I own a 2004 vw new beetle and the transmission seems to be going bad. It is a sealed system so no one has tampered with it. At times, the vehicle will jerk very hard when trying to downshift from a higher speed to a lower speed (especially when trying to stop). At times, it will not shift up when trying to go from a lower speed to a higher speed, thereby causing a jerking in the vehicle. The people riding in the vehicle are also being jerked forward and backward as in a whiplash motion. There have been several people with a volkswagen new beetle that claim to have the same problem. There is a website where people have complained/blogged about their problems and vw is claiming no linkage to any of the effected vehicles. Can you assist in this matter or tell me where I can go to obtain assistance?
2004 Volkswagen Beetle transmission complaints
Page 5 of 6: complaints 101 to 130 of 157, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Transmission failed.
Vw new beetle with transmission issues that are dangerous. It will jump unexpectedly and at one point I actually rear ended another vehicle from the uncontrollable transmission issues. It will also hesitate in an intersection making for a hazardous situation.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen beetle gls. The contact stated while attempting to accelerate, the vehicle began abnormally jerking while switching gears. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the engine was repaired. The failure recurred within one month. The dealer then replaced the transmission gear box. Shortly after, the headlights and tail lights failed which were also repaired by the dealer. On a separate occasion, the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact was able to immediately restart the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The failure recurred twice. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer where the contact was awaiting a diagnosis of the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 56,000 and the current mileage was 64,000.
I have been experiencing numerous problems with my transmission slipping and jerking on hi ways and stop and go traffic. My vehicle mileage was approx 68,000 miles at the time. I have had a few incidents where the car did not move on the freeway since the transmission was slipping. This problems occurs everyday after the car is ran for around 5 miles. My vw is a 2004 vw beetle. I took the vehicle into vw thinking it was due for an adjustment or an oil change. I was given recommendations that the oil may needed to be topped off or the computer may needed to be checked. I was told that for 120.00 I could have the car diagnosed. I took the car into the dealer and was told to come back in a few hours. After calling back I was told that the car was cooling off and that the dealer was going to top off the oil for 40 dollars more. I paid a total of 160.00 and than was told that I would possibly need to buy a new transmission for 7,000 dollars. The service rep said I could purchase a part for 2,000 dollars and see if that would fix the problem but he already has 5 transmissions he is currently working on that need to be replaced. I felt that the service department new this was not going to help but saw the opportunity to take advantage of me since I was not familiar with this issue. I than checked the blogs for vw transmission and to my surprise found 240+ reasons why I was not alone on this issue. Please read the complaints of other consumers that are having the same problems. These people are our neighbors and friends who can not afford to spend their money on this kind of problem. Http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/webx?14@@.f124d77/0 please help us in resolving this issue. As on blogger said, we didn't buy a vw so we could pay expensive maintenance cost. Thanks for your time. God bless http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/webx?14@@.f124d77/0.
I strongly feel that we owners should not have to pay for replacing an expensive transmission which obviously has a recognizable "pre-existing condition" that could very well cause a serious accident. My 2004 beetle convertible 6-speed automatic turbo began shifting gears roughly, jerking and slipping on upshifting and downshifting a few months ago at 52k miles. Only after warming up. Sound familiar? Yes, my transmission is going out and needs to be replaced for $6000, according to the dealer and a private auto trans shop. I'm the original owner and the car has always been serviced on time by the same dealer. Never abused. Since many people are reporting these exact same symptoms, and since it might lead to an abrupt gear failure while driving, I strongly recommend the federal safety agency investigate. Web searches reveal the problem to be across model years. Wear & tear? No, I live in a small town in no.cal. And drive mostly freeway miles in light traffic with few gear changes. Please investigate.
A few months ago, my 2004 vw beetle conv started experiencing erratic transmission shifting-it would "clunk" into 1st/2nd/3rd gears, sometimes to the point of "screeching" off and almost laying rubber. This happens after engine is warm--after getting off a freeway or driving for a few miles. After several trips to my mechanic, and hundreds of dollars trying to fix problem, I have been told that this is a recurring problem with the vw new beetle after 60,000 miles and that the only fix is a new valve and electronic transmission costing from $4000 to $7000. This info is from my trusted mechanic of over 30 years. Vw will not admit to any engineering flaws and will not pay to fix vehicle. It does this in heavy traffic, at stoplights and intersections and has nearly caused accidents. Please advise if I have any recourse with vw to get this fixed at their expense.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen new beetle convertible. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked she drove and especially when she was slowing down. The vehicle had previously been taken to an authorized dealership for a transmission recall remedy in april 2007 for this failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealership again and was advised the transmission had failed. The contact called the manufacturer and they advised since the recall remedy was already performed, there was nothing they could do. The failure mileage was approximately 82,000. The current mileage was approximately 83,000.
I bought my daughter a 2004 beetle it has begun shifting hard 1st thru 3rd both up and down shifting. I've had it at the dealer 3 times and am getting the same run around. There's no way vw isn't aware of this issue, I called vw america to complain about the dealership but got nowhere. I'm fed up and tired of being screwed, the car only had 65k miles and I first took it in with 58k miles on it. Today they say I needed a new transmission at a cost of $6500.00 and is not covered by the warranty so I 'd have to fork over out of my pocket. Looking on the internet there are over 100 people posting the same problem.
The transmission in my 2004 volkswagen beetle convertible is defective. It slams into gear from 2 to 3 and I have been told to fix the problem will cost approximately $6000. Also the rear window will not roll up and the tail light on the driver's side has gone out therefore creating turn signal problems. I have checked on line and these problems seem to be an issue for other owners of this vehicle and other years. I also have had the waterpump go out which also seems to be an issue.
Six speed auto trans began slamming downshifting and slipping up at around 75k. Car hung in neutral 3 times on a 20 minute commute nearly causing near rear end collisions as it was necessary to pull off road to stop and restart car. Blogs are filled with many others with the same scary problem. Vw denies. Repair bill $5000.
I have a 2004 volkswagen beetle purchased in 2008. I'm putting in this complaint along with thousand of other vw beetle owners. The problem is the 5 speed transmission. It jerks real hard when down shifting and then again when coming to a complete stop. Now it's to the point where it won't pull at all. I have tried to call vw of america to see if there were any recalls on this problem but no will return my calls so I went on edmunds.com and realized there are many people with the same problem with the car and vw. I also called vw credit who I still owe for this car they told me they couldn't do anything about this, and to call vw of america. My question is what am I to do with a vehicle that I can't drive and I owe $9,000 on. That has a transmission that they are telling me I going to cost $6,000 to replace. Please! Is there anyone who can help my situation ? [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6).
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen beetle convertible. While driving at 20 MPH, the contact stated that when he depressed the accelerator pedal, the vehicle would hesitate before moving forward. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who informed the contact that the transmission needed to be replaced needed by the dealership. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 54,000. The current mileage was approximately 55,000.
I am the owner of a 2004 vw beetle convertible and my car has just hit 75,000 miles. A few weeks ago I noticed that when my car would go in or out of 3rd gear, it would jerk. At one point I was stopped at a light and when I went to accelerate it made a huge lurch and sputtered before going forward. I've also had issues shifting from reverse to drive. I took it into the vw dealership yesterday as I received a notification in the mail that I may have a faulty catalytic converter. I spoke with the dealership this afternoon and they are saying I need a new transmission. At only 75,000 miles? I looked this issue up online and have discovered hundreds of people are having the same issue. Some have even had this issue appear at 10,000 miles. From what I've read, most have replaced the transmission only to have it fail again. This sounds like a major defect and am wondering if this shouldn't fall under a recall.
My 2004 vw conv. Beetle recently had to be smogged for the first time,requested by the dmv. I have submitted all dmv fees but was unable to send a smog certificate because the car will not pass smog test due to the check engine light being on. I have had my car smogged two separate times only to be told my catalytic converter needed to be replaced, and my engine light was on. I was told I can only buy a catalytic converter from a vw dealer only for approximately $1000.00 vw america agreed to extend my emissions control systems warranty for a catalytic converter replacement to 10 years or 120,000 miles. I took it into a v w dealer to have it fixed & replaced but was unable to because the mechanic refused to replace the converter because his diagnosis supposedly found troubles with the transmission to be the problem, and he states that all prior diagnosis are incorrect and that the catalytic converter is testing normal. This diagnosis cost me a fee of 110.00 because they found there to be no problem with the cat. Conv, and the fee was charged due to them finding a separate problem. Mean while the check engine light is still coming on and the car is running terrible, I am told I have no hope of receiving any extended warranty help from vw , and not to mention there has already been a recall on my transmission back in 2007 which already required major replacements and repairs ,now only 3 years latter and here I am once again with major transmission trouble with no warranty. I find it very hard to believe this year of car is suppose to go through two transmissions in only six years. I also find it hard to believe two prior smog stations and there machines could be wrong about there diagnosis and found there to only be catalytic converter problem and mil light on. The bottom line is I cant get my tags from dmv because the check engine light is on due to emissions(functional) failing. And my car hardly runs.
I have a 2004 vw beetle convertible with 71314 miles. The transmission is acting up. I went to the dealer and they said it needs a new one. They want $4500 to $6000 for a transmission. They also said that is not recommended to buy a used one since they all have the same problem. I asked to the guy who was helping me after 3 hours with him; if the transmission on these cars were that bad? He said 'yes they are'. That was better to sell it and get another year. It was the same for all the transmissions (triptronic) for vw and audi. Vw knows the transmission is bad on these cars and all the ones that carry this transmission. Even if they fix it there is no warranty that is going to last because the original problem is not fixed. I've been doing a lot of research and you will find that the transmission is supposed to be maintenance free. Well, that is not true. The problem is that these transmissions are going bad around 30k, 40k, 50k. The problem is due to the valve body overheating. The ducts for the cooling inside the transmission are not big enough which cause the valve body to get hot and it start bending making the hold car to shake, hit inside, it feels very hard and rough. Dealers know that the problem doesn't happen immediately it can take 30min to 2 hour for the car to act up. They take advantage and sell you the car anyway because the car is sold as is and there is no warranty. There is no real way to fix this transmission only to put a different one. No the same with the upgrade. That is what they do. They sell you one with another valve body kit and new software for $6000. However that is not enough. You will find that after sometime a lot of people have reported the transmission failed again. There is thousand of complains about the same problem. Can the government do something? The transmission can fail at any time while driving and can cause the driver to lose control in an emergency situation which can result in an injury or even death. Again death.
Under normal use and regular maintenance the automatic transmission shifts hard up and down the gears. It does this under both light and heavy acceleration. Searching your website I see over 20 complaints on this very issue yet, I see no investigation or recalls listed. My local vw dealership says this will cost me around 7000.00 to replace the transmission, just from calling in and describing the problem. The danger come from unexpected jerks and lags in acceleration. You can not depend on the car to operate normally making it dangerous to make left hand turns and use in heavy traffic. This started off slowly, occurring randomly and now seems to occur no matter how far you drive or how warm the car is.
I also have the very common problem with the transmission in my 2004 convertible vw beetle. Every time I downshift there's an extremely hard jerk. There should be a recall. There are many many others out there with this same problem!
The problem is regarding my 2004 vw beetle - transmission. I needed to replace the transmission on my vw at 86,000 miles with no help from vw...the car was running very hard, it would stay in 2 or 3rd gear (though an automatic) and then would go into "neutral"....this happened while driving on highway 95 with high speed traffic. The car was checked by a vw dealer and then tried a few things, but couldn't figure it out...then finally said it needed a new transmission - $6500 without labor! I then brought it to a local aamco and then confirmed the need for a transmission(for a lot less) and they also needed to rebuilt some other parts that were faulty. This is definitely a design issue for vw but they refuse to acknowledge it. This should be a recall and a refund for those of us who have already spent the money.
2004 vw beetle downshifts without reason. This has happened in city traffic two times. The last time the car was driven, because it is not safe to drive, it downshifted from 6th gear to 2nd gear while being driven on the interstate.
Problems with transmission/shifting problems. Everytime the car shifts into a gear, its very rough and infact will jerk very hard. This started every once in a while and began happening more regular as a month or so went on. Now it will stick in 3rd gear and just stay there. We can stop at a redlight, and it will remain in 3rd gear, then drive from the redlight with the car starting in 3rd gear! This is a safety issue, because the car will stick when shifting almost everytime and you could push the gas but only the rpms will go up..nothing else. This could cause me to be rear ended or hit from the side when turning left. I have had many close calls due to this issue! I have children, and the car is not safe to drive anymore. I have priced what would fix this, and its not only that I can not afford it, but the solution to the problem is only temporary! I have seen many, many people have the same issues with the same car, and they have spent countless dollars on a problem that still persists. This past saturday my family was driving and the car stuck in gear going 45 MPH, which caused the car to descend in speed, giving the people behind us hardly no time to realize what was happening. We were very very close to an accident. To add to this problem I have had an airbag sensor come on the dash about 2 months ago and will not go off. I had this looked at because it was a safety recall, but the vw dealer told me that my car was no one of the vins, but looked as if it had the same problem! This is serious! They said they could fix it, for a very high amount, but if it was defective that I could be bringing it back in for repair! This is not acceptable!!! We are talking about life or death in a crash!
I have a 2004 volkswagen beetle convertible and have had numerous problems with the transmission jerking and shifting hard. The car has 55,000 miles, and the dealership cant tell me nothing only that I need a new transmission for around $7000. I have done research and talked with a lot of people with the very same issues.
2004 vw beetle downshifts from higher gear down to 2nd gear without reason or warning. Twice I was traveling at 40 MPH and the 3rd time happened on interstate 26 at 60 MPH. Very dangerous. Each time the car had to be towed. When the car cooled down, it could be driven 8-10 miles with no problem and then it would downshift again. This car has been at the auto repair shop for 8 months. Vw will not acknowledge the problem.
At about 35,000 miles my car started slipping with the transmission. It would jerk forward and sometimes get stuck in between 1, 3, and 4th gears. This was not a huge problem at this point and during my regular check ups, vw dealership always said there was no problem detected. 2. The automatic transmission is now failing at 60,000 miles. It has almost caused me several accidents, especially at intersections. People almost rearend me daily. Not only is the car jerking forward and backward upon gear shifting, but now it gets stuck period and will not move..the RPM's going all the way to 6-7. The tires spin, the car groans horribly, the gears show up on my dash in brackets. When I had a diagnostic test done at the dealership about four months ago, and I explained in detail the tranny problem, they said nothing was wrong with it. Now, I can tell it is almost undrivable at this pt. On my fifteen mile commute home today, I had to pull over seven times because the transmission failed. I could not get out of first gear then it jumped to six. I was stuck in the middle of an intersection at a red light, almost getting backended. This is terrifying. I had a panic attack. I have an appt. Tomorrow at the dealership to see what the problem is and how much money this will cost me. My car has always been checked up regularly.
Have a 2004 vw beetle with automatic transmission. When the car warms up the transmission sticks for a few seconds and then jerks into gear, causing a dangerous lurch forward. It is my daughters car and she is scared to drive it because she has almost wrecked on a few occasions when this has happened.
For the past several months, after driving my 2004 beetle convertible for about 15-20 minutes, my car starts to shift (it feels as if I have been rear ended) and my car is jerked forward. I feel that this is a safety risk to me, my passengers and the vehicles around me. I took my car to the dealer and was informed that it need a new transmission ($7,000). After much thought and several weeks, I moved my vehicle to a local transmission shop. I was informed that the beetle convertibles had a special transmission and that replacing one would be extremely expensive and that I should put in a salvaged transmission. Costs between $4000-$5000. This transmission will also have the risk of defection. I voiced my complaint with volkswagen corp. And they would not help me since my power train warranty has expired. I am extremely upset about this.
Transmission failure in my 2004 vw beetle. Began shifting very hard after engine warmed up. It will shift so hard the tires burn rubber on the pavement between 2nd and 3rd. It also randomly shifts between gears at high speeds.
There seems to be a problem with the 2004 vw beetle transmission valve body at around 60,000 miles. We have our 04 vw at a transmission shop and I am being told that this seems to be enough of a problem that vw changed the design from 2004 to 2005. Vw does not admit anything and says that the car must be taken to a vw dealership in order that they can address this issue, I do not believe them.
I have a 2004 new beetle convertible w/60,000. Miles on it. Transmission shifting from a stop, it won't go into proper gears. It jerks really bad after bogging down (not going into gear). I have had several near misses in getting rear-ended. This has been going on & the vw dealer just says they need to diagnose the problem so to start it is $150. & I was told it could need a new transmission; but, I see other posting of similar issues on web sites when I did a search about it. That is where I found this link, I think this is a dangerous & costly issue! I believe it is a recall issue for volkswagen.
The transmission intermittently has trouble upshifting and downshifting between gears. It jerks, hesitates and then lurches forward. It starts occurring after about 5-10 min drive. It is especially uncontrollable when downshifting. The car slows down, the panel shows downshifted gear, car almost stops, then makes a sharp sudden movement forward. It is especially dangerous at intersections, because of uncontrollable jerks.
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