At 23,000 miles, without warning, no initial signs of concern, clutch fails, depressed to the floor without the ability to return. My misfortune happened exactly how the other numerous complainants did. Found VW technical bulletin #2016615 dated 11/05/07 described as 'clutch, friction material flaw' (sachs manufactured only) notes only sachs clutch plates are affected by this flaw and therefore only issues with the sachs clutch plate will be covered under this technical bulletin. There are no known friction material flaws with luk clutch plate or pressure plate.' Bulletin extends the warranty on these parts an extra 4 years / 50000 miles. My clutch plate happens to be a luk...after reading the scores of complaints about clutches going out at 10-50K miles, I don't know what's true anymore...my suspicion is that maybe the problem is really with the luk manufactured clutch plate and that the technical bulletin was issued covering the sachs brand to avoid having to warrant the luk brand. Updated 09/18/08.

- Anchorage, AK, USA

Letter from senator on behalf of constituent, regarding his concerns with the 2006 Volkswagen Jetta. The consumer stated the clutch started slipping. The dealer informed the consumer that the 5-speed vehicles were made with a defective clutch plate, but the transmission would have to be removed to determine if the vehicle had the defective part. The dealer stated if the vehicle did not have the defective part, the consumer would be charged $500 in labor fees for removing the transmission.

- Washington, DC, USA

My 2006 VW Jetta tdi clutch went out while driving on the highway. The clutch was depressed all the way to the floor and would not come back up. I pulled it back up and it would not go back down. Clutch was never spongy beforehand and just went out with no prior indication of a problem. Called the dealership and they said it was not covered under warranty (car has approx 40,000 miles). After doing research and finding out others have same problem I will be complaining to dealership to have it covered. I am a student and my husband is in the army we don't have $2000 to pay for such a repair, that was not caused by "normal wear and tear".

- Pacific Grove, CA, USA

I am the owner of a 2006 Volkswagen Jetta tdi 5-speed with 39,000 miles. My vehicle was manufactured in Mexico in January of 2006, and I purchased it in June of 2006. This week, the clutch started slipping and it warranted a visit to the local VW dealership service department. The service department informed me that many 2006 VW Jetta tdi 5-spd vehicles were made with a defective clutch plate, but they would have to remove my transmission to determine whether or not my vehicle had the defective part. They informed me that if my vehicle did not have the defective part, they would charge me nearly $500 in labor fees for removing the transmission for inspection. I should not have to pay to have my vehicle inspected to determine whether it has the defective part, nor should I have to drive my vehicle when this clutch has been failing prematurely. Upon further investigation, I found numerous complaints about this clutch plate on the NHTSA website. I also found 88 pages on one forum alone (forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?T=137014) about this part and the clutch/flywheel assembly failing prematurely. Many of these people were forced to pay for a new clutch at a cost of over $2000. Some were replaced under warranty. This clutch plate and the corresponding assembly has been recalled because of safety concerns in many countries except for the United States. I fear having my clutch fail when I need the engine to be engaged. If I were to have a sudden loss of power, it could easily cause an accident and endanger myself and the occupants of my vehicle. Is there anything that can be done to bring this problem to the surface, and prompt an investigation by the NHTSA to look into this known safety issue? these defective parts need to be recalled at no cost to the consumer. It seems that NHTSA is ignoring this matter at the consumer's expense, and the automakers benefit.

- Belen, NM, USA

2006 Jetta tdi. Dmf and clutch failure after 54,000 mi of normal driving. Car stuck in gear while driving, unable to stop and go. Not covered under extended warranty. Described as normal wear and tear. Cheap dual mass flywheel and clutch components!

- Madison , CA, USA

I recently purchased a 2006 VW tdi used, with 33K miles. After one day of ownership the clutch pedal went the floor. I pulled the pedal up with my toe, and got it to engage one more time, then back to the floor. After that, the car wouldn't pull itself in any gear. The car never slipped, vibrated, etc., no symptoms of a wore clutch, just instant failure. I called VW roadside assistance, and VW towed it to a dealer 3hours away. Before the dealer tore into it they called me and said that if it is due to clutch wear/abuse that it would not be covered. After some research here on tdiclub, I found that dmf, and clutch failures were very common and generally warranted. I told the dealer to go ahead and tear into the car to find out more. Today I get a call and they tell me that the clutch is wore out, and that it is not covered. The advisor on the phone said that half the clutch on one side is almost completely gone, and the other side is completely gone. And if I come pick it now, I will only be out $550, or I can have them do the repair for $1800. I told him to not do anything yet, and that I would call him back tomorrow with an answer. The service advisor was very nice, and as helpful as he could be, but could not warranty the clutch or repair.

- Mabelvale, AR, USA

No symptoms prior to failure. While exiting freeway, clutch stopped operating between gears, while downshifting. Could not get car back into gear and had to stop in middle of multi lane offramp, pointing slightly uphill. Clutch pedal would come only half way up. Clutch could not be engaged enough to start engine. Aaa was called and arrived after 20 minutes, during which time car remained in offramp. Car was towed to dealer and left over long new year's weekend. Dealer service department informed me, once they looked at it, that the clutch had failed and that I would have to pay for it as it was out of warranty. I agreed to the service since this is my only vehicle. I was charged $1,863. For the service, which included replacement of the flywheel. I complained that the flywheel was part of the engine, and should be covered under warranty. I was directed to call Volkswagen and submit a complaint. I asked to retain the parts so that I could see what had gone wrong. The next day, before calling Volkswagen, I discovered from an independent source that Volkswagen has had a technical service bulletin out on the clutch since November 2007. After verifying from the parts that I was covered, I informed the dealership. I have been told they are cutting me a check to repay what I spent on the replacement.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

Was exiting the highway and depressed the clutch. The clutch went to the floor and I was unable to shift gears. I was able to get the vehicle in neutral and get to the side of the road. I have learned this is a common problem with premature failure of clutches on 2006 Volkswagen Jetta tdis.

- Lewisville, TX, USA

I purchased a brand new 2006 Jetta tdi (standard shift); at the time of this incident the vehicle had approx. 17,000 miles on it. I was driving on the highway and upon downshifting the clutch failed and the vehicle was stuck in gear; I was unable to take the car out of gear or change speed. This incident led me to have to drive the vehicle off to the side of the highway while being unable to safely control the vehicle. Upon further investigation it appears that this has been a common problem with sachs clutches from Volkswagen. Clearly, without a recall, this is puts many drivers in an extremely unsafe situation. The dealer repaired this problem for no cost; however, they were unaware that this problem is common and that VW has recently released a service bulletin regarding the failing clutches. A recall is the answer; however, VW so far has not had to issue one.

- Kingston, PA, USA

Just had the dual mass flywheel and clutch replaced @ 40,000 miles which is crazy. Clutch was slipping and after hearing about the transmissions destroyed when the dmf comes apart, I spent $1,400 cdn to replace it. Ive driven clutches all my life (33 years) and never had to replace a clutch before 200,000 miles.

- Blaine, WA, USA

2006 Jetta tdi made in Mexico in 01/06. Purchased 04/06. Car was always difficult to drive from a standing start. Clutch seemed to lock up prematurely. Many times this causes the engine to stall. At ~25,000 miles the clutch started slipping on the highway. There is overwhelming evidence among other VW Jetta tdi owners that this is a sign of premature dual mass flywheel failure. There are two scenarios that make this failure a serious safety risk to the driver and any passengers: 1. slippage of the clutch at high speeds causes loss of speed control while merging or passing. 2. locking of the clutch from a standing start can cause the engine to stall possibly leaving the car in the way of other traffic. I am in contact with the dealer to get this failed dmf replaced before there are any serious injuries or property damage.

- Lincoln Univ, PA, USA

Experienced clutch failure in my 2006 VW Jetta tdi at 23K miles (at least 10K highway miles). Car had a lifetime history of less than smooth take-off (from stand still to 1st gear). First sign of major problem was total clutch failure (pedal stuck to floor, unable to shift) after about 30 min. In stop-and-go traffic on interstate in road construction zone. This is a safety issue: This failure causes driver to lose the ability to accelerate and has potential to cause high speed crash in heavy traffic merging conditions. This is also a known issue: Online reading quickly reveals that the dual mass flywheel & clutch assembly has been problematic for some time, and this particular issue is found in the 2005.5 & 2006 Jetta tdi. Three examples of evidence for this are: #1. to date, 46 members of the online forum tdiclub.com have experienced this low mileage clutch and/or flywheel failure. #2. VW has had recalls in both finland and australia for same/similar issues. #3. the product description of single mass flywheel & clutch advertised at dieselgeek.com states: Gets rid of the failure prone stock sachs dual mass flywheel. I repeat, this is a known problem, it seems that VW knows that original parts are defective or not up to the job as they have upgraded the replacement parts. But VW refuses to pay for repairs, citing owner error and/or wear-and-tear. My repair cost $1700 and VW should reimburse me. The repaired clutch is smoother than it has ever been, indication that it was defective from day one. Far more important: VW should issue a recall before someone is hurt or killed. I am furious at VW! this was a known problem when I drove my new car off the lot in June 06. At the very least, I should have been advised of the issue and to be mindful of clutch operation. How can VW be so careless" who at VW made the decision to ignore this potentially fatal problem" ill continue to spread the word until VW takes responsibility and issues a recall.

- Birdsboro, PA, USA

Clutch and flywheel failed at 23,740 miles. Sudden failure, without warning. Caused the car to come to a complete stop, pulled the clutch pedal to the floor.

- Houston, TX, USA

Had the dual mass flywheel come apart. Dealer replaced flywheel, clutch plate, bolts, a bearing, and a support under warranty. This seems to be a systemic problem.

- Warren, MI, USA

There is a list of problems I've had with this car. First the odometer reads 5-7 miles higher than my actual speed, and the radio reception and volume oscillates randomly. The entire car starts to shake the longer at a stop; say in traffic or even at a long red light. It's even worse on an a hill, both incline and decline. The friction point changes randomly which makes it quite easy to stall out the car from a starting position. When one turns the wheel to go around a turn the front of the car produces a deep groaning sound. The paint is also chipping off randomly; and I hand wax and wash this vehicle myself; so it makes no sense since it's only a year old. The top coat is actually pealing off on parts of the car. I took it into the dealer and they updated the software on the radio; and I'm currently waiting for the flywheel to be replaced, the part hasn't come in yet.

- Rochester, NY, USA

Dual mass flywheel leaking from center hub clutch failure.

- Wpg, 00, USA

Only 48,000 miles on the car and the clutch/flywheel are shot. According to an independent trans shop this is the second time its been rebuilt with VW parts.

- Newnan, GA, USA

Faulty clutch and flywheel. Flywheel blew apart and destroyed clutch. The incident nearly caused an accident which could have possibly killed my entire family.

- Mason, OH, USA

Flywheel and clutch catastrophic failure. Clutch pedal went completely to floor and engine seized up. Clutch would not disengage engine and was seized up. Driver was operating vehicle at low speed when failure occurred. If failure had happened at highway speeds it likely would have resulted in high-speed wreck.

- Boulder, CO, USA

Clutch assembly in both my 2006 VW Jetta's had to be replaced, because of incorrect assembly at plant. One is running well, the other one is still not running properly.

- Lakeland, FL, USA