Air Bag Not Deploy Problems of Volkswagen New Beetle

The state of virginia requires vehicle inspections, one item requires that dash warning lights for seat belt and airbags operate correctly. Our 2001 vw beetle has an airbag warning light that would not go out. The vw dealer charged $100 to diagnose the fact that the driver's seat belt (micro chip) was the culprit and for another $500 the problem could be corrected. Feeling this dealer was trying to "rip me off" I searched the internet for information on this problem. There are literally thousands of comments from owners of vw cars with the same complaint. I contacted Volkswagen of America, customer care advocate, for information on this safety item and inquired why the excessive charge from their dealers. A simple reply was returned saying they did not see a need for a recall to correct a recurring problem. The problem is that if the sensor does not believe the seat belt is fastened, the airbag will not deploy in a crash. I wish to add my voice to the many complaints I found in the NHTSA web site regarding Volkswagen of America's disregard for the lives of their customers, so their dealers can make money from a repeated correction to this problem. At your request I will provide facts, documents, and evidence concerning my complaint.

See all problems of the 2001 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

2000 Volkswagen New Beetle recently my 2000 Volkswagen New Beetle had the airbag light come on. I scoured the internet to find possible causes and to my amazement, many people suffer from the same problem. It appears that the sensors and wire harnesses in the New Beetles frequently fail triggering the airbag light to come on. I was told by an service tech. That when the airbag light is on, the airbags become deactivated, which seems to pose an extremely huge safety concern, seeing as the New Beetle suffers many defects regarding the airbags. Thankfully, the problem in mine is the driver side airbag wire harness located under the driver seat. The wire length is not sufficient enough to with stand a lot of seat movement. Moving the seats forward too many times can actually cause these wires to break in half, which happened in my case, deactivating all the airbags and bringing up an error in the system. The dealership doesn't make the matter any better, by saying that I will have to pay $600. 00 to replace not only the wire harness, but the side airbag as it comes as a complete package and the harness is not sold separately. In this economy, I cannot afford to replace an entire perfectly good airbag for a simple wire, so I am stuck having to drive around knowing that my airbags will not deploy if I get into an accident or possibly deploy prematurely without any cause. I believe that this issue should be looked at, since it not only affects the 2000 model, but all models up to 2006. Volkswagen should be held accountable for selling a product designed for occupant safety, that fails before the rest of the vehicle.

See all problems of the 2000 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

I was involved in a crash while driving my 2003 vw beetle convertible. I was unable to brake and avoid a semi-truck that was in directly in front of me. I was traveling at a speed between 30-40 mph but did lose conscience so am not sure if remember exactly how fast I was going. My airbag did not deploy and my seat belt did not lock causing my face to slam directly into the steering wheel. The passenger side airbag which contained no passengers nor items did deploy. I suffered facial fractures and a broken nose. My fractures have healed but my nose needs to be reconstructed. My car was serviced at a collision center and then sent to the autobarn in countryside, IL where the car was bought used in August of 2006. The car was returned to me on Dec 27 but no explanation was given for the airbag not deploying. The transmission was also not working properly so I returned the car for additional service a few days later. The car was finally returned to me 2 weeks later with a new transmission but still no explanation for the airbag. Upon leaving the autobarn on January 17 with my car, the air bag light turned on and stayed on while I drove about 10 miles. I returned the car the next day and the service department stated the light did not go on for them and offered again no explanation.

See all problems of the 2003 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

Air bag light on for 2nd time since Aug 2006 when car was bought used. Newbeetle. Org members all have had the same problem and I keep getting charged to read code and turn off the light because it's an "intermittent" code. I'm tired of driving around a vehicle knowing the air bags will not deploy if I get into an accident.

: the contact stated while driving 35 mph, the vehicle broadsided a second vehicle, and the air bags did not deploy. No warning lights were illuminated prior to the incident. The vehicle was towed to a salvage yard, and was not inspected by a mechanic. A police report was taken at the scene of the crash. No injuries were sustained in the collision. Updated 10/04/06.

See all problems of the 2005 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

: the contact stated while parking with the brake pedal depressed, the vehicle surged forward and collided with a light pole. A police report was taken. The vehicle was towed to the dealership and has been inspected. Updated 3/28/2006 - the air bags did not deploy during this accident.

Airbag light came on (has gone off and on for over a year); local mechanic unable to determine problem. 11. 09. 2005 took it to vw in brunswick, maine. Mechanic thinks there is a resistance issue and recommended replacement. He thinks it is a malfunction. The cost is over $500! I spoke to two CO-workers with different model vw's and had the same issue. Problem not resolved. Why should I pay for something that a mechanic thinks is wrong and others have to continuously pay for? if it is a defect then vw should be paying for it! my airbags have never deployed before. My car will not pass inspection with this light on.

See all problems of the 1999 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

Consumer was involved in an accident where the air bags failed to deploy. The airbag light was on, as well as the check engine and abs lights. Consumer went to dealership to get vehicle serviced, but dealership could not determine the cause of the problem.

See all problems of the 2004 Volkswagen New Beetle 🔎.

Airbag system defective, requiring repairs and replacements, including airbag replacements, 11 different times. Since system does not work and airbags do not deploy when sensors are on, this is clearly a safety issue.