NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
67 reports8,600 miles · Jul 31, 2009
Power Train
PURCHASED A NEW 2008 VW GTI WITH THE DSG TRANSMISSION. AFTER 3 MONTHS OF OWNERSHIP, I NOTICED THE FOLLOWING PROBLEM: WHEN VEHICLE STARTS TO SLOWLY ACCELERATE FROM A COMPLETE STOP, VEHICLE SURGES BACK AND FORTH (JERKS) CONSTANTLY UNTIL YOU PICK UP SPEED THEN CONDITION GOES AWAY. THIS IS MORE PREVALENT WHEN ENGINE/TRANS IS HOT. AL…
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PURCHASED A NEW 2008 VW GTI WITH THE DSG TRANSMISSION. AFTER 3 MONTHS OF OWNERSHIP, I NOTICED THE FOLLOWING PROBLEM: WHEN VEHICLE STARTS TO SLOWLY ACCELERATE FROM A COMPLETE STOP, VEHICLE SURGES BACK AND FORTH (JERKS) CONSTANTLY UNTIL YOU PICK UP SPEED THEN CONDITION GOES AWAY. THIS IS MORE PREVALENT WHEN ENGINE/TRANS IS HOT. ALSO CONDITION IS WORST WHEN VEHICLE STARTS TO MOVE WHEN GOING UPHILL OR INCLINES, IT WILL SURGE HARD AS IF TRYING TO DECIDE ON 1ST OR 2ND GEAR. I WANT TO REPORT THIS, BECAUSE ON SEVERAL INSTANCES, SPECIALLY WHEN SLOWLY APPLYING THE GAS TO CREEP UPHILL ALONG WITH TRAFFIC, MY VEHICLE HAS SURGED FORWARD HARD ENOUGH THAT I ALMOST HIT THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME IF I HAD NOT AND REACTED QUICKLY TO THE JERKING SURGE. CONDITION ALSO PRESENTS WHEN DRIVING ON A LEVEL ROAD, BUT ITS MORE CONTROLLABLE THAN IN AN INCLINE. IT ONLY HAPPENS WHEN CREEPING OF GOING SLOWLY BELOW 1200RPM. I HAVE READ THAT THIS CONDITION AFFECTS THE DSG TRANSMISSION AND ITS MECHATRONICS UNIT IS PRONE TO FAILURE CAUSING THE SYMPTOMS I HAVE DESCRIBED. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278851
10,000 miles · Jul 29, 2009
Power Train
DSG TRANSMISSION JUMPING OUT OF GEAR AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS CAUSING MY VEHICLE TO SLOW DRAMATICALLY. WHEN STARTING FROM A STOP THERE IS A DELAY BETWEEN THROTTLE INPUT AND ACTUAL MOVEMENT. THE CAR WILL REV, AND THEN "LURCH" HEAVILY AND SUDDENLY FORWARD. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN NUMEROUS ACCIDENTS DUE TO THESE TWO PROBLEMS. SLOW SPEED "…
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DSG TRANSMISSION JUMPING OUT OF GEAR AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS CAUSING MY VEHICLE TO SLOW DRAMATICALLY. WHEN STARTING FROM A STOP THERE IS A DELAY BETWEEN THROTTLE INPUT AND ACTUAL MOVEMENT. THE CAR WILL REV, AND THEN "LURCH" HEAVILY AND SUDDENLY FORWARD. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN NUMEROUS ACCIDENTS DUE TO THESE TWO PROBLEMS. SLOW SPEED "PARKING" MANEUVERS ARE ALSO DANGEROUS DUE TO A "SURGING" IN ACCELERATION, AND OCCASIONAL LAG IN GEAR SELECTION. THESE ISSUES ONLY APPEAR WHEN THE TRANSMISSION IS WARM. I HAVE REPORTED THE ISSUES TO VOLKSWAGEN ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS ONLY TO BE TOLD IT IS NORMAL, AND SENT AWAY. IT HAS BEEN ONGOING FOR OVER 6 MONTHS. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278706
4,000 miles · Jul 29, 2009
Power Train
WITH ABOUT 4,000 MILES ON MY CAR I WAS PARKED ON A HILL GOING UPWARDS, I TURNED THE CAR ON ONLY TO FIND THAT IT WOULD GO INTO D, BUT NOT ENGAGE IN DRIVE AND I WOULD JUST DRIFT BACKWARDS. THEN I NOTICED "PRNDS" WAS FLASHING WHERE THE GEARS USUALLY ARE LOCATED ON THE MFD. I SHUT THE CAR OF AND TURNED IT BACK ON, EVERYTHING WORKE…
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WITH ABOUT 4,000 MILES ON MY CAR I WAS PARKED ON A HILL GOING UPWARDS, I TURNED THE CAR ON ONLY TO FIND THAT IT WOULD GO INTO D, BUT NOT ENGAGE IN DRIVE AND I WOULD JUST DRIFT BACKWARDS. THEN I NOTICED "PRNDS" WAS FLASHING WHERE THE GEARS USUALLY ARE LOCATED ON THE MFD. I SHUT THE CAR OF AND TURNED IT BACK ON, EVERYTHING WORKED OUT FINE. THIS HAS OCCURRED ONE OTHER TIME, SAME EXACT SCENARIO, AT 15,000 MILES. ALSO, WHEN STARTING OUT OR SLOWING DOWN, NO MATTER WHAT GEAR I'M IN, MY CAR WILL SHUTTER VERY ROUGHLY. I TOOK A FEW PEOPLE FOR A RIDE, THEIR REACTION WAS "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?: AND "IS THAT NORMAL?" NOW I HAVE HAD MY CAR AT THE DEALERSHIP TWICE ABOUT THIS, AND ALL THEY TELL ME IS THAT IT'S "NORMAL FOR THE DSG" AND I DON'T NEED TO WORRY. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278703
6,000 miles · Jul 27, 2009
Power Train
THE CAR HAS JERKING DURING LOW SPEED DRIVING AND HAS HARD SHIFTS SOMETIMES. WHEN BACKING UP THE CAR BUCKS OR WHEN TAKING OFF SLOWLY OR IN TRAFFIC THE CAR IS EXTREMELY JERKY. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278424
Mileage unknown · Jul 24, 2009
Power Train
WHILE IN DRIVE MY CAR JERKS AND LUNGES IN LOW SPEED DRIVING. THIS HAPPENS ON A CONSISTENT BASIS AND IS A CONCERN OF MINE. I BROUGHT MY VEHICLE IN TO MY LOCAL DEALERSHIP AND WAS TOLD THAT THEY ARE NOT ABLE TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT BECAUSE THE ISSUES ARE STEMMING FROM THE DESIGN OF THE TRANSMISSION, NOT FROM A FAULTY PART. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278235
20,000 miles · Jul 24, 2009
Power Train
MY DSG WORKED WHEN I FIRST GOT THE CAR. I NOW HAVE 20K MILES ON THE CAR AND MY DSG IS CLUNKY, UNSMOOTH, AND SOMETIMES THE REVERSE GEAR DOES NOT EVEN WORK, IT JUST GOES INTO NEUTRAL AND STAYS THERE UNTIL I GO BACK INTO PARK AND SWITCH BACK TO REVERSE. I THINK THAT THE DSG IS A GREAT TRANSMISSION, DON'T GET ME WRONG, BUT I FEEL TH…
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MY DSG WORKED WHEN I FIRST GOT THE CAR. I NOW HAVE 20K MILES ON THE CAR AND MY DSG IS CLUNKY, UNSMOOTH, AND SOMETIMES THE REVERSE GEAR DOES NOT EVEN WORK, IT JUST GOES INTO NEUTRAL AND STAYS THERE UNTIL I GO BACK INTO PARK AND SWITCH BACK TO REVERSE. I THINK THAT THE DSG IS A GREAT TRANSMISSION, DON'T GET ME WRONG, BUT I FEEL THAT TOO MANY OF THEM ARE FAILING TOO QUICKLY. IF VWOA WERE TO FIX THESE BUGS THEN IT WOULD BE AN AMAZING TRANSMISSION. I AM HAVING SO MANY PROBLEMS WITH MY TRANSMISSION THAT IM THINKING THAT I SHOULD HAVE JUST GOT THE MANUAL. VWOA NEEDS TO FIX THESE BUGS BEFORE SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS, TO ME, OR OTHER FELLOW VW OWNERS. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278158
12,000 miles · Jul 23, 2009
Power Train
PROBLEM WITH DSG TRANSMISSION SURGING AND CAR LURCHING AT LOWER SPEEDS. MAKES PARKING PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS AND DIFFICULT. CAR DOWNSHIFTS VERY HARSHLY CAUSING EXAGGERATED ENGINE BRAKING. VEHICLE WILL HESITATE FROM A STOP AND SOMETIMES IS INDECISIVE ABOUT WHICH GEAR SHOULD BE ENGAGED. WE ARE TOLD THE "MECHATRONICS" UNIT WILL…
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PROBLEM WITH DSG TRANSMISSION SURGING AND CAR LURCHING AT LOWER SPEEDS. MAKES PARKING PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS AND DIFFICULT. CAR DOWNSHIFTS VERY HARSHLY CAUSING EXAGGERATED ENGINE BRAKING. VEHICLE WILL HESITATE FROM A STOP AND SOMETIMES IS INDECISIVE ABOUT WHICH GEAR SHOULD BE ENGAGED. WE ARE TOLD THE "MECHATRONICS" UNIT WILL NEED REPLACED, IT'S BEEN OVER 4 WEEKS AND NO UPDATE ON PARTS OR SERVICE. WE ARE TOLD THE PARTS ARE COMING FROM GERMANY. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278094
20,000 miles · Jul 23, 2009
Power Train
SURGING DURING PARKING MANEUVERS HARSH SHIFTING FROM THE STOP LIGHT. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10278061
20,000 miles · Jul 22, 2009
Power Train
WHEN I FIRST BOUGHT MY 2008 VOLKSWAGEN GTI IT WAS A GREAT CAR, BUT SHORTLY AFTER THINGS STARTED TO CHANGE. FOR NO APPARENT REASON THE CAR STARTED DRIVING VERY ROUGH AND HAS ALMOST GOT ME INTO ACCIDENTS AT TIMES. ONE INSTANCE OF THIS WAS WHEN I WAS TURNING ONTO A HIGHWAY (RIGHT ON RED) AND AFTER ACCELERATING AND THE CAR SHIFTING …
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WHEN I FIRST BOUGHT MY 2008 VOLKSWAGEN GTI IT WAS A GREAT CAR, BUT SHORTLY AFTER THINGS STARTED TO CHANGE. FOR NO APPARENT REASON THE CAR STARTED DRIVING VERY ROUGH AND HAS ALMOST GOT ME INTO ACCIDENTS AT TIMES. ONE INSTANCE OF THIS WAS WHEN I WAS TURNING ONTO A HIGHWAY (RIGHT ON RED) AND AFTER ACCELERATING AND THE CAR SHIFTING TO 2ND GEAR FROM 1ST THE CAR JUST PAUSED AND TOOK 3-4 SECONDS TO SHIFT AND LEFT ME THERE NOT ACCELERATING AND ALMOST GETTING REAR ENDED. LUCKILY THERE DRIVER AVOIDED HITTING ME AND I WAS SAFE. I HAVE BEEN READING UP ON THIS PROBLEM AND IT SEEMS TO BE WITH THE MECHATRONICS UNIT OF THE DSG(DIRECT SHIFT GEARBOX) IN MY CAR AND MANY OTHERS ARE HAVING SIMILAR PROBLEMS. SOME PEOPLE HAVE BEEN LUCKY ENOUGH FOR IT TO BE FIXED AND OTHERS ARE STUCK WITH IT STILL NOT WORKING AFTER MULTIPLE FIXES. IT WOULD BE GREAT IF SOMEONE COULD LOOK INTO THIS PROBLEM AND FIND A RESOLUTION. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10277889
18,000 miles · Jul 20, 2009
Power Train
THE DSG TRANSMISSION ON MY 2008 VW GTI BEGAN ACTING UNPREDICTABLY ABOUT 3 WEEKS AGO. WHEN LIFTING OFF THE BRAKE AFTER COMING TO A STOP, THE CAR FEELS LIKE IT IS ABOUT TO STALL, THE ENGINE RPM'S DROP VERY LOW (250RPM), AND THEN QUICKLY JUMP TO 750-1000RPM, FORCING THE CAR TO BUCK AND SURGE FORWARD. IN REVERSE, THE CAR BUCKS BAC…
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THE DSG TRANSMISSION ON MY 2008 VW GTI BEGAN ACTING UNPREDICTABLY ABOUT 3 WEEKS AGO. WHEN LIFTING OFF THE BRAKE AFTER COMING TO A STOP, THE CAR FEELS LIKE IT IS ABOUT TO STALL, THE ENGINE RPM'S DROP VERY LOW (250RPM), AND THEN QUICKLY JUMP TO 750-1000RPM, FORCING THE CAR TO BUCK AND SURGE FORWARD. IN REVERSE, THE CAR BUCKS BACKWARD. THIS CREATES UNPREDICTABLE DRIVING CONDITIONS. I AM CONCERNED IT COULD CREATE AN ACCIDENT AT A STOP LIGHT OR OTHER INTERSECTION BY EITHER UNCONTROLLABLY SURGING INTO THE CAR IN FRONT OF ME OR BY BEING HIT BY THE CAR BEHIND ME AS THE CAR BUCKS FORWARD. I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO THE DEALER FOR SERVICE AND THEY IDENTIFIED A FAULTY MECHATRONICS UNIT WHICH WOULD REQUIRE 3-4 WEEKS TO BE REPAIRED. THE DEALER STATED THE CAR CANNOT BE DRIVEN UNTIL THAT PART IS REPLACED AND WILL REMAIN IN THEIR POSSESSION UNTIL THAT TIME. *TR
NHTSA ODI #10277526
NHTSA investigations
1PE09035 · Vehicle Stall/loss Motive Power
Opened Jul 17, 2009 · Closed Nov 19, 2009
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Power Train:manual Transmission
THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ARE EQUIPPED WITH DIRECT SHIFT GEARBOX (DSG) TRANSMISSIONS, WHICH FEATURE A 6-SPEED AUTOMATIC GEARBOX WITH TWO WET RUNNING CLUTCHES (DUAL CLUTCH) IN WHICH THE CLUTCH MECHANISM AND GEAR CHANGES ARE ELECTROHYDRAULICALLY OPERATED BY A MECHATRONIC CONTROL UNIT.THE DSG MECHATRONIC CONTROLLER INCLUDES EXTENSIVE SELF DIAGNOSTIC FUNCTIONS AND STRATEGIES TO ENSURE SAFE OPERATION AND PREVENT SYSTEM/COMPONENT DAMAGE IN THE EVENT OF COMPONENT FAILURES OR HARSH OPERATING CONDITIONS.THE BASIC HIERARCHY OF FAULT MODES INCLUDES SOME THAT ONLY RESULT IN THE STORAGE OF A DIAGNOSTIC TROUBLE CODE (DTC) AND CAUSE NO LOSS OF FUNCTION, SOME THAT STORE A DTC AND REDUCE VEHICLE OPERATION TO A LIMP HOME MODE, AND SOME THAT STORE A DTC AND CAUSE AN INTERRUPTION OF MOTIVE POWER (I.E., OPEN CLUTCH).THE DRIVER IS ALERTED TO THE LATTER TWO MODES BY THE DASH GEAR POSITION INDICATOR (PRNDS) FLASHING. ONE OF THE CONDITIONS THAT RESULTS IN INTERRUPTION OF MOTIVE POWER IS EXCESS GEARBOX TEMPERATURE.THE SYSTEM INITIALLY RESPONDS TO INCREASED GEARBOX TEMPERATURE BY RAMPING DOWN ENGINE TORQUE.IF THE TEMPERATURE KEEPS RISING THE MECHATRONIC UNIT RESPONDS BY OPENING THE CLUTCH.IN A DEFECT INFORMATION REPORT SUBMITTED TO NHTSA ON AUGUST 20, 2009, VOLKSWAGEN DESCRIBED A POTENTIAL DEFECT IN THE WIRING HARNESSES OF THE DSG GEARBOX TEMPERATURE SENSORS USED IN APPROXIMATELY 16,000 MODEL YEAR (MY) 2009 AND 2010 VOLKSWAGEN (EOS, JETTA AND GTI) AND AUDI (A3 AND TT/TT ROADSTER) VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH DSG TRANSMISSIONS AND BUILT FROM SEPTEMBER 2008 THROUGH AUGUST 2009 (NHTSA RECALL NO. 09V-333, VOLKSWAGEN RECALL NO. 37E3/S7 AND AUDI RECALL NO 37E4/J7). VOLKSWAGEN PROVIDED THIS DESCRIPTION OF THE DEFECT, THE WIRING HARNESS OF A TEMPERATURE SENSOR IN THE DSG MAY HAVE CONNECTOR WIRES THAT WERE INSUFFICIENTLY CRIMPED BY THE CONNECTOR SUPPLIER DURING A LIMITED PRODUCTION PERIOD.WITH INSUFFICIENTLY CRIMPED CONNECTOR WIRES, A TEMPERATURE SENSOR HAS THE POTENTIAL TO FALSELY DETECT A HIGH GEARBOX OIL TEMPERATURE, CAUSING THE TRANSMISSION TO ABRUPTLY SHIFT TO NEUTRAL.IF THIS HAPPENS, THE SELECTOR LEVER POSITION INDICATOR WITHIN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WILL FLASH.IN ADDITION, THE DEPRESS BRAKE PEDAL INDICATOR LIGHT WILL BE ILLUMINATED, ALERTING THE DRIVER TO APPLY THE BRAKES.IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, THE ABRUPT SHIFT TO NEUTRAL COULD LEAD TO A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.VOLKSWAGEN ESTIMATED THAT LESS THAN ONE PERCENT OF THE RECALLED VEHICLES MAY CONTAIN THE DEFECT CONDITION. ODI IDENTIFIED 40 COMPLAINTS THAT APPEAR TO BE RELATED TO THE TEMPERATURE SENSOR DEFECT CONDITION DESCRIBED BY VOLKSWAGEN.VOLKSWAGEN RECEIVED 139 COMPLAINTS RELATED TO THE CONDITION, WITH 7 INVOLVING VEHICLES REPORTED TO ODI, RESULTING A 172 TOTAL COMPLAINTS TO ODI AND VOLKSWAGEN.ALL OF THESE COMPLAINTS INVOLVE THE MY 2009 AN 2010 VEHICLES SUBJECT TO RECALL 09V-333. ODI ALSO IDENTIFIED COMPLAINTS OF HARSH/JERKY SHIFTING IN SOME VOLKSWAGEN VEHICLES WITH DSG.VOLKSWAGEN ATTRIBUTED THIS CONDITION, WHICH TYPICALLY OCCURS AT VERY LOW SPEEDS, TO EXCESSIVE WEAR IN THE BUSHINGS OF THE TWO SOLENOID VALVES IN THE MECHATRONIC UNIT THAT CONTROL CLUTCH OPERATION.VOLKSWAGEN DOES NOT BELIEVE THAT THE THIS CONDITION IS A SAFETY DEFECT BECAUSE THE CHANGES IN SHIFT QUALITY DEVELOP GRADUALLY OVER TIME, DO NOT CAUSE A LOSS OF MOTIVE POWER AND HAVE NOT RESULTED IN ANY FATALITIES, INJURIES OR SERIOUS CRASHES (THERE WERE THREE REPORTED PROPERTY DAMAGE INCIDENTS RESULTING IN MINOR BODY DAMAGE IN VERY LOW SPEED, PARKING MANEUVERS).VOLKSWAGEN ADDRESSED THIS PROBLEM IN THE FIELD WITH A CUSTOMER SERVICE PROGRAM THAT INCLUDES THE REPLACEMENT OF POTENTIALLY AFFECTED MECHATRONIC UNITS AS WELL