Volkswagen Beetle

I purchased a VW Beetle Convertible last year. This is a 2005 model. I will never buy another vehicle from Volkswagen. This car has all the noted problems that almost all owners of this model have experienced and I personally have had to repair the following in one year: window regulators, thermostat sensor, and airbag malfunction. I am currently looking at all the class action lawsuits being brought against Volkswagen and I recommend any VW New Beetle users do the same if they have experienced problems.

I wrote an awful review a couple of years ago about my new Beetle Convertible. Many of you have had the same problems. It's simply not a good car. But I have to give a positive shout out to VW. I had to pay to have my transmission replaced at 60k miles, the warranty ran out at 50k. However, not too long after that, Volkswagen made the decision to extend the warranty to 100k miles.

Although Mr. Transmission had already replaced my transmission, instructions for submitting a claim to VW said they would reimburse for work previously done. There's always a catch, right? I submitted my paperwork. I got a call from Volkswagen that they were a little behind but wanted to let me know that they had received my paperwork. Day before yesterday, I received a check from VW for the entire amount of my Mr. Transmission bill. Thanks for doing the right thing, VW. You just took a big step in restoring my respect for your company.

Wow, I wish I would have seen this site before I bought the worst car in my life - 2005 Beetle Convertible. Do not buy or even take one free, unless you like fixing things or spending money needlessly. Too many things going wrong. I bought this car with only 60,000 miles on it and thought I would get to drive it for a while before I had to shell out big money to fix. It broke down the very first week I got it. Alternator, fuel pump, tiptronic switch, axle boots, turbo leaks, window motor, oxygen sensor, engine light that can't be figured out by a dealer just to name a few. I could not even tell you what else is wrong because I cannot get past the first round. What a disappointment! I have already steered 2 people away from buying a Beetle and will continue to spread the word. I will never buy a VW again!

My wife and I purchased a new Volkswagen Beetle Convertible in 2005 and to date, have logged only 50k miles. My only hesitation in the initial purchase was the fact that it was built at a Mexico plant but I was assured it was of the same quality as the ones built in Germany. Not true! In 2009, the passenger side window just fell into the door twice. Once it was covered under warranty. The second time in 2010, we had to argue to have it repaired. Later in 2010, the rear passenger window wouldn't come up at all and required a $1,200 repair. Rear cup holder popped out of its spring holder and I was quoted $145+ to have it repaired. Multiple electrical issues as well.

In January 2012, the car began to hesitate and wouldn't accelerate smoothly. I took it in to a very crowded Volkswagen service department (now I understand why) and was told that it needed a $6k transmission. After numerous web searches, I'm surprised that Volkswagen has not issued a recall to date. This is by far is the worst car we've ever owned and I will never ever purchase another Volkswagen again.

I've never had such a love-hate relationship with a car. I love my Bug, but it's the worst car I've ever owned. (And I had a Vega!) It's one thing to have a car with problems, but the dealership makes the problems even worse by not facing up to the issues. Having had the window regulators fixed numerous times, the mechanics destroyed the interior door panel by taking it off so many times. Now it's cracked and broken, and they won't replace it.

I've paid hundreds of money at this point having the headlight bulbs changed as the one on the driver's side burns out every few months. The transmission slips, they "fix" it; but it does the same thing soon after. I've never been happy to have my car out of warranty, but knowing I never have to walk into a VW dealership again was like being released from prison!

I paid cash for my car and had planned to drive it until I could pay cash for the next one, but I don't think that will happen. To add, it is one thing for VW to have made a mistake building a badly designed car, but in my opinion, the bigger mistake is to deny their responsibility and pretend like these problems don't exist. VW has some other much better products, but because of my problems with the beetle, I'll never consider VW again.

I wonder why they don't make Beetles the way that they used to. You still see the 1969 models on the highways. Whenever I need to replace a part, instead of just needing only a rear view mirror, the dealership customer service reps tell me that I need to replace the whole assembly, which costs $500.00! The little rear view light was going out, I thought, but fortunately for me the light started to work again after I stuck a pen inside the little hole. The light has worked for me since then. Otherwise, I would have just used my highly beamed flash light that I keep in my glove compartment.

My check engine light came on and I took it to be checked. The dealer said I needed to have spark plugs changed and a tune up. Three days later the check engine light came on and the transmission failed. Thank god I bought an extended warranty as it is being covered. Otherwise, it would be a $6000 fix. The window regulator on the driver's side has also gone out. That is not covered under warranty, and I am waiting for the parts to come in and having a mechanic do it for much less than the $600.00 dealer charge. I have a mind to dump the car once I get the new transmission in after reading this board.

Power Window failure, 2005 VW New Beetle convertible - The front driver side and rear power window malfunctions/broken. My online research shows many other consumers with identical issue.

I have a rebuilt title on my daughter's VW beetle. We went to the dealer to have the valve body changed as there was a recall. I was told they do not honor a recall on rebuilt titles. A rebuilt title should not have bearing on a recalled part.

For the last year or so, I have been very nervous about driving my car, a 2004 Turbo Convertible Beetle. I will be on the freeway going 65 miles per hour and it will suddenly die on me. This happens on city streets too. I make sure that I stay in the slow lane just in case it happens and I have a place to get off the freeway. This is very scary and very unsafe. It makes me nervous when my teens drive it. I am a single mom of three teenagers and can't afford to "fix" this problem - which they have not been able to duplicate or diagnose - or to buy a new car and have a car payment. This is a severe safety issue. I rarely take it out of town and am very leery about driving it anywhere due to this problem. My car has only 76,000 miles. I have always had strange electrical issues with it as well, lights coming on and off, windows going up and down, blinkers, etc.

Oh and does anybody else's Beetle convertible leaks water whenever it rains? My window allows water to seek in the car whenever it rains. I don't know if the convertible top prevents the window from closing tightly, but because it rains in my car it also caused my floor mats to develop mold! I leased my Beetle first, which was not a smart idea. My husband and I decided to buy the car. So by the time we are done making the payments, we'll have paid on this car for 8! Highly not recommended! We've learned to not do this again with any car. To me, Beetles are not worth what they set them out to be. Too many problems!

I have also had that transmission issue. Mine started at like 30,000 miles! I would be driving down the freeway, and it would go from 65 to 30 in a matter of seconds. They replaced my transmission then, and it never fixed the problem. I have brought it in countless times, and nobody can solve the problem. Every time, it costs me a fortune.

In addition to this problem, I also have had the mystery leaks as well. I have replaced my water pump 3X, and I am only now at 72K. Once again, I am replacing pumps and flanges and tubes and so forth, and if I go in my records, these are all the parts I have replaced before.

There is a Facebook group about the beetles being lemons and the transmission issue. One of the women filed a lawsuit with a class action attorney. This is a major safety issue, and it is not being addressed. There are thousands of people with this issue. Join the group!

I purchased my 2000 beetle in 2005. I asked for a car fax, which did not indicate any accidents, major repairs, or needed repairs. About a month or two of purchasing the car, the airbag light and engine light came on. I've spent thousands of dollars trying to have these issues fixed, and it's 2012, and I'm still repairing the same issues. Both VW Springfield and Woodbridge, located in Virginia, have not been able to fix any of the problems. I just spent another $1,800 in repairs for the engine, and other things that they claim came from water getting into the engine coils. The engine light just came back on, after only a few months. Why can't VW mechanics repair VW vehicles?

In 2007 I purchased a brand new Volkswagen Beetle. Now that the vehicle is paid off and only has 73,000 miles, it is giving me problems. My daughter was driving on the freeway about 60 mph and the rpm went in the red area and the speed went from 60 to 30 mph in seconds. We took the car in to have them check it out and said we need to replace the transmission. They gave us a price which is $5600.00. I explained all the cars I have had in the past never had to replace a transmission especially a vehicle that haven't hit 100,000 miles.

I spoke to Jorge, he is the gentlemen that told me I needed to replace the transmission. He said it was internal problem but because I was past my warranty, I had to pay for it. My husband spoke to Oscar over the phone and Oscar stated they know there is a transmission problem, but it has to go through corporate and there was nothing they can do about it. I asked Jorge, "Isn't this a safety issue?" He couldn't tell me. That's horrible that Volkswagen service department knows there's something wrong with the transmission on almost every model, but no one is doing anything about it! I will never buy a Volkswagen again!

I'm not exactly dissatisfied of having purchased a Beetle. In my opinion, I don't think that Beetles should cost as much as they do, brand new. I believe that Beetles are overly priced. I also noticed that they had a recall on the windows for some models right around the time my window went out. They should have had a recall on all of the Beetle models. I had a lot of problems with my front window and my car is not old. The dealer refused to pay or at least give me some kind of deal to negotiate. Beetles are fantastic on gas, but they can be better. I wonder if these newer Beetle models will last as long as the older models.

I bought a 2007 automatic hatchback New Beetle in 2009. I love it and I haven't had any problems with it (except one of the clips broke that hold in the cover to the sunroof control, which I fixed easily with mighty putty). I'm sorry that some people are having trouble, but not everyone is. Mine still looks and drives like new. I do wish it got better gas mileage.

I own a 2005 Volkswagen Beetle limited convertible. The top was repaired several times a year while under warranty. Now it's not under warranty and does not work. The rear lights kept blowing out and bulbs were very expensive. I finally had it repaired and then the company has a recall after I paid monies to repair the problem monthly, not to get a moving violation ticket. Window regulators were repaired every time the car went in for service about 2x per year. Window regulators not working and I was told by the dealer that the entire window assembly needed to be replaced at $800 a window.

Within one month, I rebuilt the transmission, replaced a coil in the first cylinder and replaced the secondary air injection system including hoses in the tune of over $6000 cash! Every problem is a noted problem and or complaint by another beetle owner on the internet. I am financially committed to the vehicle once again. Had I know this prior to my purchase, I would have never purchased this car. My car looks like a cherry, everyone compliments it, but is actually a lemon! This car has never been 100% since I drove it off the dealer lot.

Volkswagen will not acknowledge the consistent complaints. My dealership is out of business and other dealerships do not honor transfer business. Parts and labor are extremely expensive. I called customer care and received no solution. I have no idea how to handle these issues. What will go wrong next?

I purchased a 2004 VW new Beetle convertible for my wife. We use it very little, currently at 45,000 miles. I have replaced the rear window regulator on passenger side about two months ago. Yesterday the driver passenger window regulator failed. The interior vinyl door covering is sagging and coming off the doors, the ash tray on the center console will no longer close, and the axle boots have split. VW has convinced me to never buy another car from them. From all of the web site postings I read, window regulators are a big issue with owners. $365.00 to replace a $30.00 item.

I bought my '98 Volkswagen beetle after working my first job for about 8 months, for my 17th birthday. I soon figured out it was a huge mistake. When I bought the car, the people who sold it to me completely rushed me into buying it and would not take it back . The day after I bought it , I tried to start it and it just wouldn't start. Soon we found out it was the charging system! So to drive it now, I have to charge it every night. Very, very irritating when I come home from a 10-hour day and I have to plug my car in and worry about it not starting all the time. Also the check engine light has been on since I got it. Battery light comes on, off and on and the cooling system light comes on. I recently took it to some to get have it looked at and I was told that would be expensive and most likely I would have to take it to Steven Volkswagen. Wow, what a great 17th birthday present. I just wish the people I bought it from would not have sold it to me. They knew the problems but hid it from us. They charged it before we test drove it so we had no idea it had these problems.

I own a 2004 1.8 turbo Beetle convertible. I bought it in 2006 with 30,000 miles. I replaced the clutch at 40,000 ($1400.00). I have replaced both rear windows ($390.00 for kit), driver's side window ($680.00) and window regulator ($300.00). The airbag light on at 55,000 and passenger side seatbelt assembly ($280.00) were also replaced. Now the airbag light is on again. There are problems with convertible top mechanism, convertible flap problems, thermostat light on, oil light and chimes on randomly (antifreeze and oil changed regularly). It ends up being $1000 plus every time it is taken to a shop. I had a Volkswagen years ago but will never buy another Volkswagen.

My overall experience has been very disappointing. Every single thing that can go wrong has happened to that car. We own a 2004 VW Beetle Turbo convertible. When we got it, we had the transmission problems, problems with the headlight, and with the control module.

Everything is falling, literally. On the backseat, there is a small compartment to put things, it's broken. The glove compartment is broken. The rear view mirror's right side is broken. I already need a new air conditioning compressor. I have also replaced the thermostat and some valves beside the whole transmission.

Now it needs brakes and it is leaking oil. Oh my God! My daughter was driving the car on IH 35 on a very congested area and the vehicle just went crazy. She was afraid that it was just going to speed up until it wouldn't stop! She called me crying and I could actually hear the car when she was calling. She was about to call 911 for help!

I have a 2006 VW convertible, closed the drivers side door when the window on the drivers side was down, and it spontaneously shattered. This is the second time, this window has shattered, (once previously when it was rolled up), since I have owned this car. The replacement cost is $193. I have read that this is common. VW should be held accountable for this equipment failure and recall, and repair. Loss of money, time, and glass all over my garage.

I used to love VW for their quality and craftsmanship. That is no longer true. I'm having problem with burnt oil with 60K miles on the car and the transmission shift, like it slips them, finally slams into gear in the morning. VW said there is nothing to be done since it is a sealed transmission. I have other minor problems, such as coolant sensor, O2 sensor, power door lock, lights popping out of socket, crumbling/disintegration of oil dipstick, and yearly replacement of head light bulbs. From the very little to big things, it is just not a good brand anymore. Sorry.

I am currently paying on a used 2005 Volkswagen Beetle. I am 76 years of age with not a lot experience in mechanics. But, I know when I have paid twice times for the same complaint without results that something is wrong. The problem is that after letting my car sit for a day or more, the battery dies on it. The last time this has happened, shortly after Thanksgiving, my battery began to smoke after one attempt of jumping the battery. I believe the repair people were putting bandaids on the problem instead of fixing it all together.

My car has given me so many problems and very expensive ones too. I have spent easily $1000 every time and this isn't maintenance. The most recent being headlight lens falling off. I have bought 2 headlight assemblies at $400 with labor for each and the one I replaced a little over a year ago is falling off again. I called up VW customer care and they told me that because it is over a month over a year, the warranty is void and I will have to replace again the second time for the driver side.

The design of the headlight is unbelievable! Who makes it so when it heats up it falls off? The design of the car and it being so compact has cause me many extra hours of labor that other cars don't require. There are so many horrible things with this car and VW in general.

I purchased a 2004 convertible new Beetle about 6 months ago for $58,000. New transmission and refurbished transmission valve assembly were installed a week prior to my purchase due to lurching. I now have 62,000 miles and the transmission that was supposedly fixed is acting up again.

I used to be a VW enthusiast, having owned 3 VWs since I got my license at the age of 17. It is safe to say that I will never own another VW again.

I currently own a 2004 Volkswagen New Beetle with just about 79,000 miles. Around 70,000 miles, I noticed some issues with the shifting of my car. The car slipped in and out of gear freely and at a big risk to public safety (The car will chirp and leap forward, even with my foot off the gas pedal, and I almost rear-ended a motorcyclist once.). And when it slipped in to neutral, especially while at a busy intersection, I do fear for my own safety.

After spending hours researching the problem online, I noticed very quickly that the transmission problem is definitely a known issue with VW. I have read hundreds of complaints that mirrored the exact problems I am having and that's not including the people who just pay out-of-pocket for a new transmission and don't bother to post their mechanical issues online!

With such low mileage and the dealer cost of replacing the transmission (since VW dearlerships don't repair transmissions; they only replace them) costing more than the current value of the car, I thought surely VW could offer some sort of assistance. So I utilized VW of America's live chat feature and chatted with Brian **. While he was kind, it went nowhere. He couldn't help. He was sorry, so on and so forth. After mentioning that I am concerned for my safety while in the vehicle, he offered the phone number for Customer Care. So I called the phone number and spoke to Allison. While she was kind as well, she said there was nothing VW would do for me. Apparently, my car was just outside of warranty for a valve body replacement, which has been reported to solve the issue.

I purchased a 2004 VW Beetle convertible 1.8L turbo new and it has had all kinds of problems from the very beginning. These problems are complicated by the actions of the dealer in my area and my communications with VW directly have been unproductive. I have had numerous problems with the engine light. This time, I was told it was a problem with the thermostat. After replacing the thermostat, I was told the problem was with a sensor. I replaced that and now they say it is the water pump and its plastic impeller.

Mind you, I paid their $98 fee for a "VW computer diagnostic test" that I was assured would "pinpoint the problem". The only thing that VW computer diagnostic testing has done was pinpoint the credit limit on my credit card! Everything breaks on this VW and due to the design, the labor costs for any repair is very high. Just wait until you need to replace the bulb in the headlight or replace the battery and learn that you must go to a mechanic because half the engine has to be removed just to access the part. And this is a car with only 59,000 miles! My first car was a 1969 VW Beetle and I thought this 2004 VW would be my last car. Well, it will be my last VW!

When is someone going to do something about these 'so called' VW beetles, which are a total piece of junk?

I purchased a 2005 Beetle in March of 2006. Two years later, roll over bag light came on. There's too much to fix, six months later the top came unattached on the passenger side and 2 months after that the knob fell off of the emergency brake. A week after, the handle to the left seat for back entry broke and now the transmission needs to be replaced right after the 5 years 60,000 mile warranty expired. The car is so cute and I really love it but I can't afford it. Others had told me about Volkswagen but I just didn't listen. Before you go shopping for a new car, read all you can about a Volkswagen.