18th Jan 2007, 08:30

I just wanted to agree with whoever said earlier that this much maintenance is ridiculous!!! I can understand checking on a few odds and ends routinely, but I've never heard of having to habitually clean out drains and clogs, and I think it's VERY fishy that when you purchase a VW no one mentions these procedures that you'll have to do, I mean if I had known about all of this I honestly would NOT have purchased my Jetta. I'm not a handyman by any means and I feel like you have to know how to work on cars in order to own a vehicle like this.

20th Jan 2007, 19:53

I have a 2002 Jetta and just 2 weeks ago I noticed a smell of mildew & my windows fogging inside for no reason. After having the car cleaned I found that the passenger side floorboard was saturated after a rain. I called the dealership and they said that the sunroof drains were probably clogged. He said it would cost $95 just to look into the issue. He then said that when the rugs get wet, it usually means that the pad underneath has to be replaced. He stated this would cost around $800- $900. I then said I will research and get back with him. I appreciate all of you posting because I now will check into the issues on my own. Both the sunroof blockage and pollen filter will be checked immediately by a friend. I love my Jetta, but hope they do a recall because I will get rid of it and go to the BBB to express my extreme disatisfaction with VW. I'm just glad that I don't live in Seatle like other folks. Good luck to all of you!

22nd Jan 2007, 12:11

I own a 2002 Jetta GLS, and experienced my first puddle a couple of weeks ago, in the back passenger floorboard. Just yesterday I took the time to clean it as best I could, and noticed some mold. Spent the rest of the night wondering if there's a way to eliminate the mold problem, or if I'll need to replace the carpet. Woke up this morning to another couple of inches of water in the same place. Thanks to all the comments above, at least I have some direction as to possible causes. Wish me luck, as I will all of you.

22nd Jan 2007, 16:39

Update: Might be getting closer...

So, I have the jetta with the wet driver's side (no sunroof). Water is coming in from the upper left corner under the dash.

I've pulled the underside of the dash, the fascia pieces near the console, loosened the console, removed both front seats, and have pulled up the carpet from the driver doors and folded it toward the center. Here is what I have learned/gained...

I can now dry the car. Under the carpet is a padding layer that is hard on top, soft on the bottom. I put car in the garage for a week with a fan blowing through it (no seats remember) and the pad was still soaked. So I cut it out. Near the "tranny hump" I cut the padding under the carpet and pulled it out. This way I can dry it thoroughly and in the future.

So, I can now say the car is dry. now on to finding the leak. I believe it's either the windshield, of something on the firewall. Driver's side.

Let me know if any of this sounds familiar.

24th Jan 2007, 15:06

So I think my saga with my leaky Jetta may finally be coming to a close. I had two trusted mechanics examine my Jetta today and both told me that this water problem is like chasing a ghost, both advised me to let the car go. Despite my extreme aggravation with this water problem, I must admit it breaks my heart to have to get rid of Jetta once and for all, I will miss her, but not the water problems...

28th Jan 2007, 07:24

All I can say is "WOW!". It's interesting how the problems are in two broad categories -- passenger or driver's side.

In my case, it's the same as the person 2 or 3 posts previous: (a) first you see condensation everywhere (b) then the stench (c) then you realize the driver's front and rear floor is flooded (d) you get on line and type "WOW!".

2003 Jetta VR6. Bought brand new. Now has 40K miles and just had this problem start up in early December _before_ the big freeze down here in Texas... so it's not caused by ice expanding inside compartments... although I wonder now if the ice storm made the situation 10x worse.

Please! If anyone knows of a REAL class action that is run by a well know, high-integrity, name brand law firm -- post it! Otherwise, I'll take a pass and probably just dry the sucker up and sell it faster than you can say "Car Survey Anyone?".

PS: Not commenting positive or negative on this Dr. Vinnie guy that was mentioned earlier. If anyone has confirmed the integrity and professionalism of the law firm he associates with, please post your opinions to help the group decide.

28th Jan 2007, 18:45

Another update on 2000 Jetta with no sunroof. After pulling back the Driver side carpet and cutting out the padding under the carpet (it will go back in). I got the car 100% dry inside. :o)

Today was find the leak day. I had the windshield replaced due to a crack and had the tech leave the plastic "cowl/cover" off that covers the windshield wiper and cabin air filter well.

I put the hose in the drivers side of the well and turned it on real low. After a short amount of time I had a puddle in the drivers footwell. This means I can point to the well as the culprit. Drivers side.

In that "well" there is a plastic box located under the wiper linkage. Don't know what it does, but my guess is that it's not sealed anymore and is giving me my leak. Calling the dealer in the morning to talk to a tech and see if this is something they've dealt with before.

Please feel free to let me know if you've got any answers...

30th Jan 2007, 05:55

Hey, fellow Jetta owners. If I do the same as the above post and start pulling out carpets, is it easy to put the carpet back together in "mint" condition?

Is there a URL someone can point me to in order to pull back and replace the carpet properly? I'm out of warranty and not keen on paying someone to fix VW's engineering flaws (my 1976 dodge pickup didn't leak... why a 21st century 3yr old vehicle leaks, I have no idea).

1st Feb 2007, 05:07

I wrote back in November about my 2003 tdi and the water problem on the passenger side. I gave up on the dealer and took the car to a body shop this week. They took apart the interior of the car including removing the doors. They discovered that the drain hose from leading from the sunroof was disconnected. The passenger door has to be removed to access the hose. How the pipe became disconnected is unknown. Water leakage was not a problem during the first two years of ownership. In any case, we think the problem with my car has been corrected.