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.
While driving with approx. 50,000 miles, the radio popped and completely died. The radio, along with the hands free phone capability are now inoperable. The vehicle was taken to two (2) separate Volkswagen dealerships and each verified that the fuses were in tact and it was a faulty radio. The broken radio is actually still drawing power from the battery which causes frequent dead batteries. I have already replaced two (2) batteries in the last year. This poses a safety concern because the battery could die at anytime and leave the driver stranded. There have been numerous complaints about this same problem which warrants a recall before anyone else gets hurt.
The horn changed sounds for a few weeks then stopped working all together. It's a safety issue when driving on the highway and in other areas when you do not have a horn. I've seen on this site that others have had the same complaint.
At approx. 48,800 miles while driving I heard a pop and the radio died. Radio & hands free phone no longer work. VW dealer charged $125 to tell me that it was dead, suggested purchasing a new radio ($1500) or an after market one. Too many people with the same make, model and year have had the same issue as posted on numerous sites. It's a safety hazard with the loss of the hands free telephone.
Radio popped and went dead causing a amperage drain on the battery. Fuses have been verified as good but the radio will not turn back on even after resets.
- Loganville, GA, USA
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Headlights went off while car in motion and would not go back on. The consequences of that happening if at a high rate of speed is disturbing to think about.
Random exterior lights were non-functional with multiple dashboard notification errors. Took vehicle in for service and was told that a bad fuse had shorted out and melted the fuse box causing the problem. Fuse box must be replaced due to overheating of bad fuse. Repair place said this is a known problem with Volkswagen and certain models had already been issued a recall.
While driving, radio/cd/hands free telephone died. Screen flickered and then went blank, no power to all these functions. VW repair said this model of radio installed on this year vehicle was a common problem, and that the radio unit is dead and will need to be replaced ($668 plus tax for a replacement by dealer). Plus an install fee. An ungodly price for a replacement radio that is only 4 years old. There are numerous complaints and threads out which warrant a recall. I use the hands free constantly for work and not being able to will make me have to use the phone in an unsafe manner. Safety is paramount. Update 9/15/15
In the process of driving the vehicle the engine along with all systems in the vehicle shut down with no warning. There was no electrical power whatsoever in the car and there was no indication that anything in the vehicle was working. It should be noted that a new battery was installed in the vehicle approximately 2-3 weeks prior to this incident. The car had shut down on two previous occasions, but was parked at the time. In each instance electrical power was restored in approximately 40 minutes with no action taken. The car was given to the VW dealer where VW specialists examined the vehicle. The problem could not be duplicated. After 3 days they were 90% positive that a module in the steering column had failed. VW of America did not feel that the failure was a manufactures defect nor the fact that the car shuts down completely while being driven constituted a serious safety problem.
The car loses power, stalls then it dies. At times it speeds up, and stalls dies without warning. Loses all power, found recall in reference to this issue. VIN# matches series, matches date, and place where the car was made, except for the last few digits. Recall 11V19600, and VW will not replace harness to electrcial fuse and circuit breaker. I need to help to get this resolved. I have been battling the dealer and VW of America since 03/20/2015 until today 06/26/2015
The contact owns a 2011 Volkswagen Jetta. While driving at 50 mph, the vehicle suddenly lost power and was unable to be driven. The glow plug light illuminated prior to the failure. The failure recurred several times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer several times and was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The VIN was unavailable. The approximate failure mileage was 35,000.
I love this car but for the last year I have been replacing lights bulbs every three months. Now I have running lights going out, no turning signals, tail light flickers, there is something that is wrong with the electrical wiring in this car.
Wife came home and said radio not working. From the research I have been looking at. It's done. Have to get a new or aftermarket unit. Can't believe I am the only on with this problem.
I was having trouble with various light bulbs going out. It turned out to be a fuse that had melted the fuse plate. I am lucky that it had not started a fire. My dealer replaced the fuse plate at a cost of 372 which VW is refusing to reimburse me for. I know other VW models have had the exact same problem and have been recalled. This is a serious safety issue and should be recalled as soon as possible. Loosing your headlights at night or a vehicle fire are serious safety issues.
The contact owns a 2011 Volkswagen Jetta. While driving approximately 75 mph, the door locks on the vehicle began to lock and unlock independently. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.
Driving down the highway at about 55mph, started switching lanes and stepped on the gas to accelerate. The car sputtered and the engine vibrated. The car felt like I was going to stall driving in the high-speed lane. The yellow check engine light came on and epc light started flashing. Swerving back into the lower speed lane I couldn't even keep the car at 55mph. I had to pull over on the highway to see if I could make sense of it. After turning off the car and then back on, the lights went off and the car was fine. I took it too the mechanic and they said they couldn't find anything wrong after $85 diagnostic. The car ran fine for 2 days until the same exact thing happened while driving on the highway again. This occurred on and off intermittently about every 1-2 days for about 2 weeks. Three trips to the mechanic within those 2 weeks and with each visit there was a computer connected to the car and a full systems diagnostic reported that there was nothing wrong with the car. It became dangerous for me to drive the car and even more so to drive it on the highway. After the second week the lights finally came on and stayed on and the problem was diagnosed as the engine misfiring in 2 of the cylinders. The mechanic changed with the ignition coil on 12/15.2014. The engine ran completely fine without any issues until last week, 3/19/2015. At 3 months and only 28,000 miles on the car the same problem started to reoccur while getting onto the highway and attempting to accelerate from 40-45mph. It started just as it did before intermittently and about 2 weeks later the engine and epc lights were on permanently again. After the mechanic confirmed that it was the same issue with the same component we changed the same part again. I am expecting to be changing it again in 3 more months, if I still have the car.
I was on route 95 in Florida driving at night and a car had cut in front of me I honk my horn and then both of my headlights blew. I had to put flashers on and get off next exit to find a auto parts store where they change both headlight bulbs. I then checked for recalls on my car found out that the horn was faulty and that it could cause electronic malfunction and shut engine off. Headlights are working now but my horn does not work. Contacted VW about recall and they said that since I had high mileage. That I had no warranty on the vehicle and that I would be responsible for the repairs.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Wichita Falls, TX, USA