What 586 owners told NHTSA about the 2013 Volkswagen Jetta Hev

I WAS TRYING TO MERGE ONTO HIGHWAY TRAFFIC AND WHEN I PUSHED ON THE ACCELERATOR THE CAR WAS UNRESPONSIVE. IT CREATED AN UNSAFE SITUATION WHERE I HAD TO SLAM ON THE BRAKES AND LET THE TRAFFIC PASS BY, THEN PUT THE CAR IN MANUAL SHIFT SO THAT I COULD ACCELERATE ENOUGH TO MERGE WITH TRAFFIC. THE INABILITY TO CONTROL THE SPEED OF THE VEHICLE DUE TO NO RESPONSE FROM THE ENGINE HAPPENS USUALLY AROUND SPEEDS OF 40 MILES AN HOUR. I HAVE NOTICED THAT THE CAR WILL BE IN 6 GEAR AT VERY LOW SPEEDS AND FAILS TO DOWN SHIFT WHEN THE GAS IS PRESSED. THIS RESULTS IN A LOSE OF POWER AND DOES NOT ALLOW ME TO SAFELY MANEUVER THE VEHICLE IN EMERGENCY AND NON-EMERGENCY SITUATIONS. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10535696

WE WERE TRAVELING IN CENTER LANE ON I-75 IN FL DOING 70 MPH. DASH LIGHT INDICATOR SHOWED DOUBLE CIRCLE ERROR LIGHT. ENGINE QUIT AND CAR LOST ALL POWER. COASTED TO BREAKDOWN LANE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10524636

ENGAGING VEHICLE INTO FIRST FROM A STOP,WOULD NOT GO,IT WAS STUCK IN REVERSE FOR A MINUTE. FINALLY WENT INTO FIRST AFTER PLAYING WITH THE SHIFTER AND GETTING IT UNSTUCK. NEW CAR,VOLKSWAGEN IS PATHETIC. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10519903

APPROACHED TRAFFIC LIGHT (WHICH WAS RED). WHEN LIGHT CHANGED, ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A LEFT TURN. NO POWER FOR ABOUT 3 SECONDS, THEN ACCELERATED THROUGH THE LIGHT AND ALL WAS NORMAL. NOW HAVE ABOUT 1500 MILES ON THE CAR AND SIMILAR SITUATIONS HAVE OCCURRED. ESTIMATED THAT WE HAD ABOUT 15 REPEATS OF THIS PROBLEM. DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULD NOT REPEAT THE PROBLEM. DEALER SAID WE WOULD HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL A CODE WAS RECORDED BEFORE THEY COULD DO ANYTHING. PROBLEM OCCURRED TWICE WITH A COLD ENGINE AND THE REST OF THE TIME WHEN THE ENGINE WAS THOROUGHLY WARMED UP. FEEL THAT THIS IS A SAFETY PROBLEM AND SOMETHING MUST BE DONE. WE COULD MAKE A LEFT TURN INTO APPROACHING TRAFFIC AND BE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSECTION.. AM AFRAID TO HAVE MY WIFE DRIVE THE CAR. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10519715

THE CAR COMPLETELY LOST POWER WHILE IN MOTION AND I HAD TO PULL OFF THE ROADWAY IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. THE DEALER TOLD ME THAT THE TDI (DIESEL) FUEL SYSTEM HAD A COMPLETE FAILURE AND IMPLODED INTO MANY VERY SMALL METAL PARTS. VW IS REPLACING THE ENTIRE FUEL SYSTEM, BUT NOT THE ENGINE. I BELIEVE METAL IN THE FUEL LINES IS CAUSE FOR A COMPLETE ENGINE REPLACEMENT AS THEY CANNOT PROVE THE CONTAMINATION WAS LIMITED TO THE FUEL LINES. THE CAR IS LESS THAN 4 MONTHS OLD AND HAS 5500 MILES TOTAL. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10514091

JETTA HYBRID. LOSS OF TRACTION WHILE ASCENDING STEEP DRIVEWAY. NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE EVEN WITH ANOTHER HYBRID. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10513280

A TWO WEEK OLD 2013 VW JETTA BECAME STUCK IN REVERSE AFTER BEING IN PARK AND THEN I TRIED TO PUT IT IN DRIVE IN THE MIDDLE LANE OF AN EXTREMELY BUSY STREET IN BROOKLYN, NY. THE CAR WOULD NOT MOVE FROM REVERSE AND HAD TO BE TOWED AWAY. I HEARD FROM OTHERS THIS IS A KNOWN DEFECT AND I WANT TO KNOW WHY IT IS NOT A REGISTERED RECALL WITH NHTSA AND WHY I HAD TO EXPERIENCE A LIFE THREATENING SITUATION FOR A KNOWN DEFECT. I AM NOT SURE IT WILL BE FIXED AS IT IS CURRENTLY IN THE VW SERVICE CENTER. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10509074

BASED UPON MY OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND OTHER OWNERS COMMENTS FOUND ON THE THE WEB, THERE APPEARS TO BE AN ISSUE WITH VARIOUS EXHAUST LEAKS ON LATE MODEL JETTA TDI'S WHICH ALLOWS DANGEROUS DIESEL SULFUR FUMES TO ENTER THE CABIN. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10508624

A COUPLE OF WEEKS AFTER BUYING THIS NEW VEHICLE I NOTICED THAT HUNDREDS OF FOGGY LOOKING SPOTS WOULD APPEAR IN THE REAR WINDSHIELD AT CERTAIN TIMES OF THE DAY. WHEN THESE SPOTS APPEAR IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE OUT OF THIS WINDSHIELD OR INTO IT . THIS USUALLY HAPPENS AROUND DAWN AND AROUND DUSK THOUGH IT HAS HAPPENED AT OTHER TIMES OF THE DAY ALSO. I HAVE PURSUED HAVING THIS PROBLEM RESOLVED BY CONTACTING THE DEALER SEVERAL TIMES ONLY TO BE TOLD IT IS BECAUSE OF THE WINDOW BEING POLARIZED AND THAT THE WINDOW IS UP TO MANUFACTURER SPECIFICATIONS. PRETTY MUCH THEY HAVE TOLD ME, TOO BAD THAT'S THE WAY IT IS. I HAVE EXPRESSED TO THE DEALER AND TO VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA THAT THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE DUE TO THE FACT THAT YOU CAN NOT SEE OUT OF OR IN THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD WHEN THESE FOGGY SPOTS ARE THERE. AFTER MONTHS OF TRYING TO GET THEM TO AT LEAST ACKNOWLEDGE THERE IS A PROBLEM THEY FINALLY SENT AN EXECUTIVE DOWN TO LOOK AT THE PROBLEM. THEIR LAST TIME I HEARD FROM THEM, THEY SAID THEY WOULD TINT THE REAR WINDSHIELD SO THAT I WOULDN'T SEE THE PROBLEM. TO ME THIS DOES NOT MAKE ANY SENSE. IF YOU TRY TO COVER UP THE PROBLEM YOU DO NOT SOLVE THE PROBLEM. I FEEL THAT THEY ARE TRYING TO COVER UP A MANUFACTURING PROBLEM AND IGNORING SAFETY ISSUES. I DON'T KNOW WHO TO TALK TO OR WHERE TO GO FROM HERE WITH THIS PROBLEM. IT SEEMS AS THOUGH I AM GETTING NOWHERE WITH THEM. I AM READING ABOUT OTHERS WITH THE SAME PROBLEMS IN VW FORUMS ON THE INTERNET AND AM SURE THERE MUST BE OTHER COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND AM WONDERING IF OTHERS HAVE SENT COMPLAINTS INTO THIS DEPARTMENT ALSO. ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10504086

DSG TRANSMISSION ISSUES: WHEN MAKING A LEFT HAND TURN ACROSS TRAFFIC, I COASTED UP TO THE LIGHT WHEN IT WAS MY TURN, THEN I PRESSED THE ACCELERATOR AND THE CAR HAD NO POWER. IT CROSSED THROUGH THE INTERSECTION AT APPROXIMATELY 1 TO 2 MPH. IT TOOK 5 TO 10 SECONDS FOR THE POWER TO RETURN. IT FELT LIKE IF YOU ARE DRIVING A MANUAL TRANSMISSION AND HAVE THE CAR IN 4TH OR 5TH GEAR WHEN TRYING TO START MOVING. THIS HAS HAPPENED AT QUITE A FEW INTERSECTIONS. ALSO IT HAPPENED WHEN I WAS ACCELERATING THEN HAD TO RELEASE THE ACCELERATOR DUE TO A VEHICLE SLOWING IN FRONT OF ME, I RE ENGAGED THE ACCELERATOR AND THERE WAS NO POWER FOR 5 TO 10 SECONDS. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10489529

WE JUST BOUGHT A NEW 2013 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA SPORTS WAGON WITH DIESEL TDI ENGINE AND DSG TRANSMISSION. DRIVING THE CAR HOME FROM THE DEALER THE TRANSMISSION FAILED AT 110 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. IT HAS BEEN TOWED TO THE DEALER AND THEY TELL ME THAT THE MECHATRONIC UNIT HAS FAILED. THE SYMPTOM OF THE FAILURE WAS THAT THE TRANSMISSION SEEMED TO SHIFT INTO NEUTRAL WITH NO NOTICE AND THE CAR HAD SEVERALLY REDUCED POWER AVAILABLE (LESS THAN 10 MPH). RESEARCH ON THE INTERNET SHOWS THAT VOLKSWAGEN HAS HAD PROBLEMS WITH THIS BEFORE. IT SEEMS VERY SERIOUS TO ME TO HAVE SOMETHING LIKE THIS FAIL ON A BRAND NEW VEHICLE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10480982