Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | |||
| 11/01/2011 | 40750 | ||
| Approximately one week ago i noted that when i put my 2001 beetle into drive, the transmission did not catch. as i pushed the gas peddle down, it was necessary to rev the engine and then it would finally catch. the problem has gotten worse over the course of the week and will go into the shop this week. the safety issue is that it is necessary to rev the engine to get it into gear. i have almost hit the car in front of me on 2 occasions, but was able to hit the brake in time. i now push the brake and accelerator at the same time to avoid this possibility. i have read of similar transmission problems on the new beetle and want to add my experience at a paltry 41,000 miles to the list. i have not had the problems described in other postings such as difficulty shifting from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd. i also have not had the car downshift or shift to neutral as others have described. the major reason for posting this is the two episodes of almost hitting the car in front of me when the transmission engaged. | |||
| 10/02/2003 | 43675 | 1 | |
| Instrument panel malfunctioned. as a result, speedometer and fuel gauge read improperly. the cause has yet to be determined.*ak | |||
| 01/22/2002 | 2 | 03/01/2001 | |
| Most of the engine was replaced during the beginning of january. on jan 22nd, traveling on a highway, engine lost power and was almost involved in a multi-car accident. i was in the middle lane and the power cut from 55 to about 10 miles an hour in the matter of seconds. other cars were swerving around me and i was finally able to pull off the road. car was towed back to dealership and the throttle body was cleaned out. on jan 30th the same thing happened again, only this time i was not on a highway but a side street. car was towed away again andis in the dealership waiting for repairs. during this month not only was an engine replaced but it malfunctioned twice. it is dangerous to travel on any highway with this car. the engine malfunctioned twice in one week. i can not safely return to driving this car. i was almost killed once and was very lucky not to have been involved in a seriuos accident. the beetle has engine problems and very major ones. for a car that is 8 months old, this should not be happening. | |||
| 06/21/2001 | 5 | 05/01/2001 | |
| Vehicle experiences delays in acceleration almost causing several accidents. dealer #1, lasher volkswagon stated problem was with the brake light switch and replaced it. vehicle still expericenced delays in acceleration. dealer #2, roseville volkswagon stated problem is contained within the vehicles software and will take 1 to 3 months to correct. this vehicle is a major safety problem. *ak | |||