1998 Volkswagen Cabrio: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 37 complaints
37
Total Complaints
50,000mi
Median Mileage
STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS
Top Issue
13
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

50,000 25th Percentile
50,000 Median Mileage
85,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS
4
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
2
STRUCTURE:BODY
2
AIR BAGS
2
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
2
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
2
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH
2
VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
2
POWER TRAIN:CLUTCH ASSEMBLY
2
PARKING BRAKE:CONVENTIONAL
1

Severity Assessment

13
Crashes
0
Fires
10
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"CLUTCH INHIBITOR RELAY WAS FAULTY--CAR WOULD NOT START AND HAD IT TOWED TO DEALERSHIP TO FIX, PASSENGER SEATBELT HAS BEEN REPLACED 3 TIMES ALREADY, ABS LIGHT CAME ON 4 DAYS BEFORE ACCIDENT TOOK CAR INTO CHAPMAN'S TO BE FIXED BUT WHEN I WENT TO STOP AT A LIGHT I PRESSED ON BREAKS AND IT SLOWED A LIT..."
"CLUTCH INHIBITOR RELAY WAS FAULTY--CAR WOULD NOT START AND HAD IT TOWED TO DEALERSHIP TO FIX, PASSENGER SEATBELT HAS BEEN REPLACED 3 TIMES ALREADY, ABS LIGHT CAME ON 4 DAYS BEFORE ACCIDENT TOOK CAR INTO CHAPMAN'S TO BE FIXED BUT WHEN I WENT TO STOP AT A LIGHT I PRESSED ON BREAKS AND IT SLOWED A LIT..."
"CLUTCH INHIBITOR RELAY WAS FAULTY--CAR WOULD NOT START AND HAD IT TOWED TO DEALERSHIP TO FIX, PASSENGER SEATBELT HAS BEEN REPLACED 3 TIMES ALREADY, ABS LIGHT CAME ON 4 DAYS BEFORE ACCIDENT TOOK CAR INTO CHAPMAN'S TO BE FIXED BUT WHEN I WENT TO STOP AT A LIGHT I PRESSED ON BREAKS AND IT SLOWED A LIT..."

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28