Check a VIN

2001 Volkswagen Jetta electrical complaints

Page 2 of 5: complaints 11 to 40 of 117, newest first, as owners wrote them.

See the summary of 2001 Volkswagen Jetta electrical problems: which part fails, at what mileage and related recalls.

Filed Jul 22, 2009 · Electrical · 102,000 miles · CO · fire

Slight smell of smoke in 2001 vw jetta while driving. Parked car at home and returned to car aprox. 30 minutes later to find cabin full of smoke/smoldering from area behind right rear seat. Disconnected battery positive terminal and put water on smoldering area to extinguish fire. 8-10 inch hole burned completely through right side of rear deck. Upon my initial inspection it appears to have initiated from the center brake light wiring.

Filed Mar 10, 2009 · Electrical · MO

There were no events leading up to the failure. The epc light comes on sporadically, thus making you lose power in the middle of traffic. It is very scary when you have no power in rush hour traffic and you have to pull the car over and restart hoping the light will go off until you can get to your destination. The check engine light stays on all the time for apparently no reason. We have had it diagnosed but with no results. Help!!

Filed Nov 3, 2008 · Electrical, Engine · 40,000 miles · CA

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 volkswagen jetta. The contact started the ignition and the engine warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The warning indicator remained lit until the engine was turned off. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic ten times and they stated that the failure was related to the air filter sensor. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 40,000 and current mileage was 42,000.

Filed Jul 30, 2008 · Electrical · 87,000 miles · GA

2001 vw jetta epc light comes on alot. This should be recalled by the manufacturer. Car slows down to 20 MPH or less. Have seen complaints that the car completely shuts down. This is unsafe or myself and my 2 small children.

Filed Jun 18, 2008 · Acceleration, Electrical · NC

I own a 2001 vw jetta gls vr6. Since I have owned this car I have had problems with it. I am a young woman in the military and am in full time school, so I don't have the money to run around and fix it as much as I have been forced to do. First my gas gauge went out three months after buying it $600(under warranty) then a month later o2 sensor $300(non warranty). Then it was the catalytic converter$1500(non warranty) wiring system$1000(of course non warranty) windows wont roll up without rolling down again and sometimes get stuck$700(non warranty) cruise control went out$845 (non warranty), windshield wiper motor... Stationed in alaska and couldn't go without that $750(non warranty) now my secondary air pump is out and I was quoted $1294 from private mechanic and $1400 from vw. Also the cruise is still out and the windows are doing the same again. I have talked to many people in the same boat I have been in with so many repairs. Is there anything that can be done to stop vw from making faulty parts and charging an arm and a leg? I feel though that if it is brought up to you that my voice will be heard, because when I call the volkwagen customer service and complaints I get nowhere.

Filed Mar 9, 2008 · Electrical, Lights · NV

Numerous problems with 2001 vw jetta, purchased new in june, 2001.including : windows sporadically malfunctioning (when I called vw corporate as well as my local dealer, I was told that after the dealer evaluated problem I could be responsible for the labor charge depending on the outcome of their diagnosis!!); trunk latch has been replaced once (out of warranty) and now latch does not respond to remotes nor to the inside release on driver door; driver door lock does not respond to remotes nor to control on driver door (the other three door locks are presently functioning); interior coating on plastic door handles and center console began to peel within six months of delivery; center console latch broke long ago; check engine light comes on/off sporadically (brought car to certified mechanic but problem undiagnosed); a wax substance was constantly running into doorwells; vw dealer replaced coil, cables and buffer in response to rough engine idle complaint and I incurred all costs and inconvenience of car in shop , this at 72,000 miles,hazard lights malfunctioned; turn signals malfunctioned; now I hear of a brake light recall and an emergency light switch problem. I am just realizing recently that I am not alone with my jetta problems, that numerous jjetta owners are having the same problems ( I researched on internet) . Vw customer service not helpful at all in resolving these problems.

Filed Mar 2, 2008 · Electrical, Lights · NH

My brake lights are constantly going out. I will replace the left and then a month or so later I have to replace the right, or the center brake light or the license plate light. I am replacing about 4-5 lights per year on the rear of the vehicle. *tr also numerous electrical problems. 1/2 of the interior lights are no longer working, and when I unlock the car it will automatically lock on me within 15 seconds unless I start the engine.

Filed Feb 6, 2008 · Electrical · 40,130 miles · NY

Upon starting the car, it idled loudly and roughly. After driving for 2 minutes the car began to buck (as if there were multiple mini stalls while driving). When this bucking/bumping began the check engine light began to flash. The car was then driven to a car dealership service repair shop where it was determined that the ignition coil had failed. The owner, despite taking very good care of the car, will have to pay to get this part replaced.

Filed Jan 10, 2008 · Electrical · 97,000 miles · CA · fire

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 volkswagen jetta. The contact noticed smoke rising from the dashboard. The vehicle was taken to the dealer in november of 2007, where it presently remains. The clock spring was replaced. The most recent diagnostic indicated that the primary failure was the wiring harness and would cost $2,300 to replace. The manufacturer was unable to assist. The current and failure mileages were 97,000. The consumer stated took the vehicle to a private mechanic german auto repair and the vehicle was repaired at the tune of $1896 + $300 deductible. Updated 03/07/08

Filed Oct 17, 2007 · Electrical · 46,391 miles · NY

My complaint involves two separate incidents where I experienced jerking and sputtering from my 2001 vw jetta glx vr6. In both incidents, following the reduced level of engine power I smelled a burning and was forced to stop the car. Both times, my car was brought in for inspection and repair to two different vw dealerships. Each time, I was advised that the vw ignition coil pack had malfunctioned and had to be replaced. Apparently, the malfunction of this part caused other sensors to malfunction as well. Also, these parts appear to damage environmental protection equipment. In one incident described above, my catalytic converter had to eventually be replaced. Note that the first incident, which is documented, occurred at 34,560 miles. The second incident, which was very similar to the first, occurred at 46,391 miles and is also fully documented. The matter was reported to vwoa and I was informed that any portion of the nearly $2,000 I incurred out-of-pocket would not be reimbursed and there seemed to be no concern by vwoa representatives regarding any damage to emissions devices and/or potential fire hazards, I believe exist due to the malfunctioning of the ignition coil pack. Vwoa, in my opinion, is well aware of the many (possibly thousands) of similar incidents across the us and still seek to marginalize it.

Filed Oct 8, 2007 · Electrical · 70,000 miles · NJ

2001 volkswagen jetta vr6 1. Coil pack. Models before this had individual coil packs that were recalled due to cracking. This coil pack is enduring the same problems in many jetta's and has yet to qualify as a recall. Why?? 2. Wiper blades stopped working. I have encountered many people who have endured the same problem where the motor stops working.

Filed May 31, 2007 · Electrical · 45,000 miles · MD

Tl*the contact owns a 2001 volkswagen jetta. While driving 35 MPH, the vehicle decelerated to 15 MPH and the check engine light illuminated. The contact attempted to accelerate, but the vehicle speed failed to increase. After three minutes, the vehicle speed increased to 35 MPH without warning. The dealer stated that the fuel pump needed to be replaced and performed the repair. Approximately six months later, the failure recurred. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The check engine light illuminated immediately after leaving the dealer. The mechanic stated that the ignition coil needed to be replaced and performed the repair. The contact stated that there was a recall for the ignition coil, but the recall number was unavailable. The dealer stated that her vehicle was excluded from the recall. The current mileage is 150,000 and failure mileage was 45,000.

Filed May 25, 2007 · Electrical · 132,500 miles · TX

I have recently had the ignition coil on my 2001 volkswagon jetta gls vr6 go bad again for the third time. This causes sudden power loss while on the road and could be extremely dangerous on highways or other high traffic areas.

Filed May 15, 2007 · Electrical · DC

2001 volkswagen jetta customer wants to know if it has recalls on it**cc the consumer stated the vehicle has been repaired 3 times for a light that keeps going out.

Filed Mar 9, 2007 · Electrical, Locks · 58,000 miles · OH

Continuing problem-random occurrences: all doors will lock unexpectedly and alarm system arms itself. This has happened on numerous unexpected occasions without any activation by remote locking key fob. Doors will lock with driver or passenger(s) inside or outside the vehicle. Attempting to start the engine or open doors will trigger the alarm after the doors have automatically locked and armed. Starter is disabled when alarm is triggered. Safety concern from being locked out of car unexpectedly. Car has locked with keys in the car and driver outside of car, such as at gas station filling tank. Panic is induced when driver inadvertently triggers the alarm when trying to start the engine while unaware that the car has automatically locked itself and armed the alarm. Fear of small child being trapped inside car when auto locking/auto arming occurs.

Filed Jan 31, 2007 · Electrical · 46,205 miles · CA

While leaving to run errands with my 1 year old child in the carmy 2001 jetta glx vr6 started losing power as if it would stall. The check engine light and emissions warning lights came on. When the vehicle was taken to mckenna vw they said I had a bad ignition coil, wires, and spark plugs. While researching the problem I found that this is an epidemic level issue with 2001 jettas. A vw press release contained information that they were issuing a recall, however vw refused to include my car in the recall for reasons they will not disclose. They are selectively choosing which cars to fix, although this problem is very wide spread among all their vehicles. Please investigate this issue as consumers are getting faced with $1100 bills for each ignition coil defect - I believe mine has 6. This is only the first one, however I've read other complaints that multiple coils are failing causing near-accidents.

Filed Jan 9, 2007 · Electrical · MA · fire

Owner was driving the volkswagen and observed smoke coming out of the dash vents and from underneath the dash. Vehicle caught fire and fd responded and extinguished fire. Fire then erupted again and fd personnel cut the battery cables. Fire originated at center of dash behind radio and climate control panel.

Filed Jan 9, 2007 · Electrical · MA · fire

Owner was driving volkswagen and noticed sparks coming from the glovebox area. He pulled over, opened the glovebox, but saw only smoke. He then opened the hood and observed flames on the left side of the bulkhead/firewall. Fire burned throughout the passenger compartment, the front undercarriage, and part of the engine compartment. Cause undetermined.

Filed Oct 12, 2006 · Electrical, Lights · 149,880 miles · NJ

Dt*: the contact stated while driving various speeds, the engine intermittently stalled without warning and the brake lights were inoperative. The contact inspected the vehicle, and determined the spark ignition coil and brake light switch had malfunctioned and needed to be replaced. There was a the federal safety agency recall, # 04v096000, regarding the brake light switch. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN. The manufacturer was alerted. *ak updated 10/30/2006 -

Filed Sep 25, 2006 · Brakes, Electrical · 38,000 miles · AE

We purchased our 2001 jetta 1.8l turbo wolfsburg edition in jan of 2003 from a certified used vw dealer. When we drove off the lot, not 5 minutes later, the turbo seemed to fail and we began to lose power, epc light came on, check engine light came on. We immediately took car back to dealer and they fixed problem. Everything ran fine until sept 2003 our check engine light came on, shortly after we received notice that there had been a recall regarding ignition coils. We took our vehicle to a local dealership where they replaced the coils free of charge. This solved the light issue for a couple of months, then it came back on again, this time when idling fluctuating between 700 RPM and about 1500 RPM and stalling on occasion. We took the car to a local garage and they ran a diagnostics, cleared the failures to see if that solved the problem, which it did temporarily...ever since we have been running diagnostics trying to determine why our check engine light keeps coming on, each time the problem is temporarily solved. At first the mechanic thought it was the airflow sensor, but once they looked closer determined it was a different problem. We have had corrosion removed, connections cleaned, and our lambda sensor replaced. Now our car continues to run and idle poorly and sporadically, the car stalls when you slow, the turbo works on occasion, losses power when accelerating, when car first starts it barely moves with accelerator floored, brakes are very sluggish, sometimes really having to push to get car to stop. No one seems to know what the problem is. Everytime we take it in multiple errors pop up, last time there was 17 fault codes, mechanic keeps going down the list of what to check hoping to find the problem. The bill just keeps getting bigger and nothing has been solved. Recently think that the original issue and current issues are one in the same as symptoms are becoming more similar. Help!

Filed Aug 22, 2006 · Electrical · FM

I have a 2001 volkswagan jetta. At least 2 or 3 times, I had my epc light switch came on on the dashboard. Each time, I had to pay out of my pockets to get it fix. When the epc light comes on, I cannot get the gear out of park. I have to constantly pump on my brakes to get it out of park. This can take anywhere from 3 minutes to an hour. I seriously believe that there is a defect with this product. I ask other volkswagan owners and they also said that their epc light comes on occasionally.

Filed Jul 15, 2006 · Electrical, Lights · 66,100 miles · LA

I've experienced several problems with my 2001 volkswagen jetta glx. I still wonder why it's not a lemon. Had problems with the brake switch which was a recall. I also had problems with the check engine light. Technicians made diagnostic check and said I needed the heat sensor changed so I did. After a week, check engine light lit up again so I brought it back to the dealership and had another diagnostic check which I paid for again 78 bucks. This time the tech's said I needed the sparks and wires changed because it was shooting blanks. Pre-paid for the parts and when the parts arrived, I brought my car back to get it fixed so I did. Later, I got call from the service reps and said my ignition coil broke so they had to order that again. After everything was said and done. I just wanted to let my financer to just voluntarily repo the piece of trash. One more break down and I'm hiring a lemon attorney. This is too much.

Filed Jun 26, 2006 · Electrical, Engine · 47,000 miles · TX

Cel light would turn on and off. Car started to idle bad, sometimes it would not move when cold even with gas fully depressed. Then the car began to stall while driving. I took it to the dealer and they replaced the maf but the symptoms are still here and the car is returning to the shop today. I have read many, many accounts of the same issue.

Filed May 17, 2006 · Electrical, Engine · 67,000 miles · LA

Dt*: the contact stated the vehicle coolant leaked into the electrical wiring harness. An independent repair shop performed a diagnostic test, but no failure codes displayed. Upon further inspection, the mechanic determined there was a coolant migration problem. The electrical wiring harness was corroded due to the coolant leak. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer to await repair.

Filed Apr 5, 2006 · Electrical · 69,400 miles · IL

2001 volkswagen jetta glx vr6. In october of 2004 noticed the engine surging every once in awhile when accelerating. Eventually, the mil went on and there was a drastic loss of power. After bringing it into the dealer, it was deemed to be a $700 ignition coil pack. Research on the internet found that vw released a recall in february of 2003 stating a recall on all 2001 coil packs. I mentioned this to the dealer, and was told that my VIN was not included. I logged a complaint with vw customer care and they did nothing. In march of 2006, the exact same thing happened and once the mil light went on, I brought it into the dealer. This time it was the ignition coil pack, wires and spark plugs and they charged $1200. When I explained I had the same issue 14k miles and 17 months earlier, I was told that they couldn't do anything, as the coil pack was past its 12k mile warranty. The dealer stated they could do nothing for me and again referred me to vw customer care, who could care less as my VIN # was not included in the recall. This is completely unacceptable and unsafe, especially due to loss of power and surging. I am in process of writing a demand letter to vw, which will most likely not do much and will force me to take vw to small claims court to repay me for all of the repairs made.

Filed Feb 20, 2006 · Electrical · 54,786 miles · FL

I purchased a 01 volkswagen jetta in july of 04 and in les than a month it began to stall as I was driving, so I pulled over and it could not start again. I got it towed was told it was my battery and got that replaced, then it happened again a few months later and I was told it was my alternator and got that changed. A few month ago the car would not start again, I was told it was my sensors and got that changed, within 2 months it has happened about 6 times and I've had 3 diagnostic tests that reveal nothing is wrong with the car. I don't know what else to do, al least if I know what the problem is I can fix it. But my car keeps refusing to start( for hours at a time) and everyone tells me the car is ok.

Filed Feb 9, 2006 · Electrical · 49,500 miles · PA

The evening of january 12, 2006 I was on my way home when a light on the dashboard of my vehicle started flashing and the vehicle began to falter when idle. After arriving home I checked the owners manual and found out that the light indicated a malfunction with the emissions of the vehicle. I scheduled an appointment to have my car serviced on tuesday, january 17, 2006. I received a call tuesday afternoon from vic at victory volkswagen, who informed me that the ignition coil in my car was bad and would need replaced at a cost of over $500.00. Vic told me that they had the parts in stock as "this happens all the time". I had no choice but to have my car repaired and the total cost was $761.40. Upon searching the web I found a press release from volkswagen/audi in which they acknowledged the problem with several makes and models. Within the press release it was stated that vw/audi will begin replacing all ignition coils in cars potentially affected. I also found a defect investigation on the federal safety agency website (#dp05004) which stated that vw issued a csc to instruct their dealerships to replace the coil packs in the vehicles at no cost, regardless of their performance. As I did not receive this information from vw I sent a letter to vw asking them to honor the csc and cover the costs for the repairs to my vehicle. I spoke with craig peters and don moritz, both with vw and they refused to honor the csc. They informed me that even though the press release states that "all vw's equipped with the 2.8 liter vr6" were affected, it was in fact, an error and only certain vehicles were affected.

Filed Jan 20, 2006 · Electrical · 25,000 miles · MA

I am the second owner of a 2001 vw jetta glx vr6 with approximately 45k miles. I purchased the car in a private sale with 25k miles. Initially, when I bought the car it was diagnosed with a bad coil pack, which did not become problematic until approximately 2 months ago. Last week, I took the car to the dealer and had a new coil pack installed for $836, which includes a $99 diagnostic fee and $560 for the part. During the past week, I have had a case open with vw customer advocacy regarding the coil problem and yesterday I received their response. They have stated that my VIN is not part of the wg coil replacement campaign contrary to the wording of their original press release. Please reference tsb 10005665. As a result of this coil problem, I have had my catalytic converter replaced at 25k miles and have had experienced an engine back fire on the highway twice. At this point, I have paid the $836 to retrieve the car from the dealer and I have possession of the faulty ignition coil that was removed from the car. I have also asked vw customer advocacy to send me a written response to my claim. I am sure I am not the only 2001 jetta vr6 owner who has had this problem, only to find that vw is unwilling to stand behind their promise to replace faulty coil packs in 2001-2003 vr6 engine cars. The original customer service action was intended to preempt the issuing of a formal recall and vw is not honoring what they originally promised in having issued only 15 tsb's with a much narrower scope than originally intended.

Filed Jan 13, 2006 · Electrical · 85,100 miles · NH

I have a 2001 vw jetta. In the past two years I have had to replace both my brake lights 8 times. Including my headlights 3 times. My interior lights work and then they don't. I know I have an electrical problem. I had the car looked at once by the dealer and they said I must have bought a bad bulb! Yesterday was the 8th time my brake light went out.

Filed Dec 1, 2005 · Electrical · 47,000 miles · CA

2001 volkswagen jetta vr6. Ignition coil failure. My wife was driving at 65 MPH in the fast lane of the freeway - near complete power failure. Just enough power to struggle over to the hard shoulder. Very dangerous situation. From reading the website 'vw vortex' a forum site dedicated to vw owners, this is a very common problem with various vw and audi models and one which could cause (if it hasn't already) a very serious accident. The car cost $1,200 to repair. My wife's nerves will take a lot longer to fix!!!!

VIN decoder

See the problems and recalls for an exact car

Buying a used 2001 Volkswagen Jetta?

Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.

Check its history