I remember having my keys in my hand and my car was slowly reversing out the driveway. I panicked, i was stomping on my brakes for a while jerking back and it took me about 2 minutes to finally get the key back in and try to put in park again. I went to a shop the following weekend because all the jerking and jabbing to get my key back in seems to have caused my ignition switch to misfire or whatever the word he (mechanic) used, so now i cannot take my key out like a regular person, I have to flick my key a certain way out anytime i want to turn my car off.(even mechanics have a hard time taking it out. I was also given a qr code to scan and was brought the this exact recall of the situation with my car. I now have my engine light on and [XXX] gave me the fault code for my map sensor. I’m not sure if the two are related but this was following the incident. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
2012 Volkswagen Jetta: jerking or lurching
6 of the 500 complaints about the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta describe jerking or lurching.
- owner complaints
- 6
- of this car's complaints
- 1%
- typical mileage
- 60,000
- recalls
- 0
Jerking or lurching by model year
What owners say
The motor kicks(jerks) really bad. It has been happening for about two years. I have taken it to a couple shops and the volkswagen dealer once and no one has been able to detect the problem. I have changed many parts thinking it would fix it and still happens. At this point im frustrated and dont know what to do the car only has 84,146 miles. It does it when driving down a city street randomly and is very scary.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 volkswagen jetta. While driving 20 MPH, the vehicle accelerated forward in a jerking motion without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be serviced per a recall related to the failure; however, the failure recurred. Also, a howling sound emitted from the engine and the oil and check engine warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, but the failure was not diagnosed. In addition, the contact stated that the headlights became inoperable intermittently without warning. The contact also mentioned that the front driver seat independently readjusted and the steering wheel shook violently when the vehicle was driven. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the purge valve and the steering rack failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure mileage was 66,000.
While traveling at a constant speed between 10 and 15 MPH the vehicle began to jerk harshly, and after about 2-3 seconds of jerking the engine shut off. The jerking has happened many times, and has been getting worse over the past 10,000 miles. The vehicle has stalled twice now, once at about 68,900 miles, and again at approximately 71,500 miles. The second incident happened more quickly and in a parking garage and nearly resulted in a collision. The jerking happens at all speeds, including on the highway.
The vehicle tends to stutter, lurch, or hesitate at low speeds. This has caused several dangerous situations when attempting to accelerate into another lane or onto the road from a driveway. The dealer has informed me that this is normal behavior for thedsg transmission and there is no fix. An internet search shows that many other drivers have experienced this problem. I cannot believe that this is "normal" performance, and I am concerned about it.
New volks jetta 2012. Purchased new from volks dealership with approx. 40 miles on vehicle at time of purchase. Since day one and continuing through today with 12,000 miles on odometer, transmission lurches and jerks, either slipping in and out of gear or seemingly not able to figure out which gear to be in. Usually occurs while trying to maintain a constant speed. For example, while in school zone with 20 MPH speed limit, car will lurch, jerk and shudder, sometimes violently with the symptoms described above. Additionally, when coming to a stop at a stop light for instance two conditions frequently present. 1. After coming to a complete stop, transmission is still in the process of downshifting. In other words, once completely stopped, you can feel the transmission still shifting down through the last couple of gears. 2. After coming to a complete stop at a light, when attempting to accelerate, car is not in gear and requires depression of gas peddle before car will engage in first gear. All of the above are dangerous situations. Dealer continues to insist that transmission is "learning" my driving habits.
Service bulletins that may apply
- This supporting FAQ is for the Turbocharger Limited Warranty Extension Class Action Settlement
- Cautions about using aftermarket transmission flush machines and aftermarket transmission fluids.
- Diagnosing Manual Transmission Noise
- Engine Misfire Diagnostic Aid
- Fluid requirements
- Manual transmission noise diagnosing
- Automatic Transmission Fluid Requirements
- Noise Diagnostic for Manual Transmission vehicles.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta jerking
Is jerking or lurching a common problem on the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta?
6 of 500 owner complaints about the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta (1%) mention jerking or lurching. The model year with the most reports is 2002.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta?
There are 0 recalls and 93 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta
Stalling 47Fuel pump 43Check engine light 32Loss of power 28Won't start 20Wipers 19Airbag light 17Headlights 14Fire or smoke 12ABS 11Door locks 8Hesitation 8Won't shift 8Adaptive cruise 7No deployment 6Grinding brakes 6Engine failure 6Misfire 6Brake failure 5Fuel leak 5Power steering loss 5
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