11 problems related to steering have been reported for the 2009 Volkswagen GTI. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
A number of warning lights come on when the car is turned on and sound alarms come on and off while driving. The steering wheel moves on its own at times and the speedometer does not work. I took the car to my local vw dealer located in countryside IL (autobarn) knowing that there is a recall on the abs system. The dealer explained that the abs module was not working and needed replacement ($2,400) parts and labor and that the recall did not cover what is wrong with the part.
Abs code 16352 present. Car lost consistent electronic steering assistance making for varying steering wheel resistance during turning. Most dash information (speed, fuel gauge, etc. ) fluctuated. This issue needs to be addressed for all vw vehicles with abs control module issues, not just some. I brought this to the attention of vw and was told that the specific fault I threw was not covered (under existing recalls) even though all abs control module issues result in eventual failure of dash cluster as well as obvious safety concerns (which is exactly what happened resulting in ongoing costly shop visits).
My vehicle has experienced exactly what NHTSA campaign # 16v913000 and it is the model and year as listed in the campaign. With ignition on and while driving all of a sudden 4-5-possibly 6 lights come on my dashboard a chime starts dinging and the abs,esc,airbag,epc, barke pedal lights illuminate on dash along with either the speedo or tachometer start jumping. Vehicle can be stationary or driving but vehicle must be running.
Vehicle has failed abs module, as diagnosed by mechanic. Abs light is on and brake light flashes, as to be expected. While in motion, on either city street or freeway, vehicle randomly downshifts to first gear and is unable to switch back. Only way to get car working again is to turn car off and on, a dangerous proposition when you're on the freeway. In addition, power steering goes out and engine fault workshop! comes on after a few minutes in motion. Speedometer also randomly stops working while tachometer goes out of control. What begins as a simple brake problem is now an undriveable car. Have had to push car to side of the road several times because of this. Completely unsafe conditions to drive in.
While driving the vehicle steering system became tight, abs and brake light came on as well as check engine, steering system malfunction, epc and stability control lights lit up on dash. Also, fuel gauge would drop to empty and speedometer went to zero miles per hour while the car was in motion. This happened on a city street going straight or turning.
Abs module failure at 88k miles. Multiple fault codes presents with constant beeping and an error message reading " engine fault! workshop! in the heads up display (epc, emergency brake, electronic steering assist off, traction control off fault codes). This is a safety feature failure that can result in loss of power steering, antilock braking system functionality, and traction control at the same time. The failure of this module represents a serious danger to occupants in the vehicle as the safety features are disabled due to the failure of this crucial part. This can happen at any speed while driving/turning.
For several weeks, solid abs, solid traction control, and flashing "brake" lights would illuminate on the dashboard occasionally upon turning on the vehicle, accompanied by 3 audible beeps. Then, the abs, traction control, brake, epc, steering, and check engine lights began to come on while driving. Abs and traction control stay illuminated, while the epc, steering, check engine, and brake lights come on intermittently, accompanied by 3 audible beeps. The message "engine fault - workshop!" also shows up on the message display center in the dash. In addition, while the car is in motion, the speedometer will repeatedly alternate between the actual speed reading and a reading of 0 mph. When the speedometer drops to 0 mph, the engine rpms increase. Finally, the car sputters and bucks when attempting to accelerate rapidly, and steering feels a bit stiff. The dealer has indicated an internal fault in the abs control module.
Driving at speed, the abs control module randomly fails, causing abs brakes to skid under hard braking. Lose of steering and control is the result. In addition the partial steering is affected. This is a lawsuit waiting to happen, I can not understand why Volkswagen of american does not replace faulty units as this can cause fatalities and injuries. Many people are replacing these units through non-certified technicians, or diy. This should be installed by a vw certified tech. Nhtsa should mandate a recall or someone could get seriously injured or die. There are so many cases of this floating around the internet forums and other social media. Does someone have to die for people to finally listen?????.
Premature failure of electromechanical steering rack. Steering rack showing signs of wear and requires replacement within 5 yrs of purchase date and near 50,000 miles.
On 8/8/2014, I turned on my car to go work. Once I turned on the ignition/engine, all warning lights (power steering, engine, electronics, abs, esp and braking) came on or flashing. After several attempts (3 times) to restart the car, the warning lights came on and off periodically. With a last restarting attempt that morning, all warnings lights went away and I drove off to work. In the middle of the way, all warning lights came back on again. This time, power steering, abs, speedometer, gas gauge, etc. All malfunctioned periodically during my drive. During the drive, I had no idea how fast I was driving or how much gas I really had and with no power steering and abs etc. I did arrive at work safely but not without some serious and perhaps dangerous maneuvers with a nonworking power steering, abs, and other electronic components. I took the car to a vw dealership in braintree MA the next morning. After a weekend of diagnosis and a random repair to the ignition switch, the dealership told me it was the abs control module fault and it needed a replacement. Since that vw dealership was not able to give me a precise diagnosis without repairing random parts of my car and had me paid for it, I took the car to another vw dealership in danvers MA. After hours of diagnosis, I got the same result that the abs control module is at fault. I had the dealership replaced the abs control module and paid thousands for the repair. Now the car is running fine. But knowing that the abs control module fault is very common among my model of the car at all mileage from research and talking with local mechanics, I want to make aware of this problem and the dangers behind a random failure in the abs control module that can cause failure of both electronic and mechanic components in the car which can lead to serious accidents, injuries, or even deaths without slightest warning on the road.
While pulling into a gas station after leaving a stop light, the steering wheel mounted buttons and lights (horn, steering wheel, etc) flickered off when turning. At that point, the buttons failed to work unless the wheel was turned almost to full lock clockwise. It took about a day of driving until the airbag light finally came on telling me there was a fault. Further investigation led to a faulty airbag clockspring. Numerous instances of people reporting similar failures on vw forums with similar model years. A research in part numbers show it's the same part number and version through various vw models including 2006-2013 jetta, golf, Gti, passat, tiguan, etc. Many stories of people with those cars having similar issues. This part should be redesigned and replaced in the affected vehicles since the driver's side airbag can fail to deploy in a crash even if the airbag fault light isn't always on.