2008 Volkswagen GTI owner complaints

I own a 2008 Volkswagen gti and am having manual transmission problems, three months of owning the car my first gear scynro has gone out,(disintegrated) this problem has been repaired under warranty. And now has gone out a second and a third time. The second time same dealer same warranty repair. For the third repair the dealer has denied my warranty for the part in question. I'm currently trying to get a hold of vw in germany, because Volkswagen of america's customer service is not willing to help me. *tr

Came to complete stop. Pressed on gas pedal to move forward into intersection. After automatic transmission shifted into 2nd, the car loss all engagement and felt as if it was in neutral. I stepped on the gas pedal further and after 5 seconds, the engine RPM"s increased and the transmission lunged forward. I am unsure if it was the dsg transmission slipping into neutral, or a throttle issue. Dealer replaced mechatronic unit which did not alleviate this frequent problem.

The car lurches when moving from a stop. This is a big issue in traffic due to the lag that exists in application of throttle to actual movement. What also happens is a momentary neutral when you apply full throttle when moving. This is not like a normal kickdown, the car does nothing at first then rockets forward , to the extent that it is very difficult to drive in stop and go traffic. I have had numerous close call in this car as a result of the transmission shift patterns. These are all present after driving the car 20+ miles to work in traffic. *tr

My car (2008 vw gti w/dsg) runs very choppy at low speeds and in reverse. Often times at a stop light, the car would shift very hard into first gear when I let go of the brake. *tr

Normal acceleration from a stop or rolling, the dsg transmission will hesitate and produce a very rough shift to the next gear. This is intermittent but almost daily. Car is now in the vw dealers repair shop. *tr

2008 vw gti dsg transmission, driving approx 30-40km/h, transmission lights started flashing, vehicle was stuck in first gear. *tr

I own a 2008 vw mkv gti with dsg transmission, and I have encountered the following problems. 1. After a 700 mile drive, I noticed that the prdns display was flashing, and that my transmission was locked in 2nd gear, no other gears could be used including reverse after shutting down my car, and letting it sit for 20 minutes, I restarted the car and it was behaving normal again, and the flashing of the prdns display was gone. 2. For a couple of days now I have experienced a potentially dangerous behavior of my dsg transmission, when coming to a stop it jerks and surges forward in 1st gear, the same happens when taking of from a stop it jerks and surges, which makes it for the driver impossible to control/m

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Volkswagen gti. The contact stated that while attempting to drive, the vehicle hesitated and made an abnormal noise when shifting gears. The vehicle was taken to a dealer. The technician diagnosed that the transmission failed and as a result a flush needed to perform. The remedy failed to repair the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the issue. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 55,000.

1. Problem - rough up and downshifts in d, manual/tiptronic mode, and s modes (all modes available in the car). 2. When manually downshifting/upshifting the car or when allowing the car to do so on its own, you often get a slight to severe jerk. Problem occurs on 90% of all shifts. 3. Been to the dealership several times, have dropped the car off 3 times. First two times they had done software reset and then a software update. Neither fixed the issue although they told me the car was 'running fine' or the 'jerks are normal'. This third time, the mechatronic unit (what I feel is the culprit and have been pushing) is supposedly being replaced. Uncertain if this will resolve the issue 100%. Still do not have the car. *tr

I am unable to replace my third brake light without taking it to the dealership. I drive a 2008 vw gti. *tr

I can't replace the 3rd brake light bulbs on my 2008 vw gti. There is no way to service them and the deal states they would have to physically rip off my spoiler to do so. *tr

The 2008 vw gti uses the headlights as running lights. When the car is started and the parking brake is released the headlights turn on. This occurs regardless of the position of the headlight switch. This causes a hazard as at night the driver is likely to start the car and proceed to drive. Usually one would not proceed to drive without turning the lights on however the headlights are turned on automatically. Now you are driving with headlights but no taillights. This feature is creating a hazard and should be changed. I inquired at the dealer and they stated 'that is the way it is designed to work'. I have not had an accident because of this deficiency. *tr

The 2008 vw gti uses the headlights as running lights. When the car is started and the parking brake is released the headlights turn on. This occurs regardless of the position of the headlight switch. This causes a hazard as at night the driver is likely to start the car and proceed to drive. Usually one would not proceed to drive without turning the lights on however the headlights are turned on automatically. Now you are driving with headlights but no taillights. This feature is creating a hazard and should be changed. I inquired at the dealer and they stated 'that is the way it is designed to work'. I have not had an accident because of this deficiency. *tr

Recently I preformed a routine maintenance check on my vehicle and as suggested by all mark 5 gti owners I checked the cam follower. I found the cam follower completely worn through. I contacted vw to make sure I was under the extended warranty handed out to all 2006-2007 and some 2008 owners to find out I was not under the warranty extension. Right now I have a the piece off my old cam follower somewhere in my engine and vw refuses to service my vehicle due to their new improved model apparently that many other owners are experiencing. Vw knows that the cam follower is faulty but refuses to service many other 2008 owners such as myself. Right now it feels like my car is a ticking time bomb with the cam follower piece somewhere in the engine.

2008 vw gti dsg--automatic transmission problem: the car "jumps" randomly when releasing foot off the brake at a red light, or when engaging from park to drive and releasing brake. Many "close calls" to crashing and/or property damage due to known issue, especially when parallel parked on street: I.e. Car jumping forward or backward potentially damaging parked cars around or, even worse, "jumping" into the traffic lanes. Dealership deflects the issue, claiming it to be "normal" operation of the transmission. Warranty on the transmission has been extended to 10yr/100,000mile, though not in response to this issue, according to dealership. *tr

The cam follower has prematurely warn out causing the intake camshaft to wear prematurely as well, which has in turn caused the high pressure fuel pump to fail. This is a long-term, degenerative issue. Volkswagen has extended the warranty on these parts for some 2006-2008 gti's but not my VIN. Their warranty extension was not broad enough as these same parts have failed in my car.

Vehicle required extra cranking before starting. Upon starting and beginning to drive, there was lack of power and rpms did not want to go above 4k. After approx. 1/4-1/2 mile engine began to respond normally. Took vehicle to dealership for diagnosis. Told the high pressure fuel pump, cam follower and cam needed to be replaced due to cam follower losing hardness and wearing through causing fuel pump to run directly on cam. Fuel pump arm was worn and also scored cam. Was told that 2006-07 model years had extended warranty from vw to fix this but 2008 did not. In model year 2009, a completely different system was used. I believe that my engine still contained the defective parts and vw internet forums also have extensive mention of this problem in 2008 models. I also on many occasi

Car loss power had to be towed to voltswagon later the high pressure fuel pump was found to have failed causing a lost of power while on the on ramp to the highway. There was also damage done to the motor from the internal metal fragments from where the pump works with the cam shaft and the metal fell into the motor. Had to have a new engine replace ment mileage 135000.

2008 Volkswagen gti. Consumer stated they hit a pothole while driving at night in the pocone pa area. The tire was less than one month old. Had all four tires replaced shortly after purchasing the vehicle in june. The consumer stated the low profile high performance tires were prone to frequent blow outs. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Volkswagen gti. While driving approximately 50 MPH, the vehicle started to jerk when attempting to accelerate. Also, the contact mentioned that the key had to be placed in accessory mode before the vehicle would turn on. The failure recurred numerous times. The dealer stated that the cam, high pressured fuel pump, and the EVAP purge valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 99,800. Updated 1/21/15*cn updated 01/26/15