NHTSA Complaint #10078300 — 1997 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA

ON SEVERAL DIFFERENT OCCASIONS NOW MY 1997 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA GL HAS FAILED TO START.BECAUSE THIS HAS HAPPENED AT NIGHT AND ALMOST ALWAYS AWAY FROM HOME THIS HAS BEEN A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. THERE IS NEVER ANY WARNING THAT THIS IS GOING TO HAPPEN. THE CAR MAY BE WORKING FINE AND THEN THE NEXT TIME IT IS TIME TO START IT, IT SIMPLY WON'T START. WE HAVE HAD TO HAVE THE CAR TOWED SEVERAL TIMES NOW. ONCE OUT OF A PARKING GARAGE -AT 5:00 PM DURING RUSH HOUR. ONCE I WAS BY MYSELFON A SUNDAY IN A TOWN I WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH AT A NOT VERY NICE GAS STATION GETTING GAS WHEN THE CAR FAILED TO START. I WAS THERE SEVERAL HOURS BEFORE I COULD GET IN CONTACT WITH FAMILY MEMBERS TO COME AND RESCUE ME. EACH TIME WE HAVE TAKEN THE CAR TO A VOLKSWAGEN DEARLERSHIP AND HAD IT "FIXED". MY QUESTION IS HOW MANY TIMES DO WE HAVE TO HAVE IT FIXED???? I HAVE GONE ON VARIOUS SITES AND THE COMMENT IS THAT THE 1997 JETTA HAS STARTING PROBLEMS. IF THIS IS SO THEN DOESN'T THIS MEAN THAT THE STARTER OR THE WIRING IS DEFECTIVE. GRANTED THE CAR PROBABLY WON'T BLOW UP BECAUSE OF THIS BUT A CAR SHOULD BE RELIABLE ENOUGH JUST TO START - SHOULDN'T IT? WE HAVE HAD THE CAR FOUR YEARS NOW AND HAVE HAD REPEATED FAILURES. SOMETIMES IT WOULD START EVENTUALLY BUT WE HAVE HAD 3 DIFFERENT OCCASIONS WHEN IT WOULD NOT START AND IT WENT IN FOR REPAIRS. TWICE ( TWO DIFFERENT DEALERSHIPS) WE WERE TOLD IT WAS A BAD STARTER AND IT WAS SUPPOSEDLY REPLACED. THE COMBINED COST - $1100.00. THE THIRD TIME WE PROTESTED AND DEMANDED THAT IT BE FIXED - THAT TIME - $150.00. NOW WE ARE UP AGAINST A FOURTH TRIP TO A DEALERSHIP. I AM 56 YEARS OLD AND HAVE HAD MANY DIFFERENT CARS - OLD & NEW, BUT NEVER HAVE I HAD AN EXPERIENCE LIKE THIS!!! AND I KNOW I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE!*AK