What 42 owners told NHTSA about the 2023 Volkswagen Jetta Hev

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The components that failed or malfunctioned include the rear brake system and the EVAP (Evaporative Emission Control) system of my 2023 Volkswagen Jetta SE 1.5T FWD. Both components are available for inspection upon request. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? The safety risks include premature wear of the rear brakes, which could lead to reduced braking efficiency or failure, especially under emergency braking situations. The EVAP system malfunction poses an environmental risk by potentially releasing excessive emissions, and it could also lead to engine performance issues, including stalling or hesitation during acceleration, which may cause hazardous driving conditions. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, the issues with both the rear brakes and the EVAP system have been reproduced and confirmed by the service departments at two authorized Volkswagen dealerships. Despite multiple repair attempts, the problems have not been fully resolved. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives, or others? The vehicle has been inspected multiple times by Volkswagen service departments, but no inspections have been conducted by the police or insurance representatives. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Yes, for the EVAP system, the check engine light illuminated repeatedly, indicating a malfunction. The brake issues were not accompanied by warning lamps but were noticeable through audible grinding noises and reduced braking performance, which started occurring within the first few thousand miles after purchasing the vehicle. The brake issue was first reported to the dealer when the vehicle had less than 10,000 miles.

NHTSA ODI 11608862

Vehicle has been misfiring at interstate Rt 95 putting driver at very high risk of a crash. This vehicle has been service for this problem and also for a coolant leak 04 times at dealership. They were unable to find any problem. Right now, this vehicle is at dealership, and they said, engine has a blown head gasket (several vehicles from VW model Taos and Jetta from 2022 and 2023 has the same issue.).

NHTSA ODI 11605411

3 times in the past year, the automated braking activated with no other cars in front of me. Luckily, the cars behind me we following at a large distance and it was on a "slower" road around 50mph

NHTSA ODI 11597775

This is now the second time this has happened on my brand new 2023 Jetta SE. The vehicle only has 1831 miles on it. The fault happens when the car is being driven after approx. 15 minutes. EPC light, Check Engine Light, and Yellow Warning Light illuminate. Also sounds like a misfire when limping off the road. Codes read at dealer are P0304, P0363, P1D74, and P1D75. All of these codes relate to Cylinder 4 misfire. Car is driven only at highway speeds, since it is a commuter car. This happened on 2/16/2024 and 2/22/2024. I attached PDFs of the Service Invoice from the first instance. I also attached a PDF of a NHTSA file containing a list of VW vehicles that are having the same issue, with the same engine.

NHTSA ODI 11573462

Car has less than 30k miles on it and already the brakes are grinding and the brake pads are wearing out. This car is only a year old and should not be wearing out like this! Brakes are a major safety issue if they do not work.

NHTSA ODI 11573188

When driving roughly 75mph on the interstate the passenger door opened on its own. No warning was shown for 10 minutes or 8 miles. When taken to get serviced I was told it was due to freezing from the cold weather and the latch couldn’t latch. This not only confused me because I’ve never had that issue with any vehicle but the vehicle also did not show a warning of it earlier. This was extremely scary due to the fact I had a passenger in the vehicle at the time who could have been injured or someone else could have.

NHTSA ODI 11572022

I have 20,000 on my 2023 Jetta and have had to have the breaks and rotors replaced twice (at both by 10K and 20K service) at the last service the service technician stated that they are seeing this on both the 2023 Jetta and Taos and they have not figured out why they are going through the breaks and rotors like this. While I am still under warrantee this is not a problem cost wise, but how do I know that my breaks are going to function properly when I need them if rotors and pads are having to be replaced so often, should they be checked every 5K miles. This is a major safety issue that needs to be corrected.

NHTSA ODI 11571933

- Navigation system (GPS) constantly not working. - The navigation system stop working completely or works imprecisely, taking the attention of the driver from the road in order to locate himself. - Yes, two service. One software update and a module replacement, neither solved the problem. - Volkswagen South Charlotte dealership is the company responsible for the service. - No, it worked fine for about 3 months and has been showing this symptoms ever since.

NHTSA ODI 11570920

Car has multiple electrical issues that can affect the safety of driving. OCU Module is the main one which allows for 911 services to be called in case of an accident. This module failed in September and now it failed again in January. The cruise control also sometimes doesn't work and the front assistance sensor doesn't seem to always work as indicated in the screenshots.

NHTSA ODI 11569918

Rear brakes grinding after 1 year. It also took 8 months for dealer to repair knocking sound on driver side while turning steering wheel to the right.

NHTSA ODI 11569739

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH in traffic, the vehicle lost motive power and shut off. The contact was able to steer into a parking space. Several unknown warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the cam magnet needed to be replaced. The mechanic informed the contact that an expert would be contacted for assistance with repairing the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000.

NHTSA ODI 11566542

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated that while his son was driving at an undisclosed speed, he heard an abnormal squeaking sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed failures with the rear brake pads and rotors. The contact was informed that the rear brake pads and rotors needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Technical Service Bulletin: VWP-22-18. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 20,000.

NHTSA ODI 11559572

After parking the car one day the remote app functions stopped working. The next morning, a scary warning came on the dash stating: SOS Error: Emergency Call Function! Service Vehicle! It also blocks off many functional areas of other dash display and the error will not go away. The bluetooth in the car no longer works and the post-crash and SOS emergency calling are disabled.

NHTSA ODI 11552197

Accelerator petal does not always result in acceleration from a stopped position. This causes the hill assist to hold and does not allow movement forward, resulting in an engine stall. The vehicle has also set the EPC light while traveling resulting in reduced engine power to the point of not enough power to move forward. Turn the ignition off, then on resets the EPC and limb mode.

NHTSA ODI 11532231

I would like to report a safety issue with my wife’s new 2023 VW Jetta sedan with standard transmission. It has a hill hold feature that clamps the brakes on for approximately three seconds after you remove your foot from the brake pedal, if you are on a hill. Three seconds is way too long and often causes the following: you see an opening to pull into traffic, move your foot to the accelerator and start letting the clutch out. The car stalls, leaving you in the middle of the road with the electronic parking brake now applied where it was not before. This is very dangerous. Both of us have been driving standard transmission vehicles for many years. Our previous VW models with standard transmissions and hill hold, as well as my present 2014 VW GTI, did not have this safety defect. They released the brakes quickly and smoothly on hills and never caused us to stall or roll back. The behavior of the 2023 Jetta was a shock to both of us. There are lots of comments online about this unacceptable behavior of hill hold. Please require VW to issue a recall to change the coding of its ABS module on these cars to release sooner. System: hill hold via ABS. Risk of collision. Not confirmed by dealer. Not inspected. Symptoms on every hill.

NHTSA ODI 11530613

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Jetta. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH in traffic, the Forward Collision Avoidance system activated, causing the vehicle to slow down and the Forward Collision Avoidance warning light illuminated. The dealer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnose. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 25.

NHTSA ODI 11524885

On April 1, 2023 I leased a 2023 VW Jetta for 39 months. I test drove the car. Upon delivery, it had 12 miles on the car. I drove the car for 150 miles (162 TOTAL miles on car) At 11:30PM on April 6th, it left me stranded in the middle of the road. I called VW 36 month/36,000 roadside assistance for help. They asked if I was in a safe place. I told them No, I am in the middle of the road, in the middle of the night. They proceeded to tell me to call 911 and hung up on me. I then went to push the SOS button in my car, to my disbelief, “this feature is not active in your vehicle.” I called AAA. 3 hour wait. Called multiple towing agencies and was finally picked up after an hour. Tow truck driver arrived. He asked what happened. I explained. He got in the car. The emergency brake was not on, however, he had to manually take a tool to disengage the emergency brake. I had the car towed to the dealership in which I leased the car 5 days prior. It has now been almost 3 weeks and I am being told that I am responsible for a burned out clutch because warranty has been denied by VW because of “outside influences”. I talked with several mechanics and I am simply being told, I am being taken. There is NO WAY a clutch can be burned out in 150 miles. I am reaching out for help anywhere and everywhere I can because this is unacceptable. I am beyond furious and frustrated. I will keep fighting until someone helps me get through to VW about how ridiculous this claim is. PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!

NHTSA ODI 11518886