2013 Volkswagen Jetta Recall

Volkswagen Group Canada is conducting a parts recovery campaign targeting 2012-2016 Volkswagen vehicles equipped with a TDI (diesel) engine built between May 25, 2011 and June 1, 2016. The auxiliary heater elements are being recovered to aid in Volkswagen's analysis in support of Transport Canada defect investigation file no. 3280-15-10. Note: This action is not being conducted under the requirements of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act. For the 2016 model year Jetta, only the Jetta Hybrid model is involved in this parts recovery program.

No safety defect has been identified with these auxiliary heater elements.

Volkswagen will notify owners by mail and advise them to take their vehicle to a dealership to replace the auxiliary heater element at no charge.

On certain vehicles, the warning label for the engine block heater cable is written in English only. As a result, a French user may not receive important safety information about how to use the engine block heater. A label that is not provided in both official languages could create confusion.

User confusion could increase the risk of injury when trying to use the block heater.

The company will mail each owner a new label for the block heater cable. If you would like help installing the label, you can contact a dealer for assistance.

On certain Jetta Hybrid models, the accumulator housing of the transmission could crack. If this happens, the transmission warning light will turn on and, if a driver continues to use the vehicle, there could be a sudden loss of power to the wheels.

A sudden of loss power to the wheels could increase the risk of a crash.

Volkswagen will notify owners by mail and instruct you to take your vehicle to a dealer to install a transmission repair kit to replace the affected parts.

On certain vehicles, a build-up of silicate on the shift lever switch could cause the transmission to detect that it is in the Park position when it isn't. This could allow the ignition key to be removed when the transmission is not in the Park position. If the parking brake is not applied, this could allow the car to roll away.

If the transmission position is not displayed correctly, a user may not know that the vehicle is not in the PARK position. If the parking brake is not applied, this could create a risk of a vehicle roll-away and increase the risk of a crash.

The company will notify owners by mail. Owners will be instructed to take their vehicle to a dealer to have a new shift lever micro switch and control unit installed.

On certain vehicles, the steering wheel clock spring could become contaminated with long hair or long fibers which may cause a displacement of the internal guide loops. When the guide loops are dragged out of position, they may apply tension to the internal flat cable and cause it to tear. Should the cable tear, the electrical connection to the driver's front airbag may be lost, causing the airbag monitoring indicator light to illuminate. Failure of the driver's airbag to deploy during a crash (where deployment is warranted) could increase the risk of personal injury to the seat occupant. Correction: Dealers will install a cover of a different design to help prevent clock spring contamination caused by hair or other fibers. In instances where the vehicle has an airbag light on (and diagnosis confirms the steering wheel clock spring requires replacement), dealers will install a new steering wheel clock spring.

A failure of this component (seats and restraints) may increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Authorized dealerships will inspect the vehicle and complete all necessary repairs free of charge (parts and labor).

On certain vehicles, if the rear axle trailing arms are damaged in a rear or side-rear impact crash and a repair facility does not correctly diagnose or replace damaged rear axle components, rear trailing arm durability could be reduced, which could result in a sudden fracture of the trailing arm. This could lead to a loss of vehicle control, which could increase the risk of a crash causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will install a sheet metal inlay on both rear axle trailing arms. The inlay is designed to help prevent the sudden loss of vehicle control should a rear axle trailing arm fracture occur if undiagnosed/unrepaired damage exists from a previous rear or side-rear impact/crash.

A failure of this component (suspension) may increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Authorized dealerships will inspect the vehicle and complete all necessary repairs free of charge (parts and labor).

On certain vehicles equipped with a factory installed block heater, the block heater could overheat while in use. This could result in a fire causing injury and/or property damage. Correction: Dealers will replace the block heater. Owners are advised to stop using the block heater in the interim.

A failure of this component (accessories) may increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Authorized dealerships will inspect the vehicle and complete all necessary repairs free of charge (parts and labor).

On certain hybrid models equipped with direct-shift gearboxes, corrosion can occur inside the gearbox due to incompatible gearbox lubricant additives, causing electrical shorts and blowing gearbox fuses. This could result in a loss of motive power, which could increase the risk of a crash causing injury and/or damage to property. Correction: Dealers will replace the existing gearbox lubricant with an updated formulation.

A failure of this component (powertrain) may increase the risk of a crash or injury.

Authorized dealerships will inspect the vehicle and complete all necessary repairs free of charge (parts and labor).