2008 Volkswagen GTI: jerking or lurching

Filed Jul 12, 2018 · 164,956 miles · NY

The car jerks out when u accelerate. The car feels like it's in manual when taking off.

Filed Nov 14, 2014 · Fuel system · 99,800 miles · IL

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 volkswagen gti. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle started to jerk when attempting to accelerate. Also, the contact mentioned that the key had to be placed in accessory mode before the vehicle would turn on. The failure recurred numerous times. The dealer stated that the cam, high pressured fuel pump, and the evap purge valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 99,800. Updated 1/21/15*cn updated 01/26/15

Filed May 3, 2010 · Transmission · 25 miles · FL

My car is a 2008 vw gti with the dsg transmission. The transmission is very noisy, extremely difficult to drive at low speeds, and is jerky and bucks when downshifting. At low speeds, the clutch engages with a jerk and the car lurches forward to accelerate. When down shifting, it is difficult to brake because as the gears are disengaging and reengaging in a jerky manner, the amount of brake force required to stop changes too. I received a recall letter about this from volkswagen of america, but the dealership denies any letter was sent to me and that there is nothing wrong with my vehicle.

Filed Apr 27, 2010 · Transmission · 11,800 miles · GA

Hard jerking based in auto transmission occurring when in drive at a stop with no pressure applied to either the brake or the gas. This occurs consistently and daily under normal, in-town driving conditions.

Filed Dec 6, 2009 · Transmission · 10,000 miles · NJ

The car lurches when moving from a stop. This is a big issue in traffic due to the lag that exists in application of throttle to actual movement. What also happens is a momentary neutral when you apply full throttle when moving. This is not like a normal kickdown, the car does nothing at first then rockets forward , to the extent that it is very difficult to drive in stop and go traffic. I have had numerous close call in this car as a result of the transmission shift patterns. These are all present after driving the car 20+ miles to work in traffic.

Filed Sep 10, 2009 · Transmission · 10,081 miles · FL

I own a 2008 vw mkv gti with dsg transmission, and I have encountered the following problems. 1. After a 700 mile drive, I noticed that the prdns display was flashing, and that my transmission was locked in 2nd gear, no other gears could be used including reverse after shutting down my car, and letting it sit for 20 minutes, I restarted the car and it was behaving normal again, and the flashing of the prdns display was gone. 2. For a couple of days now I have experienced a potentially dangerous behavior of my dsg transmission, when coming to a stop it jerks and surges forward in 1st gear, the same happens when taking of from a stop it jerks and surges, which makes it for the driver impossible to control/modulate the speed with which the car will move forward, I have to keep a substantial distance from the traffic in front of me to not hit them by accident due to the surging behavior of my transmission this surging and jerky behavior is only in 1st gear and reverse, and happens when the transmission shifts back into 1st or when you take off from 1st or reverse. Currently dealers are aware of the issues, but have not been able to fix the issues due to parts not being available at the time I called.

Filed Sep 4, 2009 · Transmission · 9,000 miles · FL

1. Problem - rough up and downshifts in d, manual/tiptronic mode, and s modes (all modes available in the car). 2. When manually downshifting/upshifting the car or when allowing the car to do so on its own, you often get a slight to severe jerk. Problem occurs on 90% of all shifts. 3. Been to the dealership several times, have dropped the car off 3 times. First two times they had done software reset and then a software update. Neither fixed the issue although they told me the car was 'running fine' or the 'jerks are normal'. This third time, the mechatronic unit (what I feel is the culprit and have been pushing) is supposedly being replaced. Uncertain if this will resolve the issue 100%. Still do not have the car.

Filed Aug 28, 2009 · Transmission · TX

Jerking when going in reverse or when taking of from a stand still.

Filed Aug 24, 2009 · Transmission · NY

When beginning to accelerate from a complete stop the car lunges and/or is very jerky (extremely sudden starts and stops). If the car is on a hill the car rolls back very quickly and takes a while to start moving forward, if the vehicle behind is too close its possible to accidentally hit them. During congested traffic its unpredictable when the vehicle will suddenly lunge, in the event of getting cut off by another car its very possible to accidentally drive into them.

Filed Aug 12, 2009 · Transmission · 16,000 miles · OH

I've noticed starting this summer my car has been really jerky, even surging forward when stopped occasionally. A few days ago it actually lost power while I was at speed on the freeway. This is extremely dangerous, especially in the winter time with icy conditions where I live. After researching the problem I've noticed I'm not the only one with this problem. Something has to be done before it costs someone their life.

Filed Aug 11, 2009 · Transmission · 11,300 miles · NY

I will start with the most serious incident first. At the time of incident I was driving up a hill making a left turn into a side street. I stopped to wait for traffic to clear, when traffic cleared I let off the brake and pressed the gas pedal. The car slowly started to roll forward as I approached the middle of the oncoming lane the transmission shifted into neutral and the RPM's climbed. We started to roll back slightly. I pressed the gas harder and the car rolled back for a second, then slammed into the forward gear and I made it across the intersection, without being hit by an oncoming vehicle. My girlfriend was in the passenger seat and very upset about this. Earlier that evening we exited a driveway in reverse, then put the car into drive. The car rolled back and stalled. I got the car started and we resumed our trip. I took it to the dealer, and they said there were no fault codes and said everything is fine. Yesterday (aug 10th 2009) I was exiting a parking lot, making a left turn and again halfway through the turn the car went into neutral, nearly causing an accident, the car then slammed back into gear and resumed forward motion. In addition to these incidents the vehicle slams into forward gear from almost every stop. And when the transmission downshifts while stopping there is a strong jerky motion. Also in reverse the vehicle bucks as if is going in and out of the reverse gear. All incidents occurred while the vehicle was in normal "d" driving mode, for the forward incidents, or "r" gear for the reverse incidents. These jerky motions are daily occurrences.

Filed Aug 2, 2009 · Transmission · MA

-when I lift my foot of the brake and apply gas after coming to a stop, the car will hesitate and then violently lurch forward as it shifts into gear, this is extremely bothersome when in bumper to bumper traffic situations, when I have many times lifted my foot of the brake, applied no pressure to the accelerator, and the car proceeded to violently lurch forward 6 feet or so, nearly into the back of the car in front of me. It seems as thought the transmission can not slowly move into 1st gear. -there is often a delay in power when "getting on it", this is especially troublesome when making a merge onto a busy highway when I need to quickly accelerate. I will literally put the pedal to the floor and the car will either rev and not move, or simply stutter for 2-4 seconds. I am surprised I haven't been rear ended because of this already. -both in drive and reverse the car makes a bucking motion when a consistent light amount of pressure is put on the accelerator. Although my foot does not move, the engine goes into a cycle of power surges.