NHTSA Complaint #11233019 — 2012 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA

I HAVE A "2012 VW JETTA SE 2.5L AUTO PZEV" THAT AT AROUND 90,110 MILES EXPERIENCED A SHIFT LEVER FAILURE ON 07/17/2019 AT AROUND 4:50 PM CST. THE PHYSICAL LOCKING MECHANISM OF THE SHIFT LEVER FAILED, AND IT WAS POSSIBLE TO ACCIDENTALLY SHIFT INTO DIFFERENT SELECTIONS WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS MOVING. I LUCKILY DIDN'T SHIFT INTO REVERSE BY ACCIDENT, JUST THE SPORT MODE (THIS MODE PREVIOUSLY REQUIRED THE HOLDING DOWN OF THE SHIFT LEVER BUTTON). AFTER THE FAILURE OF THE LOCKING MECHANISM, THE ELECTRONIC CONTROLS ALSO NO LONGER PICK UP SHIFTING REQUESTS (EG. SHIFTING FROM "NEUTRAL" TO "DRIVE" USING THE LEVER WOULD STILL SHOW THE CAR AS IN NEUTRAL). HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE STILL DOES SHIFT USING A VERY SPECIFIC METHOD OF MOVING THE GEAR SHIFT LEVER ALL THE WAY TO THE "REVERSE" POSITION, AND THEN MOVING IT ALL THE WAY TO THE "SPORT" POSITION. WHEN THIS IS PERFORMED, I AM ABLE TO THEN SHIFT INTO "DRIVE" THEN "NEUTRAL, AND THEN EVENTUALLY "REVERSE". I AM NOT ABLE TO SHIFT INTO "PARK" AT ALL, AND I HAVE TO USE TO YELLOW SHIFT OVERRIDE TAB IN ORDER TO SHIFT INTO ANY OTHER GEARS (EG. "NEUTRAL" OR "DRIVE"). THE KEY IS ACTUALLY STUCK IN THE CAR AS A RESULT OF BEING UNABLE TO SHIFT INTO PARK, SO I'VE HAD IT SITTING OVERNIGHT WITH THE KEY IN THE VEHICLE AS WELL. FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME IF PHOTOS OR VIDEOS ARE NEEDED. I CAN ALSO PROVIDE AND ELABORATE ON MORE INFORMATION IF NEEDED.