2012 Volkswagen Jetta Engine Problems
Owners have filed 84 complaints with NHTSA about engine problems on the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta, 17% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 45,000 miles.
- 84engine complaints
- 45,000median miles at failure
- 1mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 0related recalls
- 32%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
At what mileage do engine problems happen?
Based on 69 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 84 complaints, 1 mention a crash, 3 a fire.
Volkswagen Jetta engine complaints by model year
| Model year | Engine complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Jetta | 1 | 17% | — |
| 2025 Jetta | 1 | 3% | — |
| 2024 Jetta | 11 | 24% | 17,600 |
| 2023 Jetta | 11 | 26% | 2,000 |
| 2022 Jetta | 12 | 28% | 4,500 |
| 2021 Jetta | 5 | 7% | 4,000 |
| 2020 Jetta | 12 | 22% | 14,000 |
| 2019 Jetta | 147 | 27% | 700 |
| 2018 Jetta | 2 | 6% | — |
| 2017 Jetta | 32 | 20% | 64,560 |
| 2016 Jetta | 43 | 27% | 38,000 |
| 2015 Jetta | 43 | 22% | 32,706 |
| 2014 Jetta | 108 | 28% | 64,335 |
| 2013 Jetta | 112 | 22% | 54,000 |
| 2012 Jetta | 84 | 17% | 45,000 |
| 2011 Jetta | 90 | 15% | 51,500 |
| 2010 Jetta | 117 | 14% | 65,592 |
| 2009 Jetta | 96 | 11% | 80,600 |
| 2008 Jetta | 20 | 11% | 96,000 |
| 2007 Jetta | 16 | 8% | 104,293 |
| 2006 Jetta | 39 | 7% | 123,543 |
| 2005 Jetta | 27 | 11% | 112,750 |
| 2004 Jetta | 11 | 5% | 116,500 |
| 2003 Jetta | 16 | 4% | 90,000 |
| 2002 Jetta | 7 | 1% | 93,000 |
| 2001 Jetta | 9 | 1% | 90,821 |
| 2000 Jetta | 8 | 2% | 166,500 |
| 1999 Jetta | 2 | 1% | 87,000 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (0)
No safety recall lists engine for the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta. A pattern of complaints does not always lead to a recall.
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
I recently bought vehicle seen there is a recall
I remember having my keys in my hand and my car was slowly reversing out the driveway. I panicked, i was stomping on my brakes for a while jerking back and it took me about 2 minutes to finally get the key back in and try to put in park again. I went to a shop the following weekend because all the…
My DPF system failed after my warranty ran out, about 128,000mi. and VW charged me $3000 to replace the DPF, then two days later the Nox Catalyst failed and they wanted another $2500 out of me. I tried the regen like the manual says, and the car went in limp mode 75 miles from my house in the…
Frequently asked questions
Do all 2012 Volkswagen Jettas have engine problems?
No. NHTSA has 84 owner complaints about engine for the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta (17% of the 500 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2012 Volkswagen Jetta engine?
No recall currently lists engine for this vehicle.
At what mileage do engine problems start?
The median reported mileage is 45,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
Other 2012 Volkswagen Jetta problems
See all 2012 Volkswagen Jetta problems or engine problems across all Jetta years.