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 sunroof drainage system is faulty and leaks inside the car. Dealership charged me $350 to fix (not to mention that now the car smells musty) and suggested that other VW owners with my model of car have had similar problems. I am concerned that VW did not design the system properly and should fund any modifications necessary for existing car owners.
The seal between the connectors and the drain hose for the sunroof drains leak (three of four connectors), allowing water to run down the both driver and passenger side A-pillars. This resulted in the airbag and its associated mounts/wiring and harness getting soaked. The water continued down the a pillars to collect in the front wheel wells. The path of the water was over/through the drivers side interior junction/fuze block. The rear drains also leak, causing intermittent electrical malfunctions. Note that this leak is not due to the drains being blocked. Rather the seals between the white plastic that connects to the drain and the brown drain hose is not complete. This allows water to drip down onto the frame. As much as 2-3 gallons of water could enter during a mild rain storm.
While at the dealer for fuel pump failure the car was found to have another serious issue. There was a seal going in to the cowling that had leaked and caused a major amount of water to leak in to the cabin of the vehicle, right where the electrical components and fuse panel are. This caused major damage and the car to stall / not run due to the water damage. Luckily this was found while the vehicle was not moving, otherwise the car would have stopped running due to Volkswagen's error of not having a sealed access port to the interior of the vehicle.
The front panel of my panoramic sunroof shattered while the car was parked overnight. There was no overnight precipitation and the overnight low was cold--about 0--but not extremely so. There were no remaining pieces of glass larger than a dime, and small splinters of glass fell across the front seats. The dealer insisted that impact was the only possible explanation, but there are no obvious impact points. The car was not parked under anything. No other part of the car was damaged, and no other cars in the parking lot were damaged. The dealer refused to see the car, and VW customer care is not available on weekends. Because I needed a form of transportation, I opened an insurance claim and got a rental car. The car will be cleaned and repaired next week.
The contact owns a 2010 Volkswagen Jetta. During moderate to heavy rainy weather conditions large amounts of water flowed onto the windshield due to the design of the roof. The design of the windshield wipers also forced large amounts of water into the viewing range of the driver. The manufacturer was notified and informed him that the vehicle was operating as designed. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown and the current mileage was 1,754. Updated 10/26/10. Updated 10/26/10
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Tinton Falls, NJ, USA