2001 Volkswagen Beetle

MY ABS DASH INDICATOR CAME ON STEADY, THE BRAKE INDICATOR ON THE DASH STARTED FLASHING AND WHAT SOUNDED LIKE THE INTERIOR CHIME STARTED SOUNDING CONTINUOUSLY. I PULLED OVER INTO A PARKING LOT AND TURNED OFF THE ENGINE. A PUFF OF SMOKE/STEAM CAME UP FROM THE PASSENGER FRONT WHEELWELL AND THERE WAS A HORRIBLE HISS AND WHINE COMING FROM UNDER THE HOOD ON THE SAME SIDE AND A BURNING PLASTIC SMELL. THE DEALER SAID IT WAS THE ABS MODULE (WHICH THEY CHANGED FOR $950!!!) AND THAT ONLY FIXED THE ABS LIGHT. NO CLUE ON THE FLASHING BRAKE IDIOT LIGHT AND NOW THEY SAY THE AC DOES NOT WORK AT ALL. NO REFRIGERANT, SO OBVIOUSLY A LEAK. IT SEEMS WAY TOO COINCIDENTAL. I HEARD ABOUT AN ABS MODULE RECALL BACK IN '03 WHICH COULD SHORT CIRCUIT AND CAUSE AN ENGINE FIRE. I DON'T HAVE ANY IDEA ABOUT THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT GEOGRAPHY AND I'VE ONLY HAD THE CAR (BOUGHT USED) FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF. IT APPEARS I AM NOT THE ONLY PERSON TO HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS PROBLEM. SEE ATTACHED LINK: HTTP://FORUMS.NEWBEETLE.ORG/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=&THREADID=50457

MY 2001 GLX BEETLE NEEDS THE ABS CONTROL MODULE REPLACE WHICH THE DEALER TELLS ME WILL COST $900. MY VEHICLE ONLY HAS 39,000 MILES. THERE IS A SAFETY RECALL ON THE 2001 GLX BEETLE FOR THE ABS CONTROL MODULE BUT IT APPARENTLY ONLY AFFECTS VEHICLES WHERE THE LAST FOUR DIGITS OF THE VIN ARE 475001 OR HIGHER. MY VEHICLE'S VIN IS IN THE 457XXX RANGE. I CAN'T BELIEVE MY PROBLEM IS NOT RELATED TO THE RECALL YET BECAUSE MY VIN IS TO LOW, THE MANUFACTURER WILL NOT PAY FOR THE REPLACEMENT. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE VOLKSWAGEN EXTEND THE RECALL TO COVER VEHICLES IN MY VIN RANGE. THERE IS RISK OF FIRE IF THE UNIT IS NOT REPLACED ACCORDING TO THE RECALL NOTICE SO NOW I MUST INCUR A LARGE EXPENSE TO REPLACE A PART I BELIEVE WAS DEFECTIVE WHEN I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. *JB

MULTIPLE REQUESTS TO HAVE OUR 2001 NEW BEETLE TDI HEADLIGHTS ADJUSTED PROPERLY HAVE NOT BEEN COMPLIED WITH BY GURLEY-LEEP VW SERVICE DEPARTMENT, SINCE THE FIRST YEAR OF OWNERSHIP, 2001 WHEN THE CAR WAS NEW.*AK SPECIFICALLY: LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS ARE SET FAR, FAR TOO LOW; I ESTIMATE THE HEADLIGHTS ILLUMINATE ABOUT 60 FEET IN FRONT OF THE VEHICLE, LIMITING TRAVEL AT NIGHT TO ~35 MPH; THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A SAFETY HAZARD FOR TWO REASONS: 1) WE CAN'T SEE HAZARDS SOON ENOUGH, AND 2) OUR LOWER SPEEDS PRESENT A HAZARD TO OTHER VEHICLES TRAVELING AT HIGHER (NORMAL) SPEEDS. WHEN I ASK WHY THE HEADLIGHTS ARE SET TOO LOW, I'M TOLD BY SERVICE DEPARTMENT PERSONNEL THAT "THEY'RE SET TO SPEC". LATEST, 12/14/04: SERVICE DEPARTMENT AGAIN TOLD US THEY SET THE HEADLIGHTS "TO SPEC", BUT THE RIGHT LIGHT ASSEMBLY DOESN'T STAY IN ADJUSTMENT, I.E., IT "DROPS", AND WE NEED TO BUY A NEW ASSEMBLY AT ABOUT $330.00. THIS IS A STRANGE SITUATION BECAUSE THE LEFT HEADLIGHT ILLUMINATES THE ROAD AT THE SAME DISTANCE AS THE RIGHT HEADLIGHT, AND THE GURLEY LEEP SERVICE DEPARTMENT PEOPLE DID NOT TELL US THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE LEFT. BOTTOM LINE: THIS IS APPARENTLY EITHER A MANUFACTURING DEFECT OR A POORLY MANAGED MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT; EITHER WAY IT IS A SAFETY HAZARD AND MUST BE CORRECTED BY VW AT NO CHARGE.

IT COULD POTENTIALLY EFFECT YOUR ABS SYSTEM AND COULD START A FIRE. THE 3 GREEN FUSES ON TOP OF THE BATTERY. THERE IN A SMALL COVER. OPEN THE COVER AND CHECK THE FUSE LOCATED TO THE PASSENGER SIDE. THIS IS THE FUSE FOR THE AC COMPRESSOR AND FANS. I SAW 3 CARS WITH SEVERELY MELTED AND BURNED CONNECTORS. THE FUSES DON'T BLOW, OR THEY MELT INTO THE CONNECTOR ALLOWING CURRENT TO CONTINUE TO FLOW. THIS IS A HUGE HAZARD AND I WANT TO VOICE MY CONCERNS BEFORE ANYONE LOOSES A CAR TO THIS. THE CARS THAT I CHECKED WERE ALL 1999-2001 CARS AND ALL USE THE AC PRETTY FREQUENTLY. I HAD TO REPLACE THE PART SINCE I WAS OUT OF WARRANTY. SEE HERE FOR MORE CASES OVER 26 DOCUMENTED. HTTP://FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?S=&THREADID=26315&PERPAGE=40&PAGENUMBER=1. *AK

2001 VW TURBO BEETLE (22,770 MILEAGE) LOW OIL PRESSURE. SERVICED AT DEALERSHIP. OIL SLUDGE CLEANED FROM PAN AND PICKUP TUBE REPLACE, COST $457.53. SYNTHETIC OIL USE VICE NORMAL OIL TO AVOID SLUDGE BUILDUP. VW MANUFACTURER WAS AWARE OF THE ENGINE DESIGN PROBLEM THAT CAUSED NORMAL OIL TO BREAK DOWN. OWNER'S MANUAL SHOULD STATE ONLY USE SYNTHETIC OIL. ALL PREVIOUS OIL CHANGES AND SERVICING WERE PERFORMED AT SPECIFIED MILEAGES AT THE VW DEALERSHIP. *AK