NHTSA lists 165 complaints for the 2002 Volkswagen Beetle, 13 of them mention a crash and 4 mention a fire. 11 complaints mention an injury, with 12 injuries and 0 deaths reported.
Data build 2026-10-08.
NHTSA lists this vehicle as VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE.
At a glance
Complaints
165
With crash
13
With fire
4
With injury (complaints)
11
Injuries
12
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
1,002,000
Investigations
2
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
185
Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.
Where the complaints are
Top systems
System
Complaints
Share of this vehicle's complaints
AIR BAGS
43
26.1%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
36
21.8%
POWER TRAIN
23
13.9%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
20
12.1%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
14
8.5%
SEAT BELTS
12
7.3%
VISIBILITY
12
7.3%
STRUCTURE
10
6.1%
EQUIPMENT
6
3.6%
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
6
3.6%
Top subsystems
System
Subsystem
Complaints
POWER TRAIN
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
15
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
ENGINE
8
STRUCTURE
BODY
8
AIR BAGS
FRONTAL
7
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
BRAKE LIGHTS
7
VISIBILITY
POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
6
POWER TRAIN
CLUTCH ASSEMBLY
5
AIR BAGS
SIDE/WINDOW
4
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
COOLING SYSTEM
4
VISIBILITY
SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY
4
One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.
Model-generated complaint tags: This model year has not been tagged.
Defect: ON CERTAIN PASSENGER, WAGON, AND CONVERTIBLE VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH OR WITHOUT CRUISE CONTROL, A BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH MAY MALFUNCTION IF IT WAS INSTALLED INCORRECTLY. (excerpt)
Consequence: THE BRAKE LIGHTS COULD BECOME INOPERATIVE, OR REMAIN ON. FAILURE TO PROVIDE THE PROPER SIGNAL WHEN BRAKING COULD LEAD TO A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING. (excerpt)
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL THE NEWLY DESIGNED BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 27, 2007, AND WILL BE CONDUCTED IN SEVERAL STAGGERED MAILINGS THROUGH SEPTEMBER 21, 2007. VEHICLES WITHIN THE MAKE, MODEL, AND MODEL YEAR OF THIS POPULATION MAY BE INVOLVED IN EITHER THIS RECALL OR 06V-183, BUT NOT BOTH. THE REMEDY IS THE SAME FOR EACH RECALL. VOLKSWAGEN DEALERS WILL APPLY THE (excerpt)
Defect: ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC OR MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS AND CRUISE CONTROLS, A BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH ON THESE VEHICLES MAY MALFUNCTION IF IT WAS INSTALLED INCORRECTLY DURING SAFETY RECALLS 03V-265 OR 04V-096. (excerpt)
Consequence: THE BRAKE LIGHTS COULD BECOME INOPERATIVE, OR REMAIN ON. FAILURE TO PROVIDE THE PROPER SIGNAL WHEN BRAKING COULD LEAD TO A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING. (excerpt)
Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL THE NEWLY DESIGNED BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 27, 2006. VEHICLES WITHIN THE MAKE, MODEL, AND MODEL YEAR OF THIS POPULATION MAY BE INVOLVED IN EITHER THIS RECALL OR 06V-183, BUT NOT BOTH. THE REMEDY IS THE SAME FOR EACH RECALL. VOLKSWAGEN DEALERS WILL APPLY THE REMEDY BASED ON THE VIN NUMBER OF THE VEHICLE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VW AT 1-80 (excerpt)
Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.
Investigations
2 investigations; 0 open.
RQ06004
Opened: 2006-02-28. Closed: 2006-08-07.
BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH FAILURE
BY LETTERS DATED MAY 24, 2006 AND AUGUST 4, 2006, VOLKSWAGEN (VW) NOTIFIED THE AGENCY THAT IT IS CONDUCTING A SAFETY RECALL (NHTSA RECALL NO 06V-183) INVOLVING MODEL YEAR (MY) 1998-2002 VOLKSWAGEN NEW BEETLE AND 1999-2002 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH CRUISE CONTROL.VOLKSWAGEN?S RECALL COVERS 646,246 VEHICLES.PREVIOUSLY, VW RECALLED THESE VEHICLES TO REPLACE A DEFECTIVE BRAKE LIGHT SWITC
THE BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH USED IN CRUISE CONTROL EQUIPPED MY 1998-1999 AND ALL MY 2000 AND LATER MODELS HAS UNDERGONE MULTIPLE REVISIONS.ANALYSIS OF WARRANTY AND COMPLAINT DATA INDICATES HIGH REPLACEMENT RATES OCCURRED IN VEHICLES BUILT WITH BRAKE SWITCH PART NUMBERS 1J0 945 511A AND 1J0 945 511B, THE ORIGINAL AND FIRST REVISION LEVELS, RESPECTIVELY.THE FAILURE OF THE SWITCH COULD RESULT IN FAILURE O
Date: 2024-01-09. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: UNKNOWN OR OTHER.
Airbag / Pyrotechnic Safety Belt Deployment Inquiries, update to contact information due to retirement.
10241177
Date: 2023-08-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.
Update to Volkswagen engine oil standards
10237427
Date: 2023-05-30. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.
Volkswagen Engine oil quality standards, update to attachments.
10235138
Date: 2023-04-24. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.
Engine oil quality standards, update to attachments.
10228180
Date: 2022-12-12. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: EQUIPMENT.
Update model year applicability to include 2023.
10228178
Date: 2022-12-06. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
Battery testing and charging using special tools VAS6161 & GRX3000VAS Charger. Updated to include additional model year applicability.
10204722
Date: 2021-12-15. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
This bulletin contains general instructions for software updates.
10193577
Date: 2021-05-11. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.
Update engine oil quality standard lists (attachments)
10175799
Date: 2020-05-12. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: EQUIPMENT.
Tool number added to table. Removal of Behr Flush Kit. VAS 6337/1A
10174476
Date: 2020-04-21. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: EQUIPMENT.
Updated to include additional models and model year applicability.
Notes on this record
Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.