Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SERVICE BRAKES, AIR | |||
| 04/03/2008 | 23 | ||
| Changed rear brake pads because of squeaking noise. after that brake started to lock and smoke coming out of rear passenger side. whent back to my mechanic and was told could be problem with caliper. changed caliper and brake locked again with more smoke and smell of burn coming from rear passenger side. had car towed to mechanic and they adjusted brakes. took car to vw dealer and was told nothing was wrong with brakes. nothing happened for about 5 days and againd burned smell came back, took car back to my mechanic day after since they were the ones that changed pads and caliper but brakes were not locked anymore. | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC | |||
| 12/27/2010 | 31010 | ||
| Front passenger abs wire came out of bracket and rubbed on the axle. abs light and traction control light came on...abs is inoperable. dealership said it was caused by snow and ice. we live in illinois where there is snow and ice 6 months out of the year. why is this kind of engineering allowed in snowy climates if it is unable to probably function. this is a safety hazard as the brake line is also fastened to this bracket. when checking online this seems to be a very reoccurring issue. we will be needing to get this fixed....car is under warranty but they say this does not fall under the warranty. the repair is $506.00 for an entire wire harness. we have owned autos and vans since the inception of abs. we have never had a vehicle that has had this problem. | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 18000 | ||
| I have a 2008 jetta, with an automatic transmission and i have been the sole owner. the car has 18,000 miles and needs new back brakes. vw says it is no longer under warranty and will not pay for brakes. they told me that there is 'equal wear' on both back brakes (the front are fine); however, when i looked at the brakes with the vw mechanic, there was not equal wear. i am contesting the issue and believe that it is a mechanical problem and not a case of natural wear. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 36000 | ||
| 2008 volkswagen jetta s my car has 36000 miles on it and i have changed the rear brake pads and rotors twice on this vehicle. it is my understanding that this has been a problem with many jettas around that year. i have luckily avoided many wrecks that i would not have potentially been in if the rear brakes responded as they should. i feel that this is definately a safety issue that needs to be addressed. | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | |||
| 01/09/2012 | 38000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2008 volkswagen jetta. the contact stated the driver rear brake was defected. while the contact inspected the vehicle brake pads he noticed that the driver rear brake pad was worn prematurely. the vehicle was not taken to the dealer. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileage was 38,000. li | |||
| 06/11/2011 | 48000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2008 volkswagen jetta. the contact stated that the rear brake pad locked up while driving, due to the brake pad getting stuck. when the contact put the vehicle in park, he noticed the brake pad feel off unto the floor. the dealer diagnosed that the vehicle would need a new brake caliber and new brakes; the failure was repaired. the manufacturer was notified, but did not assist the contact. the failure mileage was 48,000 and the current mileage was 49,000. nw | |||
| 11/22/2010 | 30000 | ||
| Rear brake pads on my 2008 volkswagon jetta are worn down to nothing and my front brake pads are just about perfect. have noticed many online forums have mentioned this problem as well. | |||
| 11/10/2010 | 83950 | ||
| I have a 2008 vw jetta and i have had to have the brake pads, rotors and calipers replaced now for a 3rd time. the first 2 times happened within the first 12 months of owning the vehicle. | |||
| 03/26/2010 | 31069 | ||
| I have experienced a challenge with my rear brakes on my 2008 volkswagon jetta so i began searching for information from others on the internet. refer to www.edmunds.com for other concerns regarding similar concerns. i am not the only individual experiencing these challenges. now let me describe my situation. i noticed some squeaking here and there around 26,000 miles. i asked the dealership about the noise at that time. they didn't share that anything was wrong so i drove off the lot. from that point forward, i heard the same squeaking noise only when it rained and they mentioned that happens when frost gets in between the rotors and pads so i did not think much of it. when i drove into the dealership at 31,000 miles they shared my rear brakes were between 2-3; therefore the rear rotors would need to be replaced. i shared my concerns as a volkswagon owner, (have owned 4 in the last 5 years), that it seemed odd that the rotors had to be replaced at such a young age of 31,000 miles. they assured me that they did nothing wrong and they assured me that there was not a recall about this issue. overall i am disappointed with my dealership in their response considering i have been a long standing customer who does all of my service with them. and i am still left wondering if there is an issue with the making of the car; therefore causing pre-mature problems with the rotors. what would be a next step to share this information? i wonder how many other people have been affected. | |||
| 03/16/2009 | 17000 | ||
| Pre-mature rear-brake wear. the rear brake pads completely wore out at about 17,000 miles causing metal to metal contact with the rear rotors. most of the miles are highway. many forums report similar problems for other years of the vehicle and it seems that the cause could be calipers that don't disengage completely when the parking brake is used. since i have a manual transmission it's hard not to use the parking brake. my rear wheels are always covered in brake dust and it seems like the pads will wear out soon again (about 22,000 miles later). i tried not to use the parking brake after the first repair and have a commute consisting of about 85 percent highway miles so this kind of brake wear is inexcusable. the front brake pads did not need any attention yet and look good. | |||
| 02/08/2010 | 22900 | 1 | |
| I have a 2008 volkswagen jetta. i purchased it new in august 2008. the rear brakes wore into the rotors at 12,000 miles. the dealership repair shop had just informed me that the brakes were fine at 10,000 miles. the rotors and brakes had to be replaced at my cost as it is not a warranty item but a wear item. at my 20,000 mile checkup, i was again told that my brakes were fine and had 50% remaining. i took the car to meineke to have the brakes double checked. i was shown that the rear calipers are defective. they do not allow the emergency brake to disengage. as such, my emergency brake is constantly on, causing my brakes to lock on to the rotor. the mechanic had to use a crow bar to pry loose the emergency brake. i was told that i cannot use the emergency brake until it is fixed. i have a 5 speed and this is concerning that i cannot use the emergency brake. the dealership explained that the warranty will only allow them to replace one caliper at a time. if the other one is broken, then i have to wait until i drive it a while after one is replaced. i have seen a lot of data online about the exact same problem in several model years of the volkswagen jetta. interestingly, my dealership was out of the calipers and had to reorder more. i am very frustrated that my safety has been in jeopardy as my brakes could have once again failed. i am upset that the dealership neglected to correct the problem. i had to take it to a different mechanic to finally have the problem correctly diagnosed. incidentally, part of my engine went out within the first 6 months of owning the car. i have also had to have the front end repainted as it began chipping immediately. now the door edges and the top edge of the hood are chipping. *tr | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 12000 | 1 | |
| Horrible brake wear on rear brakes on 2008 vw jetta. *tr | |||
| 08/17/2009 | 26000 | 1 | |
| We own a 2008 vw jetta. 2.5 l the jetta has 25,000 miles and less than year of ownership (purchased at 8000 as program car) rear brakes are completely gone & ruined one rotor -no warning prior? (per dealer) front brakes are fine told rear pads and rotors must be replaced. *tr | |||
| 05/11/2009 | 900 | 1 | |
| 2008 jetta se has had recurring squealing back brakes since day 1. murrieta vw in ca says it is normal. they checked and sprayed. good to go, but now at 14k miles, noise has returned. only happens at slow speed (backing up/parking). is there a defect on the calipers/piston assembly? vw dealer says it is normal. in 25 years of driving never had a car do this. it is very annoying and sounds dangerous. cars should not do this, esp at 14k miles. brake failure could be on the way, causing serious damage, or death. *tr | |||
| 01/07/2009 | 20600 | 1 | |
| Rear brakes are wearing prematurely on 2008 vw jetta. only lasted 20, 000 miles. *tr | |||
| 11/02/2008 | 4800 | 1 | |
| 2008 vw jetta wolfsburg (less than 5000 miles at first occurrence) brake issue 1st occurrence - coming up to a stop, and brake pedal lost pressure but re-engaged after traveling 2-3 inches beyond normal braking pressure. very intermittent issue. after both of my teenage sons reported the same issue, i took the car into the vw dealership for repair. thelen (bay city, mi) bled the brakes and returned the car. within a few days, i was experiencing the same issue with more frequency, but could not reproduce consistently. took to dealership a second time - this time told that vw said this was a normal brake function. service technician drove vehicle home and back in the next morning. he experienced the problem twice and (as described to his service manager) his heart went into his throat. still - vw maintained that this was normal. received an email from dealership owner stating same. after continued pressure, vw technical rep came to dealership and finally determined that the brake power booster needed to be replaced (over a two week span). received car back, and within three days, the problem returned - as i nearly ran through an intersection when the brakes went to the floor before engaging (with abs). took back to dealer (3rd time) - dealer not able to replicate - stated that they cannot fix the problem if they can't identify/replicate - car still at dealership (5 days later). met with dealership owner to express concern for the safety of the vehicle and my family. i refused to take vehicle until they came up with a solution for the problem. scheduled meeting with vw rep at the dealership on 12/16 to discuss issue. *tr | |||
| 10/21/2008 | 12000 | 1 | |
| Excessive rear brake wear. brake needed replacing at 12k. car is a 5-speed manual and brakes are used very little. *tr | |||
| 03/05/2008 | 7300 | 4 | |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2008 volkswagen jetta. while driving 15 mph, the brakes jerked when the pedal was depressed. the driver's foot was knocked off the brake pedal. the driver attempted a second time to apply the brakes, but the vehicle would not stop and crashed into the preceding vehicle. the vehicle has not yet been inspected by the dealer. the purchase date was unknown. the current and failure mileages were 7,300. | |||