2020 Volkswagen JETTA

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Average

Quick Summary

The 2020 Volkswagen JETTA has 78 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.0x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is electrical problems (21% of all complaints), specifically: 2 separate incidents involving the epc. one was about 10 day's ago, july 9th getting on the freeway in houston. car threw up numerous error codes, it automatically slammed on the brakes upon entering the middle lane of the freeway, gave an epc error code, transmission error code, and start/stop erro.

1 crash report

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.0x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

ELECTRICAL

16 complaints

21%

• 2 SEPARATE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE EPC. ONE WAS ABOUT 10 DAY'S AGO, JULY 9TH GETTING ON THE FREEWAY IN HOUSTON. CAR THREW UP NUMEROUS ERROR CODES, IT AUTOMATICALLY SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES UPON ENTERING THE MIDDLE LANE OF THE FREEWAY, GAVE AN EPC ERROR CODE, TRANSMISSION ERROR CODE, AND START/STOP ERRO
• THE EPC LIGHT COMES ON RANDOMLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WHEN REVVING UP THE ENGINE TO OVERTAKE CARS. THE ENGINE SUDDENLY BOGS DOWN AND ENGINE RPMS ARE LIMITED TO 3000 WHEN LIGHT IS ON. IT COULD BE A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT WANT TO ACCELERATE AND FORCES ME TO GET OFF THE FR
• VEHICLE IS BRAND NEW AND HAS BEEN IN MY POSSESSION FOR 7 DAYS. CAR-NET MODULE AND BLUETOOTH AUDIO MODULES HAVE BOTH FAILED. CAR-NET FAILED ON DAY 5, BLUETOOTH ON DAY 6. PRESCRIBED RESOLUTION INVOLVES PULLING THE APPROPRIATE FUSE TO RESET THE SYSTEM. AFTER THIS PROCEDURE, SYSTEM FAILED TO RESET.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“2 SEPARATE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE EPC. ONE WAS ABOUT 10 DAY'S AGO, JULY 9TH GETTING ON THE FREEWAY IN HOUSTON. CAR THREW UP NUMEROUS ERROR CODES, IT AUTOMATICALLY SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES UPON ENTERING THE MIDDLE LANE OF THE FREEWAY, GAVE AN EPC ERROR CODE, TRANSMISSION ERROR CODE, AND START/STOP ERRO”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

13 complaints

17%

• VEHICLE IS STALLING AT LIGHTS. VEHICLE HAS ROUGH IDLE. VEHICLE AUTOMATIC BRAKING ACTIVATE WITHOUT WARNING. *TR
• IN HEAVY RAIN OR ADVERSE WEATHER THE SONAR IN THE FRONT OF THE CAR FOR CRASH AVOIDANCE FAILS AND STATES THAT IT'S UNABLE TO PROTECT ME AND MY PASSENGERS! THE DEALER HAS HAD THIS CAR FOR 3 TIMES AND THE OWNERS MANUAL DOESN'T TELL THAT IN THOSE SITUATIONS THAT THIS CAN OR SHOULD OCCUR
• THE HILL HOLD ASSIST DID NOT DISENGAGED QUICKLY WHEN STOPPED ON AN INCLINE, BURNING THE CLUTCH TO GET THE VEHICLE TO MOVE FORWARD. THIS CAUSED SMOKING FROM THE HOOD OF THE CAR AND WE WERE THEN FORCED TO PULL TO THE SIDE OF A VERY CONGESTED HIGHWAY AND WAIT FOR THE SMOKING TO STOP AND GIVE THE CLUTCH

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“VEHICLE IS STALLING AT LIGHTS. VEHICLE HAS ROUGH IDLE. VEHICLE AUTOMATIC BRAKING ACTIVATE WITHOUT WARNING. *TR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

12 complaints

15%

• THE EPC LIGHT COMES ON RANDOMLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WHEN REVVING UP THE ENGINE TO OVERTAKE CARS. THE ENGINE SUDDENLY BOGS DOWN AND ENGINE RPMS ARE LIMITED TO 3000 WHEN LIGHT IS ON. IT COULD BE A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT WANT TO ACCELERATE AND FORCES ME TO GET OFF THE FR
• AS I WAS DRIVING HOME LATE LAST NIGHT FROM WORK ON A CITY STREET , MY CAR SUDDENLY WOULD NOT ACCELERATE IN SPEED WHILE IN MOTION BUT YOU CAN HEAR THE CAR ACCELERATE WHEN I WAS PUSHING ON THE GAS. IT FELT AS IF THE CAR HAS TURNED OFF BECAUSE THEN MY STEERING WHEEL GOT HARD WAS HARD TO MOVE WHILE IN M
• I CAME TO A STOP LIGHT AND HAD MY CAR IN NEUTRAL. PUT IT INTO FIRST AT A GREEN LIGHT AND THERE WAS NO POWER, THE ENGINE HAD CUT OFF. I DRIVE A MANUAL AND HAVE FOR MY ENTIRE LIFE. THERE WAS NO LURCHING OR ANYTHING, JUST A SILENT CUT. HARD TO GET IT TURNED BACK ON, THE VEHICLE SEEMED CONFUSED WHEN

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“THE EPC LIGHT COMES ON RANDOMLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WHEN REVVING UP THE ENGINE TO OVERTAKE CARS. THE ENGINE SUDDENLY BOGS DOWN AND ENGINE RPMS ARE LIMITED TO 3000 WHEN LIGHT IS ON. IT COULD BE A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT WANT TO ACCELERATE AND FORCES ME TO GET OFF THE FR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

BRAKES

7 complaints

• MY CAR ROLLED INTO A WALL ON THE OTHER SIDE OF A PARKING LOT WHILE I WAS INSIDE THE OPPOSITE BUILDING. THERE IS NO ALERT/INDICATOR/NOTIFICATION THAT THE E-BRAKE IS ENGAGED. THERE ARE ALERTS FOR THE SEAT BELT, AIR BAG, TRUCK/DOOR OPENED, LOW GAS, LIGHTS, ETC. THERE IS EVEN A NOTIFICATION ON THE SCREE
• 2 SEPARATE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE EPC. ONE WAS ABOUT 10 DAY'S AGO, JULY 9TH GETTING ON THE FREEWAY IN HOUSTON. CAR THREW UP NUMEROUS ERROR CODES, IT AUTOMATICALLY SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES UPON ENTERING THE MIDDLE LANE OF THE FREEWAY, GAVE AN EPC ERROR CODE, TRANSMISSION ERROR CODE, AND START/STOP ERRO
• VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY IN PARKING SPOT AND UPON IGNITION BEGAN REVVING UNCONTROLLABLY AND THREW UP ERROR CODES "ENGINE SPEED MAX. 4000 RPM" AND "START-STOP SYSTEM ERROR", ALONG WITH EPC AND ENGINE LIGHTS. THE BRAKE WAS ALSO DEPRESSED. UPON PUTTING INTO REVERSE THE PARKING BRAKE WAS AUTOMATICALLY ENG

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“MY CAR ROLLED INTO A WALL ON THE OTHER SIDE OF A PARKING LOT WHILE I WAS INSIDE THE OPPOSITE BUILDING. THERE IS NO ALERT/INDICATOR/NOTIFICATION THAT THE E-BRAKE IS ENGAGED. THERE ARE ALERTS FOR THE SEAT BELT, AIR BAG, TRUCK/DOOR OPENED, LOW GAS, LIGHTS, ETC. THERE IS EVEN A NOTIFICATION ON THE SCREE”

— NHTSA complaint filing

TRANSMISSION

7 complaints

• AS I WAS DRIVING HOME LATE LAST NIGHT FROM WORK ON A CITY STREET , MY CAR SUDDENLY WOULD NOT ACCELERATE IN SPEED WHILE IN MOTION BUT YOU CAN HEAR THE CAR ACCELERATE WHEN I WAS PUSHING ON THE GAS. IT FELT AS IF THE CAR HAS TURNED OFF BECAUSE THEN MY STEERING WHEEL GOT HARD WAS HARD TO MOVE WHILE IN M
• I CAME TO A STOP LIGHT AND HAD MY CAR IN NEUTRAL. PUT IT INTO FIRST AT A GREEN LIGHT AND THERE WAS NO POWER, THE ENGINE HAD CUT OFF. I DRIVE A MANUAL AND HAVE FOR MY ENTIRE LIFE. THERE WAS NO LURCHING OR ANYTHING, JUST A SILENT CUT. HARD TO GET IT TURNED BACK ON, THE VEHICLE SEEMED CONFUSED WHEN
• Was is merging onto interstate i95 and the Jetta wouldn’t accelerate no matter how hard I pushed the gas pedal eventually took my foot off and had to turn on emergency lights then The Jetta started slowly moving as if it was just going to stall almost got rear ended and then the car wanted to send

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“AS I WAS DRIVING HOME LATE LAST NIGHT FROM WORK ON A CITY STREET , MY CAR SUDDENLY WOULD NOT ACCELERATE IN SPEED WHILE IN MOTION BUT YOU CAN HEAR THE CAR ACCELERATE WHEN I WAS PUSHING ON THE GAS. IT FELT AS IF THE CAR HAS TURNED OFF BECAUSE THEN MY STEERING WHEEL GOT HARD WAS HARD TO MOVE WHILE IN M”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

BRAKES(~50K mi)

$500

TRANSMISSION(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 78 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
ELECTRICAL: 2 SEPARATE INCIDENTS INVOLVING THE EPC. ONE WAS ABOUT 10 DAY'S AGO, JULY 9TH GETTING ON THE FREEWAY IN HOUSTON. CAR THREW UP NUMEROUS ERROR CODES, IT AUTOMATICALLY SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES UPON ENTERING THE MIDDLE LANE OF THE FREEWAY, GAVE AN EPC ERROR CODE, TRANSMISSION ERROR CODE, AND START/STOP ERRO
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: VEHICLE IS STALLING AT LIGHTS. VEHICLE HAS ROUGH IDLE. VEHICLE AUTOMATIC BRAKING ACTIVATE WITHOUT WARNING. *TR
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ENGINE: THE EPC LIGHT COMES ON RANDOMLY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS WHEN REVVING UP THE ENGINE TO OVERTAKE CARS. THE ENGINE SUDDENLY BOGS DOWN AND ENGINE RPMS ARE LIMITED TO 3000 WHEN LIGHT IS ON. IT COULD BE A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION BECAUSE THE CAR WILL NOT WANT TO ACCELERATE AND FORCES ME TO GET OFF THE FR
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
BRAKES: MY CAR ROLLED INTO A WALL ON THE OTHER SIDE OF A PARKING LOT WHILE I WAS INSIDE THE OPPOSITE BUILDING. THERE IS NO ALERT/INDICATOR/NOTIFICATION THAT THE E-BRAKE IS ENGAGED. THERE ARE ALERTS FOR THE SEAT BELT, AIR BAG, TRUCK/DOOR OPENED, LOW GAS, LIGHTS, ETC. THERE IS EVEN A NOTIFICATION ON THE SCREE
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)