Reliable Auto DB

2017 Volkswagen Golf reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 189 complaints with NHTSA about the 2017 Volkswagen Golf over 10 years — 19 per year. That is the most complaints per year among the 10 Golf years on this site. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Fuel system, gasoline, Unknown or other, and Coil springs.

2012 Volkswagen Golf
Photo by Vauxford, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

189

Per year

19

Recalls

5

Years on the road

10

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Fuel and propulsion system (55 of 189), then Engine (25) and Electrical system (24). Those filings include 3 that report a crash and 8 that report an injury.

Next to 2016 and 2018

The 2016 Golf has 85 complaints, 7 per year, and the 2018 has 37 complaints, 4 per year. The 2017 has more complaints per year than the 2016. The 2017 has more complaints per year than the 2018.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2017 Volkswagen Golf. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (5)

Recall Fuel system, gasoline 2024-02-14 · NHTSA campaign 24V110000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain front-wheel drive 2015-2020 Audi A3 Sedan, 2015-2019 Audi A3 Cabriolet, 2019-2020 Volkswagen Jetta GLI, 2018 Golf Sportwagen GP, 2018-2019 Golf Sportwagen A7, 2015-2017 Golf Sportwagen, 2015-2020 Golf GTI, and 2015-2020 Golf A7 vehicles. Due to a problem with a suction jet pump seal inside the fuel tank, fuel may flow into the evaporative emissions (EVAP) system and possibly leak out of the charcoal canister.
Remedy Dealers will replace the suction pump, free of charge. Final owner notification letters for Audi owners were mailed on July 25, 2024. Final owner letters for VW owners were mailed on August 13, 2024. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are VW: 20UF/Audi: 20YF. Vehicles that were previously recalled under 16V-647 will need to have the new remedy completed. This recall expands and replaces previous recall number 16V-647.
Recall Unknown or other 2021-05-05 · NHTSA campaign 21V321000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017 Touareg GP, Tiguan, Golf A6, E-Golf GP, CCF, 2016-2017 Passat GP, 2018-2019 Golf R GP, and 2018 Atlas vehicles. These internal-use vehicles were sold without confirmation that they were built to all applicable regulatory requirements and may have been modified prior to sale. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of various Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
Remedy Volkswagen will repurchase the vehicles. Owner notification letters were mailed May 20, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 01F1.
Recall suspension, rear, springs, coil springs 2019-03-06 · NHTSA campaign 19V188000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Golf Sportwagen, 2019 Jetta, 2015-2019 Golf, and 2018-2019 Tiguan vehicles. The rear coil springs may prematurely fracture.
Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear axle coil springs, free of charge. The recall began April 12, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42J5.
Recall steering, column locking, anti-theft device 2018-07-11 · NHTSA campaign 18V464000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Volkswagen Golf and Golf Sportwagen vehicles. The build of silicate on the shift lever micro switch contacts may enable the key to be removed from the ignition while the vehicle shift lever is not in "Park." As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will install an additional switch and circuit board, free of charge. The recall began March 19, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 37L5.
Recall seat belts, pretensioner 2016-12-29 · NHTSA campaign 16V955000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2017 Audi A7, A4, A6, Volkswagen Golf and Tiguan vehicles and 2016 Volkswagen e-Golf vehicles for driver frontal air bags, passenger frontal air bags or head air bags that may not deploy properly. Additionally, certain 2017 Audi Q7, A4 Sedan, A4 Allroad, and 2018 Audi Q5 vehicles are being recalled because the seat belt pretensioners may not activate properly.
Remedy Volkswagen and Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected air bags and seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. The recall began April 2017. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834.

Complaints by component (189 total)

Fuel and propulsion system
55
Engine
25
Electrical system
24
Structure
22
Air bags
18
Powertrain
13
Visibility and wipers
12
Steering
8
Suspension
8
Visibility
7
Service brakes
6
Fuel system, gasoline
5
Speed control
5
Exterior lighting
3
Forward collision avoidance
3
Seat belts
3
Seats
3
Wheels
2
Back-over prevention
1
Electronic stability control (ESC)
1
Show 12 more Show less
Crash-flagged

3

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

8

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

620172820182320191220202520213520222820232020247202552026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "2017 VW Golf Alltrack SEL, purchased XXX CPO. DEFECT: The panoramic sunroof frame's wind-deflector storage channel is separate from the primary, drained water channel and has no drain of its own. During rain, with the…"
    Structure · filed 2026-09-21
  • "The contact owns a 2017 Volkswagen Golf. The contact stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the messages "Service Vehicle - Place Vehicle in Park" and "Transmission Error" were displayed, with…"
    Powertrain · filed 2026-09-10
  • "Car battery spontaneously exploded when trying to start the car."
    Electrical system · filed 2026-06-10
  • "Driving my 2017Golf the check engine light came on. The light was steady. I called my dealer and got it in for service. They report to me that the Thermostat housing needs to be replaced and oxygen sensors need…"
    Electrical system, Engine · filed 2026-05-05
  • "My vehicle is subject to Safety Recall 20UF (Suction Jet Pump failure / Fire Risk). I have attempted to contact Pacific Volkswagen in Hawthorne, CA to schedule this safety-critical repair. On two separate occasions,…"
    Unknown or other · filed 2026-01-21

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Golf 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (6-speed) Front-wheel drive 25 35 29 MPG $2250
Golf 1.8L, 4-cyl Manual 5-speed Front-wheel drive 25 36 29 MPG $2250
Golf Alltrack 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (AM-S6) All-wheel drive 22 30 25 MPG $2600
Golf Alltrack 1.8L, 4-cyl Manual 6-speed All-wheel drive 22 32 26 MPG $2500
Golf R 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (AM-S6) All-wheel drive 23 30 25 MPG $3200
Golf R 2L, 4-cyl Manual 6-speed All-wheel drive 22 31 25 MPG $3200
Golf SportWagen 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (6-speed) Front-wheel drive 25 34 29 MPG $2250
Golf SportWagen 1.8L, 4-cyl Manual 5-speed Front-wheel drive 25 35 28 MPG $2300
Golf SportWagen 4motion 1.8L, 4-cyl Automatic (AM-S6) All-wheel drive 22 30 25 MPG $2600
Golf SportWagen 4motion 1.8L, 4-cyl Manual 6-speed All-wheel drive 22 32 26 MPG $2500

Specs and fitment

Mk7 (US), 2015–2021
Body styles Hatchback
Oil VW 502.00/504.00 5W-30 or 0W-20 (engine dependent) , 4.8 qt capacity
Tire size 225/40R18

Known issues for this generation

NHTSA safety recall 22V815000 covers affected vehicles after the agency found that volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Volkswagen Tiguan LWB, Golf Sportswagen A7, Golf Alltrack, Golf R GP, Audi Q3, Audi A3 Cabriolet, 2019-2020 Jetta NF, Jetta GLI, Golf GTI, Atlas, Golf A7, Audi A3, 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021 Atlas FL vehicles. The tire pressure monitoring system may not detect an air pressure loss in adequate time when deflating occurs among all four tires simultaneously. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 138, "Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems.". An undetected sudden loss of pressure in all four tires increases the risk of a crash. Remedy: Dealers will update the TPMS software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 18, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi's customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are (Audi) 45J7, and (VW) 45J6 and 45J8.

Compare

Previous year 2016 Volkswagen Golf Next year 2018 Volkswagen Golf See every Volkswagen Golf model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2017 Volkswagen Golf reliable?

Owners have filed 189 complaints with NHTSA about the 2017 Volkswagen Golf over 10 years — 19 per year. That is the most complaints per year among the 10 Golf years on this site. NHTSA has 5 recalls on file, including Fuel system, gasoline, Unknown or other, and Coil springs.

What are common problems with a 2017 Volkswagen Golf?

The complaints owners file most often name Fuel and propulsion system (55 of 189), then Engine (25) and Electrical system (24). Those filings include 3 that report a crash and 8 that report an injury.

Is the 2017 Volkswagen Golf more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2016 Golf has 85 complaints, 7 per year, and the 2018 has 37 complaints, 4 per year. The 2017 has more complaints per year than the 2016. The 2017 has more complaints per year than the 2018.

Has the 2017 Volkswagen Golf been recalled?

The 2017 Volkswagen Golf has 5 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2017 Volkswagen Golf?

Owners have filed 189 complaints about the 2017 Volkswagen Golf with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2017 Volkswagen Golf get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2017 Volkswagen Golf is 26.7 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What engine oil does a Volkswagen Golf use?

US Golf manuals list the approved VW oil standard and viscosity for your engine in the maintenance chapter.

What generation is the 2018 Volkswagen Golf?

Mk7 (US, 2015-2021).

What tire sizes does a Volkswagen Golf use?

Mk6 US pages often list 225/45R17; Mk7 pages commonly list 225/40R18.