Volkswagen issues stop sale on diesel models for fuel leakage concerns

The stop sale order reported by the folks at TDI Club pertains to certain 2009-2012 model year Volkswagen Jetta and Jetta Sportwagen models fitted with the 2.0L turbo diesel engine along with select 2010-2012 VW Golf TDI models – specifically those built in December 2008, January and February 2009, April 2010 and October, November and December 2010.

Volkswagen estimates that around 8,161 vehicles are affected by this stop sale order, which prevents dealerships from selling, leasing or trading these models with other dealerships until the problem is fixed. This stop sale order is expected to last until the parts needed to fix the problem are received in dealerships around the country while Volkswagen works with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to issue a voluntary recall to address the issues.

The problem plaguing the vehicles, both those in the hands of consumers and those models included in the stop sale order, are powered by the 2.0L turbo diesel engine which uses a high pressure fuel system to get fuel to the engine. Unfortunately, it seems as though the fuel injector pulse rate in the 2009-2012 Jetta TDI models can coincide with the natural frequency of the #2 fuel injector line; which can lead to increased wear and early failure of this fuel line connection. VW has found that the material used in those models during those build periods above are more likely to fail then vehicles built outside of those time periods. When that fuel line cracks or separates, diesel fuel is free to leak into the engine bay and even though diesel is not as flammable or explosive as gasoline – this still greatly increases the chances of an engine bay fire.

Volkswagen states that there have been no reports of real world fires caused by this specific issue but to err on the side of safety, the German automaker is working with the NHTSA to announce a recall for those who already own these models while also making sure that no more of these problematic models are sold until the problem has been addressed. It is expected that the recall will be announced in November and when these vehicles are repaired at the dealership, a simple harmonic dampener will help prevent this problem in the future.

Other VW News:
Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid coming to 2012 Detroit Auto Show
Volkswagen recalls 2011-2012 Jetta sedans for excessively long tailpipes
NHTSA investigates 2011 VW Jetta TDI for fuel leaks
VW announces special 2012 Beetle Black Turbo Launch Edition

Source: TDI Club