IllustrationThe shift knob on my 2022 VW Golf GTI cracked and broke off while driving at 500 miles. Was very scary as I couldn’t shift while driving at about 40 mph.
2022 Volkswagen Golf
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
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Owner complaints by model year
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What owners reported most
All reported categories
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When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 1 of 81 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
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What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Power Train. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Forward Collision Avoidance. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 14 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
0 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports
Power Train complaints
25 reportsGear shift knob came off post during shift from 1st gear to 2nd gear. Component may not be available for inspection, vehicle still at a dealer for repair. Safety was compromised by the distraction caused from shifter suddenly coming loose with no warning and from losing the ability to select a drive gear without re-seating the k…
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Gear shift knob came off post during shift from 1st gear to 2nd gear. Component may not be available for inspection, vehicle still at a dealer for repair. Safety was compromised by the distraction caused from shifter suddenly coming loose with no warning and from losing the ability to select a drive gear without re-seating the knob back on the post. As post is covered by shift boot, this must be done blindly by feel. Vehicle is at a dealer service center where it has been determined the vehicle requires a new "gearshift assembly" per phone call and is pending repair at time of writing. A similar failure with more detail and photos is available at the link below https://www.vwvortex.com/threads/shifter-knob-cracked-off-of-shaft-mid-traffic.9512198/#post-115640046
The gear shift knob for the manual transmission became loose during driving. This made it difficult to shift gears while driving, which makes it difficult to drive the vehicle safely. I was able to pop it back into place when I was stopped, but it has happened 2 times already in 2 weeks so I am concerned that it will eventually …
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The gear shift knob for the manual transmission became loose during driving. This made it difficult to shift gears while driving, which makes it difficult to drive the vehicle safely. I was able to pop it back into place when I was stopped, but it has happened 2 times already in 2 weeks so I am concerned that it will eventually become permanently loose.
Radiator was loose from the factory where it clips to intercooler allowing movement of radiator within engine bay. Lower radiator hose then hit crank pulley from movement in radiator causing loss of coolant. Dealer replacing radiator hose, radiator and intercooler. Factory defect, happened with less than 200 miles on the car.
After hearing reports that some 2022 VW GTIs were suffer total coolant loss due to a loose radiator I checked my own new GTI. I found that my GTI’s radiator was unsecured at the top on the passenger side and it could freely move back and forth approximately 1.25 inches. This could allow the radiator, shroud and fan to contact …
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After hearing reports that some 2022 VW GTIs were suffer total coolant loss due to a loose radiator I checked my own new GTI. I found that my GTI’s radiator was unsecured at the top on the passenger side and it could freely move back and forth approximately 1.25 inches. This could allow the radiator, shroud and fan to contact moving parts in the engine bay. Might be duplicate report, I tried earlier and got an error message.
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.