One problem related to transmission failure has been reported for the 2001 Volkswagen Beetle. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
I have a 2001 vw new Beetle. The transmission keeps failing, lurching, skidding, & the dealer & mechanics have done/found out nothing about it. I am one of thousands experiencing this problem with no reply from vw. I have never received anything about the recalls they order. My car is totally unsafe & I have put $5,500 in it to be told I need more work. They are taking no responsibility & we that own these cars are forced to drive them unsafely. My car jumps & skids forward from a stop. It goes so slow before the skidding that cars almost rear end me. The car cannot be traded in broken & vw refuses to address any problems we all have. My mom has a 2005 new Beetle that is beginning to lurch and stall out on the freeway & during regular driving. We own 2 of these cars and never receive any recall info and we are forced to pay $5,700 each to fix the faulty transmission, $900 each for sensors, who know what for computers that all fail and cause our vehicles to be extremely unsafe. My car right now will not reverse, it only drives forward. Vw needs to be forced to recall there faulty unsafe cars for not only those that drive them but for others on the road. This is a huge safety issue for drivers and anyone on the road. I should not have to fear for my life when driving a vehicle I have maintained and the maker will not recall the problems it knows these vehicles have. They are not safe and all of us that own them are stuck paying thousands of dollars to fix a problem vw is aware of and will do nothing about. It is scary and dangerous to be a vw new Beetle owner.