Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AIR BAGS - FRONTAL - SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE | ||||||
| PE08012 | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC | 02/15/2008 | 04/24/2008 | FRONT AIR BAG CRASH SENSOR FAILURE | 08V178000 | |
| Certain subject vehicles, model year (my) 2003 convertible and my 2004 sedan and convertible vehicles are equipped with an advanced dual-stage air bag system.the air bag crash sensors (#1f0 909 606) contain a solder joint on the circuit board that may crack under certain high temperature conditions.if this occurs, the air bag indicator light will illuminate and the control module will enable a fallback algorithm that will ensure that the front air bag always deploys in a frontal crash in which the vehicle's deceleration is high enough to activate the frontal air bags.however, in low-severity frontal impacts, the front air bags may deploy more forcefully than designed, increasing the possibility of injury to out-of-position front seat occupants.volkswagen will inspect for the defective crash sensor and replace with an updated design.in addition, 16,177 early-my 2005 new beetle sedan and convertible vehicles (built through oct 31, 2004) are also included in the recall campaign.this preliminary evaluation is closed (see recall 08v-178) | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| AIR BAGS | |||
| 09/21/2007 | 36000 | 1 | |
| I have had to replace all four power window regulators. i am now having to replace one of the replacements. this vehicle only has 83000 miles on it. the parts to repair this window are extremely expensive - over $500. i've already invested well over $1500 replacing the regulators already. volkswagen is making defective parts and will not stand behind their product. i filed a complaint earlier on this vehicle for a defective airbag. this car has not been abused. i've taken good care of it. the airbag was never deployed or damaged in any way. if the airbag is defective it is because vw puts defective airbags in their vehicles. *tr | |||
| 04/07/2012 | 28600 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. while driving approximately 55 mph, the contact heard a loud clicking sound in the rear of the vehicle. the contact also noticed the air bag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. the rear driver | |||
| 04/07/2012 | 28600 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. while driving at approximately 55 mph the contact heard a loud clicking sound in the rear of the vehicle. the contact noticed the air bag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. the rear drivers side roll over bar suddenly deployed inadvertently. the vehicle was towed to the dealer for diagnostic. the technician was unable to diagnose the cause of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 28,600 . ds | |||
| 03/19/2003 | 1 | ||
| From day one this car had transmission problems which were denied by the dealer on 5 visits, after i sold the car i received a recall from vw, now that i am looking at blogs they have apparently recalled this recall to suit them. other complaints with this vehilce are window troubles, convertible roof troubles, electronic troubles, seatbelt troubles, airbag troubles. i can't believe anyone will allow this car to still be sold or on the road. it is a safety hazard on wheels. | |||
| 01/04/2011 | 70000 | ||
| Air bag light as of 1/1/11, these were recalled for 2004-2006 beetles and 2003-2005 beetle convertibles. no recalls yet for 2003 beetles, but it seems to be a growing problems that are yet to be fixed by vw!!! seems like they are just delaying the recall until they receive enough complaints/injuries. 2 recalls of a frontal sensor/control module in 4/2008 & a passenger occupant detection system (pod) dealer reprogram repair in 12/2004 but again nothing for 2003 models even though it started in late 2003. | |||
| 09/15/2011 | 96000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated the air bag light illuminated. the dealer inspected the vehicle and advised that the entire air bag system failed and needed to be replaced. the contact believed that the failure was caused by a manufacturing defect. the vin was not available. the failure and current mileage was 96,000. | |||
| 09/15/2011 | 96000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated the air bag light illuminated. the dealer inspected the vehicle and advised that the entire air bag system failed and needed to be replaced. the contact believed that the failure was caused by a manufacturing defect. the vin was not available. the failure and current mileage was 96,000. kmj | |||
| 09/15/2011 | 96000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated the air bag light illuminated on the instrument. the dealer stated the entire air bag system has failed and needs to be replaced. the contact feels this is a manufacturers defect. the vin was not accepted. the failure mileage and current mileafes were 96,000.rl | |||
| 09/06/2011 | 60 | ||
| Recall on airbag crash sensor back in 2008, which we had replace . however this problem constantley happen were the air bag creash sensor lights comes on and stays on. when you call the dearlship they wants to charge the consumer. there is always a jerking in the power transmission while driving . this is dangerous you would think the car is going to stop going up hill. i made a complaint back in 2009 complaint #102868 never received a response. | |||
| 05/27/2011 | 99610 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated that the driver side air bag deployed without any warning while driving. the wires under the seat began emitting smoke and the plastic coating was melted. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer and the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileage was 99,610. | |||
| 05/27/2011 | 99610 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated that while driving the driver side air bag deployed without any warning. he also mentioned that the wires underneath the seat were emitting smoke and the plastic coating melted off. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileage 99,610. pm | |||
| 05/13/2011 | |||
| My car was rear-ended by another car at a high rate of speed. none of my air bags deployed and my fiance, who was driving, sustained a sprained neck and a concussion as a result of hitting the steering wheel. | |||
| 09/18/2009 | 69896 | ||
| This is my second complaint to safercar.gov and i haven't received any contact from anyone on this matter. all i want is for my air bag system to be fixed for free by vw in stockton ca. my airbag light is on for the fourth time in four years that i have had the 03 vw beetle convertible and every time, vw has found that the sensor is at fault. now this time, vw wants to charge me 678.00 to fix it. there is no recall on this. it is 00003 control module defective. i am extremely angry that they will not fix this knowing that this is the fourth time that the air bag light came on. vw knows that my airbag light comes on and they suppossably fix the sensors free of charge each time, but this time, they will not. they need to make a recall on this thing. im sick and tired of having to have my car serviced over a light. please help me. | |||
| 04/15/2009 | 60280 | 1 | |
| 1. my airbag light in my car came on. 2. i took it to a repair shop that found the seatbelt sensor had gone bad thus causing the airbag light to come on and the airbags would not deploy in the case of an accident. 3. the seatbelt was replaced so that the sensor would again be working correctly and the airbags would be deployed in the case of an accident. as the seatbelt mechanism was working fine, but just a tiny sensor on the seatbelt arm went bad, it caused my airbags to be deactivated. there should be a lifetime warranty on such safety parts such that there is never a failure to deploy airbags or an issue with seatbelts. the auto repair employees said they have replaced hundreds of these seatbelts in vws for the very same reason i had. *tr | |||
| 11/20/2003 | 15000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact noticed that the air bag sensor light illuminated on the instrument panel. the light remained illuminated until the engine was turned off. the failure occurred without warning. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and they stated that the failure was due to a loose electrical connector for the driver's side air bag. the recall repair was performed incorrectly. on three separate occasions, the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for the same failure, but with no resolutions. the contact was concerned of the safety risk involved with the air bag deployment. the nhtsa campaign id number was unknown. the failure mileage was 15,000 and current mileage was 45,000. | |||
| 05/05/2008 | 83000 | 1 | |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. when the engine was started, the air bag warning light illuminated on the instrument panel. the light illuminated until the engine was turned off. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and they stated that the failure was related to the air bag sensor. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was excluded from the recall, although the failures were identical. the failure mileage was 83,000 and current mileage was 85,000. update 09/10/08 *cw updated 09/15/08. *jb | |||
| AIR BAGS - FRONTAL | |||
| 09/18/2009 | 69896 | ||
| This is my second complaint to safercar.gov and i haven't received any contact from anyone on this matter. all i want is for my air bag system to be fixed for free by vw in stockton ca. my airbag light is on for the fourth time in four years that i have had the 03 vw beetle convertible and every time, vw has found that the sensor is at fault. now this time, vw wants to charge me 678.00 to fix it. there is no recall on this. it is 00003 control module defective. i am extremely angry that they will not fix this knowing that this is the fourth time that the air bag light came on. vw knows that my airbag light comes on and they suppossably fix the sensors free of charge each time, but this time, they will not. they need to make a recall on this thing. im sick and tired of having to have my car serviced over a light. please help me. | |||
| 09/18/2009 | 69896 | ||
| 1) i drived my car and the air bag light came on in march 2007. the following three times the air bag light came on, was when i would start my car up. 2) march 2007-first time air bag light comes on:hammer lane vw charged me for the diagnosis. december 2007-air bag light on again:elk grove vw did not charge me jan 2008-air bag light on again:elk grove vw did not charge me june 2008-air bag light on again:elk grove vw did not charge me september 2009-air bag light on again:elk grove vw wants to charge me 230.00 for labor and 678.63 for parts to fix air bag light and kerry from vw states that this has nothing to do with the recall. the self diagnosis protocol says 00003 control module defective and 00532 supply voltage lower limit not reached sporadic. the software part number is 6q0909605e 3)bob from bob's german auto repair replaced air bag sensor pass side front the first time. second time: elk grove replaced and replaced seat belt driverside and reset faults. third time:elk grove vw replaced sensor in passenger side seat. fourth time: i declined service from elk grove vw and they charged me 115.00 for the diagnosis. i don't think that this is fair and i shouldn't have to go through all of this hassle and pay unfair fees when there is recalls on this beetles all of the time. im young and i am going to college. i don't have the time and the money to go through all of this. | |||
| AIR BAGS - FRONTAL - SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE | |||
| 10/06/2009 | 1 | ||
| My complaint concern our vw beetle airbag crash sensor back in january 2008 i received a email from safety engineer steve chan regarding a investigation which several similar complaints had been filed with the national highway traffic safety admin regarding the same matter. there was a recall on these sensors. we did have our replace on our 2003 vw beetle which we got reimburstment. however now, again the same (front) crash airbag sensor have went out (fail) again. our vehicle is been service at murriteia vw service advisor steve (951) 894-6555 ext 1358 due to consist failure of this manufacturer part. i fear that my life is in danger every time i drive our vw beetle vehicle. i feel this great big safety issue. *tr | |||
| 09/03/2007 | 39270 | 1 | 05/09/2007 |
| Air bag safety sensor for airbags to deploy went out. and was not cover $591.00. to replace sensor switch. *tr dup | |||
| 09/03/2007 | 39268 | 3 | 05/01/2007 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. while driving 55 mph, the air bag light illuminated. the dealer stated that the frontal driver side crash sensor caused the failure. the consumer replaced the crash sensor and there had been no further occurrences. the failure mileage was 39,268 and current mileage was 39,278. updated 01-15-08. *kb the dealer would not cover the cost. updated *jb srs.pco | |||
| 09/11/2004 | 22651 | 2 | 07/01/2002 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. the contact stated that the front driver's side seat belt buckle was s defective ,and the air bag light constantly illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer three times , and numerous diagnostics were performed. currently, the cause of failure has not been found. the failure has been occurring since september 11, 2004. the current mileage is 59,500 , and failure mileage was 22,651.*ak srs.pco | |||
| AIR BAGS - SIDE/WINDOW | |||
| 09/18/2009 | 69896 | ||
| This is my second complaint to safercar.gov and i haven't received any contact from anyone on this matter. all i want is for my air bag system to be fixed for free by vw in stockton ca. my airbag light is on for the fourth time in four years that i have had the 03 vw beetle convertible and every time, vw has found that the sensor is at fault. now this time, vw wants to charge me 678.00 to fix it. there is no recall on this. it is 00003 control module defective. i am extremely angry that they will not fix this knowing that this is the fourth time that the air bag light came on. vw knows that my airbag light comes on and they suppossably fix the sensors free of charge each time, but this time, they will not. they need to make a recall on this thing. im sick and tired of having to have my car serviced over a light. please help me. | |||