2000 Volkswagen New Beetle Problems

TWO WIRES ON IGNITION SWITCH MODULE SHORTED. CAUSED FAILURE OF HEADLIGHTS, WIPERS, BRAKE LIGHTS, AIR CONDITIONING, INTERIOR LIGHTING, ETC. IGNITION MODULE WAS REPLACED. PROBLEM REMEDIED.*AK THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM. VOLKSWAGEN, AND VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA REFUSE TO RECOGNIZE THIS DEFECT, OR INITIATE A RECALL. HERE IS A LINK TO AN ONLINE FORUM WITH OTHER CONSUMERS THAT HAVE HAD THE EXACT SAME SAFETY ISSUE AS I HAVE. HTTP://FORUMS.NEWBEETLE.ORG/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=0667E7E7A9388BFAAA8A71DCDD6574F2&POSTID=499275#POST499275 THIS IS A FIRE HAZARD, AND COULD POTENTIALLY HURT SOMEONE. UPDATED 07/24/2012. *TR

THE IGNITION SWITCH ON THE CAR FAILED SOMETIME BETWEEN 8:00PM MONDAY 8/02 AND 5:30AM ON TUESDAY 8/03. I WENT OUT TO MY CAR AND STARTED IT, ONLY TO NOTICE, I HAD NO FAN, NO A/C, NO DEFROSTER, NO REAR DEFROSTER, NO HEADLIGHTS, NO FOGLIGHTS, NO POWER TO SOME OF MY GAUGES. I RESEARCHED THE PROBLEM AND FOUND IT TO BE THE IGNITION SWITCH, WHICH I CALLED MY DEALER FOR AND HAD TO SPEND $90 TO REPLACE. UPON REMOVING THE OLD UNIT, I NOTICED A WIRE THAT CONNECTS TO THE 30 FUSE ON THE UNIT WAS MELTED AND CORRODED, THE PLASTIC HOUSING THAT CONNECTS THE WIRES TO THE SWITCH IT SELF HAD MELTED IN A SMALL PORTION AND THE OLD UNIT HAD VISIBLE BURN MARKS ON IT. THE FAILURE HAS BEEN FIXED, BUT THE POTENTIAL SAFETY HAZARD STILL EXISTS IN MY OPINION, JUST BASED ON THE NUMEROUS PEOPLE I'VE READ ABOUT WITH THE SAME PROBLEM.*AK

SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT HAS COME ON REPEATEDLY SINCE PURCHASING THE CAR FROM BURNSVILLE VW, BURNSVILLE, MN. SERVICE DEPT. STATED "IT'S NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT" AND RESET THE COMPUTER. AFTER PERSISTENT REOCCURANCE, REQUESTED THEY ACTUALLY FIX THE PROBLEM, THAT IS WHEN THEY INFORMED US THE RIVETS TO THE SECONDARY AIR PUMP HAD FAILED AND IT WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. CALLS TO VW NORTH AMERICA RESULTED IN THE SAME, "NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY", "CIRCUMSTANCES DO NOT MATTER", ETC. ESTIMATED $650 TO REPLACE ITEM. WHILE WE ARE BEING TOLD IT IS A "MINOR" FAILURE AND WILL NOT AFFECT THE CAR PERFORMANCE, IT SEEMS THAT IT TRIGGERS AN "SERVICE ENGINE SOON" LIGHT FOR A REASON. ALSO, WE WERE TOLD TO "IGNORE" THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT. HOWEVER IF WE IGNORE IT THEN WHEN A "SIGNIFICANT" PROBLEM OCCURS, HOW WOULD WE KNOW?! VW NORTH AMERICA CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER ADMITTED THAT THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING PROBLEM BUT UNLESS IT IS REPORTED WITHIN THE FIRST 2 YEARS IT IS NO LONGER COVERED.*AK

I OWN A 2000 NEW BEETLE 1.8T GLX WITH APPROXIMATELY 30461 ORIGINAL MILES. I HAVE HAD A TOTAL OF 7 REPAIRS OF THE OXYGEN SENSORS AND ONE REPAIR TO DATE OF MASS AIR FLOW METER. ALL OF WHICH HAVE BEEN COVERED BY VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICAS EXPENSE. I DO HOWEVER WANT TO NOTE THAT ALL THE MECHANICAL ISSUES REVOLVE AROUND THE MIL MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT ON THE DASH. EACH OF THE FAILURES HAPPENS WITHIN ONE YEAR FROM REPLACEMNT OF PARTS AND WITH LESS THAN 6K MILES BETWEEN REPAIRS. WITH MY PERSISTANT CALLS TO VWOA AND MY LOCAL DEALER THEY HAVE PICKED UP ALL EXPENSES. THE WARRANTY FOR THIS VEHICLE WAS 2 YEARS OR 24K MILES. I NOW HAVE 30K PLUS MILES AND AM CONCERNED ABOUT THIS PERSISTANT PROBLEM OF O2 SENSORS AND THE LIKE. IF YOU REQUIRE THE VIN NUMBER FOR RECORDS OR OTHER PERTINENT INFORMATION PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME DIRECTLY BY MAIL, EMAIL, OR TELEPHONE PERHAPS THIS IS PROBLEM HAS BEEN NOTED BY OTHER VEHICLE OWNERS ABOUT THIS AND ORTHER MODELS. *AK

MY 2000 VW BEETLE HAS RECENTLY HAD IT'S AIRBAG SAFETY LIGHT COME ON. I TOOK IT TO BILL BLACK VW DEALERSHIP IN GREENSBORO NC. THEY SAY IT'S A COMON PROBLEM THAT IS NOT COVERED UNDER ANY FACTORY DEFECT OR WARRANTY. ACCORDING TO THE SERVICE MANAGER THE AIRBAG MAY NOT DEPLOY IF I WAS TO BE INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT. THE SERVICE MANAGER ALSO SAID IT'S CONNECTED TO THE SEATBELT. I THOUGHT SEATBELTS AND AIRBAGS WERE GOVERNMENT MANDATES ON ALL VEHICALES. SHOULD THIS NOT BE COVERED UNDER A VW RECALL? THEY WANT $400.00 TO CHANGE OUT THE WIRING HARNESS FOR THE SEATBELT/AIRBAG. THAT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE. NOT FOR AN AIRBAG OR SEATBELT SAFETLY EQUIPMENT. THE VEHICLE HAS NEVER BEEN INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT, OR HAD THE AIRBAG DEPLOYED. THE DEALERSHIP COULD NOT EXPLAIN TO ME A MECHANICAL REASON WHY THIS HARNESS COULD "WEAR OUT" (WHICH IS THE EXACT WORDS THEY USED). AS STATED THEY SAY THE DEFECT IS ALSO CONNECTED TO THE SEATBELT, AND THAT "EXCESSIVE WEAR" OR "STRAIN" OF THE SEATBELT MAY BE THE CAUSE. HELLO? THE LAW IN MY STATE REQUIRES THAT I WEAR A SEATBELT. I WEIGH 105 LBS, AND IF THAT CAN CAUSE "EXCESSIVE WEAR" OR "STRAIN" THEN THE MAJORITY OF ALL DRIVERS WILL NOT BE SAFE DRIVING A VW. I AM ACTUALLY PLAYING RUSSION ROULET EVERY TIME I STEP INTO MY CAR. CAN SOMEONE DIRECT ME ON HOW TO GET HELP ON THIS ISSUE. SINCERELY, TRACEY MCCALL

THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT CAME ON AND STAYED ON. THE DEALERSHIP INDICATED THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WAS BAD AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED.*JB

BRAKE SWITCH MALFUNCTION EDON THE 2000 ,VOLKSWAGEN, NEW BEETLE CAUSED THE TRANSMISSION TO STICK IN PARK. *AK

I HAVE HAD TWO BRAKE RELAY SWITCH PROBLEMS WITH THIS CAR IN THREE MONTHS. I THINK ITS A COMMON DEFECT. DT

CLUTCH SUDDENLY AND COMPLETELY FAILED AT 27,000 MILES. DRIVEN ONLY BY PREVIOUS OWNER OF TWO OTHER VWS. HAVE LEARNED NO REPLACEMENT CLUTCH IS AVAILABLE. WAS ATTEMPTING TO SELL IT SINCE ANOTHER CAR HAS ALREADY BEEN PURCHASED. THIS HAS PRESENTED A FINANCIAL HARDSHIP. I AM LIVID LIVID LIVID. NO MORE VWS FOR ME EVER. *JB

TRANSMISSION LOCKS ITS SELF INTO PARK. YOU CANNOT RELEASE THE CAR FROM PARK. DEALER CANNOT REPLICATE PROBLEM. WILL NOT FIX TE BRAKE SWITCH WHICH HAS CAUSED TEH SAME PROBLEM IN OTHER CARS. *AK

CAR STALLED OUT SEVERAL TIMES RIGHT AFTER STARTING IT. IT WOULD ALWAYS START RIGHT BACK UP NORMALLY, ONCE THE VEHICLE DIED ON THE INTERSTATE AT APPROX. 70MPH ALSO CAME RIGHT BACK ON. TOOK IT TO AN INDEPENDANT REPAIR SHOP (GOT NO HELP FROM VW DEALER AT ALL) THEY TOLD ME IT WAS AN IDLE MOTOR WHICH IS CONNECTED TO THE THROTTLE BODY ($700 REPAIR). WE'LL SEE IF IT WORKS OR NOT.*AK

CAR HAS A HISTORY OF STALLING WHEN IT IS DECELERATING, SINCE ORIGINAL PURCHASE DATE IN JUNE 2000. PROBLEM STILL HAS NOT BEEN RESOLVED BY DEALER. HERE IS THE HISTORY OF THE PROBLEM. JULY 2000: CAR SPATTERS AND STALLS. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER IN TAMPA WHERE I HAD PURCHASED THE CAR FROM AND THEY FIXED IT UNDER WARRANTY SAYING IT WAS A FUEL INJECTION PROBLEM. SEPTEMBER 2001 BEGINS STALLING AGAIN PERIODICALLY. TOOK IT TO DEALER IN NASHVILLE, DECEMBER 2002. THEY REPLACED THE AIR INTAKE SENSOR FOR THE FUEL INJECTION. OCTOBER 2003 CAR STILL STALLING PERIODICALLY BUT WITH MORE FREQUENCY. TOOK IT TO DEALER AND THEY SAID THE AIR INTAKE CENSOR FOR THE FUEL INJECTION WAS FAULTY AND THEY REPLACED PART FOR FREE AS IT WAS UNDER ONE-YEAR WARRANTY. OCTOBER 2003: A FEW DAYS LATER THE CAR BEGINS TO STALL. MONDAY, JANUARY 12, 2004: TAKE CAR BACK TO DEALER WHO SAID FUEL INJECTION GASKETS WERE LEAKING. WORK IS COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. PICKED UP CAR ON THURSDAY, JANUARY 15. CAR STALLED AGAIN SATURDAY, JANUARY 17. CAR STALLS AGAIN SUNDAY, JANUARY 18. CAR HAS STALLED AROUND 50 TIMES OVER ITS HISTORY. IT HAS STALLED IN VERY DANGEROUS CIRCUMSTANCES SUCH AS WHILE I DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE. *CB

ON 12/27/01 WHILE DRIVING MY 2000 VW BEETLE TO WORK ALL THE DASHBOARD LIGHTS STARTED TO FLASH AND MAKE A CLICKING SOUND. I THEN SMELLED WIRES BURNING. I GOT OUT OF MY CAR , CALLED MY HUSBAND AS I WAS NOT EXPECTING THE CAR TO CATCH ON FIRE. WITHIN MINUTES I NOTICED SMOKE AND THEN FLAMES COMING FROM BENEATH THE DRIVERS SIDE DASH. I THEN CALLED 911 BUT THE CAR WAS FULLY ENGULFED IN FLAMES BY THE TIME THE F.D. GOT THERE. THE FIRE STATION IS APROX. 1 MILE FROM THE INCIDENT. VW HAS BEEN DEAF TO MY COMPLAINT.*AK

ENGINE WOULD NOT START, AFTER SEVERAL ATTEMPTS IT STARTED BUT CHECK ENGINE & AIR BAG LIGHT WAS ON. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT OFF AFTER 23 MILES, BUT AIR BAG LIGHT STAYED ON UNTIL INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WAS REPLACED BY DEALER. *AK

I BOUGHT A VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE ON THE 12TH OF JUNE BEFORE WE WENT ON VACATION. WE TRAVELED 860 MILES ONE WAY. THE CRUISE LIGHT WOULD NEVER COME ON, NOT EVEN WHEN YOU STARTED THE VEHICLE. ANYWAY WE COULD GO ANYWHERE FROM 10 MILES TO 100 MILES AND THE CRUISE WOULD AUTOMATICALLY KICK OFF, JERKING THE CAR. WE CALLED OUR DEALER IMMEDIATELY BUT HE COULD NOT HELP. WHEN WE GOT BACK FROM VACATION WE TOOK IT UP THERE. THEY SAID THAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO DO THAT. ALSO IN THE MANUAL IT SAYS THAT THERE IS SUPPOSED TO BE A FUSE FOR CRUISE: THERE IS NOT ONE. THEY TEST DROVE ANOTHER ONE THAT WAS ON THEIR LOT AND THAT CRUISE LIGHT DIDN'T WORK EITHER. I'M JUST WONDERING IS THERE A RECALL ON THIS OR HOW CAN SOMEONE FIX IT. *NLM

WHILE COMING TO AN INTERSECTION AND DOWNSHIFTING, INSTEAD OF THE CAR SLOWING DOWN, THE CRUISE CONTROL TURNED ITSELF ON AND PROCEEDED TO ACCELERATE. BY PRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE CRUISE CONTROL TURNED OFF. THE CRUISE CONTROL SWITCH HAS ALREADY BEEN REPLACED ONE TIME. MY CAR HAS NOW BEEN IN THE SHOP 8 TIMES FOR NUMEROUS ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS AND VW OF AMERICA DOESN'T SEEM TOO INTERESTED ON SOLVING THE PROBLEMS.

WHILE DRIVING WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR FAILED, THE CONSUMER COULD HEAR THE MOTOR RUNNING BUT THE WIPERS WOULD NOT MOVE. NLM

I AM REQUESTING ANY DEFECT INFORMATION ON THE REAR WINDSHIELD OF MY 2000 NEW BEETLE GLS. ON RETURNING TO MY LOCKED CAR ON LUNCH BREAK I FOUND THE WHOLE BACK WINDSHIELD WAS SHATTERED IN A PUFFED OUT DIRECTION (NO MAIN STRESS CRACK). SINCE IT IS SAFETY GLASS IT REMAINED INTACT (I HAVE SEVERAL PICTURES). THE CAR HAD BEEN LEFT STILL FOR 3 HOURS.I CONTACTED BOTH DEALERSHIP AND "ZONE" CUSTOMER SERVICE FOR VOLKSWAGON TO REPORT THIS AND THEY SAY THEY NEVER HEARD OF SUCH A THING EVER HAPPENING. I WORK FOR A FORKLIFT COMPANY WITH 20 PLUS MECHANICS ON SITE AND IT WAS SAID TO RESEMBLE HEAT EXPANDING IN THE CAR. THIS IS JANUARY THE TEMPERATURE ON THIS DAY WAS 40 DEGREES AND SUNNY. I WOULD LIKE ANY INFORMATION YOU HAVE PERTAINING TO THIS. I WOULD LOVE TO KNOW THE ANSWER TO A $500.00 QUESTION. THIS IS VERY DEVASTATING.*AK

LOST CONTROL IN AN ACCIDENT AND THE SIDE IMPACT AIRBAG AND SEATBELT FAILURE, RESULTING IN DEATH