Stuck in 4th Gear

[harvgarv]

My 2002 Turbo Jetta (automatic) stuck in 4th gear last week & nothing will change it. Runs fine but has just the one gear. The 'PRN4321' indicator on dash reversed its field at the same time. Any ideas on cause?

[boschmann]

You need to have the trouble codes read from the computer yo point you in the right direction.

[rustyrun]

My 2002 turbo tiptronic did the same thing only it stuck in 1st. I was 1.5 hours away from home and it would not shift out. I stopped, turned off the engine, and removed the key. After waiting 5 minutes it was ok.

VW says they never heard of such thing. They cleared the code and it has not done it again. It was a stuck xmsn valve.

My car has 50k on it and all the vacumn hoses to include crankcase vents are all deteriorated. What a piece of crap car. I will stick with my toyotas. I have a 94 4runner who has never seen the shop. My jetta had had 6 recalls and after the warranty ran out I have spent $600.00 in repairs.

I am of german descent but i say Japanese all the way.

[harvgarv]

Independent VW mechanic says stuck in gear because of coil in solenoid but must buy whole solenoid - $1500. But.. 60,000 mile powertrain warrenty should cover it ( car has 53,000 miles) Taking it to dealer to see.
Great car when it runs but not worth all the problems we've had.

[rustyrun]

Funny. My '02 1.8T had a 50K warranty. There was a recall on the coils and VW replaced them all (4) for me for free. I do not see how a coil would alter the electronics in a transmission but I am not a professional mechanic. My check engine light would not go off (improper fuel mixture) and a VW mechanic said it was a bad coil. $1500.00. I took it to a dealer and they corrected it for $350.00. All the plastic tubes and hoses for emmissions were rotted. Mind you after 50 k miles.

Yeah! When it runs it is fun to drive. Can really eat up those 5.0 mustangs. But I still think it is a piece of crap car.