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Volkswagen Beetle Transmission Problems

784 messages,  Last post on Jun 09, 2013 at 10:43 PM

You are in the Volkswagen Beetle Forum.

What is this discussion about? Volkswagen New Beetle, Transmission, Convertible, Hatchback

    
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Messages Page 78 of 79

#770 of 784 not another vw! by buggedout1

Feb 28, 2013 (5:16 am)

I certainly would not bring it to a vw place, the AAMCO mechanics did a great job on my 2004 beetle...at a couple $ less than vw. It has been about 45,000 miles since the work has been done and drives fine..127,000 miles. It is tough because you really can't trade the car in for anything - so you might have to just fix it and drive it. Still boggles me why VW does nothing about this....like they don't think anything is wrong.

#771 of 784 MPH vs RPM by leviat

Mar 15, 2013 (7:55 pm)

Hi I recently bought a beetle (transmission 5-speed manual) and I saw that on the highway the car to 63mph in the 3,000 rpm this, a very high RPM, my question is, I can change the differential to decrease engine speed if I can help To fix this, Thanks!

#772 of 784 Re: Beetle auto transmission issue when warm [buggedout1] by bubbakat

Mar 31, 2013 (8:48 am)

Replying to: buggedout1 (Feb 03, 2013 6:33 am)
My 2004 Turbo beetle needs new transmission at 66K. I want to keep the car as long as possible, but my mechanic warned that if I have the transmission replaced, I might have further problems considering the luck I have had with this car. I would consider going to AAMCO -- which AAMCO did you have your car repaired? Any recommendations?

#773 of 784 Re: Beetle auto transmission issue when warm [bubbakat] by jmargaret

Mar 31, 2013 (11:29 am)

Replying to: bubbakat (Mar 31, 2013 8:48 am)
I have a 2004 turbo covertible transmission that went out at 70,000 miles
Paid a lot to get new one and still doesn't sound or feel the way it should.
I had a headlite out that VW wanted 80.00 to fix. No one can get to it w/o
Tearing off the bumper. Passenger door rattles. Water gets in when I go thru carwash. It goes on and on. Too bad cuz I like the look of it. And had a
1973 bug for 10 yrs that never gave me a problem. Ugh!

#774 of 784 Transmission History by beetleyp

Mar 31, 2013 (7:55 pm)

Hi all,
 
I purchased my 2005 VW Beetle Convertible used in 2010 when it was just over 80,000 - It was 5-years old, seemed like someone finished paying it off and traded it in for something new, and VW was phasing out the convertible at the time. I bought it because it seemed very stable, drove fine, and I'd had a 70 VW convertible before that I restored from bare metal back in 1988-1990. About a week after purchase, the check engine light came on. I took it into my local dealer/repair and it was the fan system for the coolant. $1,000 +/- later - I had new fans and no light. Yeah! I hadn't driven a new beetle before, so I didn't know that it wasn't supposed to shift down hard from 3rd to 2nd or 4th to 3rd. Occasionally, during the next 6 months, it would take a moment to kick into reverse - it'd rev and then jerk back once it kicked in.
I stopped by my local dealer/repair for something else and asked if the hard shifting was normal - they did a peak on the computer system and there had been an alert by VW about it and an extended warranty for 6-years or 100,000 miles covering the Transmission Valve Body repair. So, they pulled it in and I was good as new a few days later. I thought that a letter was sent to all current owners, but figured that it went to the previous owner and they had no idea who I was.
I then started to do more research. I haven't experienced the window motor issues, but that seemed to have happened earlier for most folks, so I'm assuming the previous owner had to deal with it. I did, however notice that whenever my tank is about 1/4 full, and I'm going up or down hill, it will suddenly gasp for air and cut out. When it happens, I just lift my foot off the gas for a moment and it goes back to normal and I'm off and going again after a brief coast. I thought that maybe I had gunk in the gas tank from previous owner and later had the fuel pump go out. When VW was replacing that, they sucked everything out of the tank and it was clean. I thought it was maybe the fuel pump starting to go out, but it's still doing it and I've heard from others that theirs do it too right about 1/4-tank.
 
There are lots of issues with this batch of New Beetles. If you're looking to buy one, I can't recommend more highly that you purchase one of those after-market car warranty plans that they sell online.
If your car hasn't hit 100,000 or 6-years, go to your dealer now and tell them that your transmission seems to be shifting hard. Ask them to look up the service bulletins from VW and any recalls. It can save you a world of hurt later on.
 
Good luck.

#775 of 784 2004 NBTDI - Needs new Transmission by maxprice

Apr 04, 2013 (11:24 pm)

Purchased this car new with the Tiptronic 6 speed transmission. The car now has 136,XXX miles. Highly maintained. The car would slip out of gear when driving or would not go into gear when shifting at an idle position. Towed to VW dealership - $4800 for new tranny. Towed it to AAMCO - rebuilt transmission for $4500. Going to try one more place tomorrow. This is frustrating. Should be put the money into the car or put it into a new car and sell the 2004 for parts and then scrap it? So sad to do that to a 10 year old car. It is a diesal and should have lasted longer than this. Suggestions anyone?

#776 of 784 Re: 2005 Beetle Convertible automatic shifting problem [the_twins] by geogaldo1

Apr 24, 2013 (10:22 am)

Replying to: the_twins (Mar 10, 2009 9:39 am)
had the same problem with trans, took dealer to small claims. was told i should have taken vw corp to court instead. lost lawsuit. do yourself a favor and file small claims and take vw corp to court. my car only had 45k miles when it started shifiting funny. franchise only covered half the cost $2500. ontario vw. never by another vw. reported to bbb with their complaint. judge felt franchise was not responsible. elected to settle and not spend my time with another trial.

#777 of 784 Beetle misfire in rain and transmission by rbean1

May 10, 2013 (4:52 am)

2002 beetle was misfiring in the rain. Mechanic said to replace spark plugs. Next rain, problem returned along with two transmission codes. Then car started having trouble getting out of 2nd gear. Mechanic referred me to transmission shop who said transmission needed to be rebuilt to the tune of $1600-$3000! And this still would not address rain misfire issue. I never use dealer because of high repair costs but broke down and decided to take it to dealer for 2nd opinion. Dealer says transmission is fine! Water test showed Crack in ignition coil caused misfires when it got wet in rain. Misfires caused transmission codes which cause transmission to go into "fail safe mode" causing wierd shifting issues. Coil replaced, transmission codes cleared and shifting fine. Glad I took it to dealer to learn my transmission did not need a 3k repair. I have not driven in rain yet so jury is still out on misfire fix but optimistic At the very least it is worth paying diagnostic fee (110) at dealer to diagnose problems before expensive repair. Dealer will credit back fee if you have them complete the repair. Wish i had gone there first before spark plug diagnosis!

#778 of 784 2008 Beetle by neisal

Jun 03, 2013 (3:57 pm)

My husband and I purchased our 16 year old daughter a 2008 Beetle. We thought it would be a good starter car for her. Two weeks ago, she was driving down the road, and she says that all of a sudden after she turned, the car slowed down and she though maybe she ran out of gas. She says that she was trying to press on the gas and nothing happened. People were driving around her, and so she turned the car off, and then turned it back on. She said it felt that it kicked into gear and then she was able to drive off.
 
Yesterday, she made a left turn and the same thing happened again. She said the car slowed down again, and she pressed on the gas and nothing happened. She said she pressed on the gas real hard, and the car took off on her. She lost control of the car, and went up the curve, hit a construction sign that broke her windshield and then she was stopped by hitting a light post. She said she was braking the whole time.
 
Of course my husband and I did not believe her, and we were very upset with her. We felt that maybe she had taken the turn too fast. When the police came to investigate, they said that the tire marks were way past the point of her losing control after a turn. As I read on this forum, it what people are describing, is what she described happened. The damage to the car is extensive, and I can not believe that she walked away from the accident. Another thing the cop found interesting, is that the airbags did not go off. He says with the impact of the sign, and then the light post, that her airbags should have gone off. I am so scared for her to drive this car again. Any information would be helpful so that I can get rid of this car.

#779 of 784 Re: 2008 Beetle [neisal] by maxprice

Jun 03, 2013 (5:47 pm)

Replying to: neisal (Jun 03, 2013 3:57 pm)
We had a 2004 that did the same thing. Left us stranded on the interstate and in town several times over a week long period. Had 3 different transmission specialists plus the dealership and they all said the same thing...needs a new tranny ($3800-4000). We sold it off for pennies on what we paid for it and got rid of the headache. We bought a good old 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee....American made. No more imports for us.
 
Your daughter is probably telling the truth on this one.

Messages Page 78 of 79

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