2017 Volkswagen GTI Owner Complaints

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 VOLKSWAGEN GTI. THE CONTACT STATED THAT FUEL SPILLED ONTO THE GROUND WHILE THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO FILL THE FUEL TANK. AS A RESULT, THE CONTACT WAS UNABLE TO FILL UP THE FUEL TANK. THE CONTACT DROVE THE VEHICLE HOME AND NOTICED THAT THE FUEL LEVEL HAD DROPPED. THE CONTACT PARKED THE VEHICLE AND FOUND THAT FUEL SPILLED OUT OF THE FUEL TANK WHILE DRIVING AND THE FUEL TANK WAS EMPTY. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT CONTACTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 50,000.

10/3/2019

STARTED TO NOTICE A FUEL ODOR IN THE VICINITY OF THE RIGHT-REAR WHEEL WHILE THE CAR WAS PARKED INSIDE MY GARAGE. MOVED THE CAR IMMEDIATELY OUTSIDE ON MY DRIVEWAY. DROVE THE CAR ONCE OR TWICE DURING THE FOLLOWING WEEK. AS THE CAR WAS PARKED ON THE DRIVEWAY THE ODOR PERSISTED. THEN ONE AFTERNOON A PUDDLE OF GAS WAS ON MY DRIVEWAY (ABOUT ONE PINT OF LIQUID) - THE CAR HAD NOT BEEN DRIVEN IN 2 DAYS WHEN THE PUDDLE APPEARED. NOTIFIED MY LOCAL VW DEALER AND SCHEDULED THE REPAIR. THE DEALER DETERMINED THAT THE CHARCOAL CANISTER WAS FILLED WITH FUEL - ASSUMING THAT I OVERFILLED THE TANK, WHICH I DON'T BELIEVE HAPPENED. WHEN THE LEAK OCCURRED THE FUEL TANK WAS APPROXIMATELY 3/4 FULL. THE DEALER REPLACED THE LEAK DETECTION PUMP, N80 PURGE VALVE, AND THE CHARCOAL CANISTER. THE REPAIR WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY. THE CAR HAS 55,578 MILES ON IT AND I HAVE OWNED IT JUST LESS THAN 3 YEARS. *TR

6/8/2020

THE "COMBI" VALVE ON MY GTI STAYS STUCK OPEN CAUSING MORE EXHAUST GASES TO FLOW THROUGH THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER. AS A RESULT NMY CATALYTIC CONVERTER HAD TO BE REPLACED. AFTER REPLACING TO COMBI VALVE. IT HAPPENED AGAIN

6/14/2018

NOTICED BURNING COOLANT SMELL COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AFTER THE VEHICLE REACHED OPERATING TEMPERATURE AND THE CAR WAS STOPPED. COULD HEAR A SIZZLING NOISE WITH THE ENGINE OFF AND THE HOOD OPEN. THE COOLANT LEVEL WAS AT THE MINIMUM LINE. THE DEALER DIAGNOSED A LEAKING THERMOSTAT HOUSING. DEALERSHIP REPLACED THE PART UNDER WARRANTY. THE REPAIR WAS PERFORMED AT 34,655 MILES.

4/19/2019

I FIND THAT MY COOLANT LEVEL SLOWING GOES DOWN AND I'VE HAD TO REFILL SEVERAL TIMES ALREADY. MAYBE 2 TIMES A YEAR SINCE I OWNED IT. NEVER HAD TO REPLACE COOLANT ON ANY OTHER CARS. I DON'T KNOW IF THIS WILL CAUSE A BIGGER ISSUE DOWN THE LINE.

2/5/2020

48K ON THE CAR, AND I WAS INFORMED OF THE LEAKING THERMOSTAT HOUSING THAT IS APPARENTLY KNOWN FOR GOING ON THIS CAR AS A DEFECTIVE PART: VW DID NOT TELL ME! I WAS INFORMED BY MY TECH WHO FORTUNATELY DISCOVERED THE ISSUE 1500 MILES BEFORE MY WARRANTY EXPIRED. VW SHOULD NOT CHARGE FOR THIS REPLACEMENT REGARDLESS OF MILES AS IT IS CLEARLY DEFECTIVE

2/7/2020

The contact owns a 2017 Volkswagen GTI. The contact stated upon pulling into a parking spot, the vehicle started sputtering. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact pushed the vehicle into the parking spot. The contact noticed that gas was leaking from the fuel tank onto the ground. The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 22,000.

8/9/2022

The contact owns a 2017 Volkswagen GTI. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V110000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

4/17/2024

REAR WINDOW SHATTERED WHILE STATIONARY UNDER A CAR PORT IN BELOW FREEZING TEMPERATURE. BOUGHT THE CAR BAND NEW SATURDAY. OVERNIGHT TEMPERATURES WERE BELOW 0. SUNDAY (THE DAY AFTER BUYING THE CAR) THE REAR WINDOW WAS SHATTERED. CAR HAD A LITTLE OVER 200 MILES ON IT WHEN I PICKED IT UP FROM DEALER.

12/20/2016

I WAS DRIVING MY 2017 GTI ON A CITY STREET IN RENTON, WA, AT 35MPH HEADING EAST ON S 180TH STREET. THERE WERE NO OTHER VEHICLES ON THE ROAD NEAR ME. AS I AM DRIVING, I HEAR A LOUD BANG AND LOOK UP TO SEE MY SUNROOF COMPLETELY SHATTERED. AS THE SUNROOF SHATTERED, SMALL PIECES OF GLASS CONTINUED TO FALL INSIDE THE VEHICLE, WHICH LANDED ON MY HEAD, SHOULDERS AND ANY EXPOSED AREAS OF MY BODY. HAD I NOT HAD A BILL ON MY HAT, THE PIECES OF GLASS COULD HAVE ENTERED MY EYE. I PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TO INSPECT THE SUNROOF AND THE SHATTERED PIECES WERE ALL INTACT IN THEIR ORIGINAL LOCATION AND THERE WAS NO SIGNS OF OUTSIDE INFLUENCE.

2/26/2018

THE DRIVERS SIDE B-PILLAR IS NOT WELDED TOGETHER CORRECTLY AND CAUSES POPPING AND TAPPING SOUNDS AS VEHICLE FLEXES WITH MOVEMENT. VOLKSWAGEN REPLACED MY PREVIOUS 2016 GTI WITH SAME ISSUE. NO KNOWN CRASH TESTING HAS BEEN DONE ON VEHICLES WITH MANUFACTURING DEFECT THAT APPEARS TO BE EXTREMELY WIDESPREAD. DO NOT FEEL SAFE IN VEHICLE AND VALUE OF VEHICLE IS LIKELY EFFECTED.

6/22/2017

NUMEROUS CRACKS APPEARED IN THE SUNROOF FRAME OF THE 2017 VW GTI CAUSING LEAKING AND INSTABILITY OF PANORAMIC SUNROOF. VW ISSUED A SERVICE BULLETIN TO PREVENT CRACKING IN PANORAMIC SUNROOFS. THIS SERVICE BULLETIN WAS PERFORMED WITHIN THE FIRST 1000 MILES AND NOT ONLY FAILED TO PREVENT THE PROBLEM, BUT THE CRACKS ACTUALLY FORMED IN THE VERY PLACES WHERE THE TAPE AND SEALANT WERE APPLIED.

5/31/2019

AT AROUND 28,000 MILES, WHEN THE TEMPERATURE OUTSIDE WAS NEAR FREEZING AND THE CAR HAD BEEN SITTING OVERNIGHT, I NOTICED A ROTATIONAL SQUEAKING/CHIRPING NOISE WHEN THE INTERIOR FAN SPEED WAS ON THE LOWER SETTINGS. THE FREQUENCY WOULD CHANGE WHEN THE FAN SPEED CHANGED. THE ISSUE GOT WORSE WHEN MAKING LEFT TURNS. ONCE THE CAR WARMED UP, THE NOISE WOULD GO AWAY. TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALERSHIP MULTIPLE TIMES WITH AUDIO AND VIDEO OF THE PROBLEM AND THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE ISSUE AND TOLD ME THEY COULD NOT REPLACE THE PART UNTIL THEY WERE ABLE TO DUPLICATE IT THEMSELVES. I WAS CONTACTED BY MANAGEMENT AND THE DEALERSHIP FINALLY REPLACED THE BLOWER MOTOR ONCE I REDUCED MY RATING FOR THEM ON GOOGLE REVIEWS. THE MANAGER STATED THAT THE BLOWER MOTOR THEY INSTALLED WAS AN UPDATED PART. THE REPAIRS WERE PERFORMED AT APPROXIMATELY 35,900 MILES.

4/19/2019

The steering wheel clockspring mechanism has failed causing the vehicle steering wheel operated controls (including the horn) to stop working. The airbag warning lamp illuminated on the dashboard, indicating the airbag system may not be functional. Apparently Volkswagen has issued a recall/extended the warranty on many VW models in light of the high failure rate of the clockspring mechanism, however my 2017 GTI is not currently covered. Perhaps the recall/extended warranty should be expanded in scope.

1/10/2025

THERE IS A MAJOR DEFECT WITH THE CENTER CONSOLE STORAGE OF THIS VEHICLE THAT IS CAUSING DEEP CUTS AND GASHES ON PEOPLE'S HANDS. SPECIFICALLY, THE SILVER SHARP METAL TRIM PIECE IN FRONT OF THE SHIFTER BOOT BECOMES SLIGHTLY LIFTED OVER TIME AS IT SEPARATES FROM A PLASTIC THAT HOLDS IT, AND THE SHARP EDGE IS EXPOSED IN AN AREA THAT A DRIVER / PASSENGER REACHES INTO REGULARLY. MANY OTHERS HAVE REPORTED SIMILAR PROBLEM ON THE CAR FORUM GOLFMK7.COM AS WELL. HAVE ATTACHED SOME PHOTOS OF THE CUT AND PIECE (THOUGH IT IS HARD TO SEE) FOR YOUR INFORMATION. (WARNING SOME BLOOD ON BAND AID IS PRESENT IN THE PHOTO)

1/8/2021

INTERIOR TRIM IN FRONT OF SHIFTER IS UNREASONABLY SHARP. WHEN REMOVING ITEMS, LIKE CELL PHONE, OR WALLET FROM THE STORAGE CUBBY IN FRONT OF THE SHIFTER MULTIPLE FINGERS HAVE BEEN SNAGGED AND SLICED DEEPLY. THE FIRST TIME I WAS CUT THE CUT WAS SMALL ON THE TIP OF MY RIGHT RING FINGER. BECAUSE OF THE SHARPNESS OF THE TRIM PIECE I DID NOT KNOW I WAS CUT UNTIL I NOTICED BLOOD. I ALSO DID NOT KNOW WHERE THE FIRST CUT CAME FROM. IT WAS ONLY WHEN I WAS CUT 2 MORE TIMES, BOTH DEEPER AND WITH MORE BLEEDING THAT I REALIZED WHAT WAS CUTTING ME AND WHY IT WAS HAPPENING. IT IS TOO EASY FOR FINGERS TO GET CAUGHT ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE "CHROME" TRIM PIECE AROUND THE SHIFTER WHEN REMOVING ITEMS FROM THE STORAGE CUBBY.

3/22/2021

THERE IS A PIECE OF RUBBER PROTRUDING FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE BRAKE PEDAL. IT BECAME ENTANGLED ON THE LACE OF MY RIGHT SHOE, AND I WAS UNABLE TO USE MY RIGHT FOOT TO BRAKE (THE FOOT WAS TRAPPED UNDER THE BRAKE PEDAL). I WAS EVENTUALLY ABLE TO BRAKE USING MY LEFT FOOT. THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AT THE TIME, ON I-95. TRAFFIC WAS RAPIDLY SLOWING DOWN AT THE TIME. I ALMOST REAR-ENDED THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME.

9/30/2017

I CAN HEAR LOUD WINNING NOISE FROM THE BACK OF THE CAR AT 35 MPH AND HIGHER. I THINK IT COULD BE WHEEL BEARINGS OR BAD ROTORS. I HAVE ABOUT 48000MILES ON THE CAR .

2/6/2020

The steering wheel clockspring mechanism has failed causing the vehicle steering wheel operated controls (including the horn) to stop working. The airbag warning lamp illuminated on the dashboard, indicating the airbag system may not be functional. Apparently Volkswagen has issued a recall/extended the warranty on many VW models in light of the high failure rate of the clockspring mechanism, however my 2017 GTI is not currently covered. Perhaps the recall/extended warranty should be expanded in scope.

1/10/2025