There are 15 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2015 Volkswagen Golfin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
While normally driving on the street, I noticed that the car started to overheat and could hear the radiator working to keep the heat level normal. I stopped and did not notice any leaks and added coolant to the car after I left it cool for about 3 hours. The problem went away but i still took it to the dealership and i was told it might be the head gasket of the engine or thermostat/waterpump, a $4000 repair. Was advised to just sell the car. VW should address this issue as it has been a long issue now
Loss of coolant due to cheap plastic housing leads to damage to the thermostat and water pump. Researching the forums on this issue has shown that it's a common problem with the vehicle that Volkswagen hasn't addressed.
Water Pump and Thermostat leaking.
The contact owns a 2015 Volkswagen Golf. The contact noticed that the fuel pump would frequent stop while fueling the vehicle. The contact then stated that while his vehicle was being driven by a valet, fuel began to pour out of the fuel tank while on an incline. The valet attendant managed to drive the vehicle down a decline which stopped the leak. Despite the failure, the contact was able to drive the vehicle home. The vehicle was then driven to a dealer where a diagnostic test was performed. The dealer informed the contact that the suction pump, seal, and emission filter needed to be replaced. Upon investigation, the contact linked the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V647000 (Fuel System, Gasoline, Engine and Engine Cooling) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed him that the vehicle was no longer under warranty. The vehicle had yet to be repaired and remained in the possession of the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 115,000.
Coolant has leaked all over my driveway because of a thermostat housing and water pump fail. I am getting fixed for the second time $1800 dollar fix. Very common amongst other Volkswagen owners. This is not fair. If they know of this problem it should be dealt with. Now I am out $4000 in repairs and have a big stain in my brand new driveway. This is very unsafe if driving long distances as coolant leaks everywhere.
THERMOSTAT ELBOW LEAKING
THIS IS A SECOND REPAIR FOR A FAILED THERMOSTAT HOUSING/WATER PUMP ON THIS VEHICLE. THE FIRST TIME, JANUAARY 2019, THE THERMOSTAT HOUSING AND RELATED SEALS WERE REPLACED. THIS TIME THE THERMOSTAT HOUSING AND WATER PUMP WERE BOTH REPLACED.
Thermostat housing and water pump are leaking coolant. It is available for inspection. It can cause my engine to overheat and/or fail while being used. It has been confirmed by a dealership. It has not been inspected by the police, manufacturer, or insurance company. There have been occasional reports of low coolant, and the coolant drains significantly faster than expected especially in cold weather (e.g. needing to fill coolant every 7 days). It was first repaired in 2019, and has since failed again.
THERMOSTAT HOUSING & ASSOCIATED SEALS ON THE CURRENT 1.8L AND 2.0L VOLKSWAGEN/AUDI EA888 GEN 3 ENGINE ARE PRONE TO FAILURE, CAUSING LOSS OF ENGINE COOLANT. THIS COULD AFFECT ANY VW/AUDI VEHICLE USING THE 1.8 OR 2.0L EA888 GEN 3 ENGINE. VW HAS A LONG HISTORY OF WATER PUMP/THERMOSTAT HOUSING ISSUES AND THE CURRENT GENERATION OF VEHICLES IS NO EXCEPTION. MANY OTHER REPORTS CAN BE FOUND ON VARIOUS ONLINE FORUMS SUCH AS REDDIT.COM, GOLFMK7.COM AND VWVORTEX.COM, ETC. THIS IS A COSTLY OUT OF WARRANTY REPAIR REQUIRING REMOVAL OF THE INTAKE MANIFOLD AND HAS BEEN REPORTED ONLINE BY OWNERS OF 2015 '2019 US MY VEHICLES. SOME VEHICLES, SUCH AS OURS, EXPERIENCED A REPEAT FAILURE. THERE ARE THREE FAILURE MODES THAT I AM AWARE OF AS REPORTED ON THE SITES MENTIONED ABOVE. MY WIFE AND I HAVE EXPERIENCED FAILURE MODES 1 AND 2. WHEN THIS ISSUE IS OCCURRING OWNERS OFTEN REPORT THE SMELL OF COOLANT OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE 1. HOUSING HEATING/COOLING CAUSES EXPANSION/CONTRACTION AND WARPING RESULTING IN A SLOW WEEP OR LEAK FROM THERMOSTAT HOUSING ASSEMBLY & ASSOCIATED SEAL, MOST OF THE TIME NOT DETECTABLE AT THE HOUSING ASSEMBLY/SEAL WITHOUT PRESSURE TEST. OFTEN, VW SERVICE CENTERS ARE UNABLE TO VERIFY THERE IS A LEAK, EVEN AFTER PRESSURE TEST, OWNERS ARE SENT ON THEIR WAY, AND YET COOLANT STILL DISAPPEARS FROM THE TANK. MY WIFE'S CAR WENT IN FOR TESTING MULTIPLE TIMES BEFORE ISSUE WAS FOUND. 2. HOUSING HEATING/COOLING CAUSES EXPANSION/CONTRACTION AND WARPING RESULTING IN A SMALL BUT CONSTANT LEAK LARGE ENOUGH TO CREATE A SMALL PUDDLE OR STREAM UNDER THE CAR. A LOW COOLANT ALERT MAY/MAY NOT APPEAR DEPENDING ON SPEED OF THE LEAK. 3. HOUSING HEATING/COOLING CAUSES EXPANSION/CONTRACTION AND WARPING RESULTING IN A SUDDEN CATASTROPHIC FAILURE RESULTING IN RAPID LOSS OF COOLANT AND CAUSING A VISIBLE LARGE PUDDLE UNDER THE CAR AND A WARNING ALERT TO APPEAR ON THE DASHBOARD.
FOLLOWING THE RECALL NOTICE THAT I RECEIVED
WHEN I STARTED MY CAR, THE ENGINE JUMPED AND THE CAR SHOOK. I TRIED TO DRIVE IT BUT COULDN'T GET MORE THAN 10 FEET WITHOUT IT CONSTANTLY FEELING LIKE IT WAS BOTH STARTING AND STALLING, AND ROCKING BACK AND FORTH. I HAD TO PARK IT, AND EVEN WHEN COMPLETELY STOPPED THE CAR WOULD SHAKE AND THE ENGINE MADE A TERRIBLE NOISE. MY CAR STARTED TO SMELL REALLY BAD. THE DEALERSHIP TELLS ME THAT IT IS A COIL FAILURE IN THE ENGINE, WHICH CAUSED COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE AND LEFT ME STRANDED.
VERY ROUGH IDLE/DANGEROUS LOSS OF POWER ELECTRONIC POWER CONTROL LIGHT ILLUMINATES. CAR DEVELOPS ISSUE IN 2 INSTANCES, WILL IDLE SMOOTHLY AT REST AND THEN EPC LIGHT WILL ILLUMINATE AND VERY ROUGH IDLE WILL ENSUE WITH ENTIRE CAR SHAKING. CAR MUST BE SHUTOFF AND RESTARTED TO CORRECT. ONCE RESTARTED CAR WILL IDLE NORMALLY AND LIGHT IS OFF. SECOND ISSUE IS WITH CAR AT LOAD, DRIVING NORMAL SPEEDS WHEN EPC LIGHT WILL COME ON AND ENGINE POWER IS DRAMATICALLY REDUCED MAKING FOR EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS CONDITION IF PULLING OUT OR ACCELERATING IN TRAFFIC. SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER CAN ONLY BE RESOLVED IF SAFE PLACE AVAILABLE TO PULLOVER AND RESTART THE CAR. VW DEALER SAYS THEY CAN ONLY REPAIR CAR IF IT DISPLAYS BEHAVIOR AT SHOP. SINCE LIGHT IS OFF WHEN RESTARTED IT IS NOT RUNNING POORLY WHEN DRIVEN IN FOR SERVICE THEY STATE NO PROBLEM FOUND. THEY CLAIM THE ECU FAULT CODE DOES NOT TELL THEM THE CAUSE ONLY THAT IT HAPPENED EVEN THOUGH OTHER DIAGNOSTIC TOOLS DESCRIBE THROTTLE BODY ISSUES OR BAD SPARKPLUG COILS MAY BE AT FAULT. WHITE KNUCKLE ISSUE WHICH ELIMINATES CONFIDENCE IN DAY TO DAY DRIVING. THERE IS NO WARNING INVOLVED IT JUST HAPPENS. CASUAL RESEARCH INTO THESE SYMPTOMS RESULTS IN AN ALARMING NUMBER OF OWNERS WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED SAME ISSUES. CAR UNSAFE TO DRIVE WHEN POWER LOSS MANIFESTS ITSELF. MANY OTHERS ALSO DESCRIBE A FAULTY WIRING HARNESS FOR THROTTLE BODY FOR WHICH THERE IS AN INTERNAL VW TSB BUT DEALERS SAY IS TIME CONSUMING AND THEY ARE NOT REIMBURSED FOR IN A TIMELY MANNER BY VW OF NA. DISAPPOINTMENT AND THEN SOME. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V647000 (ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE). THE CONTACT MADE SEVERAL ATTEMPTS TO REACH THE MANUFACTURER AND WAS REFERRED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER, BUT WAS UNABLE TO REACH A LIVE AGENT FOR WEEKS. THE DEALER WAS UNAWARE AS TO WHEN THE MANUFACTURER WOULD SUPPLY THE PARTS TO THE DEALER. THE CONTACT WAS NOT EXPERIENCING A FAILURE. PARTS DISTRIBUTION DISCONNECT.
LETTER FROM SENATOR BROWN ON BEHALF OF CONSTITUENT REGARDING HIS DISSATISFACTION WITH THE VOLKSWAGEN GROUP OF AMERICA FOLLOWING THE PURCHASE OF HIS JETTA TDI (ATTN: JOHN PATTERSON). *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED VOLKSWAGEN DELIBERATELY ADDED SOFTWARE TO DECEIVE ITS OWNERS. *JB
2015 VW GOLF SPORTWAGEN TDI 2.0L THE CAR HAS LESS THAN 5000 MILES ON IT AND ALREADY TWICE I GET AN ENGINE MALFUNCTION INDICATOR LIGHT (MIL) TO "REDUCE OIL LEVEL." I HAVEN'T EVEN TAKEN IT IN FOR ITS FIRST SERVICE YET AND NOW THIS. TOO MUCH OIL? I CHECKED THE LEVEL SEVERAL TIMES AND THE DIP STICK INDICATES THE LEVEL IS WITHIN TOLERANCE.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026