I purchased my 2003 new beetle convertible brand spanking new in dec 2002. The car had 32 miles on it when I bought it; the car now has 77k miles as of today. I have been experiencing a major transmission problems that vw is acutely aware of. The car is a 6 speed auto transmission with trip tronic. The car hesitates upon acceleration and before shifting into 2nd gear. Instead, the transmission lurches from 1st into 2nd, causing the tires to screech. When the car lurches forward it causes the front drive/steering tires to lose grip on the pavement which is a safety issue. There have been a few times when it jumped so hard it almost hit the car in front of me and sometimes the lurch is so strong it feels like another car hit me from behind. The transmission works fine when it is cool but gets worse as the car warms up - after about 5 miles. The other gears have shifting problems too; just not as harsh as going into 2nd. This happens when the car is downshifting as well. I have also experienced the car getting stuck in 2nd gear while traveling in traffic which created a danger for me and others on the road. The only way to cure the problem is to safely make my way to the side of the road, turn the engine off, wait a few minutes, then turn it back on. This doesn't completely make the lurching go away but it gives me several travel miles before getting stuck in gear again. I contacted my local dealership who looked up my VIN. They told me I was over my years for the recall on the valve body which is what should correct my transmission problem. I have lived at the same address since I purchased the vehicle in 2002 and never received a recall notice for this item. I am very disappointed in vw of america! I waited several years for the convertible version to come out and this was a birthday present to myself (this is how much I love this car!)
2003 Volkswagen Beetle transmission complaints
Page 3 of 6: complaints 41 to 70 of 134, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen bettle. While driving approximately 25 MPH the vehicle began to decelerate and there was an increase in the rpms. The failure occurred constantly after driving the vehicle for approximately ten minutes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The technician stated the transmission had to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 71,000.
I couldn't wait for the new beetle convertible to come out. I bought it brand new from the dealership. Now, after only 60,000 miles, I am told I need a new transmission. The car is completely unsafe to drive--it will get stuck in first gear, it will kick between gears one and two, and it will jolt suddenly and without warning. These vehicles are unsafe for the road.
The six speed transmission shifts at random I got this car for my 16 year old daughter and im scared to let her drive it. Got a notice in the mail from vw about it they drove it and said it was ok but obviously its not. They need to address this situation before some one gets injured.
Recall on airbag crash sensor back in 2008, which we had replace . However this problem constantly happen were the air bag crease sensor lights comes on and stays on. When you call the dealership they wants to charge the consumer. There is always a jerking in the power transmission while driving . This is dangerous you would think the car is going to stop going up hill. I made a complaint back in 2009 complaint #102868 never received a response.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen new beetle convertible. When decelerating to approximately 5 MPH, the vehicle would jerk before switching gears. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic and after inspection the contact was advised that the transmission failed. The replacement of the transmission would be at the owners expense at a cost of $6,000. In addition, the contact stated that the rear passenger window would open and close independently. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 123,000.
My 2003 new beetle convertible with a 2.0 automatic transmission (code: ggz) has a bad transmission that needs to be replaced and I see many other people are having the same problem. I cannot afford $6,000 for a new transmission and $3,500 for used. The used transmissions have more miles than my poor car. I want to file a complaint against vw.
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen new beetle. The contact stated the vehicle would jerk violently when she attempted to shift between gears. She also noticed debris entered the vehicle through the ventilation system which was a greasy substance that caused her eyes to burn and could have obstructed her view. The dealer nor manufacturer were notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was awaiting an appointment with a private mechanic. The current mileage was 67,700. The approximate failure mileage was 67,100. Updated 10/18/11*lj the dealer indicated the debris was a result of the A/C unit protection with a foam substance which was peeling off the A/C unit. The consumer also stated the main valve for the transmission was replaced
While driving at a speed of around 45+ MPH my wife's vw beetle randomly downshifted to the point that it squealed the tires and threw her forward. The dealership determined that the transmission will have to be replaced. Their estimate is $4900 for a used transmission or $6000+ for a new one from vw. They also said that this is a "known" problem with this specific transmission. The dealership said we should have received a letter from vw extending the warranty on the transmission to 100,000 miles for this problem. I have the letter but my wife's car has 128,000 miles so vw has refused to help at all with the problem. I also checked with two other vw dealerships in the kc metro and they immediately started nodding their head in agreement about this being a "known" problem with this transmission. As I was trying to locate a used transmission online at a cheaper price I was absolutely in shock at the volume of people that have had this same problem with this transmission. That random downshift is going to cause a wreck if it hasn't already. If someone is following too close, the pavement is wet, snow on the ground, gravel roads, whatever scenario you can imagine - a downshift of that nature could easily result in a wreck. I also checked with a national transmission company (certified transmission) and they said that due to a "design flaw" with that transmission they will only warranty their work to 12mos/12,000 miles instead of their normal 3yr/50,000. Vw's own letter acknowledging a problem due to "customer complaints", 3 dealerships stating this is a "known" problem, a national transmission company reducing their warranty due to a "design flaw" and the literally hundreds of discussions with the same problem - it is obvious there is a known issue with vw's "ggz" transmission.
2003 beetle conv tiptronic switch failure to down shifts on the beetle leads to false reading as to replacing of the whole transmissions on the beetles. Not safe while driving on freeway up- hill jerks like losing speed in shifting. Transmission should not be going out at 93, 000 miles do to tipronic shifter over $592.00 to fix 6, 792.00 for rebuilt transmission. I was told by vw to replace transmission due totipronic shifter failure est 6,792.00 dollars for transmission 592.00 for tipronic shifter. Replace shifter till have old part.
Bought car for daughter feb.2011. The gear seems to get hung up between 2nd and 3rd then the car will barely move. Sometimes when it goes in to gear it lunges forward. My daughter almost had a wreck trying to turn and the gear got hung up and stalled in traffic.
2003 vw beetle... Transmission "lurches" forward... Not safe. Vw extended warranty by only 7 years. That excluded any 2003's sold during normal model year. Only had 54,000 miles. Cost over $3,000.00 to fix. How can volkswagen know there is a problem and then exclude vehicles like this?
Near-miss but no traffic collision due to unexpected jerkiness, loss of power transfer to drive wheels, with associated revving of engine of 2003 vw new beetle convertible with automatic transmission, while I tried entering traffic stream on a busy street. Symptoms were intermittent for 9 months; now present whenever vehicle warmed up after 3 miles driving; vehicle not used for past 9 mo. Volkswagen dealer advises "replace transmission". Valve body failure in 6-speed tiptronic (aisin-warner 09g) automatic transmission causes hard upshifts and downshifts and lapses in power transfer, resulting in unsafe situations when merging onto freeway or into heavy traffic, for example. The 6 electrically controlled valves and associated solenoids in this transmission gradually wear out, typically soon after the volkswagen 5-year, 60000-mile powertrain warranty expires. The problem is traceable to defective design of the combination of aluminum valve bores, shift valves which cause wear in the bores, faulty solenoids, and shift programming which relies on frequent electrically activated movement of the valves to modulate and produce smooth shifts between gears. The consequence of continuing to drive the car can be complete transmission failure, which may occur unexpectedly and place the driver in a dangerous situation if unable to pull off the roadway, or if failure occurs while attempting to merge or execute normal driving maneuvers. In my case, the transmission operates well for the first 3 miles, but not when warmed up. Volkswagen of america announced a warranty extension on the "valve body only" for the 09g model transmissions, for a specific 7 years from vehicle-in-service date or 100,000 miles, whichever occurs first. I will have the valve body replaced by an independent transmission shop, using genuine vw parts, as vwofa has declined to repair my transmission or replace it completely unless I am willing to pay for a new transmission. The used parts will be saved.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 volkswagen beetle. While driving at any speed, the contact noticed that the vehicle would surge and jerk forward and shift hard between gears. The dealer advised the contact to have the transmission replaced. The manufacturer did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic; however, he was unable to duplicate the failure. The current mileage is 79,000 and the failure mileage was approximately 65,000. Updated 05/05/11*lj updated 05/13/11
2003 volkswagon beetle convertable..transmission company stating I need a new valve body..very dangerous to drive. Received the extension letter but was a little to late. My young daughter was driving has been stranded on the side of the road. Something needs to be doen about this..
I had previously complained about my 2003 beetle on this website. Somehow my car seems to have somehow repaired it self !! It is no longer shifting hard when it shifts and its no longer lurching or pausing as it shifts. Im not sure why, im just really relieved!
While driving one evening the car lost the ability to shift into higher gears on highway, thus limiting the speed to less than 35 miles per hour in a posted zone of 55 MPH. Third -sixth gears failed.
Transmission shifts very hard from 1st to 2nd and 3rd to 4th. Has even stalled on occasion. Has less than 70,000 miles. Transmission hits so hard it feels as though it will fall out of the car. I have stopped driving it due to this dangerous situation. Can not afford the 4,000 - 7000 dollars quoted to replace.
As happened to many other owners of this vehicle, the automatic transmission on my 2003 volkswagen new beetle convertible began to bang very hard when shifting and locked up periodically in third gear. When the transmission locked up in third gear while stopped at a light, the car was very slow to move. This left me nearly stranded in the middle of major busy intersections several times. I had to get out of the car to push it to the side of the road with cars whizzing past. This defect is very dangerous and is a known frequent problem with these cars through several year models. It cost me over $3000 to have the transmission fixed. Vw is well aware of the problems with the control valve in this defective transmission and has extended the warranty, but has left out cars sold at the time mine was.
2003 vw new beetle transmission valve body. Rough shifting up and down. 1st and 2nd.. Could not be driven safley. I had to have it repaired at aamco. Vw is rufusing to reimburse me. 4k +.
After around 36000 miles we noticed that the car would shift rough. The dealer told us it was not under warranty because it had a leak. The problem has persisted and we were told by a transmission shop that the leak was not severe enough to cause these problems. It now shifts so rough that when it goes into gear it pull hard left or right when it engages. Upon downshifting it actually lunges forward and has caused many concerns with me and my wife.
Drove 600 miles to purchase this vehicle-my dream car. Had it for 2 days, put the top down twice and the cable to the convertible top snapped. Couldn't afford to have it fixed right away (missed the whole first season of using the convertible). Finally got enough $$ together to have it repaired and found out a piece of something must have fallen down into the channel of the rear window and broke a part inside so added that to the expense, around $800. Replaced the brakes next (o.k. With that, normal repair of any vehicle). But, not too long after, noticed transmission had a tiny "slip". Ignored that since I didn't want to think something else was going wrong already. Progressed to where I am now, slamming down into the lower gears when slowing to a stop. Received a letter from vw stating if any repairs had been incurred during the warranty/extended warranty, it would be covered as 7 years or 100,000 miles, whichever came first. Well, as it happens, my car has just under 83,000 miles on it and the warranty had expired in april of 2010. I took it to my local dealership and they quoted me $2490 for repair. The service manager said he had a rep he could call to see if "there was anything they could do" since it was such a short time after my warranty expired. After it was all said and done, they would deduct $750 from the total repair if I would show good faith and purchase new tires ($500), new battery ($195 or $165) and an exhaust clamp ($58) from their dealership. I'm no math wizard, but that put me right back to almost the original repair cost. I am at my wit's end with this car. I don't feel safe driving it but have no choice as it is my only mode of transportation. I have been reading several other comparable complaints, so I know I am not alone. I feel that a 100,00 mile warranty should be just that, not 7 years/or.......
Occasional violent shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to third gear - automatic transmission. Very dangerous in intersections. Vw had a recall to fix this problem, I was notified by them last month- vw said my car was 1 year too old - can't afford to fix on my own - car is worthless with this problem.
Occasional violent shifting from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to third gear - automatic transmission. Very dangerous in intersections. Vw had a recall to fix this problem, I was notified by them last month- vw said my car was 1 year too old - can't afford to fix on my own - car is worthless with this problem.
My 2003 volkswagen beetle, with under 50,000 miles on it will shift dangerously hard. When it shifts into 1st or 2nd gear, it shifts with a slam and lurches forward. There is a pause before it shifts which makes it very dangerous due to oncoming traffic, instead of moving forward when it should there is that pause while it lurches down and slams into gear. It does this on a regular basis.
The electronic automatic transmission became stuck in third gear while driving in traffic. I had to turn the car off while in heavy traffic for the transmission to reset. This is a perilous maneuver, but I didn't have many options. The transmission had been experiencing some problems shifting both up and down. The upshifts are problematic in that the car can suddenly lurch forward when the automatic transmission re-engages. For example, when accelerating from a stop, the car will not immediately shift from 1st to 2nd. The rpms will go to @5000, then the shift will cause the car to squeal tires and lurch forward.
2003 tdi beetle (auto) jerks abruptly when upshifting. The car almost stalls in fast-moving traffic, creating a life-threatening condition. Dealer service dept. States a temperature sensor for transmission fluid is not functioning, and needs replacement. This is not a part that should fail as it threatens lives, and should be replaced by vw.
2003 vw new beetle has a faulty transmission which is presenting a safety concern as the vehicle is driven on roads and highways. Car does not shift right, hard shifts, bucking, etc. And now stalling, probably a totally failed transmission for which vw is taking no responsibility.
Vw beetle 2003, 61,000 miles, I noticed it shifted hard shortly after I purchased it this past april; jerks while shifting between first and second, second and third, etc; went to vw after I received the warranty extension - transmission valve body letter (received in december 2010, but they are unwilling to cover the cost because the extension is to cover 7 years, and my car is 6 months too old; they've admitted the problem but refuse to fix it.
Vehicle would lurch when down or upshifting between 2nd and 3rd and 3rd to 4th at just over 90,000 miles. It would also stick in neutral for a few seconds before engaging. We took it to our local shop for repair in december 2010. This is a well known issue with the transmission valve body causing a number of accidents. While the our bug was in the shop we received a letter dated november 2010 from vw about extended warranty to 100,000 miles or 7 years from date of purchase. Our bug was purchased august 2003 putting it out of warranty. Considering the number of incidents vw should have been doing a general service recall on the transmission long before november 2010..
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