There are 5 stored owner reports matching the lighting leading-label group for the 2001 Volkswagen GTI 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 5 of 5 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)I BOUGHT A PAIR OF AFTERMARKET HEADLIGHTS FROM A MEMBER ON EBAY FOR MY 2001 VW GTI. I BOUGHT THESE HEADLIGHTS FROM A SELLER . I HAVE RECENTLY DISCOVERED THAT THESE HEADLIGHTS ARE DEFECTIVE AND FOGLIGHT (WHICH IS INCORPORATED INTO THE HEADLIGHT HOUSING) IS TURNED ON IT WILL CAUSE THE INSIDE OF THE HEADLIGHT TO MELT BECAUSE OF A MANUFACTURING DEFECT. I DO BELIEVE THESE ARE UNSAFE AND COULD EVENTUALLY LEAD TO AN ELECTRICAL FIRE; HOWEVER, AFTER SEVERAL EMAILS. HE HAS NOT RESPONDED TO ME. I'VE GONE AND DONE MY RESEARCH AND OTHER PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME KIND OF PROBLEMS WITH THESE LIGHTS. THEY ARE MANUFACTURED BY DEPO FOR FK AUTOMOTIVE, AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF THIS SELLER IS AND AUTHORIZED DEALER OF THESE HEADLIGHTS. I JUST DON'T KNOW WHERE ELSE I CAN GO. PLEASE HELP ME OUT. *TR
I EXPERIENCED A BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH FAILURE WHICH RESULTED IN MY CAR NOT MEETING SAFETY STANDARDS. *NM
REPLACED, AGAIN, THE PASSENGER SIDE HEADLIGHT BULB. I JUST REPLACED THE DRIVER SIDE THREE WEEKS AGO, AGAIN. THIS IS GETTING TO BE TOO EXPENSIVE AS THE BULBS COST $14 EACH. NOT TO MENTION THAT I MAY GET STOPPED BY THE POLICE AND CITED FOR NOT HAVING A WORKING LIGHT. THERE MUST BE SOMETHING DEFECTIVE WITH THE HEADLIGHT UNIT BECAUSE I HAVE CHANGED THE BULB TOO MANY TIMES. *JB
PREMATURE BRAKE SWITCH FAILURE: AFTER 41K MILES THE BRAKE SWITCH STARTED TO FAIL AND BURNED OUT MY BRAKE LIGHTS. A COLLEGUE SAW THAT I WAS DRIVING WITHOUT BRAKE LIGHTS AND WARNED ME. VOLKSWAGEN CUSTOMER SERVICE HAD NO RECALL IN THE COMPUTER EVEN I KNOW THAT THE BEETLE HAS ONE GOING ON AND IS USING THE SAME PART. NO INJURIES, NO CRASHES BUT I FEEL THAT DRIVING WITHOUT BRAKE LIGHTS ENDANGERED ME. *AK
MY BLINKER LIGHTS DON'T WORK PROPERLY. WHEN I PUT THE TURN SIGNAL THEY WILL BLINK A FEW TIME AND THEN GO OFF. I TOOK IT TO MY LOCAL VW DEALER AND A MECHANIC RECOMMENDED THAT I REPLACE ALL FOUR TURN SIGNAL LIGHTBULB. I DID AND STILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM.*AK PLEASE HAVE VW LOOK INTO THIS AS GENERAL MOTORS JUST HAD A RECALL FOR A FAULTY TURN SIGNAL RELATED ISSUES.
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.