Driver Door Problem 2000 Beetle

[mennings]

Apparently I have a problem with my door latch mechanism on the driver's side. When the door is opened, the lower door light doesn't go on, the key in ignition chime doesn't work, and the theft mechanism doesn't register. Will the latch have to be replaced or is it a simple matter of replacing a fuse?

[hako]

We had a very similar problem with our 2002 1600 model - lost the lower door light and the chime. Our does not have central locking. Ours was caused by the service people who forgot to push a plug in when they had the door trim off trying to fix a bootlid problem (thats another story). So if your door trim has been off recently that may the problem otherwise the wiring diagram shows a 10amp fuse in the same circuit as 'interior lights and central locking' - open the drivers door and the fuse door flap is on the side of the dashboard. (RHD cars) Good Luck.

[veedubmechanic]

door latches are very common problem and your car has all the symptoms of one. Just replace it, they are abbout 160 or so but your alarm will work properly and the chime will work.

[hako]

Re 'door latches are a very common problem' - for $160 American which equates to about $A220 I'd want to know what fails in them and can they be fixed with a bit of ingenuity. I know mechanics do not have the time to 'remove and repair' and generally 'remove and replace', but surely the latch is not so complicated that it cannot be disassembled and repaired. My Haynes workshop manual shows a latch assembly however the removal of this unit is fairly time consuming and probably is the reason why it costs so much.
Can veedubmechanic throw any light on why they fail and can a backyard mechanic repair one. Thanks.

[mennings]

Thanks for the information. Looks like I'll have to have the latch replaced. My VW has only 45000 miles and has an array of problems. Can see why Consumer Reports rates it so low.

[veedubmechanic]

theres nothing you can "remove and repair" on a door latch on vw's. Trunk latch and hood latch yes, door latch no.
Door latches are rivited together to prevent tampering with the microswitch inside. New door latches have the updated design that prevents failure soo soon.


I have learned that vw uses the same known faulty parts in new cars even after they make a new design part that fixes the problem. Its to get rid of all the old bad parts that would just be thrown away. Thats why there cars are so bad in reliability. Its kinda sad but saves vw money and makes them more money. Sell a car with a old style part $100.00, sell customer a new updated part when the old part breaks $100.00. VW just made 200.00 off you. YAY good thing they dont do that any more in the new jetta, passat, touareg.

[hako]

Thanks for the advice veedubmechanic. Fortunately our New Beetle has no central locking so in theory we will not have the problem with the latches...but I bet the ones in our car do have the microswitches despite not being needed or used for "production reasons". The latch hopefully is robust and the microswitch is redundant. Sometimes its better for reliability to buy a bare bone basic model eh! Regards.