Defogger Heater Problems of Volkswagen Jetta

Volkswagen Jetta owners have reported 11 problems related to defogger heater (under the visibility category). The most recently reported issues are listed below. Also please check out the statistics and reliability analysis of Volkswagen Jetta based on all problems reported for the Jetta.

1 Defogger Heater problem of the 1997 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 04/11/2010

It was at night rainy and cold. I turned on the heater and defroster because my car windows and whole inside of cabin were obscures by a fog. My defroster cleared the back window but all others not so I rolled down the windows and shut down the heater. I waited a while and used clothing to wipe the window. This was the third time in 6 weeks appx. I did turn on the fan alone to push brown fog out of the car. Today I checked my fluids the coolant was half gone in the reservoir so I topped it up. I saw on line vwof America has helped people in the past with a good will heater core but they told me 4-152004 that they would not help me. That is where I'm at no $ and I need my car for work. Thank you.

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2 Defogger Heater problem of the 1996 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 07/20/2007

Driving home from school (12 minute drive) at night and the air coming from the vents smelled funny, like coolant. I turned off the fans but still smelled funny. I turned the fans back on and white 'smoke' was coming out of the vents and it smelled heavily of coolant. My windshield began to fog up while I was on the highway. I rolled down my windows and sunroof and tried everything I could to get the window to defog, but it only got worse. I could barely see and felt like I was in a very dangerous situation so I pulled off on the nearest county road. The car began to overheat and I still couldn't see anything so I opened the door and drove to a safe spot and turned the car off. Found out later that there was coolant all over on the floorboards and that the heater core has failed.

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3 Defogger Heater problem of the 1997 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 11/01/2006

Replaced ignition coil for the third time in as many years!! electric water pump replaced. Eater core exploded a couple months later while I was on the highway at 65 mph with my child in the car! couldn't see anything as car filled with antifreeze cloud. Belt driven water pump went a week later. Entire power steering rack needed to be replaced. Window regulator needed to be replaced twice. Door handle broke twice!.

4 Defogger Heater problem of the 1996 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 06/22/2006

:the contact stated while driving on an interstate highway at 70mph, there was stinging/burning sensation to the contact's foot. When the foot was removed from the gas pedal, a steaming liquid was observed on the foot and on the floor around the pedals. The liquid was spewing from an area under dashboard above the gas, break and clutch pedals. Steam/vapor also appeared to be coming out of the defroster vents on the dashboard. The accessories were immediately turned off and the vehicle was moved over and off the road. The hot liquid continued to spew and burn the contact's foot as the brakes were being applied. The vapor of the liquid filled the vehicle interferring with the contact's vision.

5 Defogger Heater problem of the 1998 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 05/01/2006

Like others, I have had the ignition coil replaced. This happened after the warranty expired, of course. I have also had electrical problems with the windows (regulator and motor) for all of them. Now, my check engine light is flashing and the car is sputtering. I know the secondary air intake valve needs replacing but it did not cause problems. Now I'm wondering if something new is wrong??? also, I was having problems with losing coolant and had to continuously replace antifreeze. After fixing what I thought was a small leak the entire system will not produce cool air! this car has been nothing but problems and vw should look into all of these complaints.

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6 Defogger Heater problem of the 1996 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 01/12/2006

On January 12, 2006, as I was driving my car at 65 mph on the highway an opaque white gas was quickly released from my heater vents and within seconds effectively turned the passenger compartment of my car into a gas chamber. The engine temperature increased after I was able to safely remove the vehicle of the highway. My car was sold with a permanent maintenance free pink vw antifreeze. The documentation that came with the car indicated that other than topping off the antifreeze periodically that no maintenance was necessary. It was determined that my heater core failed; the dealer says it failed because of lack of maintenance. If the system is maintenance free then how can a component fail because of lack of maintenance? I originally thought the vehicle had been vandalized, but the dealer differed. I was unable to find any warnings of the possibility of this occurring in service bulletins or any other vw literature. If the catastrophic failure of a heater core is possible doesn't the manufacture have a duty to warn the purchasers of its products?.

7 Defogger Heater problem of the 1997 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 07/30/2005

While parking my 1992 Volkswagen corrado back in late January 2005, my heater core leak all over my passenger floor, and had steam coming out the vents and fogging up my windows. After investigating on the internet I saw that this was a common problem on water cooled Volkswagens. On 7/30/05 I had a similar event happen while driving my wife's 1997 Volkswagen Jetta. The windshield suddenly fogged up and had steam coming from the vents and a coolant smell in the car. This happened while driving on the highway. I had to wipe the windshield with my hand so that I can see out the windshield. I pulled over and checked my coolant tank, there was a drop in fluid. What is in common between both vehicles is they are equipped with the same engine, the 2. 8l vr6. After researching again on the internet I have found out that the cars in NHTSA campaign id number : 92v050000 and most water cooled Volkswagen manufactured after that date share the same part number for the heater core. It seems that the faulty part is the heater core. Please investigate this, luckily there was not much traffic when my windshield fogged up, and no one was hurt. Thank you for your time.

8 Defogger Heater problem of the 1996 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 03/25/2005

Heater core ruptured, causing the coolant to spill over the driver's feet. This eventually caused the windshield to fog up, making the ability to see the road difficult. While consumer was driving the vehicle, he hit a bump and hot coolant fell on his feet. The steam from the hot coolant fogged up the windows and escaped through the vents. The consumer pulled over to parking lot to avoid crashing because of the steam on the window. Volkswagen agreed to repair heating core.

9 Defogger Heater problem of the 2002 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 03/24/2005

Heater core on 2002 volkswagon Jetta failed after 68000 miles. Remedy according to vw. . . Pay 1200. 00 to have it fixed. . . Sorry.

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10 Defogger Heater problem of the 1999 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 01/12/2004

While driving to work, my headlights, dashlights, heater/defrost, all went out and my e-brake light came on. Do to the conditions and the cold, my windshield fogged up extememly quickly and made it difficult to drive. This has happened many times since, almost on a daily basis. I figured out later on, that by moving the ignition switch around, everything went back to normal. I have not contacted the dealer about this due to my military schedule. I am deplpyed right now and am planning to contact the dealer in fargo as soon as I return.

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11 Defogger Heater problem of the 1998 Volkswagen Jetta

Failure Date: 03/17/2001

Heater core failed and coolant leaked into the cabin along with fumes. Dealer was unable to repair did not have parts in stock.


Other Common Visibility related problems of Volkswagen Jetta


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Fuel Economy of Jetta Vehicles
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