Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (fuel pump, injectors, fuel tank, hybrid and EV propulsion).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2009 Volkswagen Jetta owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
My car been fine and went to take my daughter to school and shut the car off and get back in to go home and wouldn't start and the Abs light came on and Check Engine light as well. I am concerned because I think since I have done the ABS no longer then 2 years. I feel like there is a problem and dont think VW fix it the first time when I took it in.. My fiance had a terrible accident 12 month ago and no income and I dont know how we are going to fix it if we have too thats what I am worried about as well.. Thank you, Dawn
My 09 tdi wagon with 27K miles broke down on a road trip one month ago. I was going 70 MPH on the dangerous california grape vine pass when I lost power suddenly. The "engine fault workshop" came on the dash screen. I luckily coasted to a rest stop on the busy and dangerous highway. To add to the danger we came to rest under the lebec wildfire of aug. 24th flying vehicles dropped flame retardant over us. We waited for the vw roadside assistance amidst the smoke and flame retardant dust for 2 hours. The car was towed to the nearest dealer and is still in the shop approximately one month later with some part being on back order. Still under warranty, vw is going to repair the faulty fuel pump that imploded and ruined the fuel system it is a $ 6000 repair covered under warranty but I am very concerned when the warranty will expire in 3K miles. …
This problem is caused by fuel pump failure in vw diesel engines. It happens in two ways. Fuel pump fails sending metal shards throughout the fuel system or fuel pump provides inadequate pressure and car enters 'limp mode'. In the first case the car stops running and entire fuel delivery system must be replaced. The second case happens under load (passing, entering freeway or climbing incline). 'limp mode' means loss of power. The car must be pulled over, ignition turned off and then back on to clear error code. This is very dangerous when freeway driving. I've had both cases of failure. Vw has opted not to recall but rather deal case by case. My last failure was with a pump with only 2000 miles on it. Bosch makes the pumps. After a few pump replacements, vw refuses to pay. After the last replacement I was told that it would take an 'act of god' to break the new version of pump. …
Wife went outside to start her tdi and after sitting and making no progress in warming and smelling a lot of un-burnt diesel she decided to shut it off. After she came inside and told me it was not warming up and it seemed to be running out of fuel very quickly I went outside to check it out. I could see that diesel had leaked onto the ground, so I opened the hood and fuel was dripping from the engine mounted fuel pump. I left it overnight at this point to make sure no fires where started. The next morning I took it apart to find out what the source of the leak and after removing the pump, associated electrical, and rubber lines I saw the end of the pump had popped out of its crimped aluminum case. …
Takata recall. In February of 2017 my check engine light came on and was accompanied by a series of 3 beeps. As I continued to drive more lights came on and my dash board looked like a christmas tree ex. Airbag, oil, check engine, ABS, epc, brake light, etc. When driving on the high way my gauges will shut off and I can not see how fast I am going, my car will decelerate with my foot on the gas at random times on the high way. I look my car in for repair to cars auto in las vegas because my car could not pass smog. They did an analysis and informed me that my ABS module was shot and there was an active recall for the device. I took it to my local vw dealership and thought with my safety in concern that this would be a simple fix. Instead, they informed me that I would need to make an appointment and come back another day but I refused to drive my car off the lot. …
Had been driving for well over 100 miles on the interstate and was exiting from one interstate onto another in moderate traffic in louisville, kentucky. During lane change, flashing "glow plug" indicator light came on and "engine fault! Workshop!" came on. Car immediately decelerated, causing hard breaking from following traffic and near collision. Able to drive at 40 MPH for approximately one mile to another exit. Stopped at traffic light at the bottom of that exit and car stalled in the middle of the road and would not restart. Towed to nearest dealership. Two days later, learned from vw dealer that it was the "hpfp". Again. A similar incident happened with this car in the fall of 2011 -- around the same time vw issued their recall of the faulty pump. I was told that the hpfp was replaced at that time. This was only 4 years ago and precisely the same issue. …
Was driving when the engine fault workshop warning came on. The glow plug warning light also appeared. Car wouldn't go past a lower RPM but was able to make it to a parking lot. After grocery shopping, turned the engine on again and started to drive. Both warning lights came on again and then the engine stalled. Was able to start it again and parked it in a parking spot. Waited about 5 minutes and started it again and was able to drive it around the parking lot. Engine light was on but car was running OK. Pulled out onto the street and went about a 1/4 of a mile and the warning lights came on again and stalled. Was able to start it again and make a u-turn and then the lights and stalled happened again. Parked along the curb and called a tow truck. This apparently is a common issue with the fuel pump on vw tdi's. …
Driving home when exiting off to the hwy my Jetta will flash the ABS, brake and ESC lights while beeping. Took car to mechanic it was relayed that the ABS module was bad. I refuse to take car to vw dealer because I already have issues with them about the erc valve and diesel fuel particulate filter (engine light constantly stays on) being 1 of the issues vw has admitted being faulty but still not doing anything about it. To get the ABS fixed it's going to be over $2500 and the have the erc & diesel fuel particulate filter fixed is over $3000. Each of these items are faulty and should be taken care of by the dealer with a cent paid from my pocket. Both are life threatening faults that eventually could lead to my death or deaths of others. I have no choice as this is my sole source of transportation so I have to drive it. …
My 2009 vw Jetta tdi burst into flames 15-20 minutes after being parked. No one was in or near the car and there were no injuries or extended fire damage. The fire department was called to extinguish the fire. The hotspot is in the front left of the car, with severe damage to all components under the hood and front interior of the car. The car had been in like-new condition with scheduled maintenance performed on-time by a vw dealer; there had never been any maintenance or performance issues that I knew of prior to the incident. I contacted vw on 9/20/2011 about the incident. Their fire inspector studied the remains of the car on 9/22/2011 and deduced it might have been an issue with the exhaust system, and the leak/fire probably started as I was still driving. There was no recourse or further action. At the time, the VIN # of my car had not been a part of any recall. …
Engine stalled when driving and would not restart. Metal fragments were found in the entire fuel system damaging all components.complete fuel system replacement is only alternative per Volkswagen of America. Contacted Volkswagen customer assistance and was told assistance is not an option due to a federal mandate limiting time and mileage to 10 years or 120000 miles. Also stated Volkswagen would have been able to repair at their discretion if not for the federal government regulations?? This is a very common failure that local dealer states occurs locally 4-5 times a week in this area. The average repair cost is over 6000.00 dollars. I have been told the NHTSA had investigated this situation and closed the probe. If dealer records were investigated thoroughly, they would have found a tremendous number of like failures that cannot all be attributed to improper fueling or tainted product. …
Related recalls
Fuel system, diesel
Volkswagen is recalling certain model 2009-2012 jetta and jetta sportwagen vehicles, manufactured from May 2008 through September 2011, model year 2010-2012 Volkswagen golf vehicles, manufactured from May 2009 through September 2011, and model year 2010-2012 Audi a3 vehicles, manufactured from September 2009 through September…
Remedy: Volkswagen will install an improved fuel injector line for the number 2 cylinder on certain vehicles and will install vibration dampers on all of the injector lines.
Fuel system, gasoline › Delivery › Hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
Volkswagen is recalling certain model year 2006-2010 jetta, new beetle, new beetle convertible, model year 2009 jetta sportwagen and model year 2007-2009 rabbit vehicles equipped with 2.5l engines.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and if necessary replace the underhood fuel line. Additionally, depending on the vehicle model, dealers will either remove the plastic tab from the windshield washer fluid reservoir, or inspect the…
NHTSA investigations
Diesel Fuel Injector Line Leakage
By letter dated October 3, 2011, Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (VW) notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that it will conduct a safety recall to address a defect in approximately 168,275 model year (MY) 2009-2012 Volkswagen Jetta, Jetta Sportwagen, Golf, and Audi A3 vehicles equipped with the 2.0L TDI Common Rail Clean Diesel engine (NHTSA Recall No.
High Pressure Fuel Pump Failure (HPFP)
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) and Volkswagen (VW) have received a total of 160 complaints and field reports alleging incidents of engine stall and/or loss of power that appear to be related to high pressure fuel pump (HPFP) failures in certain model year (MY) 2009 through 2010 Volkswagen Jetta and MY 2010 Volkswagen Golf and Audi A3 vehicles equipped with TDI clean diesel engines.Approximately half of…
High-Pressure Fuel Pump Failure
The Office of Defects Investgation (ODI) opened EA11-003 on February 7, 2011, based on 160 complaints to ODI and Volkswagen involving high pressure fuel pump (HPFP) failures in model year (MY) 2009 through 2010 Volkswagen Jetta and Golf and Audi A3 TDI vehicles and questions regarding fuel sample results provided by Volkswagen as part of its response to PE10-034.During EA11-003, ODI analyzed design information,…
Fuel System complaints in other Jetta years
Frequently asked questions
How common are fuel system problems on the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta?
NHTSA has 307 complaints about the fuel & propulsion system of the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta, 35% of the model year's 889 complaints. The component named most often is delivery › fuel pump (4 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2009 Volkswagen Jetta fuel system problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 11V-490 (fuel system, diesel, Oct 3, 2011); NHTSA recall 10V-621 (hoses, lines/piping, and fittings, Dec 10, 2010). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2009 Volkswagen Jetta fuel system problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 59,000 miles, and 15% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 3 fires and 0 injuries to fuel & propulsion system problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.