2019 Volkswagen Golf Owner Complaints

I HAVE A NEW 2019 VW GOLF GTI RABBIT WITH 500 MILES, I'VE HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE CAR STALLING AS I COME TO A STOP. IT'S HAPPENED MULTIPLE TIMES, ALL WHILE SLOWLY COMING TO A STOP. IT'S QUIET AND DON'T EVEN NOTICE UNTIL I TRY TO ACCELERATE

4/4/2019

VEHICLE IS STALLING WHILE COMING UP TO A STOP AT LOW SPEEDS. I FULLY ENGAGE THE CLUTCH AND THEN IT STALLS. IT FEELS MORE OF AN ENGINE SHUTDOWN THAN A STALL; I SAY THIS BECAUSE IT IS A VERY QUIET AND GENTLE SHUTDOWN. YOU CANT EVEN TELL IT HAPPENED UNTIL YOU SEE THE RPM'S DROP TO ZERO.

4/4/2019

VEHICLE STALLS WHEN COMING TO A STOP WITH CLUTCH DEPRESSED. GEAR INDICATOR WILL INDICATE WRONG GEAR.

4/8/2019

I PURCHASED A 2019 GOLF GTI RABBIT EDITION (URANO GREY) W/ MANUAL TRANSMISSION ON 2/23/2019. ON 2/27, MY CAR STALLS WHEN I AM STATIONARY ON FLAT TERRAIN, WAITING FOR THE GREEN LIGHT AT THE INTERSECTION, WITH MY CLUTCH ALL THE WAY IN. I RESTARTED THE ENGINE WITHOUT RELEASING THE CLUTCH. THE REVS GOES UP TO 800, STAYS THERE FOR A SECOND, AND THE CAR STALLS AFTERWARDS. I DID ANOTHER TWO RESTARTS AFTER THAT, WHICH GAVE ME THE SAME RESULT. THE WAY I GET OUT OF THIS SITUATION IS TO APPLY A LITTLE THROTTLE WHEN WAITING, RAISING THE REV TO AROUND 1100. THIS ISSUE NEVER OCCURRED AFTERWARDS, BUT I BELIEVE THERE IS A POTENTIAL DEFECT IN POWER TRAIN OR ENGINE.

4/10/2019

ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS SINCE ABOUT APRIL 8,2019 MY NEW GTI STALLED WHILE I WAS DRIVING. WHEN THE CAR STALLS IT DOES SO WITHOUT WARNING. THE STALL OCCURS AS IF THE CAR SIMPLY TURNED OFF. ON A FEW OCCASIONS THE CAR STALLED WHEN I STOPPED AT A STOP SIGN OR WHEN I DROVE ONTO MY DRIVEWAY. TWICE THE CAR STALLED IN BUMPER TO BUMPER TRAFFIC ON I580 NEAR SAN FRANCISCO. BOTH OF THOSE STALLS CAME AT A MOMENT WHEN VEHICLES FOLLOWING ME NEARLY COLLIDED WITH ME BECAUSE TRAFFIC BEGAN TO MOVE BUT MY CAR STALLED AND FOR A MOMENT DID NOT MOVE IN SYNC WITH TRAFFIC. THE STALLING SEEMS TO HAPPEN MORE AS I COME TO A STOP. IT HAS BEEN HAPPENING MORE FREQUENTLY OVER THE LAST FEW DAYS ALSO. I REALIZED THERE IS IN FACT AN ISSUE SO I CONTACTED THE DEALERSHIP WHERE I PURCHASED THE CAR. I HAVE AN APPOINTMENT IN 1 WEEK SO THEY CAN HOPEFULLY ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. I WILL NOT BE DRIVING THE CAR UNTIL THE DEALERSHIP CLEARS IT AS SAFE TO OPERATE. THE CAR IS A 2019 VW GTI 6 SPEED MANUAL SHIFT. THE STALLS STARTED WHEN THE CAR HAD ABOUT 400 MILES, TODAY IT STALLED FOR ABOUT THE 8TH OR 9TH TIME AND HAS ABOUT 1125 MILES. I AM VERY EXPERIENCED OPERATING A MANUAL TRANSMISSION AND I KNOW THAT THE STALLING IS A VEHICLE ISSUE AND NOT OPERATOR ERROR.

4/25/2019

I HAVE A WHITE GTI RABBIT WITH A MANUFACTURE DATE OF 10/18. VEHICLE ENGINE STALLS WHEN COMING TO A STOP. THIS OCCURS WITH THE VEHICLE IN NEUTRAL REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT THE CLUTCH IS DEPRESSED AND HAPPENS DURING CITY DRIVING. THE VEHICLE EXHIBITED THIS PROBLEM AROUND 3000 MILES AND HAS OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES SINCE. IT DOES THIS EVERY SO OFTEN IN AN UNPREDICTABLE MANNER AND AM UNABLE TO REPEAT IT. ALSO NOTICED THAT THE GEAR SELECTOR ON THE DASH ACTS ERRATICALLY WHEN THIS HAPPENS SOMETIMES SHOWING 4-2 OR 4-3 OR 2-3 BEFORE THE STALL OCCURS. NO DASH LIGHTS COME ON. THERE ARE NO CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS. VEHICLE REQUIRES A RESTART BY PUSHING THE START BUTTON BEFORE DRIVING AGAIN. AM AFRAID THAT THIS WILL HAPPEN DURING FREEWAY DRIVING.

4/28/2019

VEHICLE IS STALLING WHILE COMING UP TO A STOP AT LOW SPEEDS. I FULLY ENGAGE THE CLUTCH AND THEN IT STALLS. IT FEELS MORE OF AN ENGINE SHUTDOWN THAN A STALL; I SAY THIS BECAUSE IT IS A VERY QUIET AND GENTLE SHUTDOWN. YOU CANT EVEN TELL IT HAPPENED UNTIL YOU SEE THE RPM'S DROP TO ZERO.

4/4/2019

THE CAR COMING SLOWING DOWN TO A STOP WILL SHUT (STALL) OFF AND REQUIRE RESTARTING. SECONDARY ISSUE WHERE THE TRANSMISSION GEAR SELECTION INDICATOR WILL SHOW THE WRONG GEAR SELECTED. HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=56OMNOQSI-C

4/5/2019

2019 GOLF GTI SE 6MT PURCHASED WITH 12 MILES. ENGINE RANDOMLY STALLS IN NEUTRAL WHEN ROLLING TO STOP WITH CLUTCH FULLY DISENGAGED AFTER HAVING DOWNSHIFTED TO EITHER SECOND OR FIRST GEAR. THIS HAS HAPPENED (3) TIMES SINCE PICKING UP THE BRAND NEW CAR (4) DAYS AGO. THE ELECTRONIC DISPLAY THAT SHOWS WHICH GEAR YOU ARE IN HAS ALSO REPORTED THE WRONG GEAR ONCE (SO FAR). THIS IS AN ISSUE AFFECTING *MANY* 2019 GOLF GTI OWNERS. HERE ARE SOME NOTES OF THE ISSUE SO FAR: - 6-8-19 @ 1AM (131 MILES) - NO CEL - CLUTCH WAS OUT AND CAR WAS IN NEUTRAL COMING TO STOPLIGHT IN LEFT TURN LANE. GOING LESS THAN 5MPH WHEN CAR DIED. SEEMED LIKE IT HAPPENED WHEN THE TACH WAS AT IDLE-RANGE. RESTARTED WITH BUTTON. - 6-8-19 @ 10:56PM (225 MILES) - NO CEL - PULLING UP TO DRIVEWAY. CAR DIED AT LESS THAN 2MPH GOING UP A VERY SLIGHT HILL WHEN CLUTCH WAS DEPRESSED TO GO INTO FIRST FROM NEUTRAL. WAS GOING *VERY SLOW* WHEN THIS HAPPENED. RESTARTED WITH BUTTON. - 6-9-19 @ 3:30PM (276 MILES) - NO CEL - BROTHER WAS DRIVING WITH ME IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. PULLING UP TO STOP SIGN IN HIS NEIGHBORHOOD AND HE WAS IN NEUTRAL WITH CLUTCH OUT SLOWING TO A STOP AND THE CAR SOFTLY DIED AGAIN. RESTARTED WITH BUTTON. - 6-9-19 @ 11:44PM (418 MILES) - NO CEL - DRIVING UP A STREET IN A NEIGHBORHOOD GOING 20-25MPH IN 2ND GEAR AND THE DISPLAY BETWEEN MY TACH AND SPEEDO SAID I WAS IN 3RD AND SHOULD SHIFT INTO 4TH. WHEN I CRESTED THE HILL AND HIT THE BRAKES TO SLOW DOWN FOR A PART OF THE STREET THAT WAS DAMAGED, THE GEAR DISPLAYED SWITCHED TO 2ND (WHICH IS WHAT I WAS IN AND HADN'T CHANGED). THESE ISSUES ARE VERY WELL DOCUMENTED BY DRIVERS IN ENTHUSIAST FORUMS SUCH AS REDDIT AND GOLFMK7.COM. YOU CAN ALSO FIND VIDEOS OF THE ISSUE ON YOUTUBE: HTTPS://WWW.REDDIT.COM/R/GOLFGTI/COMMENTS/B9CPB7/POSSIBLE_2019_6MT_STALL_ISSUE_YOUR_FEEDBACK/ HTTPS://WWW.GOLFMK7.COM/FORUMS/SHOWTHREAD.PHP?P=776852#POST776852

6/10/2019

PURCHASED 2019 GTI RABBIT EDITION 6MT. SOON AFTER PURCHASE, VEHICLE BEGAN STALLING UNEXPECTEDLY WHEN COMING TO A STOP WHEN CAR IS IN NEUTRAL. HAS HAPPENED WHEN CLUTCH IS EITHER DEPRESSED OR NOT. SOMETIMES CAR HAS STALLED WHEN FULLY STOPPED. IN THIS CASE THE CAR STARTS IDLING ROUGHLY AND SHUDDERS BEFORE STALLING. CAR STARTS UP AGAIN WITH NO WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. CALL HAS STALLED 6+ TIMES SINCE PURCHASE. CAR HAS ALSO EXHIBITED EXCESSIVE VIBRATION COMING FROM THE ENGINE SINCE PURCHASE. DEALERS HAVE NOT REALLY BEEN HELPFUL; THEY EITHER DENY THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM OR SAY THAT THE WHEELS/TIRES NEED BALANCING, HOWEVER BALANCING AND REPLACING THE TIRES DID NOT FIX THE ISSUE. I AM POSITIVE THIS IS RELATED TO THE STALLING ISSUES. ALSO, THE GEAR NUMBER INDICATOR SOMETIMES SHOWS THAT THE CAR IS A A DIFFERENT GEAR THAN WHAT IS CURRENTLY SELECTED (I.E., CAR IS IN 4TH BUT GEAR INDICATOR INCORRECTLY SHOWS THE CAR IS IN 2ND). I HAVE SEEN THAT OTHER OWNERS HAVE THESE SAME EXACT ISSUES WHICH MEANS THAT THESE ARE MANUFACTURING DEFECTS IN THE VEHICLE. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE BECAUSE THE CAR COULD STALL AT ANYTIME MAKING IT HARDER TO CONTROL OR STOP, ESPECIALLY IN AN EMERGENCY.

9/16/2019

11/2021 @ 5927 miles - sunny day, no vehicle in front, without warning AEB lit up, flashing and automatic brakes engaged, vibration felt, bringing car to near stop for no reason. Speed approx 35 mph on flat, straight roadway, approx 4 lanes heading one direction. Could have been rear-ended since car stopped suddenly. No prior occurrence. VW Case #05016886 created by VW upon contacting. Recommended VW service inspection. VW service stated Fault C113B00 for hill descent button, which this model doesn’t have hill descent option. VW technician reconfigured the ABS module to rectify error.

12/15/2021

When driving over train tracks the automatic emergency brakes engaged and the forward collision detection beeping alarm sounded. This has happened over 5 times since I have owned the car. Many times the forward collision alarm will go off without engaging the brakes, seemingly without cause. Only when passing over train tracks do the emergency brakes bring the vehicle to a stop or to an extreme slowdown. I have a video of the incident if you would like it, but no way to upload on this website. You can hear the emergency brake and alarm going off with nothing in front of my car.

4/24/2024

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2019 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY AT A STOP SIGN, IT STALLED, SHUT OFF, AND THE STEERING WHEEL SEIZED. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED, IT RESUMED NORMAL OPERATION. RIVERSIDE VOLKSWAGEN (8330 INDIANA AVE D, RIVERSIDE, CA 92504, (951) 509-2100) WAS CALLED AND STATED THAT THEY WOULD ATTEMPT TO DUPLICATE THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 40.

9/11/2019

2019 GTI 6MT STALLS. THE ISSUE PRESENTS ITSELF SLOWING DOWN TO A STOP, WHERE THE ENGINE WILL SOFT STALL AND REQUIRE RESTARTING. THIS HAS HAPPENED WHEN STOPPED AT A LIGHT, AS WELL AS WHEN IN MOTION, COASTING TO A STOP. IT HAS HAPPENED ON THE HIGHWAY, IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, AS WELL AS PARKING IN A PARKING SPOT. THE UNSAFE CONDITION IS WHEN IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, IN RUSH HOUR ON RT 287 (MAJOR HIGHWAY) COASTING TO A STOP, THE ENGINE DIES AND I LOOSE CONTROL OF THE STEERING WHEEL CONTROL AND ACCELERATION. THE START STOP BUTTON NEEDS TO BE PUSHED TO GET THE CAR TO START UP AGAIN. THE CAR IS BRAND NEW AND HAS ROUGHLY 650 MILES ON IT.

11/20/2019

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Golf. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light and the air bags warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing the failure listed in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V892000 (Visibility, Air Bags) however, neither the VIN nor the model vehicle was included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000. The VIN was not available.

8/29/2023

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Golf. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to start the vehicle and the air bag warning light illuminated. The contact attempted to contact the dealer; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed. The contact stated that an independent mechanic was contacted, and the vehicle was scheduled to be taken to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,038.

4/10/2025

When driving over train tracks the automatic emergency brakes engaged and the forward collision detection beeping alarm sounded. This has happened over 5 times since I have owned the car. Many times the forward collision alarm will go off without engaging the brakes, seemingly without cause. Only when passing over train tracks do the emergency brakes bring the vehicle to a stop or to an extreme slowdown. I have a video of the incident if you would like it, but no way to upload on this website. You can hear the emergency brake and alarm going off with nothing in front of my car.

4/24/2024

When driving down the road doing about 35 mph with no car close in front of me my forward collision sensor went off without warning and initiated sharp braking which almost caused the car behind me to run into me. My car jolted like I’d been hit (I hadn’t) and the red warning light lit up the dashboard. The person behind me was able to brake in time and didn’t hit me. I don’t think my brake lights engaged. It was terrifying and incredibly unsafe and I’m lucky I wasn’t on a highway or there wasn’t anyone following too closely behind. Very, very dangerous situation.

5/6/2024

THE DRIVER'S SIDE REARVIEW MIRROR DEVELOPED A STRESS CRACK WHICH MAY AFFECT VISIBILITY. THE ISSUE WAS NOT CAUSED BY ROAD DEBRIS. VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION ON HIGHWAY.

11/7/2019

Intermittent warning light on dash indicating, "Cruise control system malfunction".The owner's manual says to have the system checked by Volkswagen. The dealer said the vehicle is operating normally. I first noticed this the day after service action code 24FX was completed on 4/8/21. I noticed this four more times since.

8/8/2021

The car idles rough during initial cold start up, intermittently hesitates during acceleration and feels like it misfires during cruising. My dealer found that the ignition timing was retarded by 5º and told me to use better gas, citing a VW field service action (https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2020/MC-10176770-0001.pdf). The problem persisted after they treated the fuel. The car has never thrown a code causing the check engine light to turn on, and so the dealer has declined to investigate further. My records show the car was only filled with premium fuel, using VW recommended brands (BP, Exxon, Mobil, Shell) in the 2,000 miles prior to the service appointment and was only filled with regular fuel twice (due to the Colonial Pipeline shutdown) since the car was delivered new from the dealer.

8/31/2021

GTI has an overly squeaky front suspension. Suspension is 100% stock and unmodified. Searching online yields many Golf owners experiencing the same issues (in the USA and worldwide). People say to lube up the suspension with grease, but this could cause a safety issue if it gets on the brakes. Volkswagen claims this is normal, but I've owned nine Volkswagen vehicles and this is the first one that's ever had this issue. This sound has been ongoing since the vehicle had 10,000 miles on the odo; the vehicle now has 60,000 miles.

10/31/2022

The contact owns 2019 Volkswagen Golf. The contact stated that while a complete stop, the Auto Start/Stop feature failed to engage and a message advising to manually start the vehicle by turning the ignition key was displayed. The contact stated that as he attempted to turn the ignition key, the key was stuck and the key fob fractured, causing the vehicle to go into Safe Mode. The anti-theft warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to push the vehicle to the side of the road with the assistance of bystanders. The vehicle was towed the contact’s residence. The contact notified the dealer of the failure and ordered a new key. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.

2/28/2023

Driver seats frame is loose, have been waiting for part since October/2022, they said that I can take over a year. Strong Volkswagen technician told me that is not safe to drive the car because if I get in accident I can get smashed once the seat is not safely locked in place. The strong vw service manager told me that the solution is sale the car for someone who doesn’t know about the problem. The car is under the warranty bumper to bumper.

3/6/2023

Driver seats frame is loose, have been waiting for part since October/2022, they said that I can take over a year. Strong Volkswagen technician told me that is not safe to drive the car because if I get in accident I can get smashed once the seat is not safely locked in place. The strong vw service manager told me that the solution is sale the car for someone who doesn’t know about the problem. The car is under the warranty bumper to bumper.

3/6/2023

Driver seats frame is loose, have been waiting for part since October/2022, they said that I can take over a year. Strong Volkswagen technician told me that is not safe to drive the car because if I get in accident I can get smashed once the seat is not safely locked in place. The strong vw service manager told me that the solution is sale the car for someone who doesn’t know about the problem. The car is under the warranty bumper to bumper.

3/6/2023

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Golf. The contact stated while starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light and the air bags warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing the failure listed in NHTSA Campaign Number: 21V892000 (Visibility, Air Bags) however, neither the VIN nor the model vehicle was included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000. The VIN was not available.

8/29/2023

Purchased vehicle brand new from Seacoast VW in Greenland, NH in March of 2020. In February of 2022 with just 12804 miles on this vehicle I had them check a problem with noisy rear brakes. I was informed that the rear brakes were delaminating and needed replacement for around $800. As this was beyond the 12 month warranty that this charge was not to be covered. After much negotiation I agreed to pay 20% of the parts & labor charge and they would pick up the remaining 80% as a one time goodwill because I was a loyal VW customer. The excuse that was given to me at that time is that I didn't drive enough miles & rust on the rotor caused the delamination. Jump forward to April 2024 I again was told my rear brakes were delaminating and would not pass the NH state safety inspection. The service consultant was very surprised that they had already replaced the rear brakes in 2022! I was again told this was because I did not drive enough. I then called VW Customer Care phone number that the dealer provided to see if VW would provide some financial relief. The woman who answered the phone was very polite and understood my frustration that brakes would fail after only 12000 miles but after checking with her supervisor informed me that VW would not help with this Safety problem. I then asked her if I was the only one who has experienced this problem And she emphatically stated that I was not the only complaint for this problem and even suggested that I keep all of my records for possible reimbursement in a future recall due to the significant number of complaints that VW has had with this problem. This is a severe safety problem that VW is trying to sweep under the rug and needs to be investigated so VW bears the cost of this and not the many customers that have so far had to bear the expense that is an actual design flaw!

4/5/2024