There are 2 stored owner reports matching the brakes leading-label group for the 2016 Volkswagen Golf in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 2 of 2 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)BRAKE FAILURE. THE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN AROUND 20MPH, WHEN A 'BRAKE: FLUID LOW SEE OWNER'S MANUAL' MESSAGE CAME ON. AFTER SEEING THIS MESSAGE PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE BRAKE PEDAL AND THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. THE PEDAL MADE A 'CHATTERING NOISE' AS IT MOVED THROUGH THE PEDAL STROKE. THE PARKING BRAKE WAS USED TO STOP THE CAR. THIS WAS EASILY RECREATED IN A PARKING LOT AND AT THE LOCAL DEALER. THE WARNING LIGHT CAME ON EACH TIME THE CAR WAS STARTED AFTER THE INITIAL INCIDENT, AND WHEN PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE PEDAL, THE PEDAL EASILY WENT TO THE FLOOR MAKING THE SAME CHATTERING NOISE. THERE WERE NO SYMPTOMS BEFORE THIS INCIDENT. THE BRAKE SYSTEM SEEMED TO FUNCTION AS IT SHOULD AND HAD EVERY OTHER TIME THE CAR WAS DRIVEN. I CHECKED FOR BRAKE FLUID LEAKS AT THE MASTER CYLINDER AND AT EACH OF THE FOUR CALIPERS, AND DID NOT FIND ANY LEAKED FLUID. IT APPEARED THAT THERE WAS STILL BRAKE FLUID IN THE BRAKE FLUID RESERVOIR. UPON INITIAL CONTACT, THE DEALER SAID THEY HAD NEVER SEEN THIS BEFORE. AFTER THEIR INITIAL ASSESSMENT BY THE DEALER, THEY BELIEVED IT WAS A MASTER CYLINDER ISSUE AND THE SEAL ON THE SIDE OF THE BRAKE BOOSTER HAD FAILED, AND BRAKE FLUID LEAKED INTO THE BOOSTER.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2016 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 20 TO 25 MPH, THE CONTACT HEARD A CRACKLING NOISE WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. THE BRAKES FAILED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT HAD TO APPLY THE EMERGENCY BRAKE TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER. IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THERE WAS A MECHANICAL FAILURE IN THE VACUUM PUMP. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 9,558. THE CONSUMER STATED THE CONCERN WAS THAT THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED WITH THE SAME OEM PART THAT INITIALLY FAILED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE CONSUMER REQUESTED FOR THE VEHICLE TO BE BOUGHT BACK BUT, THE MANUFACTURER DECLINED AND OFFERED A 200.00 GIFT CARD. *JS
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.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Apr 28, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.