Two problems related to transmission gear slipping have been reported for the 2003 Volkswagen New Beetle Convertible. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Overheat light remains on after replacing thermostat and cover and timing belt and water pump. The system has been flushed multiple times. I took it to the vw dealer that I purchased the car from on 8/25/10 after overheating light. The dealer said it was the engine coolant sensor my previous mechanic had replaced in the car. (a vw factory part). $244. 00 repair from cooley-Mazda vw dealer. I drove home 10 miles and the overheat sensor was on in my car. I had the car towed back to dealer at my expense that day. Rented a car for the weekend. Returned on Monday 8/30/10. Car wasn't worked on. Picked up car on Wednesday, 9/1/10. Paid additional 170. 00 for repair, of thermostat cover which was said to be leaking. Dealer had said there were no leaks prior to this. System flushed. Said there was air in the system. Car overheat sensor after driving about 20 miles. Car was towed back to dealer. Car was picked up on 9/3/10. Dealer told me they could not get the overheat light to go on. I drove car home 15 miles. Overheat light on. I called dealer. Service technician informed me that the increased city driving I was doing was causing car to overheat. Informed that the transmission was causing the car to overheat and that I would need a new transmission. He informed me that since I said okay at the shop when they told me that the sensor was not going on and the transmission was slipping. That I knew that the transmission needed to be replaced. That is my fault and my prior mechanics. I had car towed to a recommended independent shop who was going to look at the transmission. I can not drive my car and I still owe money on it. I desperately need a vehicle to drive.
2003 Volkswagen beetle convertible. Car only has 74k miles on it and the transmission is slipping badly. When downshifting it shifts really hard and lunges forward. This also happens when upshifting in the auto trans. This seems to be a big problem with the new beetles. The only fix is replacing the transmission, which cost about 6,000. There is no reason for a transmission failure at 74k miles.