2008 volkswagen jetta s my car has 36000 miles on it and I have changed the rear brake pads and rotors twice on this vehicle. It is my understanding that this has been a problem with many jettas around that year. I have luckily avoided many wrecks that I would not have potentially been in if the rear brakes responded as they should. I feel that this is definately a safety issue that needs to be addressed.
2008 Volkswagen Jetta brakes complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 23 of 23, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Changed rear brake pads because of squeaking noise. After that brake started to lock and smoke coming out of rear passenger side. Went back to my mechanic and was told could be problem with caliper. Changed caliper and brake locked again with more smoke and smell of burn coming from rear passenger side. Had car towed to mechanic and they adjusted brakes. Took car to vw dealer and was told nothing was wrong with brakes. Nothing happened for about 5 days and again burned smell came back, took car back to my mechanic day after since they were the ones that changed pads and caliper but brakes were not locked anymore.
I have experienced a challenge with my rear brakes on my 2008 volkswagen jetta so I began searching for information from others on the internet. Refer to www.edmunds.com for other concerns regarding similar concerns. I am not the only individual experiencing these challenges. Now let me describe my situation. I noticed some squeaking here and there around 26,000 miles. I asked the dealership about the noise at that time. They didn't share that anything was wrong so I drove off the lot. From that point forward, I heard the same squeaking noise only when it rained and they mentioned that happens when frost gets in between the rotors and pads so I did not think much of it. When I drove into the dealership at 31,000 miles they shared my rear brakes were between 2-3; therefore the rear rotors would need to be replaced. I shared my concerns as a volkswagen owner, (have owned 4 in the last 5 years), that it seemed odd that the rotors had to be replaced at such a young age of 31,000 miles. They assured me that they did nothing wrong and they assured me that there was not a recall about this issue. Overall I am disappointed with my dealership in their response considering I have been a long standing customer who does all of my service with them. And I am still left wondering if there is an issue with the making of the car; therefore causing pre-mature problems with the rotors. What would be a next step to share this information? I wonder how many other people have been affected.
Pre-mature rear-brake wear. The rear brake pads completely wore out at about 17,000 miles causing metal to metal contact with the rear rotors. Most of the miles are highway. Many forums report similar problems for other years of the vehicle and it seems that the cause could be calipers that don't disengage completely when the parking brake is used. Since I have a manual transmission it's hard not to use the parking brake. My rear wheels are always covered in brake dust and it seems like the pads will wear out soon again (about 22,000 miles later). I tried not to use the parking brake after the first repair and have a commute consisting of about 85 percent highway miles so this kind of brake wear is inexcusable. The front brake pads did not need any attention yet and look good.
I have a 2008 volkswagen jetta. I purchased it new in august 2008. The rear brakes wore into the rotors at 12,000 miles. The dealership repair shop had just informed me that the brakes were fine at 10,000 miles. The rotors and brakes had to be replaced at my cost as it is not a warranty item but a wear item. At my 20,000 mile checkup, I was again told that my brakes were fine and had 50% remaining. I took the car to meineke to have the brakes double checked. I was shown that the rear calipers are defective. They do not allow the emergency brake to disengage. As such, my emergency brake is constantly on, causing my brakes to lock on to the rotor. The mechanic had to use a crow bar to pry loose the emergency brake. I was told that I cannot use the emergency brake until it is fixed. I have a 5 speed and this is concerning that I cannot use the emergency brake. The dealership explained that the warranty will only allow them to replace one caliper at a time. If the other one is broken, then I have to wait until I drive it a while after one is replaced. I have seen a lot of data online about the exact same problem in several model years of the volkswagen jetta. Interestingly, my dealership was out of the calipers and had to reorder more. I am very frustrated that my safety has been in jeopardy as my brakes could have once again failed. I am upset that the dealership neglected to correct the problem. I had to take it to a different mechanic to finally have the problem correctly diagnosed. Incidentally, part of my engine went out within the first 6 months of owning the car. I have also had to have the front end repainted as it began chipping immediately. Now the door edges and the top edge of the hood are chipping.
Horrible brake wear on rear brakes on 2008 vw jetta.
We own a 2008 vw jetta. 2.5 l the jetta has 25,000 miles and less than year of ownership (purchased at 8000 as program car) rear brakes are completely gone & ruined one rotor -no warning prior? (per dealer) front brakes are fine told rear pads and rotors must be replaced.
2008 jetta se has had recurring squealing back brakes since day 1. Murrieta vw in ca says it is normal. They checked and sprayed. Good to go, but now at 14k miles, noise has returned. Only happens at slow speed (backing up/parking). Is there a defect on the calipers/piston assembly? Vw dealer says it is "normal." in 25 years of driving never had a car do this. It is very annoying and sounds dangerous. Cars should not do this, esp at 14k miles. Brake failure could be on the way, causing serious damage, or death.
Rear brakes are wearing prematurely on 2008 vw jetta. Only lasted 20, 000 miles.
I bought a 2008 jetta from rod east vw in late june, in late july my brake light came on, I then called rod east vw to inform them and they told me to call their roadside assistance to have them tow my car over to them. One week had passed and they had still not looked at my car so I informed them that I would need a rental car because I am a student and I have a daughter that has numerous therapy and dr appt every week. They said fine and the man that I was talking to said let me go get your child seat out of the car for you, he then came back to me and said how about you come to the back and get it from your car, I did and that's when I noticed that my car had a big dent and deep scratch from the rear right fender to the back passenger door...I was then told that that's how the car was when they got it and that it was my fault. He then said that he could talk to the manager and see what he would say. I called the manager, on my way home and he said we will fix it, I see that its a new dent and scratch and we will send it to a body shop to get fixed. I then demanded that I get all oem parts and I was it brand new again and the service man said that's going to be too expensive and it didn't need new parts he also wanted me to return the rental when I left on vacation to san francisco, that's when I spoke to the manager again and he guaranteed that they would be oem parts and I wouldn't need to return the rental. When I picked up my car after 3 and a half weeks they said nothing was wrong with my brakes and the light was out. I noticed the next day that my 12 volt lighters were not working and I called the manger and he told me to come in. I never did because I didn't want them to work on my car again. Today I took it to ancira vw and they said I had some wires mixed up, I started to drive off the lot and my brake light came back on! That can not be a coincidence and it tells me that some wires were changed to hide the fact that nothing was ever done by rod east.
2008 vw jetta wolfsburg (less than 5000 miles at first occurrence) brake issue 1st occurrence - coming up to a stop, and brake pedal lost pressure but re-engaged after traveling 2-3 inches beyond normal braking pressure. Very intermittent issue. After both of my teenage sons reported the same issue, I took the car into the vw dealership for repair. Thelen (bay city, mi) bled the brakes and returned the car. Within a few days, I was experiencing the same issue with more frequency, but could not reproduce consistently. Took to dealership a second time - this time told that vw said this was a "normal" brake function. Service technician drove vehicle home and back in the next morning. He experienced the problem twice and (as described to his service manager) "his heart went into his throat." still - vw maintained that this was "normal". Received an email from dealership owner stating same. After continued pressure, vw technical rep came to dealership and finally determined that the brake power booster needed to be replaced (over a two week span). Received car back, and within three days, the problem returned - as I nearly ran through an intersection when the brakes went to the floor before engaging (with ABS). Took back to dealer (3rd time) - dealer not able to replicate - stated that they cannot fix the problem if they can't identify/replicate - car still at dealership (5 days later). Met with dealership owner to express concern for the safety of the vehicle and my family. I refused to take vehicle until they came up with a solution for the problem. Scheduled meeting with vw rep at the dealership on 12/16 to discuss issue.
Excessive rear brake wear. Brake needed replacing at 12k. Car is a 5-speed manual and brakes are used very little.
Tl*the contact owns a 2008 volkswagen jetta. While driving 15 MPH, the brakes jerked when the pedal was depressed. The driver's foot was knocked off the brake pedal. The driver attempted a second time to apply the brakes, but the vehicle would not stop and crashed into the preceding vehicle. The vehicle has not yet been inspected by the dealer. The purchase date was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 7,300.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2008 Volkswagen Jetta?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history