One problem related to transmission stuck in gear has been reported for the 2008 Volkswagen Jetta. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2008 Volkswagen Jetta based on all problems reported for the 2008 Jetta.
While merging onto the freeway, as I reached 60mph the car lunged and the engine began revving over 6000rpm. It felt like the car was stuck in 3rd gear. The gear/drive mode display led began flashing constantly. The car would not shift up to a higher gear so I moved into slower lanes and kept the car at about 5000rpm/55mph until it was safe to stop. The car geared down as I decelerated but appeared to skip a gear and lunged at each shift. I tried switching between drive and sport mode but there was no change. When I finally was able to bring the car to a stop I discovered the reverse gear did not engage. It simply went into neutral. I shut the car down, waited a minute and started it again. It no longer had any visible problems or error messages. I later learned this is a known issue with the dsg transmission and is referred to as the 'dsg flash of death'.