2021 Volkswagen Jetta premature brake wear

Joined
Apr 13, 2013
Messages
9,246
Location
FL, USA
First, a bit of background. We purchased this car new in August of 2021. Since new the rear brakes have produced a significant amount of brake dust, so much so that even with weekly washes when I spray the rear wheels down a black stream of brake dust goes down the driveway. The rear brakes have also made a groaning sound upon release since new. All of this I have just lived with until recently when the rear brakes began to squeal upon releasing the pedal at speed. So say you slow from 60 mph to 50 mph, then release the brake pedal, at this point the car will make a squeak, squeak, squeak sound for a few seconds before stopping. Almost as if the rear brakes don't completely release.

This is the point where I decide to make a dealer visit. Also by this time I have read numerous reports of 2021 and 2022 Jetta's having premature rear brake wear, so I wanted to make sure we weren't driving metal on metal.

The dealer replaced our burned out rear tag light and inspected the brakes and my service advisor came back and said, "The tech said your brakes are fine, the pads are worn down to 5mm (down from 10mm new) and with this rate of wear will need to be replaced by 20,000 miles". I then questioned why they were making squealing noises upon pedal release but all I got was, "they said they look fine".

Now knowing that premature rear pad wear is very common on 21+ models I called VWOA and was swiftly told that they would not warranty the brakes beyond 1 year / 12K miles. I explained my frustration in needing new pads after only 1 year of ownership and the rep told me that if enough people complain, VW should do something about it. Well that wasn't a good enough answer for me so I requested they escalate my case as it is glaringly obvious that this is a widespread issue, and customers should not pay for such an issue out of pocket when even VW knows it is a problem (as they have now issued new pads with a new part number). She told me she would escalate the case but I would receive the same answer she told me.

She also recommend that I contact the service manager at our dealer and request goodwill assistance directly through them. So today, that is what I did. I spoke with the service advisor that I dealt with yesterday. She told me "well they use organic pads now and everyone is having early brake wear". I then informed her that I was aware that there was a new part number out that is supposed to resolve the issue. She then said they she would pass the request up to the service manager and that he would give me a call back.

This is more of a rant than anything. I just feel that for such an issue, a KNOWN issue on parts that should last a couple years at least with mild / moderate use that the manufacture should be doing more to take care of the customer. Still love the car though. Thoughts?
 
you gonna spend more money on gas driving back and forth do the dealer. 30$ for a set of pads, 1hr of your time and problem solved. all cars have issues, especially those mass produced in 20k range. my 45k pilot needed a new set of front rotors at 20k on the clock
 
They've been having problems with the rear pads wearing since I bought my daughter a new 2007 Jetta.
Fronts were perfect rears were worn down to 2/32" in 23 ,000 miles.
Changed pads to Wagner Thermo Quiets and they lasted until I got rid of it at 70,000 miles.
The squealing can be that the pads have some type of contamination from tire dressing or spray wax embedded in them from when you are doing the wheel detailing.
 
you gonna spend more money on gas driving back and forth do the dealer. 30$ for a set of pads, 1hr of your time and problem solved. all cars have issues, especially those mass produced in 20k range. my 45k pilot needed a new set of front rotors at 20k on the clock

This. Probably less time and expense than a transmission fluid change.
 
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get it from amazon for another 50$, do the job and then return. or keep it. autel has some good scanners in that range which are capable toggling brake service mode
Nice. I’ll definitely look into that.
 
Softer rear pads that wear quicker and dusts more than the front has been a VW trait for at least 20 years now.

Just get a more durable pad, like a ceramic pad
Sure. We’ve owned VWs before and the rear pads wore out first….at 60K, not 10k.
 
How is dust in front?
You can move to ceramic compound in the back like Akebono. Keep front as they are to keep pedal feel as it is.
If you want aggressive pad go ATE. Jurid, if available for your car, dust less than ATE and is still aggressive.
 
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