Model year record
2009 Volkswagen GLI recalls & problems
The 2009 Volkswagen GLI has no safety recalls on file with NHTSA, and 8 owner complaints. The most-reported problem area is service brakes (7 complaints).
Safety recalls
No safety recalls have been filed for the 2009 Volkswagen GLI.
Recall repairs are free at any authorised dealer. A recall listed here may already have been fixed on a particular car: enter its 17-character VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see open recalls.
Crash test ratings
2009 Volkswagen GLI 4-DR. w/SAB
| Frontal crash | Not Rated |
|---|---|
| Side crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover | Not Rated |
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (New Car Assessment Program). Ratings are comparable only between vehicles of similar size and weight, and ratings from 2011 on use tougher tests than earlier years. Photos: NHTSA.
What owners report
| Problem area | Complaints | Typical mileage* |
|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 7 | 82,000 mi |
| Electronic stability control (esc) | 6 | 77,000 mi |
| Electrical system | 4 | 68,500 mi |
| Steering | 1 | — |
| Power train | 1 | — |
*Median odometer reading when the problem happened, where owners gave one. One complaint can name several problem areas.
Recent owner complaints
- Service brakes
I WAS DRIVING MY CAR ON A CITY STREET AND HAD TO BRAKE HARD TO AVOID ANOTHER VEHICLE. WHEN I DID MY TIRES LOCKED UP AND I ALMOST LOST CONTROL OF MY CAR. THE "ABS", "TRACTION CONTROL", AND "BRAKE" LIGHTS ALL CAME ON. I REALIZED THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A ABS SYSTEM FAILURE SO I PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND THEN BACK ON. THE SYSTEM RESET ITSELF AND I DROVE HOME. ON MONDAY (1/30/17) I TURNED MY CAR ON AND THE SYSTEM HAD FAILED. THE LIGHTS WERE ON THE DASH CLUSTER. MY ELECTRONIC POWER STEERING WAS NO FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY. THE TRANSMISSION WOULD STOP SHIFTING AND DROP BACK INTO FIRST GEAR ONLY. THE SPEEDOMETER AND FUEL GAUGES WERE MOVING ON THE OWN AND NOT INLINE…
- Service brakes
HERE IS ANOTHER DYSFUNCTION OF THE ABS MODULE FAILURE. THE FAILURE OCCURRED UNEXPECTEDLY ON THE DAY WHEN I WAS ON MY WAY TO WORK. IT BROKE DOWN THE FIRST TIME AS I CAME TO A STOP, AND ABOUT TO WENT ON THE HIGHWAY. ALL THE DASH LIGHT CAME ON WITH TERRIFYING NONSTOP BEEPING AND THE CAR STALLED WHEN I TRIED TO ACCELERATE TO MOVE THE CAR TO A SAFER SPOT. WHEN THE FIRST BREAK-DOWN HAPPENED, I WAS STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, AND LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING WHEEL AS I TRIED TO MOVE. THE LIGHTS WENT AWAY AFTER ABOUT 10 MINUTES WHILE I WAS STRUCK ON THE TURNABOUT, SO I CONTINUED TO DRIVE, AFTER ANOTHER 10 MINUTES (2 MILES), ALL THE LIGHTS AND BEEPING CAME BACK WITH A WARNING SIGN. AT THIS…
- Service brakes
ABS MODULE FAILED UNEXPECTEDLY CAUSING DASH LIGHTS TO COME ON AND TOTALLY DISABLED THE ABS SYSTEM. IT FIRST STARTED HAPPENING WHILE DRIVING, AND ABS REMAINED DISABLED UNTIL MODULE WAS FIXED AND REPLACED INDEPENDENTLY. VWOA WOULD NOT COVER FAILURE OF THE PART.
- Service brakes
ABS MODULE FAILURE CAUSING CAR TO RANDOMLY LOCK BRAKES DURING CORNERING/ABS ACTIVATION EVENTS. THIS ORIGINALLY OCCURRED WHEN ROADS WERE SLIPPERY IN WINTER 2014 (60K ON VEHICLE), CONTINUES TO GROW WORSE TO WHERE IT NOW HAPPENS DURING LONG SLOW CORNERS (HIGHWAY OVERPASSES). REPAIR FROM DEALERSHIP COSTS $2300 (10% OF THE PRICE OF NEW MSRP), VWOA REFUSES TO ASSIST WITH REPAIR EVEN THOUGH THIS IS A WELL DOCUMENTED SAFETY ISSUE THAT OCCURS ON ALL 2009 VW GOLF/JETTA VARIANTS. I HAVE HAD 3 EVENTS WITH COMPLETE LOSS OF TRACTION, AND UNCOUNTED PARTIAL LOSS EVENTS. I HAD AN INDEPENDENT DEALERSHIP DIAGNOSE, AND THE ISSUE WAS CONFIRMED AS THE COMMON FAILURE. ...UPDATED 08/30/16 *BF
- Service brakes
YET ANOTHER ABS MODULE FAILURE. CLEARLY A DESIGN FLAW ON THE PART OF VW. THE ENTIRE DASH CLUSTER HAS MALFUNCTIONED. LOUD BEEPS ON STARTUP. ABS LIGHT. BRAKE LIGHT, STABILITY CONTROL LIGHT...ALL LIT UP LIKE A CHRISTMAS TREE. ENGINE FAULT - WORKSHOP WARNING. SPEEDOMETER DOESN'T WORK! FUEL GAUGE WILDLY FLUCTUATES. LOW FUEL WARNING STAYS LIT EVEN WITH A FULL TANK. TRIP COMPUTER DOES NOT WORK. OTHER ELECTRICAL FAULTS AS WELL PROBABLY RELATED TO THE SPEEDOMETER MALFUNCTION. THE CAR'S ELECTRONICS THINK IT'S NOT MOVING SO ALL ELECTRONIC FUNCTIONS TIED INTO THE SPEED OF THE CAR ARE COMPROMISED. TRUNK RELEASE MECHANISM STOPPED WORKING. I'M LOOKING AT A $2000 REPAIR ON A CAR WITH ONLY 50,000 MILES!! VW…
- Electrical system
MY 2009 GLI HAS THE SAME PROBLEM THE TIGUANS HAD IN THEIR FUSE BOXES THAT LEAD TO THEM BEING RECALLED. THE RIGHT SIDE LIGHTS, MAIN BEAM, REAR LIGHT, TURN SINGLES DO NOT WORK AFTER STARTING THE CAR.
- Service brakes
I OWN 2009 VW JETTA THAT HAS RECENTLY DEVELOPED WHAT I FEEL IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE. WHILE DRIVING TO WORK 11/12/14 MY ABS ACTIVATED WHILE COMING TO A STOP. WITHIN MOMENTS OF THE ABS ACTIVATION THE DASH EMITTED THREE LOUD BEEPS AND THE ABS, TRACTION AND BRAKE LIGHT ILLUMINATED (BRAKE LIGHT BEGAN BLINKING. THE BRAKE SYSTEM LOCKED MOMENTARILY, SENDING THE CAR INTO A SLIDE. I WAS ABLE TO RECOVER FROM THE SLIDE, HOWEVER THE TRACTION AND ABS WERE DISABLED. I PULLED INTO THE NEXT AVAILABLE PARKING LOT AND RESTARTED THE CAR AT WHICH POINT THE ISSUE APPEARED TO RESOLVE. LATER IN THE DAY WHILE ATTEMPTING TO DRIVE TO LUNCH THE ISSUE OCCURRED AGAIN, NEARLY SENDING ME SLIDING INTO A POLICE CRUISER.…
- Electronic stability control (esc)
EVERY TIME I BRAKE HARD OR GO INTO A LETS SAY DOWN HILL TURN AT MODERATE SPEED MY ABS, TRACTION CONTROL AND BRAKE LIGHTS LIGHT UP THE DASH WITH 3 LONG BEEPS. AFTER THAT ALL SAID COMPONENTS DON'T WORK ANY MORE UNTIL NEXT RESTART. THAT MORNING I GOT THE LIGHTS COME ON IN THE MORNING ON MY WAY TO WORK AND I COULDN'T JUST STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE HIGHWAY TO POWER CYCLE MY CAR SO I CONTINUED DRIVING WITH CAUTION. AFTER I MADE AN EXIT FROM THE HIGHWAY I HAD TO MAKE A DOWN HILL SLOW (25-30 MPH) RIGHT TURN (IT JUST STARTED RAINING SO THAT DIDN'T HELP EITHER) AND MY CAR STARTED OVERSTEERING AND MADE A 90 DEGREE SPIN COMING TO A STOP ON THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD. IF THERE WERE ANY TRAFFIC COMING FROM…
Owner complaints are submitted to NHTSA by the public and are not verified. Shown as filed (NHTSA removes personal details); long reports are shortened.