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2007 Volkswagen Gti

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

62 reports with mileage · 15 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Power Train. Review the 40 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 11 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

4 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports

Power Train complaints

40 reports
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145,012 miles · Apr 23, 2020
Power Train

THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTER AUTOMATICALLY PUTS THE CAR IN NEUTRAL AND WONT LET THE CAR MOVE FOWARD, ITS AN ELECTRONIC COMPONENT THAT TELLS THE TRANSMISSION WHAT GEAR THE CAR IS ON.

NHTSA ODI #11321979

138,000 miles · Jun 27, 2016
Power Train

THE GEARS ON THE SCREEN IN MY CAR START TO FLASH, THEN I CAN'T GO OVER 30 MPH NOR CAN I GO INTO REVERSE. I WAS DRIVING ON THE ROAD WHEN IT FIRST HAPPENS.

NHTSA ODI #10877027

Mileage unknown · Oct 28, 2015
Power Train

WHILE DRIVING MY WAY TO WORK I PARKED THE CAR AND CAME OUT TO GO GRAB SOMETHING TO EAT. THE CAR WOULD NOT MOVE TILL I NOTICED MY GEARS WERE FLASHING ON AND OFF (P,R,N,D,S). I COULDNT GET INTO ANY GEARS AT ALL AND SO I CALLED A TOW TRUCK. THEY CAME OUT AND I GAVE THEM THE KEY TO TRY AND MOVE THE CAR. THEY WERE ABLE TO GET INTO GE…

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WHILE DRIVING MY WAY TO WORK I PARKED THE CAR AND CAME OUT TO GO GRAB SOMETHING TO EAT. THE CAR WOULD NOT MOVE TILL I NOTICED MY GEARS WERE FLASHING ON AND OFF (P,R,N,D,S). I COULDNT GET INTO ANY GEARS AT ALL AND SO I CALLED A TOW TRUCK. THEY CAME OUT AND I GAVE THEM THE KEY TO TRY AND MOVE THE CAR. THEY WERE ABLE TO GET INTO GEARS BUT I TOLD THEM I DIDNT FEEL SAFE DRIVING IT SO I HAD THEM TOW IT HOME. THE NEXT DAY THE SAME THING HAPPENED INDEFINITELY. I DID NOT WANT TO PAY THE DEALER 5600 BUCKS TO FIX IT AS OTHER PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. IM WAITING ON VW TO EITHER DO A RECALL OR SOME KIND OF RESEARCH TO FIX THIS PROBLEM. I ALSO CALLED VW AND THEY SAID THEY REPLACED THE MECHATRONIC UNIT FOR MY CAR ALREADY. BUT HOW WOULD IT FAIL AGAIN ALREADY? THERE WAS NO EXPLINATION THEREFORE I AM WAITING FOR A RESPONSE FROM VW OR GET A LETTER IN THE MAIL FOR A TOTAL RECALL.

NHTSA ODI #10786789

43,000 miles · Oct 15, 2015
Power Train

2007 VW GTI. DIRECT SHIFT GEAR (DSG) FAILURE AT 43,000 MILES. TRANSMISSION FAILURE OCCURRED WHILE SHIFTING INTO REVERSE. TRANSMISSION LOCKS IN EITHER "DRIVE" OR "NEUTRAL". "PARK" AND "REVERSE" ARE LOCKED OUT OF USE. CAR MUST BE LEFT IN "NEUTRAL" TO PARK AND DRIVER MUST UTILIZE EMERGENCY BRAKE SINCE "PARK" IS INOPERATIVE CREA…

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2007 VW GTI. DIRECT SHIFT GEAR (DSG) FAILURE AT 43,000 MILES. TRANSMISSION FAILURE OCCURRED WHILE SHIFTING INTO REVERSE. TRANSMISSION LOCKS IN EITHER "DRIVE" OR "NEUTRAL". "PARK" AND "REVERSE" ARE LOCKED OUT OF USE. CAR MUST BE LEFT IN "NEUTRAL" TO PARK AND DRIVER MUST UTILIZE EMERGENCY BRAKE SINCE "PARK" IS INOPERATIVE CREATING DANGEROUS CONDITION TO PARK VEHICLE. KEY CAN ONLY BE REMOVED BY DISCONNECTING THE BATTERY DUE TO TRANSMISSION INTERLOCK. VW EXCLUDED MY VIN RANGE FOR REPAIR / EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE UNDER OTHER RECALLS OR NHTSA ACTIONS REGARDING THE DSG TRANSMISSION. VW DEALER ESTIMATES REPAIR TO COST $5,600. VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA CUSTOMER SERVICE DOES NOT BELIEVE THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND WILL NOT EXTEND WARRANTY TO COVER REPAIR COST.

NHTSA ODI #10782590

110,600 miles · May 8, 2015
Power Train

I LIVE IN CT AND WAS VISITING COUSINS IN NJ ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 25, 2014. I TAKE THE EXIT OF THE NEW JERSEY TURNPIKE AND STOP AT THE FIRST LIGHT. I START TO GO AND THEN SEE THAT THE CAR WAS REVVING BUT NOT CHANGING GEARS. I SEE THE PRNDS LIGHTS ON THE DASH FLASH SIMULTANEOUSLY NON STOP. I JUST BARELY PULL OFF TO THE NEAREST PARK…

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I LIVE IN CT AND WAS VISITING COUSINS IN NJ ON SATURDAY OCTOBER 25, 2014. I TAKE THE EXIT OF THE NEW JERSEY TURNPIKE AND STOP AT THE FIRST LIGHT. I START TO GO AND THEN SEE THAT THE CAR WAS REVVING BUT NOT CHANGING GEARS. I SEE THE PRNDS LIGHTS ON THE DASH FLASH SIMULTANEOUSLY NON STOP. I JUST BARELY PULL OFF TO THE NEAREST PARKING LOT SINCE THERE WAS NO SHOULDER ON THE 50 MPH ROAD. I STOP THE CAR AND PUT IT IN PARK AND THE CAR DID NOT SHIFT OUT OF PARK AFTER THAT. THE NEAREST DEALER HAD JUST CLOSED AND THEY SAID TO WAIT UNTIL MONDAY! I CALLED MY COUSINS WHO STILL LIVED AN HOUR AWAY TO SEE IF THEY HAD AAA AND LUCKILY THEY DID. I THEN TOWED THE CAR HOME OVER 300 MILES! APPARENTLY THE MECHATRONICS UNIT DIED (THE BRAINS OF THE TRANSMISSION) WITHOUT ANY ERROR CODES OR WARNING. THERE SEEM TO BE QUITE A FEW COMPLAINTS ONLINE ABOUT THESE UNITS WITH SOME FAILING WHILE PEOPLE ARE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY!! I GUESS I SHOULD CONSIDER MYSELF 'LUCKY' THAT IT DIED WHEN IT DID?! VW DEALER CHARGED ME OVER $2400 TO REPLACE IT. WHAT'S EVEN WORSE IS THAT THEY ONLY WARRANT THE NEW PART FOR 12 MONTHS/12,000 MILES SO I GUESS I BETTER NOT TAKE ANY LONG TRIPS WITH THIS CAR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10715426

97,000 miles · Jul 7, 2014
Power Train

I WAS DRIVING AS I DO 5 NIGHTS A WEEK TO WORK. TRAVELING ABOUT 55MPH WHEN SUDDENLY, MY GTI EQUIPPED WITH A DSG TRANSMISSION DOWNSHIFTED TO WHAT I BELIEVE WAS 1ST GEAR. THE REVS SUDDENLY WERE VERY HIGH. THE VEHICLES SPEED SEEMED TO DRASTICALLY LOWER TO 20MPH. I WAS ALMOST HIT BY MULTIPLE CARS BEHIND ME. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO LEAV…

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I WAS DRIVING AS I DO 5 NIGHTS A WEEK TO WORK. TRAVELING ABOUT 55MPH WHEN SUDDENLY, MY GTI EQUIPPED WITH A DSG TRANSMISSION DOWNSHIFTED TO WHAT I BELIEVE WAS 1ST GEAR. THE REVS SUDDENLY WERE VERY HIGH. THE VEHICLES SPEED SEEMED TO DRASTICALLY LOWER TO 20MPH. I WAS ALMOST HIT BY MULTIPLE CARS BEHIND ME. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO LEAVE THE MIDDLE LANE AND GET ON THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY SAFELY. ONCE I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY, MY PRNDS ON THE DASH WERE FLASHING. I TURNED THE CAR OVER AND STILL FLASHING. I CHECKED EVERY GEAR AND ON DRIVE I WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT HOME SLOWLY. IT SEEMED THAT THE TRANSMISSION ONLY RAN ON 1ST GEAR. REVERSE GEAR IS COMPLETELY GONE. I CAN'T EVEN PROPERLY PARALLEL PARK MY CAR ANY MORE. VW SEEMS TO BE COVERING SOME MODEL YEAR DSG CARS. I HAVE READ SOME PLACES THAT 2008-2010 YEARS ARE COVERED, AND SOME PLACES WHERE FEBRUARY 2007 - 2010 PRODUCTION YEARS ARE COVERED. MINE IS A PRODUCTION YEAR OF JANUARY 2007. THIS DSG ISSUE IS WELL KNOWN FOR ALL YEARS. IT IS KNOWS AS THE "FLASH OF DEATH" OR FLASHING PRNDS. GOOGLE DSG FLASH OF DEATH AND THERE WILL BE MANY LINKS LINKED TO THIS ISSUE. I AM A HUGE VW FAN. I OWN A 2006 GLI 6 SPEED MANUAL AND THIS 2007 GTI WITH DSG TRANSMISSION. MY FATHER OWNS A 99 JETTA AND MY BROTHER AND SISTER BOTH OWN 2007 PASSATS. VWOA SHOULD KNOW THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE, THEY SHOULD KNOW THAT THIS IS A KNOWN DSG DEFECT FOR ALL YEARS AND COVER ANY ISSUES RELATING TO IT. I HAVE DONE THE DSG SERVICE TWICE. I CALLED VWOA AND THEY SAID MY CAR HAS NO RECALLS RELATING TO THE DSG. I HAVE SCANNED THE CAR AND HAVE COME UP WITH THESE CODES, P0751= SHIFT SOLENOID 1 (N88). P1746= TRANS. SOLENOID POWER RELAY AND P2723 = PRESSURE CONTROL SOLENOID 5. VW HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN A FAILURE TO YOUR TRANSMISSION WITH NO WARNINGS? WHAT IF I GOT INTO AN ACCIDENT AND SOMEONE OR MY SELF WAS SERIOUSLY INJURED BECAUSE OF A MANUFACTURER DEFECT? *JS

NHTSA ODI #10608492

78,400 miles · Sep 28, 2013
Electrical SystemPower Train

WHILE TAKING AN ON-RAMP ONTO THE HIGHWAY MY CAR GOT STUCK IN 2ND GEAR AND WOULD NOT UPSHIFT. I TRIED SWITCHING TO MANUAL MODE BUT THAT DID NOT WORK EITHER. THE PRNDS WAS FLASHING AND I HAD TO PULL OVER AND SHUT THE VEHICLE OFF. IT WORKED NORMAL AFTER THAT FOR A FEW MILES. I FILLED UP AT A GAS STATION AND WHEN LEAVING THE CAR…

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WHILE TAKING AN ON-RAMP ONTO THE HIGHWAY MY CAR GOT STUCK IN 2ND GEAR AND WOULD NOT UPSHIFT. I TRIED SWITCHING TO MANUAL MODE BUT THAT DID NOT WORK EITHER. THE PRNDS WAS FLASHING AND I HAD TO PULL OVER AND SHUT THE VEHICLE OFF. IT WORKED NORMAL AFTER THAT FOR A FEW MILES. I FILLED UP AT A GAS STATION AND WHEN LEAVING THE CAR WENT INTO NEUTRAL AND THE PRNDS WAS FLASHING AGAIN. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10546017

60,000 miles · Jul 19, 2013
Electrical SystemPower Train

WHILE DRIVING, THE VEHICLE (AUTO TRANSMISSION) APPEARED TO HAVE GONE INTO NEUTRAL AND THE GEARS ON DISPLAY BEGAN FLASHING. ONLY STOPPING, SHIFTING TO PARK, AND THEN BACK INTO GEAR WOULD ALLOW THE CAR TO ENGAGE GEARS AGAIN. 2007 VW GTI W/ DSG TRANSMISSION. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10525836

72,800 miles · Jun 9, 2013
Power Train

AFTER STARTING FROM A STOP LIGHT, CAR WAS FINE, THEN WENT IN TO SECOND GEAR, AND CAR JERKED AS IF IT WAS SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL. CONTINUED DRIVING AND THIS HAPPENED AGAIN, BUT EACH TIME, IN A DIFFERENT GEAR. THE SECOND HAPPENING WAS JUST AS DESCRIBED ABOVE, EACH AFTER DRIVING AROUND FOR ABOUT MORE THAN A HOUR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10515881

58,000 miles · Apr 17, 2013
Power Train

I OWN A 2007 VW GTI WITH MECHATRONIC DSG. I WAS IN AN INTERSECTION WHEN THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPED ACTING LIKE IT WAS IN NEUTRAL BUT THE PNRDS WAS FLASHING. THE CAR HAD NO ACCELERATION OR RPM'S. TRAFFIC WAS DOGGING ME AND 15 CARS ALMOST HIT ME DUE TO THIS FAULTY TRANSMISSION INCIDENT. I CALLED VW OF AMERICA AND THEY INFORMED ME MY…

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I OWN A 2007 VW GTI WITH MECHATRONIC DSG. I WAS IN AN INTERSECTION WHEN THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPED ACTING LIKE IT WAS IN NEUTRAL BUT THE PNRDS WAS FLASHING. THE CAR HAD NO ACCELERATION OR RPM'S. TRAFFIC WAS DOGGING ME AND 15 CARS ALMOST HIT ME DUE TO THIS FAULTY TRANSMISSION INCIDENT. I CALLED VW OF AMERICA AND THEY INFORMED ME MY CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY. ALSO THEY INFORMED ME THAT MY YEAR MAKE AND MODEL HAS NO RECALL OR PROBLEMS WITH THE DSG TRANSMISSION. VW OF AMERICA SAID SINCE MY CAR IS NOT A CERTIFIED VW FROM THEIR DEALERS IT ISN'T COVERED FOR A RECALL OR FACTORY WARRANTY. I FEEL COMPLETELY UNSAFE AND UN SATISFIED HOW THE REGIONAL MANGER OF SAFETY FROM VW OF AMERICA HANDLED THIS SITUATION. SHE WAS NOT FRIENDLY OR UNDERSTANDING AT ALL. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10508498

Official recalls

1

07V442000 · Exterior Lighting:headlights

Sep 24, 2007

CERTAIN VEHICLES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." SOME VEHICLES MAY NOT HAVE HAD A REQUIRED CAP INSTALLED WHICH DISABLES THE HEADLIGHT HORIZONTAL AIM AND SOME VEHICLES MAY CONTAIN A CAP THAT DISABLES THE VERTICAL AIMING SCREW.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: NONCOMPLIANCE CAN INHIBIT PROPER HEADLAMP AIM ADJUSTMENT FOR ROADWAY ILLUMINATION, IMPROPERLY AIMED HEADLAMPS COULD CAUSE REDUCED ROAD VISIBILITY, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT FOR THE PRESENCE OF A CAP IN THE SOCKET OF THE LOW BEAM HORIZONTAL AIMING SCREW AND INSTALL ONE IF MISSING, AND INSPECT FOR THE PRESENCE OF A CAP IN THE SOCKET OF THE VERTICAL AIMING SCREW AND IF PRESENT, THE CAP WILL BE REMOVED. THE RECALL WILL BEGIN ON OCTOBER 31, 2007. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VW AT 1-800-822-8987.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.