2003 Volkswagen Beetle: headlights failing or too dim

Filed Jan 21, 2019 · Acceleration, Driver assistance · TX

The car is having issues as exactly the recalls has stated (I haven't known by now about the recalls) 1. Selector shift and shifter cables were broken 2. Break switch did not function, leading to malfunction of epc (electronic processing control) that later caused cruise control, taillight and AC compressor not working 3. Windshield wiper pump was not working 4. Headlight beam was low

Filed Jan 15, 2019 · Electrical, Seat belts · 76,000 miles · NC · crash

Passengers side headlight shorting out for 7th bulb replacement and new electrical problems. Strange, all within 6 months. My 21 yr old nursing student of ecu university has had the exact same issue while on her 4 hour trip home 7 times now. The wiring continues to fry itself in the main fuse box , now affecting theabs braking system. I paid $9k in cash and have electrical receipts, seat belt, convertible top, blower door, front end replacement, radiator, water pump, trunk latch, hydro licks on convertible, timing belt, 4 batteries, air bags! I could continue with a longer list. I added up to $17,000.00 I have in this piece of crap that continues to break monthly . I would be ecstatic to provide all receipts. Isn't problems of this great nature unreasonable for a car with 70,000 miles also considered a lemon? All incidents have left my daughter stranded on interstate 85 where she has feared her life fight off the homeless psychotic people. It has left me unable to buy her a new car with no savings due to fixing something new each month. And 27 degrees outside with no ability to start it. The seat levers back and forth have had to be bolted in one position to prevent seat belt electrical too short electrical cord so the faulty airbags may by chance deploy if she ever got into an accident. Latest is. She needs another water pump and timing belt from just being done 2 years ago!! Something major defects with this car. I fear for her life! Last trip home a car did not see her pulled over on interstate and side swiped her bumper. Water pump again.see photo of it leaking more when we had it towed home in garage. Also rear bumper of inciden

Filed Nov 5, 2018 · Lights · LA

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. While driving 30 MPH, the hazard lights, headlights, and turn signals failed to function properly. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer and the manufacturer was not notified. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage and VIN were unknown.

Filed Apr 15, 2010 · Airbags, Body · 65,000 miles · AL

The plastic window is separating from the cloth top of my convertible vw. Also, the headlights are constantly blowing bulbs and the sensor light of the passenger side airbag stays on. After fixing the light one time, the dealership mechanics said it was the seatbelt connector problem. They just want money, money , money and I am stuck with a volkswagen that is not functional for daily use.

Filed Nov 7, 2007 · Electrical, Lights · 37,621 miles · CA

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.

Filed Oct 21, 2005 · Electrical · 22,246 miles · FL

Like many others we had high hopes and dreams for our new 2003 beetle, we thought wrong. Like many others I am finding more and more complaints about these vehicles and this car just follows the trend. As for the classic volkswagen dealership, they have blessed us with one of the worst customer service experiences that we have ever encountered from a car dealership. The vehicle is now sitting at the dealership awaiting a new wiring harnesses for the turn signals and headlights (since the electrical jobs did not correct the problem the first 3 times). We are very calm and understanding people and gone in every time with a semi-positive attitude and asked them to just fix the problem. After biting my lip the 4th time I went to the service manager (pierre andre) and explained the issue to him. Pierre's immediate reaction was to pawn the issue to a service advisor (brian alexander who gives excellent presentations on partially burned out bulbs). After becoming a thorn to pierre he made an un-grateful attempt to diagnose the problems with the car, I had to force him to take accountability for the issue. To keep a long story short I have heard every excuse from this deal ship including but not limited to: partially burned out bulbs, corroded sockets, loose wiring harnesses, defective wiring harnesses, sun damage, user damage, road damage. We also made several attempts to contact the dealership head manager/president ken emerson who never attempted to contact us by any means. In several attempts to escalate the issue to a higher authority I was given the vw corporate 1-800-blowup number, which provided us several useless options. At this point we are biting the bullet and planning an attempt of the florida lemon law; if we do not succeed we will sell it to some person who wants a project vehicle.