Recalls
| Campaign | Manufacturer | Manufacturing date | Type | # of units affected | Date Owner notified Mfg | Recall Initiated by | Manufacturers of recalled vehicles/products | Report Recieved Date | Record Creation Date | Regulation Part Number | FMVSS Number | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | ||||||||||||||||
| 09V333000 | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC | from 09/01/2008 to 08/19/2009 | V (Vehicle) | 16000 | 10/20/2009 | ODI | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC | 08/20/2009 | 08/20/2009 | |||||||
| Defect Summary | Volkswagen is recalling certain model year 2009 and 2010 passenger cars manufactured between september 2008 and august 2009. the wiring harness of a temperature sensor in the direct shift gearbox (dsg) may have connector wires that were insufficiently crimped. with insufficiently crimped connector wires, a temperature sensor has the potential to falsely detect a high gearbox oil temperature, causing the transmission to abruptly shift to neutral. if this happens, the selector lever position indicator within the instrument panel will flash. in addition, the depress brake pedal indicator light will be illuminated, alerting the driver to apply the brakes. | |||||||||||||||
| Consequence Summary | The abrupt shift to neutral could lead to a crash without warning. | |||||||||||||||
| Corrective Summary | Volkswagen will reprogram the transmission control module with updated software free of charge. the recall began on october 20, 2009. owners may contact volkswagen at 1-800-822-8987. | |||||||||||||||
| Notes | Vw recall no.37e3/s7 & audi recall no. 37e5/j7.owners may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov . | |||||||||||||||
Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||||
| TB-35-11-01 | 06/06/2011 | 10041250 | Ready | 09/21/2011 | |
| TB-35-11-01 | 06/06/2011 | 10041250 | Volkswagen: the gear box has a momentarily delay while accelerating. *rm | 09/21/2011 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||||
| TB-30-12-01 | 02/24/2012 | 10043603 | Volkswagen: the transmission control module has an implausible transmission shift sequence due to the clutch assembly having debris in it. 8pe | 04/13/2012 | |
| POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY | |||||
| CSC-37E6/S8 | 08/01/2010 | 10036970 | Volkswagen service campaign: see document search button for owner letter. in some vehicles it is possible that a bushing inside the mechatronic unit has the potential to wear out prematurely, causing the clutches inside the transmission | 04/25/2011 | |
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | ||||||
| PE09035 | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC | 07/17/2009 | 11/19/2009 | VEHICLE STALL/LOSS MOTIVE POWER | 09V333000 | |
| The subject vehicles are equipped with direct shift gearbox (dsg) transmissions, which feature a 6-speed automatic gearbox with two wet running clutches (dual clutch) in which the clutch mechanism and gear changes are electrohydraulically operated by a mechatronic control unit.the dsg mechatronic controller includes extensive self diagnostic functions and strategies to ensure safe operation and prevent system/component damage in the event of component failures or harsh operating conditions.the basic hierarchy of fault modes includes some that only result in the storage of a diagnostic trouble code (dtc) and cause no loss of function, some that store a dtc and reduce vehicle operation to a limp home mode, and some that store a dtc and cause an interruption of motive power (i.e., open clutch).the driver is alerted to the latter two modes by the dash gear position indicator (prnds) flashing. one of the conditions that results in interruption of motive power is excess gearbox temperature.the system initially responds to increased gearbox temperature by ramping down engine torque.if the temperature keeps rising the mechatronic unit responds by opening the clutch.in a defect information report submitted to nhtsa on august 20, 2009, volkswagen described a potential defect in the wiring harnesses of the dsg gearbox temperature sensors used in approximately 16,000 model year (my) 2009 and 2010 volkswagen (eos, jetta and gti) and audi (a3 and tt/tt roadster) vehicles equipped with dsg transmissions and built from september 2008 through august 2009 (nhtsa recall no. 09v-333, volkswagen recall no. 37e3/s7 and audi recall no 37e4/j7). volkswagen provided this description of the defect, the wiring harness of a temperature sensor in the dsg may have connector wires that were insufficiently crimped by the connector supplier during a limited production period.with insufficiently crimped connector wires, a temperature sensor has the potential to falsely detect a high gearbox oil temperature, causing the transmission to abruptly shift to neutral.if this happens, the selector lever position indicator within the instrument panel will flash.in addition, the depress brake pedal indicator light will be illuminated, alerting the driver to apply the brakes.in heavy traffic, the abrupt shift to neutral could lead to a crash without warning.volkswagen estimated that less than one percent of the recalled vehicles may contain the defect condition. odi identified 40 complaints that appear to be related to the temperature sensor defect condition described by volkswagen.volkswagen received 139 complaints related to the condition, with 7 involving vehicles reported to odi, resulting a 172 total complaints to odi and volkswagen.all of these complaints involve the my 2009 an 2010 vehicles subject to recall 09v-333. odi also identified complaints of harsh/jerky shifting in some volkswagen vehicles with dsg.volkswagen attributed this condition, which typically occurs at very low speeds, to excessive wear in the bushings of the two solenoid valves in the mechatronic unit that control clutch operation.volkswagen does not believe that the this condition is a safety defect because the changes in shift quality develop gradually over time, do not cause a loss of motive power and have not resulted in any fatalities, injuries or serious crashes (there were three reported property damage incidents resulting in minor body damage in very low speed, parking maneuvers).volkswagen addressed this problem in the field with a customer service program that includes the replacement of potentially affected mechatronic units as well as a 10 year/100,000 mile extended warranty.this investigation is closed with volkswagen's recall of the defect condition that may result in a loss of motive power while driving. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 12/01/2009 | 1400 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2009 volkswagen eos. while driving approximately 35 mph he attempted to accelerate further but the vehicle would not respond. he was only able to drive at very low speeds. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where he was informed the transmission failed and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. approximately 11 months later the failure recurred. the vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where he was informed the transmission failed again and needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 1,400 and the current mileage was 11,000. sm. | |||
| 03/03/2010 | 3800 | 1 | |
| Our 2009 eos lux was being driven at a slow speed into a head in parking space yesterday. gas pedal was being engaged to get into the space when car suddenly accelerated and rapidly lunged forward striking two parked cars in the parking row facing this space. property damage on this vehicle and the two vehicles struck was significant. this car had suddenly jerked forward when pulling away from a stop at an intersection the day before; after the sudden jump forward the car resumed a normal acceleration. insurer and dealer have assured us they will investigate. this vehicle has a serious and extremely dangerous defect and we will not drive it again unless we are certain that the defect is identified and corrected. *tr | |||
| 11/25/2009 | 3500 | 1 | |
| 2009 vw eos dgs transmission seemed to slip when accelerating into traffic. there was a bump like the clutch engaged, but then there was a momentary loss of power (torque) and then another bump like the clutch fully engaged. this vehicle has had the recent recall applied already, and we've experienced a previous problem with the prnds lights flashing (reported already) and the transmission disengaging while driving 40mph, and another incident with only the d light flashing, also remaining in neutral, from stopped while trying to leave a parking spot. both times the car had to be turned off & on to restore the transmission to operational condition. the vw dealership was unable to find any events in the car's computer for any transmission events. (presumably an error big enough to remain in neutral and flash prnds or d should at the minimum log an error!) complaints for previous 2 incidents are 10290234 and 10285719. the dealership has been unable to find anything wrong with the vehicle. *tr | |||
| 10/21/2009 | 2500 | 1 | |
| 2 incidents: sept 2009, dsg transmission flashed prnds and shifted into low gear. oct 21 2009, dsg transmission flashed d and shifted into neutral. in the 1st incident, i was driving about 45 mph, and had shifted to neutral. when shifting back to drive, the dashboard flashed the prnds lights at me and the transmission shifted to a very low gear (2nd?), making the car redline and slowing the car abruptly on a busy street. the car would not respond correctly until turned off and restarted. (dangerous while driving). in the 2nd incident, while parked i shifted from p to d. the car flashed d on the dashboard and remained in neutral. there was no immediate danger. again, i had to turn off the car to reset the problem. i don't know if drive can become disengaged while driving though, particularly since i had the previous incident. *tr | |||
| 09/29/2009 | 2000 | 1 | |
| When driving 2009 eos, after accelerating i shifted into neutral, then shifted back to d a while later. the car went to a low gear (like 2nd) inappropriate for my speed, and the prnds indicators on the dashboard started flashing. i was unable to restore normal operation without restarting the car. i shifted back to neutral and turned the car off, then on, to get it to behave. needless to say this was quite unexpected and dangerous in traffic. i would've needed to slow to 20mph or so in a 40mph area to get the engine rpms to a speed appropriate to the gear. i understand that you're already looking into incidents with this transmission, so i thought i should provide an account of my incident. *tr | |||
| 08/10/2009 | 200 | 1 | |
| This is related to nhtsa action number : pe09035 while driving, trying to accelerate from a stop light and the car wouldn't go. it acted as if it were in neutral. also noticed on the dash computer where it shows what gear you're in i.e. p,d,r - all of these lights just flashed. only way to ge the car moving again was to turn off the ignition (in the middle of the road) and restart the car. i was then able to proceed with driving. this incident was extremely scary and i was almost rear-ended. this happened twice the same day so i immediately took the car back to the dealer for service. it had only been driven a total of 200 miles up until i took the car in. the service department called back the next day and said it was a faulty transmission temperature sensor while is now being replaced. i have not received the car back yet. *tr | |||
| 07/19/2009 | 8300 | 1 | |
| On acceleration from a standstill, the vehicle stalls / stutters. transmission fails to immediately engage and / or there is a lag of as much as 2-3 seconds from pressing the accelerator under light to moderate acceleration until the vehicle begins to move. transmission clunks / grinds when transitioned from d to r or r to d. *tr | |||
| 07/06/2009 | 56 | 1 | |
| 2009 vw eos - transmission failure in 56 miles. mechatronics module failure claimed by service dept. *tr | |||
| 09/29/2008 | 1300 | 1 | |
| I purchased my 2009 vw eos on august 30, 2008. on september 29, 2008 after only approximately 1,300 miles, a valve that measures the temperature of the clutch malfunctioned. as a safety precaution the transition will not change gears if the clutch temperature is too high. this valve malfunctioned while i was on the freeway. the car operated as though i put it in neutral and revved the engine. once out of oncoming traffic it took me three tries to restart my car. i proceeded to exit the freeway and get to a safer destination. while doing so this malfunction occurred two more times. upon taking my car to the dealer to be repaired i was initially told that the engine switch malfunctioned. only upon demanding to speak with the head mechanic and being asked to fully describe the situation that the true problem was discovered. it was made clear to me that this is a common problem with this model. subsequently, the malfunctioning vale causes a pressure problem in the transition. i am anticipating this problem to occur again and have already consulted with a lawyer for lemon law. *tr | |||