Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Volkswagen Beetle Transmission Problems
68mgb
Member Posts: 2
I have a 99 Beetle w/60M miles. Recently it sat for a month with a dead battery. When I charged the battery and began driving it i had transmission problems. At forst it would be shifting through 2nd and 3rd and would slip sending the rpm's up to 5-6M. After talking with several mechanics they said the computer needed to re-learn how to shift and to continue to drive it unless it worsened. It seems to have gotten better, but now when I go from park to drive it does not want to engage about half the time unless I take it to 3rd and back to drive. It feels like the shifter is the problem because you can move it up slightly from 3rd to drive and it will catch. I can take it to VW and pay their $100 diagnostic but wondered if maybe AAMCO would be better? Thanks!
See Also: VW Vortex Automatic Transmission Forum
See Also: VW Vortex Automatic Transmission Forum
Tagged:
0
Comments
3 codes p0422 catalyst below threshhold, P0102 Maf or VAF low input, p1582 idle speed mixture,p0112 IAT sensor 1 low input.
So far new air filter, new fuel filter, cleaned MAF, I bought the gasket to clean the throttle intake but havn't doen it yet, think I need a new speedometer sensor but Haynes book says raise vehicle and access from underneath, I can,t find it from underneath car. Not sure I fair leak could cause po422 error or not.
Any ideas would be helpful
I leased a 2007 VW New Beetle in October of 2006. It is a 5 speed manual transmission. It has 10,000 miles on it to date. Thursday while attempting to drive up North to visit my family for Thanksgiving the clutch started skipping and a horrible smelling white smoke started blowing out of the car. We pulled over to see what was wrong, it finally stopped smoking and the clutch was barely working.
I called the local dealership Saturday morning and they say "bring the car right in". We bring it in and then they tell us "well, we don't actually have anybody who can look at it today but we'll see what we can do and call you". They call me at 5:00 p.m. and say "nope, didn't have anybody to look at it, it'll have to wait until Monday". So Monday in the middle of the afternoon they call us and say "we need your authorization for the $900 fee to take the car apart and look at it, it may be a wear and tear item and not covered under warranty". ARE YOU KIDDING ME?????? 10,000 miles???? I have been driving a stick shift since I was 16 years old. I have leased two other New Beetles from Volkswagen and have never ONCE had an issue with the clutch. I KNOW HOW TO DRIVE A MANUAL TRANSMISSION. I'm sorry but if their product is so badly made that the clutch will burn out after 10,000 miles I have no interest in putting my life in the hands of Volkswagen.
We called the corporate office to complain. The corporate office didn't call back until the next day and told us we're out of luck, that's policy. Their policy is 12 months or 12,000 miles for wear and tear items. We've had the car for 13 months. They don't care that we've leased 2 other Volkswagens from them and have been a loyal, on-time paying, perfect lease returning customer since 2000. They have never had one single issue with us. And they would not even look at the car to see if it was a possible failure opposed to "wear and tear" unless we first fronted $900.
I am DONE with Volkswagen. Their product is NOT well made, they don't back their product and they care about profit and NOT keeping loyal GOOD customers. I am sad to see them go... I look back on my '68 and '69 Bugs, I look back on my 1990 GTI and I look back on my 2 New Beetles with fondness. But I WILL NOT deal with a company who isn't willing to work with GOOD customers.
Basically after driving the car on the freeway for some distance, then driving for a few minutes in stop and go city traffic, the car will refuse to go from 2nd to 3rd gear. The engine will scream as the RPM's go into 6000. The only way to get the car to shift into the next gear is to whomp on the gas pedal, drive the RPM's higher, and the car will lurch into the next gear.
When it's not refusing to go into gear at all, it is "rough shifting", which is going into slightly higher RPM's than normal for a bit longer than usual, then finally shifting, giving the car a little jerk as it does so.
So far I have brought the car to the dealer for this problem 5 times, and it is happening again. The first time I took it in the dealer could not replicate the problem and told me to bring the car back if it happened again as they were not detecting anything wrong with any of the systems.
The second time it happened I took the car in and they again could not replicate the problem, but told me the transmission was bad (they said the fluid was completely burned up and there were metal shavings in the trannie), so I paid $4600 to have the trannie replaced.
A short time later it happened a third time, so I drove it in just before the New Years holiday, left the car running, found a mechanic that had not gone home early who got in the car and confirmed the problem so at least I had a witness now. This trip cost me $1000 for a new Transmission Control Module, which they said was probably at fault for making the first trannie go bad.
Just a short time later it happened again for the fourth time, so back to the dealer, kidnapped another mechanic, confirmed problem, they said the left rear tire had too deep of a tread and was screwing with the Anti Skid Resistance system, which was reading the pressure changes from the tread as wheel spinning and setting off the safety feature that kept the car from shifting. They replaced the rear tire for free (but not really, since they kept the brand new tire they took off).
Short time later, happens again for the fifth time. Back to the dealer, kidnap same mechanic from fourth time, he confirms problem still happening, this time they said it was a faulty valve in the transmission, which they fixed for free since the transmission they put in the car has a warranty for 1 year or 12,000M.
Now, less than two weeks later it happened again as I got off the freeway heading to work, about 40 miles from where I live and the VW dealer that I bought the car from and has been taking care of the car since I bought it. I called the dealer when I got to work and he says bring it in Monday (this was Wednesday). I asked him why Monday and he states that the mechanic who has been working on this is not in till Monday. Goodie for him. Maybe that's the problem and they need to get a different mechanic, but from the stories I have been reading here and at consumer affairs, it's the car and will probably never be fixed correctly.
Anyone got any advice besides driving the car up the dealers rear end? :confuse:
PS It's really funny seeing the add on this page for the VW Sign Then Drive Event. Yeah, like I would ever buy a VW again.
Thanks-
Doug
Scott
Truly a GREAT deal ... absolutely LOVE the car - until this past Sunday. The clutch started slipping - severely - so I took it back to the fellow I bought if from so he could take a look at it ... long story longer - it will cost me nearly $1,000 to replace the clutch/assembly - due to it being a labor intensive job.
The car has 62,000 miles on it ... I have been driving a manual transmission for the past 30 years .... I know how to drive stick .... What I don't understand is how the heck can Volkswagen NOT address this issue.... it is plain to see that there is problem with this car. How can my car - with only 62,000 ORIGINAL miles be on its 3rd clutch!???!?
Finally, driving on the freeway, it finally stopped shifting at all. I was stuck in third gear on the 405 in LA. I had to pull to the shoulder and call a tow truck to tow me to the dealer. It took them three days to even look at the car, at which point they told me it needed a new transmission. Incidentally, the car had 66,000 miles on it and the powertrain warranty expired at 65,000. They wanted $6,000 for the new transmission.
Rather than pay it, I had the car towed to a transmission specialist who's been in business since 1963. After sitting for a few days, the car was shifting somewhat normally again. The transmission shop took it out for a drive and told me they couldn't find anything wrong. I told them they had to take it for a longer drive, and then they discovered the problem. They proceeded to take the entire transmission apart - it's burned and black and does need to be replaced. However, the problem isn't caused by the transmission. It's caused by the computer forcing the transmission to shift at improper times - wrong signals or whatever. So the computer is messed up and that's messing up the transmission, causing it to burn itself out.
I have to have the computer fixed as well - if I just replace the transmission, it will just happen again. Still waiting to hear how much the transmission replacement and computer repair/replacement are going to cost.
over rev the engine to get from 2nd to 3rd when driving around town, you park it to do some shopping come back everything 's normal. Took it in to the dealer and was told
that the tranny needed servicing, of course while your here you need a timing belt.
I had my beetle serviced and a week later the same problem. Took it back to the dealer with Hey! maybe it's a sensor problem, No I was told You need A transmission
It,s a nightmare. To anyone reading this don't feel alone you see I don,t have 4000
dollars and no way to get it, Can't sell a car with bad transmission.
After rebuilding the transmission, the kicking problem was still there once the engine warmed up. The transmission shop and I (with the help of this message board) identified three possibilities:
* The sensors in the transmission
* The transmission computer
* The valve body (I have no earthly idea what this is)
We started with the cheapest - the sensors - and replaced those. It didn't fix the problem on my car, though someone else here reported that fixed their car.
The next lest expensive part to replace was the valve body. Luckily, in my case. That fixed the problem. And we didn't have to move on to the computer.
Another transmission shop we consulted for guidance said they had solved a similar issue by re-programming rather than replacing the transmission computer.
None of this was cheap. The total cost to me for rental car, transmission rebuild, parts and labor was almost exactly $6,000. The dealer was in no way of any help throughout the process, and they continue to insist that the only way to fix the problem is to replace the transmission. But at least two other people have posted here with the same problem and reported that replacing the transmission didn't fix the issue.
So, there you go. I still owe $6,200 on the car. It could have been very nearly paid off for the cost of this one repair.
Basically, my transmission had to be completely re-built. Then the problem that caused the transmission to become stuck in third had to be fixed. All the details are in my earlier post.
Additionally, my transmission problem was actually caused by something else. It was another $300 to replace the sensors, and another $1100 to replace the Valve Body.
Plus this took several weeks and the rental car was nearly $1000.
My fiance has a 2004 Beetle turbo and the transmission is kicking when downshifting to 3rd and 2nd gear. Sounds like we need to replace the trans control module also I hope! $900 sounds better than some people replacing their transmission at $6000. If anyone else is experiencing the same problem and solved it please let me know!
I've been reading a lot of posts on here and on other forums and I think I might be having the same problem as some of you.
A few months ago, my 05 Beetle started to jerk when I would put on the brakes and sometimes when I would step on the gas. I called the VW dealership and the guy said that it was normal for VW's to do that when they are about 4 years old. I didn't really understand how it could be normal, but I just left it as it was. It got a little it worse over time, but not much. About 2 months ago, I accidently ran over a cement block which caused my transmission pan to get dented. I had that fixed and since then my car has been having shifting problems. When the car gets warmed up (after driving if for about 15 minutes or so), it will get stuck in a gear and the engine will rev for a bit then jerk roughly into gear. I recently took my car in to get it looked at. The mechanic wasn't sure what the problem could be, but he noticed that the car was low on transmission fluid and that a piece in that area was bent and sort of melted or something (that piece had to be fixed in order to change the fluid). So, he fixed that, but the car still has the same problem. When I drove it home after getting that piece fixed, the problem seemed liked it was worse than before. When the engine was revving, the check engine light came on (it was yellow) and the drive, park, reverse, etc initials each had brackets around them, instead of just the drive ( [D] ). My car is at a transmission shop now. At first, they couldn't find anything wrong with it. Then they hooked it up to their computer and found a problem in the 4th gear. The mechanic isn't sure what the problem is, so in order to find out, he has to rebuild the transmission. So, even if that ends up not being the problem, I'll still have to pay for the rebuild. I cannot afford to pay for the trans to be rebuilt. So, I was just wondering, should I try to save money to get the trans fixed? Is it worth it? Could it be caused from something else other than the transmission? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Krissy
Whats the status of your car? Same thing happened to my girlfriends car 2005 turbo convertible this last week. When stopped at a light it "bang" really loud and jerk forward then not come out of gear and rev really high. The engine light came on and all the gears selections on the dash were surrounded in brackets. Brought thecar to a local mechanic, charged me $100 telling me it was a pressure sensor switch, told me to contact VW first before bringing it to a tranny shop and basically have it taken apart. Brought it to VW, they told me my girlfriend spilled something on the shifter to make it stick, (girlfriend said it was always like that) they took it apart and claened it up and regreased it. Said the engine light was something else that came on the same time but is a recirculating valve in the turbo. they are not going to charge me for the cleanup of the shifter but the $250 for the turbo valve. They said the tranny goes into "limp"mode if the tranny gets the wrong info from the shifter, basicall the shifter is telling the tranny something wrong. the transmission protects itself by not shifting, which is a bunch of bull. That doesnt really protect the tranny when your car stays in first driving down the road.
Seems like we have the same prob and i would be curious to find out what hapend to yours!
- mark
:mad:
I own a 2005 VW Beetle that has all the typical problems including malfunctioning air bag light(check recalls for your year!), bad driver door handle, windows out of alignment etc; however, the transmission can be the most critical/costly problem of any late model Beetle with over 50K miles!
If you have the hard shift and the slippage into neutral (feel like you ride in a carnival bumper car) you need to find out if the problem is indeed mechanical (which will need actual trans repair) or another contributing problem that is making the trans malfunction.
Your repair tech will first scan your vehicle and tell you that the scan results balance with the driving symptoms of no shifting into 3rd/4th gear, etc. If there is no obvious contributing factor, i.e. sever overheating(can dissolve the viscosity of the trans fluid) or malfunctioning alternator(can affect cellonoid operation), that could affect the trans you will need to "service" the trans to determine if it is mechanical or something else.
The trans "service" including filter and fluid will cost approx $300-$500 depending on your trans model and what kind of fluid it takes. it is not unusual to have trans fluid cost $130.00. You want to ask you mechanic to look for metal shavings on the magnet. If there are significant metal shavings on the magnet then it is a mechanical problem and will need to be rebuilt. (if you have significant shifting problems then tell your mechanic to just "drop the trans pan and check the magnet" no need to spend the service money if it will be a waste and you will only pay for another service with a rebuild). The rebuilt should include a $500 trans rebuild kit a $400 replacement torque converter, fluid, filter, labor and possibly new triptonic and neutral safety switches. A rough labor estimate should be 18-24 hours. A rebuild parts and labor is roughly $3500.00 for a solid job and warranty.
Make sure you exhaust all contributing factors while keeping costs low. Overheating on these cars is common especially since the warning light(no gauge) doesn't even come on until almost 250deg. Your water pump, thermostat, driver and passenger side cooling fans, radiator, all work together to cool your vehicle(including trans fluid). The stock cooling fan motors often blow out the low speed and only operate on high when the vehicle is already too hot. The stock water pump has a plastic type spool and should be replaced with a metal spool to avoid total timing belt meltdown and especially clogging in the radiator are all common factors that lead to hot operations and overheating. An overheated vehicle can lead to burned up trans fluid and hard shifting. Don't repair expensive cooling parts until you check the magnet!!!!!
Aftermarket alarms, roadside jump starts, incorrect new battery install, and on the fritz alternator can all lead to malfunction trans. Again check the magnet first!!!!
With Aloha,
Ashley
Kim
Anyway, for a while now while driving on the freeway or something I felt like the car suddenly stopped listening to my gas pedal, but I told myself it was the wind--until today. There was a clear 4-5 seconds after a stop light that I tried to go--did at first--then it just wouldn't listen. Then it was back. I took it immediately to my VW mechanic who told me it was my catalytic converter. Went driving tonight--hmmm, not the catalytic converter. That kind of pisses me off not just cuz it's a waste of money, but from this forum I'm seeing that these symptoms seem to be tied regularly to transmission problems.
Thanks
I love my beetle, but not that much. anyone out there who is considering buying a beetle, reconsider. Your heart will be broken.Now I hope when I try to trade it in, it doesn't jerk while they test drive it. Wish me luck.
VW PLEASE ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM -
Here's my story. Bought my dream car in May and next month will be a year. It's a 2003 Beetle convertible and had 50k miles on it. Around Oct or Nov I noticed how hard it was shifting down. It would just jerk from gear to gear until I would come to a complete stop. I drove for a Christmas party mid Dec round trip of 3 hours and was fine. I parked the car in my driveway for 5 min then got in it to go to the grocery store and about a quarter mile from my house while up-shifting it couldn't make it out of third gear! My heart dropped I knew this was bad, bad news. Took it to three mechanics before one could tell me he'd need to rebuild the transmission. Between three mechanics and ordering parts it took three months to fix! Just got it back about a month ago and it sounds like I'm riding around with a crock pot under my feet. Something just rattles like metal clanking anytime I get in and just take off, seems like it does it all around town but here's the thing. My mechanic is about 40m away and by the time I get it to him each time to have him test drive it the noise is gone. It's like after it warms up it silences. Anybody have any suggestions? He says he believes me but it warming up and quitting doesn't make sense.
Furthermore he informed me that it seems beetles and jettas alike have this issue. Also he had to order all my parts from California which added to the headache (Kentucky) and ordered several before he could get 4th gear back. This was all after replacing the thermostat and the dipstick holder. But I'm looking up, this is the end right? I love my car. Oh and by the way when I took it to him yesterday there were two more beetles there with the same problem. hmmm.
also if rebuilt double and triple check that they used the correct trans fluid. for your year car with a trans rebuild your fluid should have been $250.00. Remember there is no trans dipstick so they need to overfill and then bleed off. I'm assuming your dipstick holder is for the oil.
did they use only volks parts? or aftermarket parts?
was the battery disconnected during the removal of the trans? If you believe that the clanking is trans based you might need to simply reset the transmission computer.
it is worth another visit for your reassurance...the wrong or short pour fluid and not properly reset computer could eventually lead to the same trans prob. If done correctly then yes, it is the end, clanking could be a million things....bearings, loose exhaust, cam etc......let us know how it end up
Announced earlier today, Volkswagen of America has decided to recall 13,500 of their cars The Boston Globe reports. The reason? Problems with a dual-clutch transmission that causes a warning light on the dashboard to appear. Audi of America, the luxury division of Volkswagen, also made a recall yesterday. This affected 2,500 vehicles with similar problems. All of the cars were built between September 2008 and August 2009.
The Volkswagen recall affects cars from the model year 2009, along with a limited number of 2010 Jetta, Jetta SportsWagen, GTI and Eos vehicles. The Audi recall affects 2009 MY A3, TT and TT Roadster models equipped with S tronic transmissions. A limited number of 2010 MY A3 cars equipped with S tronic transmissions are also affected.
Volkswagen said some of their vehicles could have a faulty temperature sensor in the transmission, which could lead to the warning light showing up on the dashboard. In rare cases, the transmission could shift into neutral (Yowza!). Audi also cited problems with warning lamps, and the same problem of the transmission shifting into neutral in rare cares.
If you own one of the cars affected by the recall, you will be contacted by Volkswagen so that you can take the car into a shop for repairs or new sensors. But if you want to contact the company’s Loyalty Center, you can do that too. Call them at 1-800-444-8982"