FAST I WAS DRIVING, BUT THEY DECIDED IT WAS MY FAULT SINCE THE ALIGNMENT WAS OFF, THEREFORE I MUST HAVE HIT A POTHOLE. AFTER 3 WEEKS OF FIGHTING WITH VW AMERICA, WE FILED A COMPLAINT WITH THE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU, AFTER 2 WEEKS OF WAITING TO HEAR FROM THEM, THEY ALSO SAID THEY COULD NOT HELP, THEY STOPPED HELPING AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT ACCIDENT VICTIMS OVER A YEAR AGO. WE FILED A CLAIM WITH OUR INSURANCE AND HAD TO PAY THE DEDUCTIBLE. WE ARE CURRENTLY FILING A COMPLAINT WITH THE STATE FOR THE POTHOLE THAT ALLEGEDLY CAUSED THE AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT. I HAVE CONSTANT HEADACHES AS A RESULT OF GETTING HIT IN THE HEAD BY THE AIRBAGS. I WILL NEVER AGAIN OWN A VOLKSWAGEN, THEY ARE UNSAFE VEHICLES AND THE WAY THEY TREAT THEIR CUSTOMERS IS UNACCEPTABLE! *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 1
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10061872March 10, 2004POWER TRAIN:CLUTCH ASSEMBLY
MY 2001 VW JETTA 1.8T CLUTCH FAILED AFTER JUST 16,000 MILES WITHOUT ANY WARNING. I WAS TOLD IT WAS DUE TO "DRIVER ERROR". HOWEVER, AFTER SOME RESEARCH I HAVE FOUND MANY OTHERS THAT HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. THE 1.8T CLUTCHES ARE A DUAL-MASS FLYWHEEL (DMF) DESIGN WHICH SEEMS TO BE THE CAUSE OF THE ISSUE. IT SEEMS THEY CANNOT HANDLE THE UPPED POWER/TORQUE OF THE TURBO. THEY ARE KNOWINGLY SELLING A DEFECTIVE PRODUCT AND CHARGING US UPWARDS OF $1300 TO REPAIR IT WITH THE SAME FAULTY PART!*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060798March 9, 2004SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS:DISC:PADS
REAR BRAKE PADS WORN OUT AT 18,000 K. ROTOR HAD TO BE REPLACED. CALIPER WAS NAMED AS DEFICTIVE AND NO EXPLANATION WAS GIVEN
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060751March 8, 2004AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
WHILE DRIVE MY 2002 JETTA ABOUT 55-60MPH THE DRIVER SIDE WINDOW AND SEAT AIRBAGS DEPLOYED WITHOUT IMPACT. I DROVE MY CAR RIGHT TO THE DEALERSHIP I PURCHASED IT FROM. THEY HAD THE CAR FOR 4 DAYS TO TELL ME THAT THE COMPUTER SYSTEM STATES THAT THE CAR WAS IN A COLLISION, I DO NOT HAVE ANY DAMAGE ON MY CAR AND I WAS NOT IS AN ACCIDENT. THEY (CAMELBACK VOLKSWAGEN) OR VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA WILL NOT REPAIR THE DAMAGE.*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060766March 8, 2004AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
DRIVING ALONG A BAD ROAD HIT A POT HOLE GOING AROUND 45 MILES PER HOUR AND THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG WENT OFF. THIS HAPPEND ON MARCH 7 OF 2004 AROUND 1:30AM. NO VISABLE DAMAGE TO THE CAR. DEALERSHIP SAID ITS NOT COVERED BY THE WARENTY. AIR BAG WENT OFF BY GOING OVER A POT HOLE. THAT IS NO REASON FOR AN AIRBAG TO DEPLOY, NEED DEALERSHIP TO REPLACE THE AIRBAGS. *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060530March 5, 2004POWER TRAIN, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:CRUISE CONTROL
MY 2003 VW JETTA CONSTANTLY GETS STUCK IN PARK LONGEST TIME HAS BEEN 45 MINUTES MY CAR HAS BEEN INTO SERVICE 3 TIMES AND IS STILL ROUGH COMING OUT OF PARK ALSO MY CRUISE CONTROL HAS NEVER WORKED I ONLY HAVE 6000 MILES. *JB
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060404March 4, 2004SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER
I OWN A VOLKSWAGEN 2003 JETTA WAGON. THE DRIVERS SIDE SEAT WARMER BURNED A HOLE THROUGH THE SEAT COVER. WHEN BROUGHT IN FOR SERVICE I ASKED THEM TO CHECK THE PASSENGER SIDE FOR THE DEFECTIVE PART AND THEY SAID THERE WAS NO PROBLEM. ONE MONTH LATER I STARTED SMELLING THE SAME SYNTHETIC BURNING SMELL, AND NOTICED A DISCOLORATION ON THE SEAT WHERE THE HOT SECTION IS. *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060416March 4, 2004ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING
SMOKE COMING FROM THE STEERING COLUMN ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060248March 3, 2004VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
NUMEROUS WINDOW REGULATOR ISSUES, ONE TOTAL REPLACEMENT. SOME ACTIONS MUST BE TAKEN, THIS IS VERY EXPENSIVE AND MOST LIKELY AN EASY REMEDY AT THE FACTORY. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON WINDOW REGULATORS!*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10055981March 2, 2004SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER
PASSENGER'S SIDE SEAT HEATER HAD A CIGARETTE SIZE BURN HOLE IN IT. WHILE DRIVING CONSUMER SMELLED A BURNING ODOR, WHICH BECAME STRONGER AS TIME PROGRESSED. ALSO, SMOKE CAME FROM THE SEAT. WHEN HEATER WAS TURNED OFF THE SMELL AND THE SMOKE CEASED. *AK VEHICLE WAS TAKEN AT THE DEALERSHIP. *LA
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060021February 29, 2004VISIBILITY:GLASS, SIDE/REAR
I WAS DRIVING WHEN ALL OF A SUDDEN THE WINDOW ON MY 2001 VW JETTA FELL INSIDE THE DOOR. THE PIECES THAT HELD THE WINDOW UP BROKE. *JB
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10060056February 29, 2004FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER:STORAGE:FUEL GAUGE SYSTEM
GAS GAUGE INACCURATE DESPITE MULTIPLE ATTEMPTED CORRECTIONS (FUEL SENDING UNIT X2, INSTRUMENT CLUSTER, GAS TANK ALL REPLACED WITH NO IMPROVEMENT). *JB
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10059033February 26, 2004EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS, EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCH
I NOTICED ON THE INCIDENT DATE THAT THE BRAKE LIGHTS WERE ON WHEN THE CAR WAS TURNED OFF AND PARKED. I TRIED TO GET THE BRAKE LIGHTS TO GO OFF BY GENTLY TAPPING ON THE BRAKE PEDAL, BUT THEY WOULD NOT. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALERSHIP THAT IT WAS PROBABLY THE BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH. AND THAT MANY OF THEIR JETTA CUSTOMERS WERE COMPLAINING ABOUT THEIR BRAKES LIGHTS BEING ON. I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT THIS ITEM WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARANTY. THIS IS NOT A WEAR AND TEAR ITEM. IF THIS IS A COMMON OCCURENCE THEN VOLKSWAGEN SHOULD PICK UP THE COST TO REPAIR THIS MALFUNCTION. THERE SHOULD BE SOME KIND OF RECALL ISSUED FOR THIS OCCURRENCE. *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10059052February 26, 2004STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS
WHILE TRAVELING IN THE LEFT LANE OF THE PA TURNPIKE AT A SPEED OF 65 MPH, THE RIGHT SIDE SEAT AND CURTAIN AIR BAGS DEPLOYED FOR NO REASON AND WITHOUT WARNING. I WAS SAFELY ABLE TO PULL OVER TO THE RIGHT LANE AND THEN OFF TO THE HIGHWAY SINCE THE ENGINE SHUTS DOWN WITH AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT.UPON HAVING THE VEHICLE INSPECTED BY A VW DEALER NO DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE WAS FOUND. I DID NOT HIT ANY POT HOLE OR ROAD DEBRIS. THERE IS AN OBVIOUS FAULT WITH THE COMPUTER AND/OR SENSOR SYSTEM IN THE VEHICLE. THE VW DEALER CLAIMS TO HAVE HEARD OF NO SUCH OCCURENCE EVENTHOUGH THERE APPEAR TO BE MANY SUCH OCCURENCES AS LISTED ON THIS WEBISTE. VW AMERICA CLAIMS THERE WAS AN IMPACT TO THE RIGHT REAR AXEL WHICH SET OFF THE AIRBAG. AGAIN THERE WAS NO IMPACT AT THE TIME OF DEPLOYMENT. TRAVELING AT THAT SPEED AND IN THE ENVIRONMENT I WAS THERE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE DAMAGE TO MY CAR THAN A SCRATCH ON THE REAR AXEL UNDERCARRIAGE. *AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10059073February 26, 2004AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
WHILE TURNING INTO THE PARKING DECK AT ONE OF MY SATELLITE OFFICES, MY PASSENGER SIDE CURTAIN AND SEAT AIRBAG DEPLOYED. I IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER AS THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE OF AN IMPACT ANYWHERE ON THE VEHICLE. ONCE THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE LOCAL VW SERVICE CENTER, I WAS INFORMED THAT THEY COULD NOT BEGIN WORK ON THE VEHICLE UNTIL THEY CONTACTED A VW REPRESENTATIVE DUE TO A TECHNICAL BULLETIN. IT TOOK 3 DAYS BEFORE THE VW REPRESENTATIVE RETURNED A CALL TO THE DEALERSHIP. IT TOOK SEVERAL DAYS LONGER BEFORE THE NAMED REPRESENTATIVE FROM VW CUSTOMER RELATIONS CONTACTED ME. THE SERVICE CENTER AT VW ADVISED ME THAT THERE WAS CRASH DATA AND A MARK ON THE UNDERSIDE OF MY VEHICLE. AFTER SEVERAL MORE DAYS AND AFTER INVOLVING MY INSURANCE COMPANY, VW FINALLY RESPONDED ADVISING ME THAT I MUST HAVE HIT A CURB OR SPEED BUMP WHICH CAUSED MY AIRBAGS TO DEPLOY. IT IS NOW OVER THREE WEEKS LATER AND I HAVE JUST TODAY BEEN INFORMED THAT THE PARTS TO FIX THE VEHICLE ARE BACKORDERED AND NO OTHER PARTS ARE AVAILABLE IN COUNTRY. IN THE SHORT 7 MONTHS THAT I HAVE OWNED THIS VEHICLE, THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THAT THERE HAS BEEN AN INCIDENT (MALFUNCTION) AND BOTH TIMES THE PARTS HAVE BEEN BACKORDERED FROM OVERSEAS CAUSING A DELAY IN SERVICING THE VEHICLE OF MORE THAN THREE WEEKS.*AK
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10056132February 26, 2004EQUIPMENT:MECHANICAL:ACCESSORY SCISSOR/SCREW/BOTTLE JACK/LIFT
WHILE THE CONSUMER WAS JACKING UP THE VEHICLE TO CHANGE THE RIGHT REAR TIRE THE JACK COLLAPSED AND THE VEHICLE FELL TO THE GROUND. CONSUMER MAINTAINED THAT THE JACK WAS MADE OF PLASTIC AND THE THREAD STRIPPED.*AK *JB
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 1
- Deaths:
- 0
- #10057213February 26, 2004SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER
THE CONSUMER SMELLED A BURNING CHEMICAL SCENT IN THE VEHICLE. THE CONSUMER THEN FELT A BURNING SENSATION IN HER HAND AND THE A SHARP PAIN. THE CONSUMER THEN DISCOVERED A HOLE IN THE SEATS FROM THE SEAT WARMER. THE CONSUMER STATED THIS IS THIRD ELECTRICAL FAILURE SHE HAS HAD WITH THE VEHICLE. *AK *JB
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 1
- Deaths:
- 0