Volkswagen Jetta Maintenance and Repair

blackjetta18t1

This was brought up on the Jetta Sedan board but no one has really mentioned anyhthing. I've noticed that when stepping on the brakes pretty firmly from 65+ mph, I feel the brake pedal vibrate a little bit. It's only at the higher speeds. I have a 2001 GLS 2.0 with only about 13500 miles. Right before I hit 12k a few months(very little driving lately) I took it to VW for some rattle work and to have them check the brakes while they were still under warranty and VW said they were fine but I know they don't actually check them, just drive around...Could I have warped rotors? Any ideas? Is this a potential problem?

thomasibailey

My 2002 Jetta 1.8T needs some help on dark country roads. I'm looking to improve the candle power by going to driving lights mounted in the wind dam vents, below the molded bumper. Has anyone tried to do this? I have already upgraded the headlight bulbs to a brighter variety.

jknick1

I have a 94 jetta gl problems began one day when the car wouldn't start. I had no problems in the past 4 years with this car until then. I found out that the alarm modual was not letting current get to the solenoid causing the car not to start, I bypassed this part of the alarm and the car ran fine and all of the other features of the alarm still worked. Next oil light started coming on, found out there was dirt in screen in oil pickup tube cleaned and re installed it took car of problem for a month, now the car has started stalling,oil and battery lights come on this does not happen all of the time and is not consistent

elgwapous

Gasman, I have the black interior also, with a yellow dog and a white cat. I gave up trying to keep my car clean. Neither of the animals has set foot in the car, but you'd never know it. Its a nightmare. I'm not a fan of leather, but wish I had gotten it for cleanability. Have you had any problems with a musty odor coming from the air conditioner? Its driving me crazy. Also, have you had any problems with your turbocharger? Mine recently has been making a chattery noise when I come off the throttle. Performance is fine, but I'm a bit weary of turbo charger reliability.

klinedin

Can someone tell me how to replace the antenna on my 1995 Jetta. It is mounted above the driver's side front wheel, and is not power (push up-down manually). I have heard that the antenna screws in from under the car, somehow. The dealer wants $150 labor, $30 for the antenna. Has anyone attempted this on their own?

thanks
Nathan Klinedinst

dancerman

Just bought a 2002 GLX with the MONSOON radio. As the salesman was doing his bumper to bumper review with us, we discovered the radio volume would not work properly and the balance and fade knobs did nothing. The service guy looked at it and had to reset the radio (removed the radio and used a special key). He said that if the battery voltage drops below 12.3 volts for a while the radio needs reset. He figured that because the car had been on the lot for awhile it's battery needed charged. He fixed it and it worked fine.
Anyway, that was 2 weeks ago. Last night I had left the door open for about an hour and now the radio is completely dead. I called service and they mentioned this low voltage thing again. Now I have to take it in for them to reset it again. What a ridiculous design.
I asked if he'd had others like that. He reluctantly said "a few".
I'll keep you posted.

thomasibailey

I have the beige interior and a family the includes a canine, so I went ahead and got some seat covers. If I want to take some none family for a ride somewhere I just remove the covers. Autozone isn't too bad for purchase ideas. Have you Scotch Guarded the seats yet?

thomasibailey

Had the same smell coming from my Olds and read somewhere that a can of Lysol sprayed into you vents both intake and interior vent sys. will cure the problem. Make sure you run the car and blower/fan. To keep the problem from re-occuring run the AC every so often for a min. or two to get the dust out.

blackjetta18t1

and make sure you have the recirculate button off because if the vents don't air out, mold begins to grow in the vents if you've been running the AC often.

jphdxl

My problem with the radio didn't happen until I had almost 1k miles on it so I doubt it's the battery. Also, the radio was working fine at first and didn't crap out until I stopped for a cup of coffee (10 minutes out of the car). Hardly long enough to drain the battery even if I'd left the interior lights on.

In my case, removing fuse #42 for a couple of minutes and reinstalling it reset the radio enough that it worked. It's still not fixed, as it no longer says "Monsoon" when you turn it on, but enough to avoid going to the dealer just to fix the radio logo (if that's all that's still wrong with it). They can change the radio at the next regular service. The sound from the radio tuner is still pretty bad, but no worse that before this glitch.

Give the fuse a try, it may save you a trip to the dealer.

8u6hfd

Hella makes a kit for the Jetta & Golf for its Micro DE foglights (HID driving lights available). It replaces the side vents, but they (as a precaution) don't recommend it for the 1.8T or TDI, because it blocks some flow to the intercooler.

But people with the 1.8T & TDI has installed them, and have not noticed any noticeable decrease in performance.

dancerman

They replaced my radio. Took about 5 minutes. Works now. Service manager said they are having problems with them. This one doesn't say MONSOON when you turn it on though.... don't know why.

rickb12

I also bought a 2002 1.8T auto in Sept. I have had the car in for 2 coil replacements (and separately a bad door seal which allowed rain to soak the interior). I am asking the service folks if this is a common problem or what might be causing these coils to fail. Didn't get much of a response to either question. They think it's just a bad batch of coils. Will be curious if this becomes a trend in this model. Any thoughts out there on what might cause them to fail.

rickb12

I also had this problem...intermittent. I have also had two coils replaced (#2&3 cyl). Wonder if this is related?? I use Texaco premium.

8u6hfd

Either the Monsoon amp isn't hooked up, or they got the non-monsoon head unit (not sure if there's a separate part number for the monsoon head unit)

dancerman

radio sounds fine... how can i tell if amp isn't 'hooked up'. what's a head unit? can it be swapped from this radio?

dancerman

2002 GLX with 200 hp 6 cylinder engine. Just passed 1000 miles. Got 31 mpg on a 500 mile (mostly highway) trip yesterday. the average speed was 50 mph. a/c was on about half the time. getting 25-26 mpg for everyday driving. i'm impressed. no powertrain problems so far.

8u6hfd

head unit = the actual radio reciever.

The way you know it's a monsoon is when you turn on the radio, it says monsoon on the screen

yoeddy

Hi,

My friend has a 1997 Golf GL and recently both the fuel gauge and dashboard lights don't work. Any ideas? Could this be a fuse issue? Or could both lights burn out and the fuel gauge go bad, all at once?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

dancerman

ok.... let's be more specific. the original radio said 'MONSOON' in the display when it was turned on.... the replacement does not. they are identical in appearance. they sound the same. all eight speakers are functional. as far as i can tell the only difference is that the word 'MONSOON' does not appear. i wouldn't assume it's NOT a monsoon. why do you say the amp isn't hooked up or that it's not a monsoon? if you are certain... i want to ask the dealer about it. but at this point without more than your suggestion on a message board i have no real proof. can you give me any facts that support your suspicion?

8u6hfd

I'm fairly certain of my suspicions, more of the latter. You can always verify it on the dealership's cars.

jphdxl

Just to confuse the issue further. My radio did say "MONSOON" when turned on, then I had the incident where the radio did not work until I removed and reinstalled the fuse (fuse was not blown), now the radio works but doesn't say "MONSOON". Perhaps your radio has the same problem mine does (whatever that is). Dealer is replacing the HU at the next service. They said there's a TSB on this issue, so I would go back to your dealer and get it swapped out.

8u6hfd

Teh TSB on the Double Din Monsoon, is the on the wiring (two of the leads got switched).

thinking1

I have a 2002 GLS 1.8T. It appears that after I wash my car or after it rains the drivers side window rubs the weather stripping and squeaks. Has anyone encountered this? Have you been able to fix it? I can't seem to get it to do it at the dealers.

dancerman

thanks folks.... i guess i'm going back to the dealer.

airpenny1

I have a 1999 Jetta GLS VR6. My check engine light keeps coming on and off. I was wondering what the problem could be. I took the car to 2 dealers and they said it was a problem with the gas cap. However, I'm still not sure what the problem is. You guys have any answers?

8u6hfd

Get the problem codes read

mdgrrl

In January, I purchased an automatic transmission 2002 Volkswagen Jetta 1.8T. I can't say I'm all that impressed by the fuel efficiency of this car and I'm wondering if a)this has to do with the turbo and b)if anyone else out there is as disappointed with this model's mileage? I get about 16 MPG for city driving. Since the sticker claimed I would get at least 22 MPG for this type of driving, is this low mileage something that I should have inspected by a mechanic?

alcan

Read #613 & 614 in "Check Engine Light" topic.

rlui1

Are you using regular or premium unleaded fuel? The mileage is a little worse with the regular (87 octane).

mdgrrl

I have used 93 octane (premuim) every single time except the first time to fill up, so I have no idea what the problem is.

thomasibailey

I'm getting over 300 miles on a tank of 87. Live in Ohio and buy Marathon gas ONLY. It's even best for my snowthrower and lawn mower. The dealer's manager uses 87 in his 1.8T, but sticks with a quality fuel.

rlui1

16 mpg sure is low when using premium fuel. I was averaging at least 20 mpg with mixed freeway and street driving. What does the dealer have to say?

mseals

16 mpg sounds so bad that it makes me think that you are either calculating it wrong, not to insult you, or there is something seriously wrong to the point of a gas leak or black smoke coming out of your tail pipe.

When you refill, try to make sure you fill it as much as possible each time, this makes sure that you are getting the same amount of gas in each time. Then divide the miles on your tripometer by the number of gallons used to fill up. Again, I am not trying to be insulting, but it just seems like something is seriously wrong. I got 19 mpg out of my 99 Grand Cherokee and that was with Jeeps old 4.0L inline 6 which is about a decade old or so.

anonymous02

My wife has a 1996 Jetta GL 4 cylinder.

We brought it to the local tire/repair shop for new rear struts.

He said there is an arm coming forward from the axle which attaches to the unibody under rear doors, which has a worn bushing. He said the bushing is probably around $12 or so, but he does not have the means to remove old one and replace with new one. Is there a special tool required for this? What is this piece called? Do you who carries it? Do you have special instructions for doing it? Or does the whole assembly have to come off?

anonymous02

Saw the message above my last one.

Her 1996 Jetta also has a gas leak. We only fill it about 2/3 full each time so as not to drip on the driveway.

blackjetta18t1

I drove about an hour and a half doing 80mph average, at times getting to 100-115mph(to catch up to the people i was following, I was thourougly impresses with the 2.0L) and I had about 70miles before the trip and 220miles from the trip, and so I am at about 290 miles with one line on my tank. I think I've gotten like 24mpg. That seems pretty crappy. I have the 2.0L automatic. Althought I suppose the high speeds was the reason for the poor mileage, along with the city driving and AC.

mseals

Can everyone please post their gas mileage or est. gas mileage. I find this very disturbing that some people are getting in the teens in terms of mpg. I am in the proccess of getting a jetta as we speak, but mpg is a biggy for me. I drive a lot. Somwhere in the realm of 20-25k miles a year and I need good gas mileage. I can't believe that the car is getting even low 20's. You guys talk about getting 300 on a tank of gas, well how much gas is needed to fill up. Or rather, how much gas was used to go that 300 miles. I fill up in the 300-330 range myself so that is not big deal. It comes about every 8 days or so depending on how much I ride my motorcycle in the summer. But my tank is only 11.9 gal. so when I fill up it is only about 9-10 gal.

moparbad

On my Jetta the last tank I averaged 47 MPG with my Jetta Wagon and total distance traveled was 752. I was trying for 800 miles on one tank but I chickened out at the end because I was afraid I was going to run the tank dry. Amount of fuel to refill the tank was 15.9 gallons. I also have a Golf and average 42 MPG with the most miles per tank of just over 700. Both cars are TDI, the Jetta is 5 spd., the Golf is automatic, and 80% of my driving is highway 60-70 mph. In order to get 16 gal in the tank I have to use vent trick.

mseals

When I read your post I couldn't help but think of the Sienfeld where Kramer was test driving a Saab or something with another guy. Well he wondered how far it could go on a tank of gas. They kept driving on the freeway, until the gas light came on. Then they looked at each other and as agree to keep driving to see how far they could go. Well, they drove like another 50 miles or so and then thought, should we stop. Well, Kramer in his special way just say, no, I am going to keep going and they drove out into the night on the freeway.

That is incredible for gas mileage. I have seriously thought about getting a TDI Jetta. I know you can chip them and get more power out of them. The reason I say this is because the only thing stopping from getting it is that it has a dirt slow 0-60 time. Some people say this isn't important but it is to me. You see, I live right off a main road where the speed limit is 50 mph. It is 5 blocks from my house and I use this road to go just about everywhere. It makes up about 60% of my travel, to work, to my parents, to the mall, to eat out. Everywhere I go, I use this road for some stretch. In saying that, traffic is a bear to get on and off this road. You have to be able to pick up speed rather quickly in order to make it onto the road. I hate when people pull out in front of me and go super slow, so I never want to be one of those guys. This is why I need a faster car. I am not saying it has to a 5 sec car, just something that is respectable, like 8 sec or so. How is your Jetta, I want one in a 5 sp.

coolwhite

mdgrrl; I have been recording since April 2001 and my Jetta 5spd. runs on 87 to 93 octane. Average is 25mpg., 22.5 city and 30 hwy. My Jetta has 13K and these fuel economy numbers are for winter and summer with A/C. If you are calculating correctly, bring it in for service. My son's father-in-law has the same car with auto trans. and he averages 23mpg.

anonymous02

1996 Jetta GL 2.0 liter 4 cylinder, automatic, AC.

It gets between 20-35 depending on driving habits.

It also has a hole in the gas tank 1/3 the way down, so we never fill it past there anyhow.

cfilkins

While I only just filled it up for the first time, we got 30mpg on the first tank, and that was about 75% hwy. We're hoping that it says this high. We have the 5 speed manual, as a reference, and have been shifting between 2500-3000rpms.

mseals

is it a 2.0L or a 1.8t or what?

cfilkins

My original post had 1.8T at the top, before I was a putz and went and messed with it...sorry 'bout that.

Don't know what octane it came with from the dealer, but we just filled it back up with 89, and we'll keep y'all posted on how it's going.

mdgrrl

Thanks everyone for weighing in on the issue. While I don't think my car gets that great gas mileage, I don't wait until my car gets all the way to E before I fill up, so I think my calculations may be a bit off--although not by much. I'll keep everyone posted.
And mseals, the truth is if you were looking for a car with great fuel economy, this is NOT the car for you. I'd try getting a Ford Focus, Honda Insight, or Toyota Prius, all of which get great fuel economy, not to mention being very "green" and in some states, being able to receive tax incentives.
The Jetta is awesome in many respects, but not in fuel economy....

fish8

I just filled my tank for the first time and I got 28mpg. I went about 340 miles and could only put about 12 gallons in.

8u6hfd

What about Jetta TDI's? They get great fuel economy.

Manual: 43 city & 49 highway
Automatic: 34 city & 45 highway

mseals

Thanks for the opinion, but I need to clarify. I consider good gas mileage for me to be in the upper 20's to low 30's. I can deal with that because that is what I am use to based on the amount of driving I do. My car gets filled up every 300-330 miles. I have an 11.9 gallon tank and I put 9-10 gallons in at fill up. So the GLS 1.8t is ok if I can get about 25 mpg out of it. I am a somewhat conservative driver but there are times where I need the extra power. Mostly because I live in this busy street and with a slow car I would still be waiting there as we speak.

mdgrrl

I hear ya Mseals. But again, I just think if fuel economy is a major concern, the Jetta 1.8 T is not the best choice. Now the TDI, maybe, but then you have to weigh out the fact that it's diesel powered, which would make any environmentalist cringe.
But I do have to say in its defense, the 1.8 T does have that extra umph on the road...You just have to weigh out if that umph is worth the poor fuel economy (and we are talking city driving here).