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.
The "under hood fuse box" was replaced in May 2014 under recall #97am. When the weather turned cold the car began to get hard to start, the engine light came on, and when it turned very cold the car would not start at all. I took the vehicle back to dealer, they cleared the code and said if the code came back they would need to replace the "glow plug control module". when I came home I started searching the "tdi forums" for similar problems. I found others had the same issue and someone found the solution. When the fuse box was replaced, there is a little jumper (VW part number: 3C0-971-249) (cost $5.) that goes in a relay slot (R2) that sends power to a 50 amp fuse (SB27), that sends power to the "glow plug control module" (J179) that sends power to the glow plugs when the engine is below 18 degrees C, allowing the engine to start when cold (and without smoking). ** problem is that there is no legend provided for the under hood fuse box, so no way to know if something is missing. This is also a safety hazard because if someone would pull a fuse and not pay attention, there is nothing to indicate where or what size of fuse to put back in. This could effect anything from headlights to ABS.
My VW Jetta tdi had many problems since I purchased it. First, we had problems with the injection system imploding. They asked if we ever put in gasoline instead of diesel. I told them absolutely not. They wanted to charge me $6500 because car was out of warranty but service manager got VW to pay for it because I said I was going to get an attorney. On June 27, 2014 we had with an electrical problem where the battery was draining from a short in the radio modulator. The car had 101,348 miles. They fixed the problem which took 9 days to fix and cost $1238.56. I noticed the radio would stayed on with the key out of the car after that though. Then we had the check engine, air bag, ABS and traction lights on at 109,452. I took it to my service station on 11/28/2014, but he said the dealer had to program update the software and check the ABS module for electrical problem. The dealer said it was the O2 sensor on number 2 cylinder. They found no problems with the air bag, ABS module or traction control. They charged me $600. The lights were all off. On January 3, my 17 year old daughter and her girlfriend went to the movies last night with the car. It was lightly raining out. She left the movie theatre around 8:20 pm. She came up to an intersection that was turning red. She applied the brakes and skidded through the intersection hitting another vehicle that was crossing. She was doing about 40 mph. She said the car did not want to stop. She said there where lights on the dashboard when she was driving. People in the other car went to hospital.
Driving down freeway at 61mph, engine turns off. No power steering or brakes while I changed lanes in heavy traffic to get to the shoulder of the road. Car would not start and had to tow to the dealership. Dealer replaced battery, primed fuel system, gave car back. After five days, check engine light came on, so I took car to dealership. They replaced glow plug control module and gave car back. Driving down highway when car again dies, engine turns off without warning. I have to change lanes again with no power steering or brakes to get off the road. Towed vehicle to dealership where they say the high pressure fuel pump needs to be replaced. This is a very scary and dangerous problem to have a car turn itself off while driving down the freeway.
Intermittent electrical problems from undetermined source for last year, ended up losing all lights on passenger side of car, and some lights/light function on driver's side, including brake lights, turn signals, headlights etc. Random security alarm going off without being able to turn it off, brake warning lights, traction control issues. After a quick internet search I became aware that this is a very common problem and known VW issue, and found F16 fuse to be melted along with a portion of the fuse box. Called the only VW dealer in the city 10/23/14 and was told I had two safety recalls on my car, one for an ECM software update and one for this electrical issue, neither of which I was notified of, yet have been notified to have the "diesel only" sticker installed, and haven't moved since long before I purchased the car. Dealer is not able to look at my vehicle until 10/27/14 and cannot provide a loaner car since Volkswagen won't reimburse them for that cost. Called Volkswagen customer service and spoke with doug, only to be told they could not authorize rental car reimbursement, and I would need to either shoulder that expense myself or continue driving the car in it's current state. Informed him that the car was not safe to be driven with the lighting issues, and fuse F16 being tied into ABS as well, was told he couldn't help me. If they had done the correct thing, I wouldn't be left in an unsafe car to Transport my family, due to their engineering design negligence.
2009 Jetta tdi sportwagen. During a panic stop to avoid an accident the ABS and atc (traction control) dash indicator lights came on solid along with an alarm and the brake indicator light flashing on and off. During this panic stop both rear brakes locked. Turning the ignition off and on reset the indicator lights. Ten minutes later I attempted to duplicate the incident on a quiet side street by driving at 20 mph and hitting the brakes hard enough to engage the ABS. Once again the indicator lights came on and alarm sounded. Dealer diagnosed problem as failure of the ABS controller. Research on internet indicated that this is a common problem with 2009 Jettas with hundreds of similar occurrences. The part is $1750 plus labor to install brings total to $2200. The ABS controller is not a wear item and should not be failing on a car which has 62,400 miles on it. The car has been dealer maintained and serviced since new. This was the first time the ABS had been engaged other than during the winter on snow covered roads.
- Schenectady, NY, USA
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The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Jetta. While the vehicle was idling and attempting to accelerate, the contact heard an abnormal noise and the vehicle stalled. The vehicle was able to restart after several attempts. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 57,000.
Fuse F16 melted in engine fuse box disabling all right side lights and turn signals. This is a common complaint and also subject to recall on 2009 tiguans. This is the same problem, a hard-coated fuse should be installed via a recall.
I started my vehicle when I got a light bulb failure light on my dash, after investigating all affected bulbs which were all on the right side of the vehicle I looked at the fuses. Come to find out there are two spots in the fuse box that are 30 amps and were melted but not blown. The fuse box itself has been melted as well. I replaced the fuses and about one year later it happened again. I jiggled the fuses that were melted and the lights started to work again.
While driving on freeway car completely shut-off. Coasted to off-ramp, stopped car and then re-started it. Dealer later diagnosed ignition switch problem (intermittent ignition switch faults logged) and recommended replacement of the ignition switch.
Every light on the passenger side of the vehicle stopped working. At first this was intermittent but became permanent. I found the problem to be melted fuse (F16) in the engine compartment.
Since purchasing this vehicle, I have been having issues with the interior cabin light and the door locks on the driver side. I took it to the dealer to have it looked at and they told me this was a "known" problem with the door locks and if the door lock was not fixed, my doors would continue to lock and unlock on their own. It will cost $495 to fix. If this is a know issue, why doesn't VW fix it! there is an obvious safety factor if the doors can lock and unlock on their own!
Exterior right headlamp and right turn signal stopped working, discovered that fuse had melted in fuse box, fuse changed, worked for approximately 2 months then fuse blew again. Have changed fuses 4 times, but keeps going out.
Fuse box fuse socket # F16 melted causing right headlight, turn signal, city lights and right marker light to fail. Seeing numerous reports of the same thing on the web.
Passenger headlamps, passenger front turn signal and all rear turn signals stopped working. The right signal was not operational. Took car to dealer and they indicated the fuse box and the 30 amp fuse ( F16) under the hood had overheated and melted. They are charging me $580 to replace the fuse box and fuse. When asked was this a defect and how can this situation be prevented, they said it has happened with other cars. It is something that happens and good thing I brought it in because other major damage to the car could have occurred. My concern is that this defect is a safety issue that could lead to serious consequences. Other Volkswagen vehicles have been recalled for this same issue (melted fuse box and fuses) and it is not clear why Volkswagen isn't extending a recall to all cars that exhibit the same defect.
The electrical wire insulation of the passenger side head light is crumbling and falling off the wires, I noticed when I had to change the light bulb for the second time in less than a month. When I opened the access cover to replace it I saw pieces of the wire insulation all over inside the head light compartment. I'm very afraid and scared that my car will catch on fire due to that manufacturer deficiency of the electrical wire insulation. I sent one message to Volkswagen on America yesterday but they have not contacted me to get additional information or provide guidance. I took pictures with my iphone and will provide them upon request, my personal email is [xxx]please advice what can I do to have VW repair that deficiency at no cost to me. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Lost passenger headlamp, passenger front turn signal and all rear turn signals. The fast signal only indicated that the right signal was not operational. We had a near rear collision while making a left turn into traffic. Upon investigation it was found that the 30 amp fuse (number F16) in the under hood fuse box was overheated and melted as well as the fuse socket was melted.
Dashboard lights would not work when headlights were turned on, including right/left indicator lights. I brought the car into marten's VW service on 11/20/13 in bethesda md. They reported the fuse box had started to melt and had to be replaced for $580. It is no longer under warranty. This seems to be a flaw that online research has shown. The VW technician said "it is a problem with these cars". he said the new fuse boxes are made differently now. Shouldn't this have been a recall item?
The rear doors on my 2009 Volkswagen Jetta tdi don't lock - with the lock inside the door or the key fob. This is a major safety concern as I drive through the city everyday and anyone could just get in my car or rob me. I researched it online to try and solve the issue myself, but it seems like a difficult/expensive fix, and there are numerous posts online about other Jetta tdi's locks malfunctioning. Volkswagen has not issued a recall, but this seems to be a very common problem with their vehicles.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Waldorf, MD, USA