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2003 VOLKSWAGEN JETTA — SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER

fire1 injured · 507652 · 2004-11-21

Vehicle

Make
VOLKSWAGEN
Model
JETTA
Year
2003
Manufacturer
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Component
SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:SEAT HEATER/COOLER
Miles at failure
44,500
Speed
30 mph

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
1
Fire
Yes
Crash
No
Police report
Yes
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

SUNDAY EVENING I LEFT MY HOUSE TO RUN OUT TO THE LOCAL CONVENIENT STORE WHEN THE DRIVER SEAT OF MY 2003 VW JETTA CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE HEAT SETTINGS RUN AS HIGH AS FIVE, MY SETTING AT THE TIME WAS ON TWO. I FELT HEAT GENERATING BENEATH MY REAR-END AND WHEN I LIFTED MY LEG TO LOOK BELOW ME, I SAW AND FELT THE FLAMES BENEATH ME. TRYING TO PUT THE FIRE OUT, WHICH BY THE TIME I'D GOT PULLED OVER TO THE SIDE OF ROAD HAD BURNED THROUGH MY JACKET AND PANTS, I'D BURNT MY HAND IN AN ATTEMPT TO SQUOOSH THE FIRE BETWEEN THE SEAT AND THE CUSHIONING. NOT A PLEASANT EXPERIENCE. THE SEATS ARE 'VELOUR'. THIS IS MY THIRD AND LAST JETTA. MY PREVIOUS JETTA HAD THE HEATED 'LEATHER' SEATS PACKAGE AND I'D NEVER HAD THIS EXPERIENCE. THE DEALER WAS KIND ENOUGH TO REPLACE THE HEATING COMPONENTS, CUSHIONING AND SEAT COVER. (SARCASTICALLY SPEAKING) HOWEVER, I DO NOT FEEL CONFIDENT IN MY VEHICLE, MUCH LESS VOLKSWAGEN. VERY DISAPPOINTED. *AK

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
10100311
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown