The contact owns a 2007 Volkswagen Jetta. While having the vehicle serviced for routine maintenance, the contact was informed that the rear brakes were completely worn and rubbing metal on metal. The vehicle was repaired. Three weeks later while driving approximately 20 mph the contact was involved in a crash in which the air bags did not deploy. A police report was filed and the contact suffered minor injuries. The vehicle was towed to an insurance lot and was not examined for the cause of failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 38,600. Updated 06/02/11 the consumer stated the vehicle was totaled. Updated 11/28/11

- The Villages, FL, USA

Normal driving habits. Mileage on vehicle = approximately 59,500. The rear brake pads and rotors wear at excessive rate on my 2007 Volkswagen Jetta - 2.5L wolfsburg edition. I've never had a vehicle where the rear brake pads or rotors needed to be replaced before the front pads/ rotors. VW offered to replace the rear pads and rotors for standard brake replacement cost (no discounted price for premature wear). The rear brakes wearing prematurely presents a potential safety hazard.

- Overland Park, KS, USA

I have a 2007 VW Jetta that is wearing out pads to fast. The 1st time they wore out the car had approx 16,000 mi. We were told by the dealership that it was caused by the emergency brake lever not totally releasing. The 2nd time the car was out of warranty with approx. 28,000 mi. But the dealership and VW were willing to replace the pads since they wore due to the brake lever again. But it was suggested that Audi pads be put on because they wore longer than the VW. The mechanic at the time said there was a problem on the Jetta with the lever not always releasing. Now at 54,000 mi the car had to go in for a brake job. Unfortunately the pads wore down to the rivets and scoured the rotors. So I had to pay for pads and turning the rotors. Now VW is saying that they design the brakes to wear in 12,000 to 20,000 miles. I have never heard of pads only lasting that short of time. And if that is so then why am I still using the original front pads. Then they state that they set the car up so the rears do more work then the front to make the front not do all the braking. Yeah, we do that on tractor and trailers to, but not to make the rears do all the braking. I worry because my son uses this car at college and I don't want a call saying he had an accident due to the brakes going out. I worry VW may have problems with the rear pads prematurely wearing and don't know how to fix the problem like Toyota can't fix their problem.

- Hesperia, CA, USA

I am leasing a 2007 Jetta 2.5 and just took my car in this morning for it's 35,000 mile tune-up. I was told that my rear brake pads and rotors were at less than 10%. I was not notified 5,000 miles ago that they were low or would be causing issues. Now I'm being told on top of my $250 tune-up, I need to replace all that for 310. This seems to be a documented issue, and I'm highly upset that I would have to deal with this in my lease. In 5,000 miles I went from being "fine" to the pads being ground into the rotors.

- Westerville, OH, USA

I have 2007 Volkswagen Jetta wolfsberg ed and I am having serious issue with the rear brakes. I bought this brand new at 60 miles on it in June 2007.. around 18/19K I had to replace rear brakes N rotors cause they were worn and were rubbing metal on metal.. I went to the VW service they said it may have been the ebrake not adjusted correctly.. they replaced everything under warranty after arguing with them.. they tried to say it's the way I drive or I must have driven with the ebrake on.. R U kidding me!!!! I been driving for 10 yrs.. and if it was the way I drive why haven't the front brakes gone" they are still the original brakes to this date 2-12-10.. anyhow so they replaced it. Right now I'm at 29K guess what.. I had tires changed out and my rear brakes are at 30% left.. this is insane 10K an I have to change rear brakes again?? meanwhile I still have original front brakes on the car with 2/3 of life on them! my trusted/personal mech said there has to be something wrong with the braking system or hydraulics.. there's no way I should be almost on my 3rd set of rear brakes without even touching my front brakes.. he said that is not normal.. I had a 95 Camry bought it used had that for 2.5 yrs and only replaced all brakes 1 time...and isn't the stopping power on all vehicle in the front brakes.. its a fw drive car... this is getting ridiculous.. at this rate ill be changing brakes every 3 oil changes.. how does this make sense to the VW company or any mechanic for that matter"... please recall this veh for rear brake issue.. nobody has 400 dollars every 10K for brakes.. please do the right thing!!

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

2007 VW Jetta wolfsberg edition brake pads completely worn out at 18K miles. Had dealer replace pads. Pads completely worn again at 25K miles along with rotors. Took to dealer who refused repairs as condition was "normal" and would not cover under warranty. Took to private mechanic who said condition was "not normal" and scheduled followup service after pads were replaced to gauge damage to rear braking mechanisms.

- Bakersfield, CA, USA

2007 Jetta speed increase from 50 to 85 mph without touching the gas pedal. By touching the brake it did stop the increase of speed before it went higher. This happen 4 to 5 times in the last several months. ( the cruise control was not turned on.)

- Richmond, VA, USA

I own a 2007 Jetta with only 26K miles on it. Without any initial warning the rear brakes started to grind on the rear passenger side. I took the car to a specialist who told be one rear brake was grinding on metal and the other was about to get to that point. My front wheel drive brakes were still 100% and not showing any sign of wear. They felt this was very unusual for brakes to do this so soon and suggested I take it to the car dealer to have them check for faulty brakes. I took the car in and they said it was normal for this car to do this so early. I want you to know that I have owned many cars in my lifetime and tend to replace them after about 50K miles. We have never had to replace brakes on any of our cars. This is not normal and should be investigated for a flaw in the model. They also told me the pads in the rear are thinner than the ones in the front. This does not make any sense to me. I am out $350 dollars and will never purchase a VW product again. This was my first experience with this car maker. Additionally this car is a stick shift and I am not a lead foot driver. Now I wonder about the safety issues of their brakes.

- Portland, OR, USA

I own a 2007 Volkswagen Jetta. The rear brakes had to be completely replaced at 28000 miles. Both the dealership and the Volkswagen corporate office refuse to cover brakes under warranty stating that for the Jetta it is "normal" to need new rear brakes in as little as 10000 miles. Edmunds.com and carcomplaint.com have hundreds of Jetta owners complaining about the premature rear brake failure in the 2007 models. It seems that we have been told the same thing, about the Jetta depending on the rear brakes to make safer stopping. It is not fair that automotive company is neglecting to recognize the defect in their car. Many people cannot afford to replace brake pad and rotors every 10000-20000 miles, that presents a formidable safety issue.

- Folsom, CA, USA

I have a 2007 VW Jetta with 72K miles on it. My front brake pad which are original from the dealer have 65% left on them, while I am going onto my second set of rear brakes, the first a set I did a year ago. Yes I do have high miles but I have always thought that the front ones go first. I am now spending about $500 to do my rear pads, rotors, caliper, and changing the brake fluid. I think VW needs to switch the sensor to the rears not the fronts. If I didn't know anything about cars I would have waited for the sensor to go off which probably wouldn't be until next year at this rate.

- Newton Jct, NH, USA

At 18,000 miles my rear brakes sounded like a garbage disposal. When I brought it to the dealer they stated normal wear and tear. Brakes failed a month later. This month, 18,000 miles later the same thing has happened. A simple google search reveals that many other owners of the 2007 Jetta are faced with this dangerous and expensive problem.

- Troy, NY, USA

Took my VW 2007 Jetta in for a 20K oil change and had to replace the rear brakes. I argued with the service dept. And did some research on the brakes only to find that this is a common problem with the Jetta. My previous car was a spyder eclipse; a much heavier car but had the original brakes at 78K ! this is the last VW I will buy. Owned a cabrio in 1999 and won my lemon law case for the defects.

- Murrieta, CA, USA

At 10,759 miles, hearing a metal sound from rear of the car when pressing the brakes, we took our 2007 Volkswagen Jetta to the dealer. Upon inspection they found that the read pads were worn down to the metal at 3mm. They replaced the read pads and L/S rotor and adjusted the parking brake cable. This repair was performed under warranty. At 26,171 miles the rear brakes were worn down again and the rear brake pads and rotors were replaced at a cost of $378. This in my opinion is a design defect and potential safety issue. Rear brakes should not need replacement every 10K to 15K miles.

- Denville, NJ, USA

The 2007 Volkswagen Jetta has an issue with the rear brakes. I have less than 27,000 miles on the car and need to replace the pads and rotors. Within 1 week of hearing the inital grinding noise, I took the car to the dealership and was told there was 1/32 left on the rear rotors. This is unheard of for rotors to wear so quickly.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

2007 Jetta 2.5L rear brake failure in June 2007 resulted in accident where I was unable to stop and vehicle was hit driver's side. Reported to VW and was told it was normal failure. Brakes continue to function intermittently (grinding, squealing, seizing) December 2008 rear brakes replaced (30,000kms) at my expense as VW has refused to acknowledge this as an issue. August 2007 clutch fails and vehicle is taken to VW for repairs. Advised it was normal wear and tear (18,000kms) and would not be covered under warranty. Had clutch inspected by a clutch manufacturer who advises parts failed as a result of improper installation. VW issues refund after legal action is pursued. Have had vehicle inspected at independent mechanic who agrees with sub standard workmanship and parts on this model.

- Toronto, 00, USA

I have a 2007 VW Jetta and the rear brake pads have worn out at just 20K miles. I hear this a common problem withh this car and VW refuses to acknowledge problem and charges up $400 to replace rear brake pads.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

At approx 22K miles my rear brakes began squealing and then grinding loudly. Was told that I needed new rotors and pads at a cost of approx $500. Was told by independent service shop that the brakes not only were extremely worn down, but the wear was fairly uneven as well. I have never heard of brakes wearing out so quickly. It is absurd to think that I will have to do this every 12-18 months.

- Towson, MD, USA

I have only 21,000 miles on my car, at approx. 19,000 miles I noticed a slight squeak to my rear brakes occasionally. I have brought my car into have them checked. Volkswagen claims this is normal wear and tear, they claim it is normal for rear brakes to go out within such a short amount of time. This is not normal, nor is it safe. Brakes should last a lot longer, and I should not have to replaced them every 18-20,000 miles. This issue needs to be addressed immediately. Volkswagen is selling poor quality vehicles and they are attempting to shrug it off as normal wear and tear because they do not want to admit their fault in the design of the braking system on their most popular models. I have a 2007 Volkswagen Jetta. I have heard the same issue with their gti and rabbit models of the same year or later.

- Carol Stream, IL, USA

2007 Jetta wolfsburg rear brakes made from a softer material causing them to wear at a much faster rate than the front(approx. Every 16K miles). Info is straight from VW usa. Why would they put the sensors on only the front if they know the rear will wear faster and no info in the owners manual. Unreasonable repair on a front wheel drive car. Front brakes still look new while back brakes are worn and cut into the rotor. VW usa says this was a fix in response to customer complaints of rear brake noise. Softer material causes more brake dust and brakes squeal all the time. Having to replace brakes much more often is not an efficient fix. I have seen many complaints about this on edmunds.com. This is an issue.

- Owings Mills, MD, USA

Purchased new vehicle 07/21/07 and on 12/09/08 I had to have the rear brakes and rotors replaced on my new 2007 VW Jetta with less than 16,000 miles on it! this is my 4th VW and I have never experienced this issue so soon before. My previous VW that I've brought to the same dealer for the last 8 years never had this issue. I find it inappropriate for VW to sell me a vehicle with sub standard parts that requires a lot of money to replace - with no disclaimer. I've come to expect better quality from VW. Which was the main reason as to why I purchased a new vehicle from VW again. To add, I'll have to go through this again every 15,000 miles or so. It is not a breaking habit as my prior records with VW will show that is not the case. While customer.

- El Mirage, AZ, USA