2013 Volkswagen Jetta Airbags Problems

Airbags did not deploy..as per police report

NHTSA ID

11755733

Incident

Apr 17, 2026

I discovered that my 2013 Volkswagen Jetta has a completely nonfunctional airbag system. On 8/23/23- airbag warning light illuminated and has remained on. In 08/2025- Midas staff informed me the light may indicate an airbag defect and referred me to Volkswagen. On 09/24/2025- Volkswagen dealer inspection documented both front crash sensors were unplugged/damaged, leaving the airbag system inoperable. Safety concern: I unknowingly drove this car for over two years with no functional airbags. This created a severe risk of injury or death in the event of a motor vehicle accident. This car was sold by Carvana as having passed a 150-point inspection and under warranty coverage. However, Carvana later stated that they have a disclaimer that shifts the responsibility of the car being safe to drive onto the consumer, and that they never claimed the car had a functioning air bag system.

NHTSA ID

11691807

Incident

Aug 23, 2023

Passenger air bag light is on saying off

NHTSA ID

11549201

Incident

Jul 2, 2023

Passenger seat air bag light off light is on

NHTSA ID

11549199

Incident

Jul 30, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the passenger’s side air bags indicator warning alarm sounded as if there was a passenger seated in the seat. The passenger’s side air bag warning light was illuminated. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 78,000.

NHTSA ID

11537775

Incident

Jul 26, 2023

Mileage

78,000 mi

Component Failure: Airbag Light is On, No steering wheel electronic controls work including cruise control. Safety: I'm uncertain if the Airbag will deploy in the event of a crash. Dealer Confirmed: Dealer states the Steering Wheel Clock Spring requires replacement, but that it is not a part of the VW recall issued August 2015. Inspected: Hiley VW Dealership inspected the vehicle Warning Lamps: Airbag Light is currently on. Uncertain when it started since I'm the 2nd owner of the vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11504479

Incident

Aug 15, 2022

Vehicle would not shift, OBD2 code P037B "stuck in gear 6." Vehicle towed to a auto mechanic that said they spoke with VW dealer and confirmed it was a crack in the transmission and was undriveable. I have contacted VW who have said there are recalls for many transmissions of this Jetta but not for my VIN. I have also had issues with the clock spring (replaced) and an air bag sensor (malfunction light still on) and now the transmission. There are recalls for Hybrid Jettas of this year but apparently not for my VIN. It seems like a large coincidence and feels like it should be investigated, especially considering the other issues VW was investigated for at this time of production.

NHTSA ID

11496935

Incident

Dec 3, 2022

Transmission shifts hard and told to this is a common problem with the Jetta hybrids.

NHTSA ID

11471593

Incident

Jun 27, 2022

Airbag malfunction indicator lamp has illuminated, horn is not funtional. Returned to Volkswagen dealership for diagnosis, prognosis being faulty "clock spring." Was previously indicated as repaired under recall exhibiting same symptoms some years previously but, problem has resurfaced and is persisting.

NHTSA ID

11468336

Incident

Dec 1, 2021

The clock spring in this vehicle has failed in a vehicle that currently has less than 36k miles. There were no warnings or lights prior to failure. The controls on steering wheel and the vehicle’s horn no longer work as a result. When inspected by the local dealership, they also informed us that the airbag may not deploy in the event of an accident. The dealership also told us that the replacement part is backordered and that they could not provide a date that the part would be available. The vehicle feels unsafe to drive since we do not know if the airbag works or not. VW seems to be in no hurry to provide a fix.

NHTSA ID

11462983

Incident

Feb 2, 2022

My car's clock spring has failed causing the driver side / steering wheel airbag connection to fail in my car. I see that many other VW's including many VW Jettas in the same year of manufacture had a recall for this exact issue but searching by my VIN does not show a recall. I am informed that I am currently about the 1600th (yes, 1600) person waiting for this part on back-order from VW. If needed, I will be happy to provide the information of the auto repair facility that has diagnosed the problem. I think this is quite a lot of circumstantial evidence of a likely product defect that should warrant investigation particularly because failure of this part disables the air bag safety system. This is even more troublesome considering the unknown delivery date of the part due to the backorder.

NHTSA ID

11460189

Incident

Apr 2, 2022

The clock spring in the steering wheel has failed, causing the air bag and horn (along with the steering wheel-controlled electrical systems) to stop working. This has been confirmed by a local Volkswagen dealership service department. The part is under extended warranty due to a prior recall, but in reality this recall apparently isn’t worth much, as the part has been backordered for several months and won’t be obtainable for up to another 6 months, or more; no actual date has been committed to. The Volkswagen service department also stated they cannot/will not temporarily fix or ameliorate the current failure of basic safety features.

NHTSA ID

11457324

Incident

Feb 5, 2022

The contact owned a 2013 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated while making a left turn at 5 MPH, a motorcycle crashed into the passenger’s side of the vehicle at a high rate of speed. The driver’s side air bags did not deploy; however, the passenger side side-curtain air bags deployed and then deflated. The passenger sustained neck injuries and was taken by ambulance to seek medical attention. The motorcycle rider died on the scene. The emergency services arrived on scene to administer assistance to those injured on scene. The driver also sustained bruises after the radio and window glass struck her chest and was taken for further tests. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed from the scene to a junkyard and deemed totaled by the Insurance provider. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 24,600.

NHTSA ID

11456274

Incident

Feb 27, 2022

Mileage

24,600 mi

The ABS lights go on and the speedometer stopped working and all the lights have activated. the abs module has been reported that there is a defect in most of the jettas and so i believe that this should be a recall issue.

NHTSA ID

11445121

Incident

Oct 1, 2021

CLOCK SPRING BROKE WHEN TURNING WHEEL 1.5 REVOLUTIONS WHILE BACKING THE CAR INTO A PARKING SPOT.

NHTSA ID

11394945

Incident

Feb 3, 2021

Mileage

80,000 mi

MY CAR WAS ALREADY RECALLED FOR AIRBAG SPRING ISSUE BUT THE AIRBAG LIGHT WAS ON AGAIN AND STILL CONTINUE ON ALWAYS.

NHTSA ID

11384893

Incident

Jun 15, 2019

Mileage

90,000 mi

TAKATA RECALL VW JETA WAS IN AN ACCIDENT DUE TO FREEZING RAIN IN JANUARY 2017 (KNOXVILLE, TN). VW SLID INTO ANOTHER CAR CAUSING IN EXCESS OF $5,000 DAMAGE; HOWEVER, THE AIRBAGS FAILED TO ACTIVATE. COMPLETE FAILURE IN AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEM/COMPRESSOR ELECTRICAL SYSTEM LOCKS/UNLOCKS DOORS WHILE DRIVING. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM ROLLS DOWN WINDOWS FOR NO REASON. THIS BEGUN 70K MILES

NHTSA ID

11123870

Incident

Jan 11, 2017

Mileage

45,000 mi

TOOK CAR IN FOR RECALL AT VOLKSWAGEN DEALERSHIP. THEY "FORGOT" TO DO RECALL ON AIRBAG. NEXT TIME THEY PERFORMED RECALL BUT STEERING WHEEL IS CLICKING, HORN DOES NOT WORK, NONE OF THE STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS FUNCTION AND AIRBAG LIGHT REMAINS ON. TOOK CAR FOR AN EXPENSIVE ENGINE REPAIR AND I TOLD THEM THE RECALL WAS NOT COMPLETED AS THE RECALL SHOULD HAVE BEEN AND THEY TOLD ME THE OTHER VOLKSWAGEN MARKED IT AS COMPLETE AND IT WOULD COST ME $2000 BECAUSE AIRBAG HAS BEEN RIPPED OUT AND DISCONNECTED. SO I HAVE NO HORN, NO STEERING WHEEL FUNCTION KEYS, A STEERING WHEEL THAT CLICKS WHEN A HARD TURN IS MADE AND A RIPPED, DISCONNECTED NON-FUNCTIONING AIRBAG.

NHTSA ID

11115734

Incident

Jan 8, 2018

Mileage

110,000 mi

LESS THAN 30000 MILES REPLACED TRANSMISSION, AIRBAG LIGHT STAY ON ,NO HORN,NO STEERING WHEEL CONTROLS.SAME THING RECALLED FOR JETTA, BUT NOT JETTA HYBIRDS..

NHTSA ID

11103940

Incident

Apr 28, 2018

TRANSMISSION REPLACED,STEERING WHEEL CONTROL NOT WORKING,MODULE FAILED

NHTSA ID

11101616

Incident

Apr 2, 2018

Mileage

28,000 mi

PASSENGER ISNT DETECTED, AIRBAGS WONT DEPLOY ON THAT SIDE. CAR RANDOMLY WONT DETECT A PASSENGER IN THE SEAT, AND WILL DEACTIVE THE AIRBAGS.

NHTSA ID

11075208

Incident

Feb 19, 2018

Mileage

100,000 mi

2013 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE SIDE IMPACT AIRBAG SYSTEM MALFUNCTION. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT, WHERE IT WAS T-BONED CAUSING IT TO SPIN OUT OF CONTROL. THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. NONE OF THE AIRBAGS DEPLOYED. *JS

NHTSA ID

10839452

Incident

Jul 9, 2015

TAKATA RECALL - I AM JUST GIVING NOTICE THAT MY AIRBAGS MAY BE FAULTY AND MAY NEED A REPLACEMENT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH

NHTSA ID

11047137

Incident

Nov 18, 2017

Mileage

80,000 mi

IN 12/2014 I STARTED REALIZING ISSUES WITH AUTO-TRANSMISSION IN THE MORNING WHEN I START THE CAR. THE ISSUE CONTINUED TO HAPPEN EVERY SINGLE DAY. DEALER WAS NOT ABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM BECAUSE IT ONLY HAPPEN FIRST THING IN THE MORNING.

NHTSA ID

10969125

Incident

Dec 7, 2014

MY WIFE MUST SIT ON AN EXTRA SEAT CUSHION IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SEAT. BUT WHEN SHE DOES THE AIR BAGS DEACTIVATE. SO AIR BAGS WON'T DEPLOY AROUND HER SEAT. DEALER SAYS THERE IS NO WAY TO SWITCH THE AIR BAGS ON. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS! THERE SHOULD BE A WAY TO SWITCH THE FRONT PASSENGER AIR BAGS ON SO THEY WILL DEPLOY IF THERE IS IMPACT.

NHTSA ID

10888047

Incident

Jul 7, 2016

Mileage

34,000 mi