Side/window Air Bag problems of the 2001 Volkswagen GTI

The car, a 2001 vw Gti 1. 8t, was being driven at low (residential street -- 25 mph or less) speeds and made a right turn. The right rear wheel probably grazed the curb, or possibly hit a pothole. The passenger side airbag and side curtain airbag deployed. The car lost power, possibly due to the engine stalling (it's a manual) though that's not certain. The dealer service department inspected the car and they confirm there is no damage other than the (substantial!) damage of the airbag deployment. Fortunately there was nobody in the passenger seat and traffic was minimal so no one was injured. It seems as though a curb or pothole hit should not have been enough to cause airbag deployment. The car has very low mileage, less than 60,000, and has been well-maintained.

2001 vw Gti passenger side airbag inadvertantly deployed. Side seat airbag and headliner deployed. Dashboard airbag did not. No accident occured. Deployment was when car was driving on a highway, straight road, no bumps, no turns, no potholes, no debris on road, no impact with anything. No idea why airbags deployed.

I was traveling down a highway at 60 mph. Suddenly without impact both the drivers side curtain airbag and drivers seat side airbag deployed, for no reason. What made it even more scary is that it turned off my car while coasting at highway speeds, also disoriented me. Was able to barely turn the car to an off ramp with out a wreck resulting. Nothing has been replaced at this time.

While driving, the rear left tire went flat. There was a nail in the tire, which may have been the cause of the flat tire. Also the drivers side air bag deployed. There was no collision and the vehicle didn't swerve. Consumer sustained injury, she has a burn on her upper arm. Vehicle was a Volkswagen, Gti, 2001. She went to the dealership and they said they couldn't do anything; she would have to go directly to the manufacturer. There was no damage done underneath of the vehicle.

Side impact airbags deployed without any collision or reason.

While driving on the highway the two passenger side air bags deployed without the consumer hitting or running over anything. The consumer usually has three children in the vehicle, luckily none were in the vehicle at the time of the incident. The manufacturer and the dealer are aware of the problem.

Side airbags deployed after hitting pot hole. . . No damage to exterior of car tire was bubbled slightly. . .

Due to the "airbag" symbols displayed on the a- and b-pillars of my car, I and my dealer assumed that curtain airbags were installed. The monroney sticker listed only front and side airbags. Volkswagen customer service informed me that curtain airbags were a running change during the model year and that my vehicle did not have curtain airbags based on its date of manufacture, despite the "airbag" symbols indicating that curtain airbags were installed (curtain airbag installation began in March, 2001, while my vehicle was assembled in February, 2001). The vw customer service operator was unconcerned and suggested that I contact my local dealer if I was dissatisfied. My local dealer subsequently "confirmed" the installation of curtain airbags through the vehicle computer diagnostic system. While I have chosen to rely on my local dealer's information rather than information provided by Volkswagen's corporate customer service and the monroney sticker, I am troubled by Volkswagen's ineptitude and lack of concern in providing information on a critical safety system. Most troubling, Volkswagen customer service was unconcerned that the vehicle interior trim badging indicated installation of curtain airbags where their records showed that none were installed. Of lesser concern to me is that the monroney sticker omitted an important safety feature. At least I think it did. If I'm ever unfortunate enough to resolve the debate between my local dealer and Volkswagen experimentally and find that no curtain airbags are in fact installed in my car, I or my heirs will be contacting you again.