2002 Volkswagen Jetta Seat Heater/Cooler Problems
- 86
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 86 stored complaint records:
- 1 indicate a crash
- 34 indicate injury
- 49 indicate fire
What owners report
- seat heater · 43 records
- seat warmer · 21 records
- side seat · 20 records
- caught fire · 16 records
- heated seat · 15 records
- turned seat · 13 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 30–60k mi | 33 |
| 1–30k mi | 20 |
| 60–100k mi | 12 |
| 150–400k mi | 2 |
| 100–150k mi | 1 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Seat Heater/Cooler
A fire started under the driver side of the vehicle while driving at 40 mph. Vehicle was taken to the dealer. *ak
Fire reported
ODI 10092722
Seat Heater/Cooler
The drivers side heated seat on my 2002 jetta 1.8t started smoldering and burnt a hole through the farbic and burned my leg. *ak
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10108376
Seat Heater/Cooler
The seat material on the driver's seat, burned through, melting the seat_x0019_s material and creating a 1-inch x inch wide hole. The hole left exposed the electrical wires under the material that caused the driver to feel a sudden electrical shock. Furthermore, the electrical shock combined with the hot melting material felt through the jeans, caused the driver to suddenly and unsafely veers off the road. The hot…
1 injury
ODI 10063924
Seat Heater/Cooler
While driving 60 mph driver's seat caught on fire from the seat heater core. No injuries reported. *ak
Fire reported
ODI 10064692
Seat Heater/Cooler
Heated seat malfunction oned a 2002.5 vw jetta. Heating element burned a hole through the fabric on the seat. Also. Burning the pants that i was wearing. Nothing has been done to fix the problem i was told that the parts are on backorder. This also happened march 15, 2003. *ak
Fire reported
ODI 10067779
Seat Heater/Cooler
While driving our 2002 volkwagen jetta, my wife set the seat warmer to "5" (the highest level). She said that she "smelled something funny," and then received a minor burn on her left leg. Corrective action was to turn the seat heater to "0" (off). No parts have been replaced pending a response for service from volkswagen of america, inc.*ak
1 injury
ODI 10088523
Seat Heater/Cooler
Driver seat burned by malfunction of the seat heating system on my vw jetta 2002. *jb
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10058319
Seat Heater/Cooler
Heated seats malfunction. This is the second time the seats malfunctioned causing melting of fabric and smoke, destroying seats. Luckily no one was seriously hurt. Vw replaced seats just 10 months ago for the same problem. *ak
Fire reported
ODI 10056791
Seat Heater/Cooler
The consumer smelled a burning chemical scent in the vehicle. The consumer then felt a burning sensation in her hand and the a sharp pain. The consumer then discovered a hole in the seats from the seat warmer. The consumer stated this is third electrical failure she has had with the vehicle. *ak *jb
1 injury
ODI 10057213
Seat Heater/Cooler
On my 2002 volkwagen jetta 1.8t, my seatwarmer ignited and burned through both my seat and the coat i was wearing at the time, leaving holes in both. Ncident date is approximate. I immediately called the dealership after it happened and thus, they may have the exact date on record.*ak
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10063737
Seat Heater/Cooler
I was driving and noticed my hip had an itch. I itched it and it sort of went away. The next day the same thing happened, but i touched the seat in my car, and that it was really, really hot. I stopped and looked, and the leather was a bit defromed, and i noticed a burning smell. The heating elements in my 2002 vw jetta tdi were overheating, and could have caught me or the car on fire. I am gong to the dealer to…
1 injury
ODI 10050594
Seat Heater/Cooler
I turned my heated seat on and 5-7 minutes into the drive i noticed a burning smell and realized my seat was realy hot. I turned the heated seat off and burning stopped. Upon visual inspection i noticed a hole burnt into seat and a singed dime sized mark on my coat. I have been without my car now for 24 days and i am still waiting for the part to get in the country. *ak
ODI 10051267
Seat Heater/Cooler
My electronically heater driver seat of my 2002 vw jetta overheated and burned my seat cushion. *jb
ODI 10049245
Seat Heater/Cooler
The consumer turned on the seat heater and it burned a hole in the consumer's pants with proper temperature adjustment. *ak *sc *jb
ODI 10061124
Seat Heater/Cooler
The front drivers seat of my 2002 vw jetta sedan got extremely hot while i was sitting on it causing the leather seat to start to burn and my buttocks to burn slightly as well.*ak
1 injury
ODI 10048952
Seat Heater/Cooler
Volkswagen jetta gls 2002 the heated seat on the driver's side started to smoke due to faulty wiring. *la
Fire reported
ODI 10047577
Seat Heater/Cooler
The seat warmer of my 2002 volkswagon jetta malfunctioned and started a fire within the seat. There was smoke and a flame inside the seat. It burned the pants i was wearing. And burned my leg slightly.*ak ***when i called the service center to schedule an appointment to fix this problem, they said "yeah, that's been happening, we're calling the cars 'hot pants'" they also told me that the seats are on back order,…
Fire reported
ODI 10045916
Seat Heater/Cooler
Driver seat heater malfunctioned, burning the seat cushion, my clothing and skin, causing minor injury.*ak
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10058790
Seat Heater/Cooler
While driving i smelled something burning. As i pulled over i felt i was being burned on my upper left leg (rear end). I got out and checked and my seat heating unit had burned through the seat, through my pants and coat and burned my skin.*ak
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10045622
Module · Seat Heater/Cooler
Since buying my jetta new in 2002. I have had nothing but problems. Twice the ignition coils failed, and i had to have the car towed. They wouldn't replace all the defective coils the first time. So, now that i know my car is unreliable, i won't be using it for long trips, which was my main reason for buying the car. Then last night on my way down the road, the heated seat caught on fire and burned a whole in my…
Fire reported
ODI 10043866
Seat Heater/Cooler
While driving consumer smelled a burning odor coming from inside the vehicle. Consumer pulled over to investigate the smell, and noticed that driver's seat was burning. Consumer took vehicle to the dealership.*ak
ODI 10046053
Seat Heater/Cooler
Within 30 seconds of starting vehicle and turning on the seat warmer consumer smelled smoke, and felt a burning sensation on the legs. Driver's side seat heat coil burned out through the seats upholstery. Consumer turned seat warmer off before burn injuries were sustained.*ak *nlm
ODI 10044632
Seat Heater/Cooler
DRIVER SEAT CAUGHT ON FIRE. *AK
Fire reported
ODI 10079217
Seat Heater/Cooler
Heated seat over heated and started to burn a hole through the seat. Only was prevented from burning leg due to the fact i had shorts on and layered windpants over the shorts - i.e. 3 layers of clothes. *ak
ODI 10065700
Seat Heater/Cooler
Vehicle's seat heater caught on fire.*mr consumer smelled burning and rolled down the window about three inches due to the recent forest fires. She then felt a burning sensation, looked down and saw a 6-8" flame coming up her left side. She was burned as well as her clothing and seat. Consumer pulled over to the side of the road. Pictures were sent to nhtsa via email. *ph
Fire reported · 1 injury
ODI 10049944