Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VISIBILITY - SUN ROOF ASSEMBLY | |||||
| 9904 | 10/22/1999 | 610161 | Subject pertaining to the sunroof sliding headliner, replacing slides. *tt | 04/19/2000 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| VISIBILITY | |||
| 04/04/2001 | 10000 | ||
| Defect in driverside power window. window not used for several years. as of may 28, 2011 window opened & will not close. | |||
| VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM | |||
| 07/20/2000 | 1 | 06/10/1998 | |
| Vent louver were breaking and were loose, dealer replaced vent. *slc | |||
| VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - CONTROLS/WIRING | |||
| 03/25/2002 | |||
| Vehicle was parked when consumer noticed flames 1 foot high coming from dashboard. at dealer at this time, heater switch caused fire. *ak | |||
| 06/01/2000 | |||
| Consumer has been having alot of problems with electrical features. consumer has replaced 2 batteries/ 1 cd changer/ 4 headlight bulbs, and air conditioner outlet didn't work. dealer stated vehicle had too many miles. problems existed since day 1.*ak | |||
| VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - HEATER CORE | |||
| 11/11/2006 | 98000 | 1 | 11/24/2005 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while driving 45 mph on normal road conditions, smoke was noticed coming from under the dashboard. there were no warning lights illuminated. then, the vehicle caught on fire and was evacuated. there were no injuries sustained. the police and fire department were present, and a police report was taken. the fire department determined an electrical failure from the heater fan was the cause of the fire. the insurance company declared the vehicle a total loss. the manufacturer was contacted however, refused to open an investigation. the contact expressed concern that the fire could have injured an occupant.*ak | |||
| VISIBILITY - GLASS, SIDE/REAR | |||
| 3 | |||
| Eighteen months after purchase, the vehicle would not start when consumer tried to turn it on. after the third time, consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealer. consumer was informed it was a computer malfunction. *jg | |||
| VISIBILITY - POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS | |||
| 05/18/2008 | 78000 | 1 | |
| Drivers side window regulator failed - cable 'shredded' and automatic window no longer works to 'roll up' the window. found many results online for other vw owners experiencing the exact same problem with their oe regulators. *tr | |||
| 02/25/2008 | 46000 | 5 | 07/07/2006 |
| Purchased 1999 vw beetle 20 months ago. car has only 54,000 miles. since owning the car have already over $3,500 in repairs. all of the repairs were done at my local darcar vw repair shop. i believe some of these repairs were recalls and have all receipt. is there someone i can sent my repair receipts to to see if i can be reimbursed for out of pocket expenses which should have been recall services? i can forward receipts. also seven days ago the passenger side window regulator broke and it appears it had been recalled per two vw owner who had same problems but i can't find the recall information on it. can you suggest how i can view all recalls for 1999 vw beetle gls? *tr | |||
| 06/24/2005 | 1 | 02/28/2005 | |
| Dt:consumer complained about problems with unlocking vehicle. when she turned the key the windows roll down on their own. it might not happen right at that time, but some time after the vehicle was turned on and off the windows rolled down. sometimes the keyless entry remote will work and sometimes it will not work. consumer knew of other people with the same type of vehicle having the same problem. dealer was repairing the problem . dealer told consumer that repairs were not covered under warranty. repairs were done at consumer's expense. dealer replaced the cylinder lock switch.consumer had this problem since she owned the vehicle.*ak | |||
| 03/07/2005 | 87522 | 2 | |
| 1999 volkswagen beetle having problems with tie rod equipment.*mr the vehicle was hard to steer and noisy on turns. the dealer replaced the rack and pinion gear and tie rod ends. the vehicle was taken bake to the dealer for front end vibration and it was determined that the tire rod ends were worn. the windows would not close due to defective regulators. the abs light illuminated. the dealer replaced the left rear speed sensor and rest the readiness codes. *nm | |||
| 04/15/2000 | 23000 | ||
| June 2, 2003 the following letter was sent to voa dear volkswagen of america i have a 1999 beetle that caught fire on may 4th 2003; as of today may 12, 2003 this is what i was told by jim kamradt from your department. he said, corporate volkswagen will do nothing with the car because it is too old and has too many miles. they will not be sending any kind of paperwork to me, and i will not get any more calls from volkswagen on this issue, this is an insurance issue? i am not pleased with this answer and this is why: 05/04/03 sunday smoke then flames came pouring out of the dashboard of our 1999 vw beatle purchased oct 1998. i was given a case # of 30213588 to refer to. jim said the a/c switch wire caused the fire. he was waiting for a call from volkswagen of america?s customer relation?s person. 05/12/03 monday 1:38 pm i called volkswagen of america again because i have not heard from mr. custer. jim kamradt got on phone and said that a fire report was sent to their product liaison person. jim kamradt said, corporate volkswagen will do nothing with the car because it?s too old and has to many miles. they will not be ?sending paperwork? to me and ?i will not get any more calls from volkswagen on this issue, this is an insurance issue. i have a record of all past service receipts (dating back to the purchase date) and have documented proof of recent problems and repairs to the a/c and electrical wiring on this car in the past. my daughter, a current resident of arizona, currently is employed as a full-time nanny. she has in her care a two month old and will be expected to drive him about. her past job was caring for a two year old and had this fire? erupted while he was in her care, this would have been a true tragedy. please send verification of your decision in writing to me by may 30, 2003. please send all inquiries back to me at ed stade 8n 200 naperville rd. bartlett, il 60103 sincerelyed stade jelinek builders | |||
| 12/15/2002 | 0 | ||
| Current problem: manual transmission stick shift mechanism completely broke during shifting at highway speeds (during rush hour). it went to neutral, but i was able to find 3rd gear and get the car off of the road. | |||
| 04/07/2004 | 3 | ||
| While driving 5 mph and without hazard flashing warning lights blinked on and off on their own. also, driver and passenger side windows rolled up and down, and srs light appeared on the dashboard and remained on. consumer took vehicle to the dealer for inspection on numerous occasions. but, mechanic was unable to duplicate or resolve the problems. *ak | |||
| 1 | 02/01/2099 | ||
| Shortly after i bought the vehicle, enginecheck light came on and stayed on. also, cd player was not operating correctly and temperature display (by rear view mirror) did not work. took in to dealer's svc dept. many times, but problems persited . dealer svc. dept. claimed everything working fine. recently, the window on the driver side failed and it would not go up. took car in to dealer svc. dept. and got repaired. shortly after that, car died. it was not the battery, so car was towed to dealer service dept. on 8-14-02. dealer examined car and said it was the tri-lock system and didn't know how to fix it. tri-lock system removed by dealer but car still not working. problem: power windows did not work, push window button and trunk would pop open, air bag light stayed on, etc. etc. etc. the car has been at dealeship for over a week and dealer keeps telling me it's fixed, but when i go pick it up (3 times), the car is still doing the same thing, and the air bag light is still on all the time. very frustrated and disappointed.*ak | |||
| 01/02/2002 | |||
| Windows on passenger side and driver side will continuously fall whenever consumer is driving vehicle. contacted dealer . dealer was not willing to do anything.*ak | |||
| 04/05/2001 | 2 | 03/27/1999 | |
| Battery cable has burned out twice since date of purchase. dealer has been contacted. please provide further details.*ak rear hatch intermittently will not open with the remote due to it being out of adjustment, the left window switch is loose. nlm | |||
| 06/01/2000 | 03/01/1999 | ||
| I purchased this vehicle because i was looking for a reliable and economical car. i have been very disappointed. this car burns oil at an unbelievable rate. i cannot rely on it and do not want to drive it out of town. i am now keeping jumper cables in the hatch because of constant battery problems. the radio is not working. i have already replaced a regulator (window) on the driver's side and it has broken again. less than a year after it was replaced. several dealerships told me that they couldn't get me in to fix the problem for 2 weeks - my window was stuck down inside of the door and would not roll up. the waiting time for an appt at a dealer should be an indication that the are not producing quality vehicles. the warranty period is too short. the problems seem to all happen after the warranty is up. is that how long they expected to last - 2 years?i have been very disapointed.*ak | |||
| 11/01/2000 | |||
| All of the electrical problems occur periodicaly. one day the gas gauge will show empty when the tank is full. the electric window went down and never came back up, they had to replace a switch in side the door. the right side door handle has to be pulled on twice to open from the outside. the rear hatch will not always open when released, you must push the buttom again to open it. and the reason i am filling out this questionnaire is because the car tonight would not start. the lights would come on, then off, then dim, then go bright. (the radio shows on its small window the word safe) the ignition switch does not seem to be working. so i decided to check out your web site for any recalls or service bulletins. the car will be heading to the dealership in the morning. thank you for your time and consideration. | |||
| 1 | 02/17/1999 | ||
| While driving at 35 mph vehicle began to stall, and shake, showed a sign of vehicle losing power.engine check light illuminated on the dash panel, and vehicle shut off. dealer has been contacted. *ak engine also hesitates when accelerating from the start. vehicle has had complaints regarding trunk and fuel release actuator cable. steering rods came loose and had to be resecured and mounting bolt.. window motor failed. *yh | |||
| 07/09/2000 | 1 | 05/01/1999 | |
| Express function of drivers side power window switch failed. cause was apparent broken internal spring. replaced by owner. | |||
| 11/01/1999 | 2 | 04/01/1999 | |
| On 2 occasions when my car has been facing down on a slope it will not start and i have to put it in neutral and roll to level ground to get it to start. on one other occation my car did have a problem when i pulled into my parents driveway and i put my car in reverse , it did not go into gear and i rolled over my mom's flowers. the deal has checked in their database and with volkswagen of america and noone has reported a problem similar to mine. they tried to recreate what i described, but to no avail. to date i have not had any incident repeat and i have gone to my parents house to try to recreate it myself, but again to no avail. the dealer has been very helpful with any problem i have encounted with my new car. *ak | |||
| VISIBILITY - REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICES - EXTERIOR | |||
| 09/15/1999 | 30 | 2 | 09/15/1999 |
| Dt: volkswagen beetle 1999. the consumer is not satisfied with mirrors on the left driver's side. they have too much of a blind spot for oncoming vehicles. also, the post between the windshield and the left and right sides, before getting to the doors, are also giving the consumer trouble, as being a blind spot. the consumer pulled out onto the highway in front of oncoming traffic, and didn't see another vehicle because of the blind spots from the car. *ak *sc *jb | |||
| VISIBILITY - SUN ROOF ASSEMBLY | |||
| 05/07/1999 | |||
| While driving with sun roof fully open vehicle shakes and shutters. also there is something wrong with the engine. *ak | |||
| VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD | |||
| 1 | 10/01/1998 | ||
| The consumer stated that both the driver and passenger windows collapsed. immediately after the window repair, the passenger door would not open from the inside. *scc | |||
| 1 | |||
| The driver and passenger side windows collapsed inside the door. *jg | |||
| When driving during the daytime their is a glare on the glass that appears as a checker board on the side and on rear windshield glass that obstructs the consumer's vision. dealer has been contacted. *ak | |||