Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||||
| VWP-10-06 | 12/03/2010 | 10037805 | Volkswagen: warranty information for th e transmission valve body. *rm | 06/06/2011 | |
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||||
| 0401 | 01/23/2004 | 10006517 | Reverse gear, difficult to engage or disengage. *mr | 05/05/2004 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 09/18/2011 | |||
| The six speed transmission shifts at random i got this car for my 16 year old daughter and im scared to let her drive it. got a notice in the mail from vw about it they drove it and said it was ok but obviously its not. they need to address this situation before some one gets injured. | |||
| 12/22/2010 | 53000 | ||
| While driving one evening the car lost the ability to shift into higher gears on highway, thus limiting the speed to less than 35 miles per hour in a posted zone of 55 mph. third -sixth gears failed. | |||
| 12/01/2010 | 82000 | ||
| Drove 600 miles to purchase this vehicle-my dream car. had it for 2 days, put the top down twice and the cable to the convertible top snapped. couldn't afford to have it fixed right away (missed the whole first season of using the convertible). finally got enough $$ together to have it repaired and found out a piece of something must have fallen down into the channel of the rear window and broke a part inside so added that to the expense, around $800. replaced the brakes next (o.k. with that, normal repair of any vehicle). but, not too long after, noticed transmission had a tiny slip. ignored that since i didn't want to think something else was going wrong already. progressed to where i am now, slamming down into the lower gears when slowing to a stop. received a letter from vw stating if any repairs had been incurred during the warranty/extended warranty, it would be covered as 7 years or 100,000 miles, whichever came first. well, as it happens, my car has just under 83,000 miles on it and the warranty had expired in april of 2010. i took it to my local dealership and they quoted me $2490 for repair. the service manager said he had a rep he could call to see if there was anything they could do since it was such a short time after my warranty expired. after it was all said and done, they would deduct $750 from the total repair if i would show good faith and purchase new tires ($500), new battery ($195 or $165) and an exhaust clamp ($58) from their dealership. i'm no math wizard, but that put me right back to almost the original repair cost. i am at my wit's end with this car. i don't feel safe driving it but have no choice as it is my only mode of transportation. i have been reading several other comparable complaints, so i know i am not alone. i feel that a 100,00 mile warranty should be just that, not 7 years/or....... | |||
| 01/04/2011 | 88210 | ||
| The electronic automatic transmission became stuck in third gear while driving in traffic. i had to turn the car off while in heavy traffic for the transmission to reset. this is a perilous maneuver, but i didn't have many options. the transmission had been experiencing some problems shifting both up and down. the upshifts are problematic in that the car can suddenly lurch forward when the automatic transmission re-engages. for example, when accelerating from a stop, the car will not immediately shift from 1st to 2nd. the rpms will go to @5000, then the shift will cause the car to squeal tires and lurch forward. | |||
| 02/01/2006 | 1 | 03/22/2003 | |
| 2003 volkswagen jerk when slowing down and accelerating. *ts the consumer was told the transmission would be covered for 60,000 miles. *jb | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 01/15/2011 | 67100 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen new beetle. the contact stated the vehicle would jerk violently when she attempted to shift between gears. she also noticed debris that entered the vehicle through the ventilation system which was a greasy substance that caused her eyes to burn and could have obstructed her view. the dealer nor manufacturer were notified. the vehicle was not repaired. the contact was awaiting an appointment with a private mechanic. the current mileage was 67,700. the approximate failure mileage was 67,100. | |||
| 01/15/2011 | 67100 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen new beetle. the contact stated the vehicle would jerk violently when she attempted to shift between gears. she also noticed debris that entered the vehicle through the ventilation system which was a greasy substance that caused her eyes to burn and could have obstructed her view. the dealer nor manufacturer were notified. the vehicle was not repaired. the contact was awaiting an appointment with a private mechanic. the current mileage was 67,700. the approximate failure mileage was 67,100. rvk | |||
| 01/15/2011 | 67100 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen new beetle. the contact stated the vehicle would violently jerk, when she attempted to shift between gears. also, she noticed a debry that entered the vehicle through the ventilation system. the debry was a greasy substance that caused her eyes to burn when contacted and could obstruct her view of the road. the dealer or manufacturer had not been notified nor was the vehicle repaired. the contact was awaiting a service appointment with a private mechanic. the current mileage was 67,700. the approximate failure mileage was 67,100. bw | |||
| 01/03/2011 | 104350 | ||
| 2003 tdi beetle (auto) jerks abruptly when upshifting. the car almost stalls in fast-moving traffic, creating a life-threatening condition. dealer service dept. states a temperature sensor for transmission fluid is not functioning, and needs replacement. this is not a part that should fail as it threatens lives, and should be replaced by vw. | |||
| 11/12/2009 | 78400 | 1 | |
| I started experiencing transmission shift problems on my '03 vw beetle turbo, just around one year after purchase from a vw dealer. the vehicle was pre-certified at the time, since i couldn't afford the warranty, but the dealer had, i presume, declared it free of defects and problems. i took the vehicle back to the dealer to check the problem, upon which i was advised to replace the transmission at a cost of $4200. no further details were given as to the reason or possible cause for the problem, in spite of my requests for a description. the service advisor just stated it needs to be replaced. i have since visited online automotive forums and found out this seems to be a problem with other owners as well. i am concerned now that even if i replace it, the replacement may have the same problem. in the mean time the transmission unpredictably starts slipping, or making a squeaking noise when slipping and at other times won't even shift for several seconds. *tw | |||
| 12/05/2007 | 65056 | 1 | 08/16/2006 |
| I was involved in a crash while driving my 2003 vw beetle convertible. i was unable to brake and avoid a semi-truck that was in directly in front of me. i was traveling at a speed between 30-40 mph but did lose conscience so am not sure if remember exactly how fast i was going. my airbag did not deploy and my seat belt did not lock causing my face to slam directly into the steering wheel. the passenger side airbag which contained no passengers nor items did deploy. i suffered facial fractures and a broken nose. my fractures have healed but my nose needs to be reconstructed. my car was serviced at a collision center and then sent to the autobarn in countryside, il where the car was bought used in august of 2006. the car was returned to me on dec 27 but no explanation was given for the airbag not deploying. the transmission was also not working properly so i returned the car for additional service a few days later. the car was finally returned to me 2 weeks later with a new transmission but still no explanation for the airbag. upon leaving the autobarn on january 17 with my car, the air bag light turned on and stayed on while i drove about 10 miles. i returned the car the next day and the service department stated the light did not go on for them and offered again no explanation. *tr | |||
| 01/01/2004 | 10000 | 02/14/2003 | |
| Transmission shifts hard around 20 mph. jerks so hard sometimes it seems like the car will stall out. dealership says this is normal. i can't imagine that it is good on the transmission!? this has been happening for the past three years. | |||
| 01/01/1901 | 1 | ||
| 2003 volkswagen new beetle failed. *ts the vehicle jerked like it was going to cut off. the dealer has installed a new transmission but the problemm has recurred. *nm | |||
| 09/01/2004 | 12500 | 11/25/2003 | |
| The car slams into gear when starting from a cold start. it was in the shop over a month, and it was given back to me with we can find nothing mechanically wrong with it, it may buck a bit, but there are no safety hazards. live with it basically. vw themselves have been of no help whatsoever in resolving this issue. *nm | |||
| 10/14/2003 | 3 | 09/16/2003 | |
| Powertrain problems-- vehicle has tiptronic. intermittent failure shifting from automatic to tiptronic manual functionality. in addition, passenger frontal airbag failed within the first week of purchase of the vehicle. multiple service related complaints.*ak | |||
| 07/27/2003 | 0 | 4 | 07/01/2003 |
| Hard shifting between second and third gears of automatic transmission of 2003 volkswagen new beetle | |||
| 08/01/2003 | 260 | 4 | 07/23/2003 |
| Car will not shift from park to reverse. this has happened 4 times, and i have only had the car for a week!*ak | |||
| 02/20/2003 | 489 | 1 | 02/10/2003 |
| Transmission - intermittently will not shift from reverse to drive. occurred beginning the third week after purchase of this brand new car. took to dealership - they adjusted transmission but said they cannot replicate the problem so i will have to wait until it gets worse or leave it until they experience the problem. now the transmission (as of 1 week ago) occasionally slams into first and second gear. i am scheduling another service with the dealer. i advised them the failure to shift from reverse to drive is a safety hazard (i have been almost rear ended 3 times in a parking garage). they are not the least bit concerned. i asked for a new replacemenet car since it had 500 miles on it at that point - they would not even discuss this. i am not optimistic as they will likley give me the we cannot replicate the problem - you will have to wait until it gets worse routine. this is a safety hazard. i want a new car or a new transmission.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - LEVER AND LINKAGE - FLOOR SHIFT | |||
| 09/28/2004 | 16000 | 1 | 05/05/2004 |
| While driving at night the epc light came on. i wanted to pull over since the car is fairly new and had never seen that light on while driving. i pulled the car off the road to check the manual and see what the light meant. the car was in park. i could not get the car to shift out of park. after calling road side assistance...i had the car towed to the dealership. thing is, road side assistance had heard about this before. they had me do a procedure to get the car to shift out of park and be able to drive home. once home the car got stuck into neutral. i then had it towed. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY | |||
| 10/10/2003 | 2000 | 1 | 08/15/2003 |
| The clutch on my 2003 volkswagen new beetle failed at 2000 miles, approximately two months after purchase. *ak | |||