10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
99,778 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2008 Volkswagen Jetta engine problems

engine problem

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2008 Volkswagen Jetta Owner Comments

problem #20

Jun 162020

Jetta

  • 167,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the safety anti-lock warning light illuminated and the vehicle failed to start. The contact stated that after several attempts, the vehicle started however, the contact was then unable to turn off the vehicle or remove the key from the ignition. The contact stated that with extra effort she was able to remove the key from the ignition. Suntrup Volkswagen located at 6000 S lindbergh blvd, St. Louis, mo 63123, (314) 892-8200, was contacted and made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of failure. The failure mileage was 167,000.

- O Fallon, MO, USA

problem #19

Mar 012018

Jetta

  • miles
This vehicle will need $1500. Of work to pass nys inspection.the rear main seal has failed which causes a vacuum leak that results in an emissions failure. Cel. My research has informed that this is a very common failure.

- Spring Valley, NY, USA

problem #18

May 262019

Jetta

  • 174,000 miles
I turned my car completely off and the car was parked when I got out of my car to meet with a friend to go swimming at this neighborhood pool. I had my keys in my hand (still do have the key as well) and I smelled something burning, so I turned around and there was smoke coming out of my sunroof. I looked in the car and saw that it was a fire in my backseat on the passenger side (also where the gas tank is located) and saw the fire spreading. Therefore, I ran away from the car, yelled for help and called 911. Within three minutes my car was engulfed in flames and popped a few times as well. The fire also caught the grass, a few bushes and trees on fire as well. The firefighters came to put the fire out and informed me that the fire started in my engine and traveled from there to the gas tank and spread from there.

- Ellenwood, GA, USA

problem #17

May 142019

Jetta

  • 101,230 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Car while driving immediately slows like it was shifted into neutral. When you press the gas car races but does not move. The prnds flashes and the car had to be shut down and restarted. I heard there was a recall but it never showed for my car nor will they help, because my VIN was not listed. This is a serious safety hazard. Especially at 55 mph in heavy traffic.

- Carlisle, PA, USA

problem #16

Mar 252019

Jetta

  • 199,000 miles
Engine light

- Lake Peekskill, NY, USA

problem #15

Jun 252018

Jetta

  • 200,000 miles
The car initially had troubles when it would be hot outside it would and the temperature gauge would go high in temperature also if it was cold outside and you were driving slow temperature gauge down below safe temperature. After applying 2-5 bottles in a month the car started shuting down on its on. After an oil change in April, I experienced the most scary incident... while driving on freewaay I felt kerking a seen smoke from under the hood. I oulled in S gas station and let the car cool topk over 4hrs to do so. I had to drive back home on the streets and the car wpuld not stay at a stable heat. I had to stop my car in multiple unsafe area after'11 in the night. Now the car will not start unless give a jump for over an hour. Obly satys in for about a min the loses power all over again

- Sacramento, CA, USA

problem #14

Mar 022017

Jetta

  • 91,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Faulty timing chain tensioner

- Bayville, NY, USA

problem #13

Jul 162016

Jetta

  • 120,000 miles
While I was driving the car started shaking and when I checked the oil there was no oil on the dipstick.no oil light came on and when I brought it to my mechanic he stated that the rear seal needed to be replaced. This car has only 120,000 miles on it when I called the VW dealer in saco Maine I was told that when it is repaired I should also has the pvb valve changed that it is now made out of a better material- he stated that it is a common problem with that specific motor that when the pvb valve puts too much pressure on the seal causing it to break but stated there is no warranty coverage or recall. It is an expensive repair as they need to completely remove the transmission.

- Durham, ME, USA

problem #12

Apr 132015

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 106,867 miles
Since 2012, I have had check engine lights that no mechanic has been able to diagnose, because everything was fine when they would check the knock sensor. They would reset it, and see if it came on again. However, there would be long periods where it wouldn't come on. It has not come on, since November of 2014. 4/13/2015, at approximately 1900 hours, I was traveling on a major freeway, in afternoon traffic in houston. When, my engine began to die. My control panel went dead, and my engine was gradually dying, with the radio and electricity still working. I ended up being stranded in a moving lane, at a split, with vehicles whizzing from 60-80 mph. I called for a wrecker over a police radio, but 5 minutes later my vehicle restarted like everything was fine, died and restarted again on shoulder of freeway. I then got off the freeway and went parking lot to parking lot got home, took it to VW dealership first thing. Due to no engine light or fault code, dealership guessed ignition switch. Due to problems with dealership, took vehicle from them and paid for diagnostic. Discovered in report they listed malfunctioning camshaft, which they were going to try and have me pay. I had the ignition switch replaced, died on me again on 4/19/15. Because searching with my VIN did not reveal defects or investigations and my vehicle was serviced for the 1 recall -- I searched with the engine code "bpy", I found there had been an investigation and VW decided to not do a recall but "update", thus didn't have to give owners notice. However, their own mechanics seem to be unaware. I realized that the technician thought of the ignition switch due to GM being in the news after the deaths, due to similarities. VW did an "update" to settle the investigation, did not give notice, and I would have had to pay even though they agreed to extend the warranty for 10 years and 120,000 miles.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #11

Mar 172015

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 85,000 miles
My PCV valve got clogged which caused the rear main seal to blow out causing a lot of damage. This is not supposed to happen at this mileage. Volkswagen has acknowledged they are receiving a lot of these vehicles between 80K and 100K, unacceptable. They are not covering any repairs. There has been 3 revisions by Volkswagen to the PCV valve thats in my vehicle but they won't acknowledge mine is faulty..why did they remake it 3 times? also model years before me had PCV valve recalls for this exact reason. Thank you

- Bridgehampton, NY, USA

problem #10

Mar 052015

Jetta 5-cyl

  • 5,700 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While entering a parking lot, parking space, after stopping completely, the car would not move when accelerator was lightly depressed, there was a 1 to 3 second delay, and then the car lunged forward crashing into the opposing parked vehicle, damaging the fronts of both vehicles. This hesitation was noted once before at about 3800 miles while entering a highway from a stop. Again, the hesitation was followed by a sudden lunge. Selling VW dealer said it sounded like a dsg trans problem, bring back fpr evaluation after its repaired. This unexpected surge problem is the direct cause of the accident. There should be a safety recall. Note: While this VW Jetta is 7 yrs old, it is not driven often as can be seen by less than 500-800 miles per year.

- Fortson, GA, USA

problem #9

Jul 042014

Jetta 5-cyl

  • 100,000 miles
Vehicle jerks harshly when down shifting from 3rd to 2nd & 2nd to 1st gears. Usually right around 20mph to 15mph.

- Carlsbad, CA, USA

problem #8

Aug 222014

Jetta 5-cyl

  • 89,000 miles
I took my car in to have oil changed and to have my ac looked at due to strange smell coming from vents. Per dealership request they stated I should have the ac flushed. I left my car there within 30 minutes of dropping it off the dealership called me to tell me my car died. They had hooked it up to flush the ac and the engine died. Upon their investigation a compression test was performed and it was determined cylinders 1,2,3 and 5 showed zero compression while 4 showed 80psi. They are stating due to improper cam timing. Further investigation showed the securing bolt on the intake camshaft was loose. It is now recommended to replace the cylinder head and retime the camshaft to the crankshaft. My car did not show any issues leading up to the oil change, no warning lights nothing. Clearly I should have had some sort of warning signs.

- Thousand Oaks, CA, USA

problem #7

Jun 062013

Jetta

  • 59,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated that when the A/C was operated, there was a strong odor emitted from the vents. The failure recurred on several occasions. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised that the evaporator coil needed to be cleaned. The failure mileage was 59,000 and the current mileage was 66,000.

- Omaha, NE, USA

problem #6

Nov 212013

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 104,346 miles
Fuel cut-off/surging when accelerating and tapping noise from engine. Engine is throwing engine codes; a loss of power is present when accelerating. This occurs every time I try to accelerate. This is a known issue with the cam follower and high pressure fuel pump on all 2.0T fsi motors from VW. My cam follower has a hole in it (have the part) and the high pressure fuel pump is worn down (have the part) because it has made contact with the cam lobe, which has been scarred (have the part). Replacement requires a new cam, high pressure fuel pump, and cam follower. The design however will require constant inspection of the cam follower to avoid major engine failure. All 2.0 T fsi engines will experience this problem. Volkswagen has a tsb #2015153 dated December 16, 2009 that warns of this problem upon cel light being shown. But by then the damage was done, upon further inspection it had a hole in the cam follower, with severe damage to the cam and high pressure fuel pump. Repair cost was over $2,000. After researching this I found out this is a common problem with this particular motor. So much so that voa extended the warranty to ten years and 100,000 miles just for this exact problem. Unfortunately they used VIN numbers and my VIN numbers is after the cutoff point even though it's the exact same motor with the exact same problem as the earlier VIN numbered cars. They need to cover the affected motor numbers not the VIN numbers.

- Alford, FL, USA

problem #5

Jul 212013

Jetta

  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the vehicle became hesitant to acceleration attempts. The failure recurred intermittently at speeds between 10 and 50 mph. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis where the technician stated that the camshaft, camshaft follower, fuel pump, and a valve would have to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

- Hazlet, NJ, USA

problem #4

Jul 032013

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 93,000 miles
The cam follower failed resulting in severe engine hesitation upon acceleration making the car unsafe to operate. The metal the part it is made from is not strong enough. This causes it to wear through and break, which in turn causes severe damage to the camshaft and fuel pump. As a result, all three parts must be replaced at great expense. Volkswagen has chosen to cover this repair on some but not all vehicles with the identical problem. They state that they are choosing which vehicles to cover based on VIN # alone and not all vehicles with the identical problem. The failed part extends beyond their VIN # metric. They have acknowledged the problem and have chosen to cover the repair on some, but not all vehicles affected. This is unfair to those consumers stuck with a bill, while others with the identical problem have it covered.

- Howell, MI, USA

problem #3

Apr 052013

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 96,000 miles
The problem is the intake manifold and the intake valves stuck from excessive carbon buildup. It was replaced in Feb 2011 and now needs replacing again. Problem is, now I'm out of the warranty period and the dealer is saying I would have to pay for this myself. They also added that there was only a 1 year warranty for the first time this was replaced in Feb 2011. There have been many complaints on the intake manifold and no recall from Volkswagen. If the decarbonization had been done when the intake manifold had been replaced the first time, this would have never happened again.

- Spotswood, NJ, USA

problem #2

Jan 162013

Jetta 4-cyl

  • 85,000 miles
I was told by the VW dealership that there is known defect with the motor that is part of the air intake manifold which causes the valves to stick and not allow the proper mixture of air/gas, causing the engine to misfire....at times, the misfire can be intense and could possibly cause someone to lose control of their vehicle ("bucking sensation"). I found many threads on the internet regarding the VW Jetta (2.0T engine) and a problem with the air intake manifold, but yet, VW has never issued a recall for the problem.

- Danielson, CT, USA

problem #1

May 132011

Jetta 5-cyl

  • 39,410 miles
The 08 Jetta SE stall w/O any warning, usually after 30 minutes of driving and sometime at stoplights.

- Cedar Hill, TX, USA

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