Problems · NHTSA complaints

2000 Volkswagen Golf problems

Owners filed 100 complaints about the 2000 Volkswagen Golf with NHTSA between Jul 2000 and Jun 2014. The most-cited component is visibility (21).

Complaints
100
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
3
Reported by owners
Fires
2
Reported by owners
Injuries
4
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Visibility21
  2. Air bags17
  3. Engine and engine cooling16
  4. Service brakes, hydraulic14
  5. Electrical system9
  6. Power train6
  7. Suspension6
  8. Fuel system, gasoline5
  9. Vehicle speed control4
  10. Equipment4
  11. Structure3
  12. Tires3
  13. Exterior lighting3
  14. Latches/locks/linkages2

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Nov 10, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
20004
200112
200223
20039
200412
200513
200610
20075
20085
20094
20100
20111
20121
20130
20141

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Visibility

21 reports
“1) ROLLING DOWN PASSENGER WINDOW 2) WHOLE WINDOW FELL IN 3) CAR WAS BROUGHT TO THE MECHANIC AND ALL INSIDE DOOR PANEL HAD TP BE REPLACED SINCE PLASTIC PIECE HOLDING THIS WINDOW BROKE. *NM”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Dec 29, 2004VisibilityODI 10104694

Air bags

17 reports2 crashes
“I OWN A 2000 VW GOLF WHICH I PURCHASED BRAND NEW FROM A VW DEALER. IN JANUARY OF 2007 I HAD TO REPLACE THE DRIVER SIDE SEAT AIRBAG AND WIRING HARNESS FOR A COST A LITTLE OVER $600. ON 7/14/2008 MY AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN. I NEED TO HAVE THE MAIN DRIVER SIDE AIR BAG AND WIRING HARNESS REPLACED. MY CAR HAS NEVER BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT, YET THIS IS THE SECOND AIRBAG I'VE REPLACED. I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALERSHIP, IF I DO NOT REPLACE THE AIRBAG, IT MAY NOT DEPLOY IF I AM IN AN ACCIDENT, OR IT COULD DEPLOY WHEN I AM JUST DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. I FEEL AS THOUGH AN AIRBAG SHOULD LAST THE LIFETIME OF THE VEHICLE, OR ONLY NEED TO BE REPLACED WHEN IT IS ACTUALLY DEPLOYED. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 15, 2008Air bagsODI 10234408

Engine and engine cooling

16 reports1 related recall
“I HAD JUST GOT ON THE FREEWAY ABOUT 5MINS. ON THE CAR SHUT DOWN AND THEN THERE WAS A BACK FIRE THEN I SEEN A SYMBOL OF A CAR WITH A KEY UNDER IT LIT IN THE DASHBOARD, THE CAR WOULD NOT START BACK UP I HAD IT TOWED TO THE HOUSE AND THEN THE CAR STARTED BUT NOW IT HAS A PUTTER NOISE I CHANGED THE SPARK PLUGS THE WIRES AND O2 SENSORS AND IT STILL HAS THE PUTTERING NOISE. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jun 25, 2014Engine and engine cooling, Vehicle speed controlODI 10606059

Service brakes, hydraulic

14 reports
“THE ABS PUMP & MODULE ARE DEFECTIVE. SUPPOSEDLY, A SHORT ON THE CIRCUIT BOARD CAUSES THIS MALFUNCTION AND NOW ABS AND ASR ARE NOT FUNCTIONING. REGULAR BRAKES ARE STILL WORKING. THIS SYSTEM PROBLEM SEEMS TO BE COMMON WITH VW AND IS A SAFETY ISSUE. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 23, 2009Service brakes, hydraulicODI 10278059

Electrical system

9 reports2 fires
“MY 2000 VW PASSAT CAUGHT ON FIRE DEC 28, 2007. I HAD IT TOWED TO A NEARBY DEALER FOR SERVICE AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE FIRE WAS CAUSED BY A FAULTY IGNITION COIL. THE FINAL COST TO REPAIR (IF IT CAN BE REPAIRED) IS STILL BEING INVESTIGATED. I FIND IT VERY PERTURBING TO FIND OUT THAT VW KNEW OF THESE (COIL) DEFECTS YET DID NOTHING TO INFORM OWNERS. I HAD TWO SMALL CHILDREN AGES 2 AND 4 IN THE VEHICLE AT THE TIME OF THE FIRE. FORTUNATELY, MY QUICK INSTINCTS PUT THE FIRE OUT WITH LIMITED ENGINE DAMAGE AND WITHOUT CASUALTIES. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Dec 31, 2007Electrical systemFire reportedODI 10213327

Power train

6 reports
“2000 GOLF GLS. REPLACED CLUTCH IN MARCH 2008 AT 135K MILES. REPLACED CLUTCH FAILED IN NOVEMBER 2009 AFTER 15K MILES ON HIGHWAY! CAR TOWED TO NEAREST VW DEALERSHIP. CLUTCH REPLACED. VW REFUSED TO PAY FOR COST OF REPLACING CLUTCH SAYING NOT COVER UNDER WARRANTY EVEN THOUGH FAILURE ONLY AFTER 15K. *TR”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Nov 21, 2009Power trainODI 10293090
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.