2004 Volkswagen Beetle: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 469 complaints
469
Total Complaints
63,782mi
Median Mileage
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
Top Issue
12
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

45,000 25th Percentile
63,782 Median Mileage
80,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
101
POWER TRAIN
52
AIR BAGS
49
VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
43
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
40
VISIBILITY
18
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE
16
ENGINE
13
SEAT BELTS
12
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
11

Severity Assessment

12
Crashes
24
Fires
4
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"CONSUMER WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHERE THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE AIRBAG LIGHT WAS ON, AS WELL AS THE CHECK ENGINE AND ABS LIGHTS. CONSUMER WENT TO DEALERSHIP TO GET VEHICLE SERVICED, BUT DEALERSHIP COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM.*AK"
"CONSUMER WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHERE THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE AIRBAG LIGHT WAS ON, AS WELL AS THE CHECK ENGINE AND ABS LIGHTS. CONSUMER WENT TO DEALERSHIP TO GET VEHICLE SERVICED, BUT DEALERSHIP COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM.*AK"
"CONSUMER WAS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHERE THE AIR BAGS FAILED TO DEPLOY. THE AIRBAG LIGHT WAS ON, AS WELL AS THE CHECK ENGINE AND ABS LIGHTS. CONSUMER WENT TO DEALERSHIP TO GET VEHICLE SERVICED, BUT DEALERSHIP COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM.*AK"

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