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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2011 Volkswagen Jetta — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 640 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

640
Complaints
filed with NHTSA
28
Involved a Crash
owner-reported
12
Involved Fire
owner-reported
16
Injuries
across all reports
Years to Avoid

Volkswagen Jetta — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

875 complaints

640 complaints

527 complaints

517 complaints

386 complaints

194 complaints

161 complaints

159 complaints

31 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Electrical System 201 reports
Fuel System 97 reports
Engine 93 reports
Diesel 82 reports
Fuel/propulsion System 81 reports
Unknown Or Other 66 reports
Power Train 55 reports
Exterior Lighting 46 reports
In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Electrical System ODI 10817217 12/31/2015

IGNITION SWITCH KEY LOCK SOLENOID (N376) PROBLEM. HELLO, MY WIFE'S 2011 JETTA HAS A MALFUNCTIONING IGNITION LOCK CYLINDER. PERHAPS THE IGNITION SWITCH KEY LOCK SOLENOID (N376)? NORMALLY THE KEY SHOULD BE LOCKED IN THE IGNITION WHILE THE CAR IS IN D(DRIVE). HOWEVER, THERE APPEARS TO BE A MALFUNCTION IN THE N376 (OR OTHER) WHICH DOES NOT ENGAGE THE LOCKING SOLENOID. THIS …

Structure ODI 11164046 12/29/2018

WIND NOISE COMING FROM DRIVER SIDE DOOR.

Visibility/wiper ODI 11057496 12/29/2017

IF THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE GOES BELOW APPROXIMATELY 15 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, THE WIPERS FAIL TO OPERATE. THIS CAN HAPPEN WHEN THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN PARKED, OR DURING OPERATION. THIS HAS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES AND FROM INDICATIONS ON THE INTERNET, IS A KNOWN SAFETY PROBLEM.

Electrical System ODI 10938608 12/29/2016

ON THIS VEHICLE, FUSE (F16 PLUG-IN POSITION) OVERHEATED AND DAMAGED THE FUSE BOX, CAUSING A PARTIAL LOSS OF EXTERIOR VEHICLE LIGHTING. THIS COULD INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH CAUSING INJURY AND/OR DAMAGE TO PROPERTY. VW ISSUED 97AM ACTION ALERT FOR EARLIER YEAR SAME MODELS, BUT NOT THIS AND LATER YEAR MODELS.

Wheels ODI 10938652 12/29/2016

FOR TWO YEARS PRIOR TO AUGUST 2016, I WENT INTO MY VW DEALER ONCE A MONTH BECAUSE THE CHECK TIRE LIGHT CAME ON. EACH TIME THEY JUST PUT AIR IN THE TIRES AND SAID THERE WAS NO PROBLEM, AND EACH TIME I ASKED THEM TO CHECK THE RIMS. ONCE OR TWICE THEY INSPECTED AND CLEANED THE RIMS AND SAID THERE WAS NO PROBLEM. IN JUNE 2016 I ASKED THEM TO CHECK AGAIN BECAUSE I PLANNED TO DRIVE …

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

Check Another Car

Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta reliable?
Owners have filed 640 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta, most often about electrical system. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.
Which Volkswagen Jetta years should I avoid?
The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.
Where do these complaints come from?
Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.
Do complaints mean a recall is coming?
Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.