7.8

pretty bad
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
5,500 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2019 Volkswagen Atlas body / paint problems

body / paint problem

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2019 Volkswagen Atlas Owner Comments

problem #6

Jan 172024

Atlas

  • miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Faulty driver door lock actuator / micro switch. Below freezing drivers door (only) freezes. Only way to open door is from inside. Once door open, door latch does not re-engage resulting in you manually having to hold your door close while driving. This has happened multiple times over the years and this past January occurred 4 mornings in a row. No other doors ever impacted other than drivers door. Dealership aware of the issue but cannot replicate as the car warms up in their shop. VW corporate will not authorize any repair unless a fault code active. Despite calling the dealership while the problem is occurring they can not get repair approved since the car was not present at the time the issue was occurring. It is a severe safety issue having to manually hold your door closed while driving.

- Tonawanda, NY, USA

problem #5

Jan 102022

Atlas

  • miles
In Jan 2022, the air bag system error light lit up at start-up and remained lit. A first-available dealer appointment was made for 1/28, two weeks away. During those two weeks, the car started to issue a burst of random alerts during cold startup - driver door contact switch failure, cruise control (ACC) failure, start/stop system failure, and the rear driver side window would roll down several inches. Shutting off and restarting the car solved these alerts. The car was inspected on Jan 28; the dealer confirmed a faulty wiring harness in the driver side door. They also confirmed the random alerts were the same cause. The dealer stated that the driver side air bag was nonfunctional, but the rest of the air bag system was OK. A replacement part was ordered with an estimated delivery of 2-3 weeks. As such, we chose to keep driving the car. Over the ensuing weeks, the random alert sequence got more frequent and started to show an electronic parking brake alert and engage the parking brake at startup. It then began happening on later starts when the car was fully warmed and would resume after the car was shut off and restarted. Finally, the alerts started to happen while moving, and instead of just a single burst, became a continuing sequence. The alerts are a rapid-fire volley of warning dings/dongs and accompanying messages in front of the driver. At the same time, the rear driver-side window is moving and the door contact switch is clicking randomly in the driver's left ear. It is a startling volley, which combined with the other weird sounds, is a disorienting and panic-inducing 360-degree assault on the senses. After no word from the dealer. I called on Mar 4 and was told the part was on a nationwide backorde, with no ETA. I did some research and found numerous reports of the problem getting worse over time and the parking brake engaging while moving. As our experience matches the trend, I feel the car is no longer safe and have parked it until it is repaired.

- Albuquerque, NM, USA

problem #4

Jul 062020

Atlas

  • 9,300 miles
There are small spots of rust all around the car, lower half.

- Hawthorn Woods, IL, USA

problem #3

Jun 012020

Atlas 6-cyl

  • 11,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

My SUV has developed rust all around. Back door, side panels on both side, closer to bottom half.

- Hawthorn Woods, IL, USA

problem #2

Feb 052020

Atlas

  • 6,500 miles
Panoramic sunroof popped and shattered while driving on the highway. No evidence of any rocks or debris hitting it prior to it exploding. Glass showed outward depression, not inward, after cracking.

- Melrose, MA, USA

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problem #1

Dec 012019

Atlas

  • 5,700 miles
I purchased this vehicle 5 months ago and it has less than 6K miles on it. Yesterday, while driving in the rain, I noticed the storage nook under the radio compartment was wet. I looked up and saw water dripping from the ceiling on passenger side console. I did take video of dripping. It dropped water while moving and at a complete stop, so long as it was raining. I've looked online and see this is a very common complaint on forums. I brought my vehicle to VW dealer today at 8am and it is still there at 3:32 am. I called to get a status and the return call said that I need a new drainhose and that it needs to be ordered. They said it will be in 2 days and they will call to schedule repair. I asked what happens if subsequent damage is caused by this issue and was told "we usually just have to replace carpet". this tells me that they're well aware of this defect. This dealership does not give loaner vehicles. I'm nervous after reading numerous complaints about this and reading of people who've had their vehicle in the shop repeatedly for this problem. I'm filing a complaint on my first go round because of all I've read and the response I got from the dealership.

- Fredericksburg, VA, USA

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