2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 2009

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI repairs by problem area

Engine (42%)

Transmission and Drivetrain (7%)

Brakes and Traction Control (9%)

Suspension and Steering (8%)

Electrical and Air Conditioning (21%)

Paint, Rust, Leaks, Rattles, and Trim (9%)

Other (3%)

Chart based on 219 repairs.
See TSBs and recalls for the 2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI.

2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI engine repair cost distribution

$2500+ (9%)

$1000 - $2499 (5%)

$500 - $999 (14%)

$100 - $499 (30%)

< $100 (42%)

Worried about potential repair costs? An extended warranty can provide peace of mind.

Chart based on 77 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.

2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 4dr Hatch

turbocharged 200hp 2.0L I4 6-speed manual FWD

41000 mi some kind of stepper motor on the intake. car was fixed under warranty. seems to be a common issue per various forums. 
41540 mi replaced 1 ignition coil plug. 
6100 mi Loose wiring harness to fuel injection caused loss of power. TSB on this, known problem.  
32100 mi

US $600
Intake manifold/fuel injectors clogged with carbon build up. 
35000 mi

US $170
Ignition coil failure 
47000 mi

US $400
High pressure fuel pump. 
4000 mi Car has an idle problem at normal operating temperature. On 2nd visit to the dealership the throttle body was replaced under warranty. 
4240 mi The car went back two more times, on the 4th visit the dealer replaced the PCV valve. 
5200 mi Car still has an idle problem and also has a blown speaker. Car is at the dealership to have the purge valve replaced. 
6000 mi This was the 4th time that the CEL turned on. The problem was either new or the original problem but attempts to repair were made by replacing the throttle body and PCV valve. This time the purge valve was replaced. CEL has remained off since then 
28000 mi Intake manifold was replaced under warranty. Misfire on cylinder 2. Engine continued to misfire, then would not start after being turned off. Suspect the cause was humidity related. Problem went away after rain stopped. 
76300 mi

US $259
Heated oxygen sensor (determines air fuel mix) went bad, cost 150 plus labor. 
86000 mi Radiator had sludge 
4000 mi Water pump was failing, creating an intermittent grinding sound at idle. I demonstrated the noise on a test drive and the dealer identified and repaired the problem. 
48000 mi

US $550
Coolant leak from engine inlet tube. Damaged part replaced successfully. 
58000 mi

US $550
Check engine light cause by O2 sensor failure. Dealership diagnosed and replaced. 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 4dr Hatch

turbocharged 200hp 2.0L I4 6-speed automated manual FWD

36580 mi

$15000
typical gti timing chain tensioner failure. Engine replacement required 
36980 mi

$2500
Timing chain slipped, required new valves etc 
50840 mi

$1000
oil leak 
22900 mi car went into limp mode. worked fine after restart. took to dealer who read codes, steering column with tiptronic paddles lost communication to CAN BUS. cleared codes and haven't seen problem since. 
63300 mi Intake manifold failed, covered under factory extended warranty. 
77700 mi

US $3500
timing chain tensioner failed, caused car to jump timing. needed new chain, tensioner, valves, gaskets 
89000 mi

US $1270
rear main seal was leaking 
71500 mi

US $450
Secondary air sensor 
78600 mi

US $800
also oil pan, exhaust leaks 
82800 mi Secondary air sensor replaced under warranty 
36300 mi Multiple faulty valves in turbo intake system Check engine light: replaced 2 sensors and ignition switch. 
46000 mi Exhaust/emissions light was lighting intermittently. Intake manifold replaced. 
47000 mi The exhaust/emission light appeared while passing another vehicle. The power went "soft" afterward. Dealer replaced the turbocharger under the power train warranty. 
51800 mi

US $100
Small leak discoverd at the oil cooler. Th eextended warranty adjuster was extremely slow to approve repair. Ultimately they did so. 
83000 mi

US $350
Lumpy idle, followed by yellow engine light on dashboard. Injectors cleaned and bad gas drained on first trip. Problem reoccurred a week later. Fuel injectors replaced under extended warranty. 
36000 mi The intake runner control actuator failed, which resulted in a check engine light. An extensive repair was required to replace it. There was no noticeable impact on drivability, but my gas mileage appears slightly better now. 
18700 mi Check engine light went on and off for a week or so, went off the morning of the service appt. No code stored, unable to replicate, no repair attempted. 
20000 mi CEL came back on, dealer diagnosed it as a fault with a part of the intake manifold. Entire manifold replaced under warranty. Regular maintenance also performed. 
29000 mi Car went into limp mode at 30mph, pulled off and restarted. Rough idle, sputtered, went dead. Towed to dealer. Dealer replaced high-pressure fuel pump and cam follower under warranty. 
34000 mi Car stalling under load, rough idle; dealer diagnosed as faulty crankcase breather valve. Replaced under warranty. 
34000 mi Car stalling intermittently; went into limp mode on several occasions. Dealer replaced throttle body under warranty. 
40500 mi Intake manifold flap fail and CEL-on. Repair under power-train warranty. 
45000 mi

US $100
cylinder 4 has misfiring, so replace all spark plugs and switched ignition coils(#4 coil to #3 and #3 to #4). However, still misfiring, so replaced ignition coils and problem solved! 
50800 mi High Pressure Fuel Pump and related items. 
89000 mi

US $250
replace aftermarket engine and transmission mount due to engine movement. 
93000 mi

US $45
cam position sensor oil leak. replace to new. 
95000 mi

US $1100
1st repair failed/ replace new rear main seal Rear main seal fail/ oil leaking 
31000 mi

C $116
Check engine light and backfire, code P0171, engine running lean bank 1. Dealer told me it was due to aftermarket intake. They performed a smoke test then refused to repair the maf, as it was most likely the source. Cleaned MAF myself 
37700 mi

C $120
Diverter valve failed, threw code p0299, which was boost pressure limit not reached. Pin holeleak in DV, replaced with aftermarket DV. Not warranty repair due to aftermarket tune. 
45020 mi Flapper position sensor on intake manifold failed. Replace entire manifold on warranty. 
84940 mi

C $350
Thermostat failure, replace and refill coolant. 
88660 mi

C $1100
Fuel injector failure, replace all 4 injectors, spark plugs, coil packs. 
52000 mi cruise control is broken. Fault shown for throttle control module. Estimated repair cost is $600. Not worth it to me at this time, so I'm deferring repair. Update: cleared up on its own. 
91000 mi

US $850
My 2.0 TSI engine had heavy carbon deposits on the intake and intake valves. This was manually cleaned and a catch can was added to the EGR system to avoid future deposits. 
108000 mi

US $2900
Major oil leaks from upper cam chain cover,brake vacuum pump and rear main seal. Dual-mass flywheel was found to be loose and was replaced too. 
30000 mi

US $556
Radiator leak, secondary fan seized and non-operational. Replaced radiator and fan. VW quoted 1276.00 (they were double dipping labor charges). Local shop completed for 556 minus cost of radiator. 
56000 mi Manifold control sensor failed and out of specs. VW has extended warranty on this item so it was repaired free of charge. Would have cost about 690.00$ 
152000 mi

US $460
Coolant leak - hose replaced 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 4dr Hatch

170-horsepower 2.5L I5 6-speed shiftable automatic FWD

63000 mi

US $685
Oil leak in vacuum pump and several other areas. 
80680 mi Some sensors replaced 
80600 mi

C $400
MAF sensor replaced 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 2dr Hatch

turbocharged 200hp 2.0L I4 6-speed manual FWD

15000 mi O2 Sensor replacement 
35800 mi

US $300
3 sensors failed. CEL Light recently back on 
45000 mi

US $300
Coolant leak and thermostat failure 
28000 mi Engine made whining sound; dealer inspected and found water pump to be faulty. Water pump replaced under powertrain warranty. 
33000 mi

US $175
Coil pack for #1 cylinder failed, replaced at dealer. 
51500 mi Intake manifold failure--replaced under extended warranty for manifold. 
33000 mi Check engine light came on. Dealer scanned; P2015 code, faulty intake manifold runner. This appears to be a very common problem. New part fitted, supposedly upgraded to avoid this problem in future. We'll see. All done under warranty. 
59000 mi Intake Manifold flapper linkage would not stay connected. Entire intake manifold replaced by dealer under 60k powertrain warranty. 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 2dr Hatch

turbocharged 200hp 2.0L I4 6-speed automated manual FWD

40900 mi Took in for intermittent CEL. CEL due to busted intake manifold, which was replaced under warranty. 
109000 mi

US $2800
Timing chain tensioner failed. Car jumped timing on start up. Cylinders/valves okay, not repaired. Timing chain, tensioner and misc. replaced. 
118000 mi

US $3600
Rear main seal leaking, replaced. Fuel filter/line clogged. 
32000 mi

US $275
Starter cranked longer than normal. Shop discovered faulty fuel pump. Fuel pump and pressure regulator were replaced. 
135822 mi The valves in the engine valves were decarborated and the waterpump was replaced with all gaskets and seals, 
63000 mi

US $5000
Timing chain tensioner broke; damaged valve train and engine lost compression. 
32300 mi First day intake manifold sensor changed. But engine light came on again. Second day intake manifold changed. 
46900 mi

US $300
misfiring in two spark plugs. spark plugs and wiring changed. 
53000 mi Thermostat stuck in open position. Told is part of unit with water pump so water pump with the thermostat was changed. 
53000 mi They could not be sure what was the problem. Perhaps throttle body. 
49300 mi

US $200
Coil pack failure 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI 2dr Hatch

170-horsepower 2.5L I5 5-speed manual FWD

75000 mi

US $400
Cracked radiator 
35000 mi Check engine light appeared while driving to work. Took vehicle to dealership for warranty repairs to replace both engine knock sensors. Repairs were completed that day. 
111300 mi

US $850
Faulty manifold sensor needed to be replaced. Routine maintenance - Replaced spark plugs, flushed radiator, brakes, power steering. 
118000 mi

US $700
Oil leaking into vacuum pump and fouled MAP sensor 
94240 mi

C $60
Exhaust pipe came off behind catalytic converter while driving. A joint on the pipe hat rotted off. Pipe was reconnected with a new clamp. 
19000 mi knock sensor had to be replaced. Engine would not go above 3000 rpm. Dealership gave us use of a rental while waiting for proper part to arrive 
72000 mi

US $200
Bad knock sensor 
79000 mi

US $524
Second knock sensor and camshaft sensor 
74300 mi

US $385
Replaced oil pan. Jiffy Lube in Louisiana had stripped the drain plug threads and installed a self-tapping plug (without telling us about the damage). 
54640 mi

C $200
knock sensor replaced 
66960 mi

C $600
cam sensor 
50000 mi

US $400
Check engine light on. Some membrane burst sprayed intake and MAF sensor with oil. Replaced 

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2009 Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI Engine Problems

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