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.
This car stalls out as it slows down. It does not change to a lower gear in time when decelerating and stalls out. It will not stall out every time I slow down. I never know when it will stall. It's very random and I have stalled out in the middle of intersections and any situation slowing down. I brought this car back to the deal twice and they could not find anything wrong with it. I pleaded with them that the car is dangerous but they sent me packing. I am writing this because I do not want them to resell this car to someone, the car stalls out and they get injured. For four year, I have had to drive this car using either the manual shift, or put it into neutral when slowing down. I am returning the car today. Please don't let them resell this car. Also, sometimes the car will not shift into 6th gear. The driver side window will not stay up. I will roll it up and it will automatically room down like something is obstructing it.
While driving in a residential area, the Jetta tdi engine light began flashing and the engine started lugging. According to the dealer, this is due to a known defect with the intercooler hose that traps condensation in the system. When the condensation freezes, the engine is deprived of air. According to the forum post below, this issue is very widespread and can sometimes cause engine damage from hydrolock. If the car is moving at high speeds when this happens, it can be dangerous. VW is charging customers who are out of warranty over $1,000 to fix a known design flaw. A recall should be issued to protect customers from this problem. Forum describing the widespread nature of this issue; forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?5574701-tdi-intercooler-issue-design-flaw.
Purchased this car new in 2011. VW fixed the fuel exhaust ports. Engine light came on again and dealer stated that the particulate filter and catalytic converter both needed to be replaced. Also warned that the fuel pump had serious issues. I had one year left to pay this car off, it had 90K miles on it and I had to turn it in. How can they get away with selling a brand new car for $28K to have it crap out with no repercussions like this?
Driving vehicle on South bound I-5 going 60mph right outside of the Tacoma dome in far left lane when vehicle suddenly started flashing engine light and engine died at the same time. I had multiple vehicles screeching to a stop right on I-5 and honking at me, almost hitting me, barely missing me. I almost died. No shoulder to get off on. Engine light then went off. I sat in my car for several minutes crying, shaking and then tried starting car again. Car barely started, able to get off to the side of the road, but car was shaking and jumping to the side of the road. Larson's Volkswagen dealership is charging me $480 and says this happened due to "failure in ignition coil pack a" I almost died, why is there not a recall on this?
Issues began with faulty starter. Then progressed to a battery of electrical issues from windows moving in reverse of desired order to horn and keys dying. Each time dealer brushed off issue. When horn and keys died (also with faulty start button) dealer tried to force me to drive unsafe vehicle until they got around to fixing the problem. Most other times the issue was ignored or I was treated as though I was making up the problem. (these problems include radio staying on when car is completely off, and after manually switching it off, it then will turn back on while the car is still off (even though the car will not start and I have to use the long hold lock function to roll windows up). The car also will reopen trunk upon close, flash passenger seat belt warnings when the seat is empty, not display gear when moving, not display mileage/fuel level while simultaneously listing mileage range from selected screen, etc. Problems are worse in extreme weather. I have attempted to have the problems fixed multiple times to no avail. Recently, I have taken the car in several times to have service light diagnosed. Dealer reset light each time without bothering to check the source. Problem progressed to engine not starting, sluggish and jerky acceleration, lurching stops, and, most recently, shutting off while driving. This is absolutely a manufacturer issue, and I am planning to pursue all options available to rectify. Not only has Volkswagen produced an unsafe vehicle, but they are also aware of these problems and make a great effort to avoid dealing with them.
- Alpharetta, GA, USA
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Shortly after purchasing the vehicle new we experienced issues with the vehicle stuttering when driving and at times shutting off completely as if it stalled (the vehicle is an automatic with the dsg transmission). We took the vehicle to the VW dealership under warranty but the tech could not replicate the problem and sent us on our way and told us to comeback if it kept occurring. The problem persisted and we took the vehicle to the service department again and they said the problem could not be found and once again sent us away and told us to come back if the problem kept occurring. The vehicle is now stuttering and stalling much more often and the warranty has run out. I called the VW hq they told me to take the vehicle in and have the tech look at it which has cost me $112 in which they once again found nothing and recommended I let the car warm up prior to driving. It is currently summer and the low temperatures are around 70 and the highs are 85+. in addition this is a modern vehicle and had I know I was going to need to let it warm up I would not have purchased it. This isn"T the 50"S. my wife and I now feel the vehicle is unsafe to drive due to the fact it stalls out at unpredictable times causing a loss of power steering, power brakes. If VW does not fix this issue I will be trading it in due to their disregard for safety of my family.
I was operating the car on a highway when the vehicle experienced a sudden reduction in power and the dash displayed a flashing glow plug light and solid check engine warning lights. I immediately pulled to the side of the road where the engine was shut off. The engine failed to restart and was towed to a Volkswagen dealership. The service manager told me that the cause was a catastrophic failure of the (hpfp); it totally came apart and distributed metal throughout the fuel system. Injector pump (diesel), injectors, injector lines, primary fuel lines, and primary fuel pump. The car only has 54,000 miles on it.
While driving the engine light came on and the car lost power. We were on a rural road so we could pull to the side of the road safely, if this had happened on a freeway we could have been in danger of being rear ended. Once stopped the care would not restart. Had to be towed to VW dealer. The high pressure fuel pump had failed.
While attempting to accelerate car sputtered, and hesitated while losing power. Regained power briefly then sputtered, lost power and engine cut off completely. Started engine after letting sit for a few minutes drove home ok. Happened again a week later and took it to dealership. Dealer diagnosed it as faulty ignition coil and arcing.
Went to pass a vehicle and I felt a surge then a siren sound started coming from the right side of engine. Was told by dealership it was a vacuum issue and it was safe to drive. When I got to dealership they told me it was a blown turbo. Wondering if this is tied to the incident I had with the high pressure fuel pump failing around 100K. Too many major catastrophic issues with this car. I've been quoted 15,000 for repairs on a car I'm still making payments on and only cost 28K to begin with.
My car has had 3 stalls within 3 months. I took it to the dealer they replaced the throttle assembly. Since then I was pulling out of a parking spot and put the car in drive and the car stalled. I took it to the dealer and they said they couldn't find anything wrong with the vehicle.
This car has had multiple ignition coil problems causing a misfire and a rough rumbling engine. The ability to accelerate is greatly reduce leaving you vulnerable to car accidents in certain situations like pulling out at an intersection. This is the second incident within a year of ignition coils failing. Now at 42,000 miles it is not covered under warranty. The first incident was extremely troubling not being able to maintain a constant speed with a line of traffic behind me and no where to pull over. This is a severe safety issue and should be addressed by VW.
My 2011 Volkswagen Jetta tdi started to sputter when accelerating, I brought it the dealer and they found shards of metal in the fuel system. Hpfp (high pressure fuel pump) had failed. The quote to fix was $6875 to fix a two year old car. Very un happy.
The effected car was a diesel model 2011 Volkswagen Jetta tdi sedan with 48,074 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. While traveling at approximately 40 mph in normal driving conditions, the vehicle experienced a sudden reduction in power and displayed a flashing glow plug light and solid check engine warning lights. The vehicle was immediately pulled to the side of the road where the engine was shut off. The engine failed to restart and was towed to a Volkswagen dealership service department. The Volkswagen dealer determined that a catastrophic failure of the vehicle's high pressure fuel pump (hpfp) had occurred. The dealer found that extensive damage to the entire fuel system had resulted from the failure, causing internal metal debris contamination that required substantial repairs. The total cost of repairs were reported by the dealership to equal $6,500.
This has happened multiple times. The first recorded incident was in March of 2013. Went to the car and it would not start. It acted like the engine was seized or a bad battery. Let it sit started ran like crap. Found out later that the car when driven in cold temperatures accumulates water in the system. Https://docs.google.com/file/D/0B162-sx2nn5luzbidg9hcvr6nuu/edit?pli=1 thats the VW tech bulletin on the matter. It has happened multiple times. From reading online this has / can start a fire because the starter overheats. Since the water gets into the cylinders it can cause engine damage. VW did not address the issue when it was brought in because they could not repeat the problem. Said I must have killed the battery by leaving something on. Since than it has happened 4 more times I can relate to the condition. It is in the dealership now because of it. They could not get it to repeat and may not provide a fix (although the given fix does not 100% fix it I was told by a tech.)
Drive home from work at about 1500 hrs, with no issues. Stopped at local supermarket, started engine with slight delay, left parking lot, car started to buck, drove maybe 1/2 mi started losing power, after going another 50 ft car engine died, pushed car to my driveway called dealership and had car towed to dealership. On 11/21/13 dealership informed me that hpfp had exploded sending metal shavings into engine, they asked me if I accidentally put gas and I responded with no. They stated that fuel may have been contaminated. Dealership is repairing car since it is still under warranty, said maybe 1 week in the shop. I was given a rental in the meantime.
During mid motion, with foot on the gas, the vehicle died in the middle of the intersection. No warning indications appeared on the dash. The speed of travel was approximately 35mph. The car was towed by aaa. Service at VW has yielded inconclusive results. There are numerous forums on edmunds detailing and accounting this seemingly ubiquitous and potentially fatal flaw. As it stands, VW is persistent in there stance to do nothing about it. They refuse to issue a refund or exchange on certified cars. This particular model in which I write about, was on its first day off of the lot, as a certified pre-owned vehicle. VW refuses any such possibility of return, even on account of possible safety concerns, and despite the accumulative reports others have made documenting this exact flaw, without any known way of remedying on VW's part.
I was on my way home after work approximately 6-7 pm doing 45 mph. I looked down to my instrument cluster to check my speed to make sure I wasn't speeding. Then I saw the glow plug light blinking multiple times then about less than 5-10 seconds later my engine cut out. I cost off into a harper college parking lot came to a stop. I tried to start the car 2-3 times, each time the engine was crackin over but wouldn't start it up. I called the tow truck company and had the vehicle towed to VW dealer in schaumburg, il ( fox valley VW) dealer said the high pressure fuel pump failed. Vwoa cover this under power train warranty 5/60K warranty. The dealer replace hpfp, lift pump, pump in gas tank, fuel lines to engine, coils etc... repairs came to roughly $5300. Vwoa only give 12/12K miles warranty on the hpfp. This is a known problem on some VW with cjaa 2.0L turbo diesel engines and vwoa has not found the defect in the hpfp.vwoa should extend the hpfp to 100K miles due to deft in the hpfp since they haven't found the problem and corrected it.
High pitched whine, sudden stall at hwy speed. The fuel light and service engine now light came on. The vehicle would not run and required a tow to the dealership. I was notified it would be a $5000+ repair and the hpfp failed requiring the entire fuel system to be replaced.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Las Vegas , NV, USA