2003 Volkswagen Beetle

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE AIR BAG SENSOR LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE LIGHT REMAINED ILLUMINATED UNTIL THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. THE FAILURE OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS DUE TO A LOOSE ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR FOR THE DRIVER'S SIDE AIR BAG. THE RECALL REPAIR WAS PERFORMED INCORRECTLY. ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS, THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR THE SAME FAILURE, BUT WITH NO RESOLUTIONS. THE CONTACT WAS CONCERNED OF THE SAFETY RISK INVOLVED WITH THE AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT. THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 45,000.

AIR BAGS LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TWO TIMES ON NOV 15,2005 CAUSE:00591 LT SIDE BELT SWITCH IT WAS REPLACED. ON DEC/12/ 20007 THE TEST DIAGNOSTIC AND CONFIRM FAULT COD 00591,DRIVERS SEAT BELT SWITCH FAULTY. ESTIMATE FORE SERVICE $472.00 I HAD TO DECLINED .IF THEY REPLACED IT TWO YEARS AGO IT SHOULDN'T HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE. WHEN THE ENGINE WAS STARTED, THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED UNTIL THE ENGINE WAS TURNED OFF. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS RELATED TO THE AIR BAG SENSOR. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE VIN WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE RECALL, ALTHOUGH THE FAILURES WERE IDENTICAL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 83,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 85,000. UPDATE 09/10/08 *CW UPDATED 09/15/08. *JB

THE VEHICLE HAS LESS THAN 47,000 MILES ON IT AND THE AIRBAG SENSOR LIGHT CAME ON. THIS AIRBAG HAS NEVER BEEN USED OR DEPLOYED. IT IS NOT DAMAGED AND THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN MAINTAINED PROPERLY. I WAS INFORMED BY THE DEALER THAT IT IS A DEFECTIVE AIRBAG AND I WOULD HAVE TO PAY OVER $700 FOR A NEW AIRBAG. I BELIEVE THE DEALER SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPLACEMENT IF THEY EQUIPPED THE VEHICLE WITH A DEFECTIVE AIRBAG. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG LIGHT IN HIS VEHICLE WOULD ILLUMINATE WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS. THE DEALER REPLACED THE PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG DUE TO RESISTANCE IN THE WARNING LIGHT; HOWEVER, THE FAILURE RECURRED. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE BACK TO THE DEALER A TOTAL OF EIGHT TIMES. THE MOST RECENT TIME THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WAS IN DECEMBER OF 2006 AND THE LIGHT TURNED OFF. IN JULY OF 2008, THE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AGAIN. THE CONTACT CONSULTED THE MANUFACTURER ABOUT NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 08V178000 (AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE), BUT THEY CLAIMED TO HAVE NO KNOWLEDGE OF THE RECALL. THE RECALL WAS SCHEDULED TO BEGIN ON APPROXIMATELY JULY 31, 2008. THE CONTACT IS CURRENTLY WAITING FOR SOMEONE FROM VOLKSWAGEN TO CALL BACK. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 65,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,694.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT CONTROL PANEL, WHICH INDICATED THAT THE AIR BAG SYSTEM WAS INOPERATIVE. SHE TOOK HER VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND A TECHNICIAN RESET THE AIR BAG SENSORS. IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE REPAIR, THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE SENSORS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT THE DISCOUNTED PRICE OF $250. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT BECAUSE THE RECALL FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 08V178000 (AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE) DOES NOT BEGIN UNTIL JULY 31, 2008, THE CONTACT WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE REPAIRS. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 32,000.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED, WHICH INSTRUCTED THE CONTACT TO STOP THE VEHICLE. HE CALLED THE DEALER AND WAS ADVISED TO BRING THE VEHICLE IN FOR REPAIR. AT 27,680 MILES, THE DEALER IDENTIFIED THE FAILURE WITH THE AIR BAG CRASH SENSOR. THEY REPLACED THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE CRASH SENSOR AND TWO WINDOWS. THE FAILURE RECURRED AT 27,680 MILES AND THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT HIS VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 08V178000 (AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE). THE CONTACT WOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPAIR COSTS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 40,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 41,297. UPDATED 07/08/08. *BF UPDATED 07/03/08. *JB

I OWN A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE. IT HAD MULTIPLE FAILURES WHILE STILL UNDER WARRANTY THAT WERE NEVER PARTICULARLY CORRECTED. WOULD GO OUT AND CAR WOULD NOT START - COMPLETELY DEAD. BATTERIES WERE REPLACED, ALTERNATOR WAS REPLACED, SOMETHING WITH THE STEREO SYSTEM WAS REPLACED, ETC. THIS HAPPENED MANY TIMES OVER THE COURSE OF TWO YEARS, FROM APPROXIMATELY 2005 TO 2007. I COULD PROVIDE SPECIFICS IF NECESSARY SINCE I HAVE ALL RECEIPTS. IT SOMETIMES HAPPENED WITHIN A WEEK OF GETTING THE CAR BACK FROM THE PREVIOUS "REPAIR." NEEDLESS TO SAY IT HAS BEEN VERY FRUSTRATING, AND WE WILL NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER VW. THE REASON I AM JUST NOW WRITING IS BECAUSE MY LOCAL NEWSPAPER HAD A SMALL PARAGRAPH MENTIONING THAT THE NHTSA IS INVESTIGATING A POSSIBLE CRASH SENSOR MALFUNCTION IN THE AIRBAG SYSTEM. I HAVE HAD TO REPLACE BOTH OF THE SENSORS AT MY OWN EXPENSE SINCE THE CAR IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT FIRST CAME ON IN JUNE 2007 AND THE DRIVER'S SIDE FRONT CRASH SENSOR WAS REPLACED. JUST A SHORT TIME LATER, SEPTEMBER 2007, THE AIRBAG INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN. THIS TIME THEY TOLD ME IT WAS THE PASSENGER SIDE CRASH SENSOR THAT NEED TO BE REPLACED. THESE REPAIRS COST ME ROUGHLY $1000 OUT OF POCKET. I THINK THE NHTSA WOULD LIKE TO BE AWARE OF THIS AS PART OF THE INVESTIGATION. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. PS: WHILE LISTING "FAILURES" BELOW I WILL STICK WITH JUST THE TWO AIRBAG FAILURES AND ONLY PROVIDE INFO ON OTHER ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS IF REQUESTED TO DO SO. *TR CRASH SENSOR.PCO