2003 Volkswagen Beetle

THE ALTERNATOR HARNESS HAS BURNT UP TWICE IN LESS THAN 12,000 MILES. THE FIRST TIME IT MELTED EVERYTHING AND THEY REPLACED IT AND NOW IT HAS DONE IT AGAIN. IT HAS STRANDED ME ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND ALMOST CAUSED A FIRE UNDER THE HOOD. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THAT THEY HAVE HAD TROUBLE WITH THIS ON 2001 TO 2004 MODELS BUT THEN VW CUSTOMER SERVICE SAYS NO. I AM CONCERNED THAT IT WILL DO IT AGAIN AND THAT A FIRE WILL BE NEXT. *TR

I OWN A 2003 VW NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE, 4 CYL, 6 SP AUTO. IT HAS 80,000 MILES ON IT. WITHIN THE PAST YEAR, IT'S STARTED JERKING WHEN SHIFTING GEARS. I'VE BEEN TOLD BY I NEED A NEW TRANSMISSION. AFTER DOING SOME RESEARCH, I FIND I'M NOT ALONE. THERE ARE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF OTHERS IN THE SAME POSITION. ACCORDING TO VW, THE TRANSMISSION IS $6,800. WOW - I KNOW! YOU HAVE TO USE THE DEALER BECAUSE THE PARTS AREN'T AVAILABLE TO THE AFTER MARKET. IN ANY EVENT, THE CAR HESITATES WHEN YOU ATTEMPT TO PULL OUT, JERKS WHEN YOU STOP. I'VE NARROWLY AVOIDED SEVERAL REAR END COLLISIONS AS WELL AS SAID SEVERAL PRAYERS WHEN IT DIDN'T ACCELERATE AS QUICKLY AS IT SHOULD HAVE. I'M NOT A MECHANIC, BUT I'M NOT STUPID EITHER. THE TRANSMISSION IS FINE UNTIL THE ENGINE IS WARM. I CAN SHIFT GEARS WITH NO PROBLEM USING THE TIPTRONIC PART OF THE SYSTEM - BUT OTHERS HAVE SAID THIS ONLY WORKS FOR A SHORT PERIOD. THERE ARE NO METAL SOUNDS WHEN THE ENGINE IS SHIFTING. THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE TRANSMISSION, IT IS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE. VW REFUSES TO PUT THE TIME AND EFFORT INTO DETERMINING WHAT THE REAL PROBLEM IS. THEY JUST REPLACE THE TRANSMISSIONS AND POCKET $6,800. BY THE WAY, THE BLUE BOOK VALUE OF THE CAR IS $6,800. IRONIC, I KNOW. I'VE READ POST AFTER POST FROM PEOPLE WHO HAD THE ENTIRE TRANSMISSION REPLACED BY VW ONLY TO FIND THE PROBLEMS PERSIST. I UNDERSTAND THEY DON'T WANT TO FIND THE ISSUE, BUT I REALLY LOVE MY CAR AND WANT IT FIXED. CORRECTLY. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE VW TO DO THE RIGHT THING, FIND THE PROBLEM AND FIX IT. ANY HELP YOU CAN OFFER IS APPRECIATED. *TR

2003 VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE--ELECTRICAL PROBLEM ENGINE COMPARTMENT FUSEBOX MELTED DUE TO A SHORT. THE CAR WAS MAINTAINED. IT JUST PASSED INSPECTION 2 WEEKS BEFORE MELTDOWN. THE BATTERY WAS CHECKED AS WELL. NO WARNING OR DASH LIGHTS INDICATING A PROBLEM. THE CAR WAS NEARLY NOT POSSIBLE TO START IN RECENT HOT HUMID WEATHER. I TOOK IT TO A GARAGE AND THEY FOUND THE MELTED FUSEBOX. THIS HAS TO BE CHANGED ASAP BECAUSE IT COULD AFFECT THE CAR'S COMPUTER AND THEY AREN'T SURE ABOUT THE ALTERNATOR YET AS IT WAS HAVING A HARD TIME STARTING THE CAR. THIS REPAIR IS GOING TO COST ME $400.00 OUT OF POCKET SO FAR. IF THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW BY VW WHICH CAUSES DAMAGE BECAUSE THEY DON'T PROTECT THE ENGINE FUSE BOX OR ANY RELATED WIRING FROM HEAT FROM THE BATTERY, THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL. I NOTICED A SIMILAR POST FROM HOUSTON, TEXAS ON THIS SITE. MY CAR SEEMS TO BE AMONG SEVERAL WHICH HAVE HAD THIS PROBLEM. THE MILEAGE OF THIS VEHICLE IS 66,417. *TR

AIR BAG LIGHT AND THE WARNING LIGHT FOR MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LAMP COMES ON AND DOES NOT GO OUT ALSO DRIVER SEAT IS STUCK. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN ON 11/15/2005 AT THAT TIME IT WAS ONLY THE AIR BAG CAUSE; 00591. DRIVERS SEAT BELT SWITCH FAULTY IT WAS REPLACED ON 12/12/2007 THE SAME PROBLEM AND MORE BUT,THIS TIME I HAVE DONE A LOT OF RESEARCH ON THE INTERNET AND I HAVE FOUND A ALOT OF PEOPLE HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM AND NHTSA IS AWARE OF IT.THE CAR IS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY I HAVE HAD REPAIR DRIVER SEAT SLIDER. IT HAS BEEN VERY FRUSTRATING, NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER VW. *TR

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.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE CONVERTIBLE. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE CONTACT'S DAUGHTER NOTICED SMOKE UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD. SHE PULLED THE VEHICLE ONTO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND IT IMMEDIATELY BURST INTO FLAMES. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 54,000.

HEADLIGHT WENT OUT WHILE STARTING THE CAR. DEALER FOUND A BURNED WIRING HARNESS TO BE THE CAUSE. COST TO REPAIR $ 159.31. THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A MAJOR PROBLEM IF BOTH HEAD LIGHTS WOULD HAVE GONE OUT WHILE TRAVELING ON A DARK HWY AT HIGH SPEED. BURNED WIRING HARNESS IS IN MY POSSESSION. SECOND PROBLEM WAS WITH A BRAKE LIGHT THAT WENT OUT DATE 10/30/07. CAUSE AS PER DEALER WAS A FAULTY LIGHT SOCKET. COST TO REPAIR $ 73.61. *TR