That engine compartment is very tight. A lot of the newer VW plastic housings and connections are not good quality and fail with heat cycles. The way an automotive shop would locate the leak is by removing the radiator cap and attaching an adapter that screws on in place of the radiator cap. Something that looks like a bicycle pump with a pressure gauge attached to it is used to "pump up" pressure to simulate pressure generated when the cooling system is at operating temperature, the leak is then found sometimes it is obviously leaking from a coolant hose or cracked housing, failed gasket or water pump, sometimes the engines cooling system needs to be inspected from below or inspected using a mirror and flash light. If the coolant loss is still evasive dye can be added to the cooling system that may indicate the source of the leak.
There is a company that independent auto repair shops get their information from, this same information is available inexpensively for people that work on their own cars.. The information is year make and model specific, covering repair procedures, torque specifications, fluid capacities and specifications, service bulletins, component locations, wiring diagrams ect.... Alldata is very easy to navigate http://bit.ly/AllData_Repair_Manuals_Online
Some cars I've even had to use a boreascope to locate the leaks.
