What 586 owners told NHTSA about the 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hev

ATTEMPTED TO USE MY BRAKE PEDAL AND IT DIDN'T STOP THE CAR. UPON THE SECOND OR THIRD PUMP, IT DID FINALLY ENGAGE. THIS DELAY IN THE BRAKE CAUSED ME TO RUN A STOP SIGN. I WAS LUCKY NO ONE WAS AROUND. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10586790

TL* THE CONTACT RENTED A 2013 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS AND ATTEMPTING TO STOP FOR TRAFFIC, THE BRAKING SYSTEM FAILED TO ENGAGE AND CAUSED THE BRAKE PEDAL TO BECOME STUCK TO THE FLOORBOARD. THE CONTACT CRASHED INTO THE REAR OF ANOTHER VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO INJURIES AND NO POLICE REPORT. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 13,857. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ODI 10561657

WHEN DRIVING MY JETTA IN "S" (SPORT SELECTION ON THE TRANSMISSION) ON A SURFACE STREET I CAME TO A RED LIGHT. I STARTED BRAKING AND THE BRAKES FELT SPONGY AND UNRESPONSIVE. I TRIED PRESSING ON THE BRAKE PEDAL WITH MORE FORCE BUT WAS NOT GETTING MUCH BRAKING RESPONSE. THE VEHICLE TOOK A VERY LONG DISTANCE TO RESPOND COMPARED TO ITS RESPONSE TIME WHEN IN "D" (DRIVE SELECTION ON THE TRANSMISSION). LUCKY I AM AN EARLY BARKER AND THERE WAS NOT A CAR IN FRONT OF ME SO THE VEHICLE ONLY WENT INTO THE INTERSECTION A SHORT DISTANCE BEFORE IT STOPPED. WHEN FINALLY AT A STOP I KEPT STEADY PRESSURE ON THE BRAKE PEDAL. AFTER A FEW SECONDS OF BEING AT A COMPLETE STOP I NOTICED THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS SINKING TOWARDS THE FLOOR BOARD. IT FELT LIKE IT DOES WHEN YOU ARE BLEEDING AIR OUT OF THE LINES. WHILE AT THE STOP THE BRAKE PEDAL SANK FURTHER, AT FIRST SLOWLY, AND THEN WITH ONE FINAL QUICK MOVEMENT THE BRAKE PEDAL SANK COMPLETELY TO THE FLOOR BOARD OF THE CAR. THE ONLY TIME I HAVE EVER EXPERIENCED THIS TYPE OF BRAKE ACTIVITY IS WITH OLDER CARS WHEN ONE IS PERFORMING THE TASK OF BLEEDING THE BRAKES. IF I HAD BEEN TAPPED FROM BEHIND THE CAR WOULD HAVE BEEN SENT INTO THE INTERSECTION. DURING THIS INCIDENT I NOTICED THAT THE TACHOMETER WAS RUNNING AT 900 RPM EVEN THOUGH THE CAR WAS AT A "COMPLETE", OR BETTER STATED, THE BRAKE WAS PRESSED ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR, WITH NO ADDITIONAL BRAKING PRESSURE AVAILABLE. I FEEL VERY UNSURE AND UNSAFE WHEN I GO TO USE MY BRAKES AND HAVE TO ALLOW SEVERAL EXTRA CAR LENGTHS IN FRONT OF ME TO ENSURE THAT I AM ABLE TO STOP THE VEHICLE IN TIME. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10542648

ON THE FREEWAY, I SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES, AS THERE WAS AN ACCIDENT IN FRONT OF ME, AND THE REGENERATIVE BRAKES DID NOT ACTIVATE WHEN SLAMMING ON THE BRAKES. THE STANDARD ABS DISK BRAKES, WITHOUT REGENERATIVE BRAKING, ARE NOT SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO STOP THE VEHICLE IN AN EMERGENCY INSTANCE SUCH AS THIS. THIS IS EITHER AN ISSUE WITH THE REGENERATIVE BRAKES INITIALIZING WHEN THEY ARE NEEDED (WHICH IS A KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE HYBRID MODEL OF THE 2013 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA), OR THE STANDARD ANTI-LOCK DISK BRAKES NOT BEING SUFFICIENT ENOUGH TO STOP THE CAR ACCORDING TO THE FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS BY THE US DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION. THE STANDARD THAT THIS VEHICLE FAILS IS: "STANDARD NO. 105 - HYDRAULIC AND ELECTRIC BRAKE SYSTEMS - PASSENGER CARS (EFFECTIVE 1-1-68) THIS STANDARD SPECIFIES REQUIREMENTS FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH HYDRAULIC AND ELECTRIC SERVICE BRAKE SYSTEMS AND ASSOCIATED PARKING BRAKE SYSTEMS TO ENSURE SAFE BRAKING PERFORMANCE UNDER NORMAL CONDITIONS AND EMERGENCY CONDITIONS" (HTTP://WWW.NHTSA.GOV/CARS/RULES/IMPORT/FMVSS/). THIS FAILURE OF THE BRAKING SYSTEM RESULTED IN ME BEING UNABLE TO STOP THE CAR WITHIN A REASONABLE DISTANCE FOR MY SPEED, AND I REAR ENDED THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME.

NHTSA ODI 10542358

HELLO, THE BRAKES ON THE NEW 2013 JETTA HYBRID ARE VERY DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. WHEN I TOLD MY DEALER, I WAS TOLD THAT THE BRAKES BEHAVED AS INTENDED. A GOOGLE SEARCH FOR "JETTA HYBRID BRAKES FEEL WEIRD" SHOWED MULTIPLE REPORTS ON STRANGE BEHAVING BRAKES. I THINK THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE. I CANNOT COME TO A SMOOTH, STEADY STOP. EITHER IT IS TOO FAST OR TOO SLOW AND I HAVE TO SLAM ON THE BRAKES AT THE END. I THINK VW SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO MAKE THE BRAKES ON THE JETTA HYBRID SAFER AND RETROFIT VEHICLES ALREADY ON THE ROAD. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10537296