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Chart based on 94 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.
Changed HID bulbs and igniters, a job that should take no longer than 10 minutes took over 2 hours dues accessibility and component design!
28000 mi
Replaced window motor: it ran backwards from all the other windows.
5000 mi
Sometimes the car fails to start in the morning. Three repair trips so far, but the dealer cannot find anything wrong with it.
12000 mi
Steering wheel buttons replaced.
22320 mi
Electronic part of drivers door latch intermittent. I.e. door open indicator, headlight on warning indicator etc.
23240 mi
Bad door latch sensor fixed after tech examined car at -15 Celcius ! Replaced part of drivers door latch under warranty. Latch was not *telling* the central locking computer that the door was open. All kinds of bizarre effects of that.
29140 mi
Drivers side rear door locking intermittent.
2000 mi
Weak A/C performance / Center air vent rattles
27000 mi
Leak in high pressure switch allowed loss of refrigerant from A/C.
67000 mi
Drivers door central locking module
17000 mi
US $225
Airbag fault light came on. Ended up being a faulty clockspring. Volkswagen agreed to pick up 75% of the cost even though the car was under warranty.
55200 mi
iPod Dock creates feedback through stereo, repairs under warranty extension as this was in shop just prior to 50k mile extension for this problem. finally fixed in fifth attempt when dealer realized problem was with the dock not cable or audio system.
50500 mi
AC high pressure switch replaced and refrigerant added. AC was not blowing cold air, AC unit would not turn on.
65300 mi
US $200
Replacement of HID headlight bulb.
102700 mi
US $210
Car had to be towed to replace starter.
122000 mi
US $200
A/C compressor took a long time to start pumping, sometimes 5 to 10 min. Found bad small Aux radiator fan and main problem was the Refrigerant Control Valve had malfunctioned requiring replacement and evacuation and recharge of R-134a
26000 mi
US $450
Audio controls on steering wheel, horn, and paddle shifters were not working. Airbag fault light was on. Fixed by replacing contact ring in steering wheel.
47000 mi
Headlight error light intermittent on console. Bulb replaced at no cost.
Various electrical quirks displayed, including an occasional failure to open the trunk lid and difficulty starting. New battery fixed these issues.
12000 mi
Foul smell when turning on air conditioner. It was fixed under warranty. No charge for fixing it.
46000 mi
Rear doors do not unlock with remote consistently. Dealer could not duplicate.
Edit: Battery was low. Replaced battery and have had no further problems.
49000 mi
Replaced AC compressor under warranty.
83300 mi
Replaced radiator fan. Replaced air conditioning refrigerant.
42100 mi
US $3000
dryer unit disintegrated and spread throughout the system. Pump was replaced twice only to fail after a couple of weeks. A specialist recognized the "black sludge/ residue" in the coolant lines. Required complete clean and new pump
Replaced audio component head unit/cd changer due to malfunction. Malfunction occurred when attempting to load CD in to 6 disc changer. Replacement covered by VW CPO warranty.
14000 mi
Sirius receiver was not recognizing the radio network. Could not activate radio with the provider. Dealer found receiver to be faulty. Ordered a new receiver to be installed later. Installed new sirius receiver. Problem solved
54000 mi
CD player would show an error code and not play CD's. Google showed that it required a complete replacement or battery unplug and reset. Did battery reset and works fine. CD player would show an error code and not play CD's. Google showed that it required a complete replacement or battery unplug and reset. Did battery reset and works fine.
19840 mi
The driver side power lock switch was faulty. It only worked half the time.
186 mi
HVAC system non-functional on day three of ownership. Repaired under warranty
37820 mi
Door lock stopped working, so car alarm would not arm. Dealer replaced door lock mechanism. Problem solved. Owner thought alarm was the problem, not the lock.
83700 mi
C $1000
Wiring to hatch reverse lights had worn out, rear backup lights no longer working. Wiring was re-done.
Window switch replaced on drivers side. Rattles not fixed.
42000 mi
TPMS light on and off intermittently. Re-calibrated system, but light came on within 10 miles after leaving. Replaced TPMS control unit. Light back on with in 10 miles again. Finally discovered faulty TPMS sensor in FR wheel. Replaced and light hasn't come back on in 2 days (where it was on nearly constantly before).
108700 mi
US $180
AC pressure switch needed to be replaced. AC system was then recharged.
128000 mi
US $40
Xenon bulb needed to be replaced
16000 mi
Horn stopped working and blew fuses. Dealer found a short in the horn and ordered a new part to replace it.
100700 mi
US $100
replace passenger door electric lock mechanism; door would not lock or unlock most of the time.
106000 mi
US $150
compressor regulator went bad and high pressure sensor went bad; replaced regulator, have not replaced sensor yet.
108000 mi
US $65
Replaced AC pressure sensor
88000 mi
US $30
Diagnose brake check light on intermittently beginning in January. Problem was damaged wire harness. Chose not to fix as yet.
123000 mi
US $305
AC pressure switch went bad and leaked all Freon. Switch was replaced and system recharged.
36000 mi
Trip computer that measures trip time driven, trip distance, avg trip mpg, instant mpg, etc. was not resetting on cold starts like it is supposed to. The computer was replaced and has worked properly ever since.
Both of the 12V outlets did not work after only 3K. I took the car in at 4900K for service and fuses were replaced and outlets now work.
28000 mi
Aux audio jack was replaced
US $45
Headlamp out
67000 mi
HEADLIGHT OUT Replace the left headlight. Owner supplied.
135000 mi
US $2650
Both headlight bulbs replaced
32000 mi
AC stopped blowing cold. Shop said it was a pressure switch. New switch installed and system recharged under warranty. Also ordered part for TSB issue for the DSG transmission. Part ordered but not installed. Car traded for 2011 GTI 4 door
18000 mi
CDC Hardware Error displayed when trying to play CDs in changer. Replacement head unit ordered New head unit delivered and replaced. Fixed the CDC Hardware Error problem.
18000 mi
on/start radio volume always at set level. old radio and manual state if low volume at off, will be low volume at on. but higher/set volume when turned on than when turned off. dealer acknowledged, said this is how new radios work. no fix.
19000 mi
Rear hatch / trunk light not working. Rear hatch also not closing properly when holding in the VW Emblem latch mechanism. Hatch open sensor broken, causing both problems. Hatch thinks it is always closed. Replacement sensor ordered. Same radio "on" volume problem. Volume always at approx level 5 when turned on, even if at lower volume when turned off. Dealer said radio is indeed not working properly. Ordered a new head unit.
20000 mi
Head unit was replaced in hope of repairing ON volume issue. New head unit does the same thing. Told "this is how they work now" Rear hatch sensor was replaced. hatch closes properly now and rear hatch light comes on properly.
36500 mi
US $45
Rear brake lightbulb replaced.
9000 mi
Light bulb in right mirror blinker (LED inside sideview mirror) went out.
A/C sensor failed, causing system to leak. Sensor replaced, system recharged.
70200 mi
US $40
One of two horns replaced
72500 mi
US $110
Replace headlight bulb
50000 mi
US $436
AC stopped working. Defective valve found, replaced and system recharged.
54500 mi
US $100
Lost a HID low beam. Replaced it and had the car serviced.
31000 mi
US $450
A/C Controller leak
36000 mi
Warning light indicating left headlight failure. Driver's side HID bulb after only 3 yrs. Dealer agreed to handle replacement of this VERY expensive bulb under factory warranty. Here's hoping 2nd bulb fails under warranty as well.
37900 mi
US $1000
Lumbar support motor was inop. Dealer replaced harness under warranty.
62000 mi
US $196
Driver side headlight dim--replace HID bulb
64000 mi
power window switch on driver's door does not always activate the driver and/or passenger windows
80000 mi
Check on auto adjust headlight system--headlights out of focus
52500 mi
Cruise Control does not work approximately 1 out of every 10-15 vehicle starts. If vehicle is shut down and restarted, problem generally goes away. Shop unable to replicate on this trip. Returned within the week for Cruise control issue because the problem had re-occurred during my drive. Took to shop and left car running so they could test while issue was happening; problem successfully replicated and issue located; parts on order.
37000 mi
Cruise Control repair parts installed and system tested for 5 full days while working with VWoA. Problem eventually rectified.
44000 mi
Gas gage stopped working.
5000 mi
Occasionally the radio loses all presets and can't access the Sirius tuner. At the time VWoA had advised that a software update would be available in the future. The car was in service for 1 day, but the issue was not resolved due to the software update.
5000 mi
air conditioning did not blow cold. found out that i needed a high pressure switch and the part had to be ordered. High Pressure switch was installed and AC now works fine. The Drivers door would lock automatically even if the door is open! Dealership told me i need a new door lock module and they didn't have any in stock so they needed to order the parts and i have an appointment on 7/11/09 to have it installed
6000 mi
new door lock module was replaced, door locks functioning as intended now. repair took only 45 minutes.
16000 mi
cruise control not working. Dealer "forgot" to repair it while it was in for recall work on another issue. This is the second time the dealer "forgot" to look at it.
21000 mi
cruise control was not working, dealer determined that a switch needed to be replaced but they did not have one in stock. drivers side headlight was out. Second time in six months. Dealer determined that the "igniter/ballast" was bad and had to order parts. dealer replaced drivers side headlight bulb and "ballast/igniter" dealer installed new cruise control switch. works perfectly now
23000 mi
Auto Leveling headlights are still shining too high. Dealership still unable to correct.
Door lock module failing. Symptom is the 'lights on' warning chime has stopped sounding when opening the door with lights on and keys out. VW online forums suggest it is a common issue with the door module. A/C takes extended time to start cooling and does not cool very much. Search of online VW forums indicate it is likely the A/C compressor solenoid needing replacement.
104700 mi
US $310
Had 3rd party shop replace a/c compressor solenoid.
108000 mi
Door lock module never fixed.
109600 mi
US $350
Battery replaced
111000 mi
US $400
Airbag warning light came on and horn was not working. Replaced the clock spring on the steering wheel
92000 mi
US $300
Passenger door would not lock (alarm would not arm). Door latch parts replaced.
97000 mi
Hatch latch will sometimes not lock or unlock. Repair shop claims the lock actuator was starting to fail.
92380 mi
C $760
AC has a leak, recharged with colorant in fluid in order to find the hole later.
125240 mi
C $240
The starter broke, but the mechanic now understood all the previous problems since the summer. Mechanic repaired starter temporarily.
See our lemon odds and nada odds page to see vehicles with no repairs or vehicles with more than three repairs. To see how
frequently 2008 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI problems occur, check out our car reliability stats.
