1999 Volkswagen Beetle Electrical system Problems

“Purchased 1999 vw Beetle 20 months ago. Car has only 54,000 miles. Since owning the car have already over $3,500 in repairs. All of the repairs were done at my local darcar vw repair shop. I believe some of these repairs were recalls and have all receipt. Is there someone I can sent my repair receipts to to see if I can be reimbursed for out of pocket expenses which should have been recall services? I can forward receipts. …”

“Electrical system problem on the 1999 Volkswagen Beetle: during the last (4) weeks, daughters Beetle stopped running on (2) major highways, and one-time a side street near my home. The 1st auto shop stated that I had a bad alternator & a bad battery. Than, 1 week later, the new alternator blew and the same mechanic had the original alternator re-built stating it was the harness! Than, it stopped running on my road near my home. A 2nd auto shop told me to take it toe vw dealer and that is where it is now! I have paid $640 so-far & have used my aaa for towing 3x's!”

“I own a 1999 new Beetle with the 2.0 engine with 37,000 original miles. The car quit running approx. 2 1/2 yrs ago,approximately two months after I purchased it from a certified Volkswagen dealer, used. A few days after delivery there was a rotten egg smell, check engine light on, engine sluggish. After one month the battery went dead completely. Replaced the battery, car would not run. Battery dead again after four days. I found info on the internet that security system must be set or the battery will last only four days. Inspected plugs, found heavy carbon buildup. …”

“Fuse panel located on top of the battery melted in the area of the fuse for the radiator cooling fans. This further damaged the fuses for the brake system and the ABS system. This caused power to the ABS system to be lost. The dealer diagnosed this problem as shorted cooling fans. However, the wiring to the motors and the fan control unit were not affected. There was also the distinct smell of an electrical fire and melted plastic under the hood. The fuse panel has white deposits under its cover above the area that melted. I asked the dealer to give me the parts after the service. …”

“Had to have fuse panel on battery replaced for 2nd time in 2-3 yrs and also a fuse box under dash. Cost was very expensive. Car would not start all of a sudden after shopping at a store. Had to push start the car to a independent mechanic. Still don't know why it went bad/appeared melted. In first episode the alternator had to be replaced also as there were battery drain problems. This an indirect safety issue as my daughter drives car and she could have be stranded at any place when this happened.”