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.
The contact stated 10 days ago the vehicle began to smell of oil. The dealer attempted to repair the vehicle, but once the vehicle was returned, the smell was still there. She took the vehicle back to the service dealer for repair. This time the dealer said a gasket was loose. The dealer replaced the gasket, and it seemed to have repaired the problem.
I was driving my 2002 Volkswagen Passat when my engine light came on. I immediately pulled over. I was in New York at the time so I had the car towed to the nearest VW dealership, which was romano VW in fayetville, NY. I had did some research and found that the VW has a problem with the pollen housing filter. I asked the service manager omar to check the filter, which in return he stated it was fine. The problem was the oil pump, and the computer. I eventually found out that the computer failed do to a water leak on the passenger side of the car, which is where the computer is located. Romano VW said there was a water leak but it was not caused by the filter. I have been fighting with VW customer care and they keep denying my claim. I eventually had my car fixed and picked the car up and drove home. Once I got home the engine light came on again. I took the car to prestige VW in turnersville, NJ and they stated that the problem is cause from the pollen housing filter. VW customer care has still denied my claim. After doing more research it turns out the pollen housing filter is a major issue in the Volkswagen, but VW themselves do not agree.
Oil pressure light coming on and telling me to turn the vehicle off immediately. Found out it is a oil sludge issue with the 1.8T engine. It is a $1,600 bill to fix the vehicle. Volkswagen will not cover the expenses unless we show a copy of our oil change receipts since we have owned the car. Well, we have owned the car for 3.5 years and we don't hang onto receipts for more than 3 months. So, they are not going to cover the damage to the vehicle. I have found out that Volkswagen has known of a sludging problem with the 1.8T engine since late 2004. We bought the car early 2002.
Sludge in the motor was found. I changed to synthetic oil soon after my warranty was over but was never told to change to synthetic because of possible sludge. I was never told that this problem was common in VW 1.8T engines. This problem will cost me $2,000 so far. I have kept great care of the car and have records except those who were service by the dealership because those are stamped in my book (the one that is given to you at the dealership) the information should be enough for the warranty. I have yet to solve this, but in dealing with the other dealerships they only keep records for a few years.
On August 12, 2005 I was driving my 2002 Passat to work when my oil pressure light came on. I had the car towed to the nearest VW dealer when they told me that my car had oil sludge due to manufacturer error. The car has 50,100 miles and is completely ruined. VW will not replace without all oil receipts. I am missing 2 receipts. I do not understand how a car with 50000 miles on it can ruin so easily.
- Andover, MN, USA
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Numberous problems with vehicle. After bumping noise, engine revved, car lurched forward and accelerated to a rapid speed. The mlp light cam on several times. The radio did not work. The radio was repaired and broke again then was replaced. The consumer stated that she found standing water in the car on the back right side under the front seat. The air pollen filter was cracked. Filter and carpet was replaced. The back door locks refused to unlock therefore the consumer could not open either back door from inside or out. The vehicle accelerated out of control of the driver and hit a curb at 50 miles an hour. The consumer continued to pump the brakes finally getting the vehicle to stop. The vehicle had 4 flat tires as a result of hitting the curb head on with rims bent as well. The bumper came off.
2002 Passat Volkswagen sludge in engine. The consumer stated she had to have engine repair work done twice on the vehicle. The dealer stated the vehicle required special oil.
Total engine malfunction/failure of 1.8T volkswagon 2002 Passat - volkswagon just issued internal memo to dealers about the potential for this problem. It is described by VW as "oil sludge related repairs" however; is a known engine design flaw and repeated problem which will occur much more in the future. I was told I would not be covered under warranty because I cannot prove by receipt oil changes every 5000 mile interval. I had 6 receipts I could find to show for 41000 miles.
While driving at 40 mph, the vehicle vibrated uncontrollably. Without warning then the vehicle stalled. The driver tried to restart the vehicle but was unable to do so. The vehicle was towed to the dealer for inspection. The mechanic informed the driver that the engine needed to be replaced. The dealer replaced the mass air flow sensor and cleaned the fuel pump relay to resolve the stalling problem. The radio was inoperative due to a short in the wiring.
Nar 3-10-03 with the consumer vehicle having less than 7000 miles, many problems occurred, the front and rear windows froze from the inside, the vehicle began to stall, the ignition coil needed to be replaced, the glove compartment flooded when it rained or snowed, also the carpets and pollen filter were damaged due to the flood. The consumers was very disappointed and suggested that a full refund be given or have Volvo to give them a new 2003 Passat, equally equipped as the 2002 at the same purchase price.
Engine coils failure again. Last winter I had a failure in January and the car was in the shop for 4 weeks with a backorder problem. After the coil was replaced, another failed 1 week later and the other 3 were replaced. Less then the 10 months later, on the coldest day this year.... another failure. Not sure if the problem was resolved.
Check engine light appeared on the dashboard while driving about 45 mph on the highway vehicle was inspected by a mechanic, who stated that oil was a quart low. The mechanic added a quart of oil. The light was still on the dashboard. The next day the vehicle had a knocking noise coming from underneath the vehicle.
Since purchasing my 2002 Passat in November 2001 it has regularly had problems with the electrical system. The items that have broken have been: Stereo (on 3 different occasions, has necessitated 6 trips to dealership), engine failure light gone off 3 times, headlights failed to go on, indicator light stopped functioning, car more often than not fails to turn over without multiple attempts.
Can't get any parts of car warranted since I had filed a complaint with BBB. Including no horn, both headlights went out with in 4 days of each other, the engine has erratic shift points especially when cold. The problem is VW says not to let the engine warm up but my engine oil heater is broken. Takes about 10 minutes at freeway speed to warm up. And the supposed ABS are not really ABS brakes when emergency braking from 75 mph. And many little interior mechanical issues.
Three out of four ignition coils in my 2002 VW Passat have failed. VW states that this is not a major problem. I believe it is a major problem because when the first two went I was driving the car on route 128 and had to get over to the side of the road to stop because of the extreme decrease in power. We waited two weeks to get the car back and the third coil went less than 48 hours later. I now have one more coil to go bad and I find that I no longer drive my VW because of that. I fear that my 60 mile a day commute into work will find me on the side of the mass turnpike instead of driving on it. There seems to be quite the number of VW & Audi motor vehcile that are having this problem but VW deems it not to be of importance for the the peace of mind of their car owners. I will now need to wait for this coil to fail before VW will finally replace the defective coil still residing in my car.
I had purchased 2002 VW passatt in June 2002 (4 cylinder). During the past 6 month I had to change all four coils which means my car was out for repairs every 6 weeks during the 6 month time span. Appearantly Volkswagen passatts are known for their bad coils. About 90% of cars have this type of problem! there should be a total recall!! the dealrships are sending customers back on to the road with a potentially serious and dangerous problems. I have a child and I'm afraid to drive in the car with my child in it. I'm afraid to leave town, to drive on a highway or at night. The car is mechanically unreliable. I have purchased a product that I can't use without risk. Customers are not informed about the coil problem when they purchase these vehicles. People are being scammed! and VW manufacturers are not doing anything about the problem! a 6 mo old car should not be in a repair shop every 6 weeks for the same problem!I don't feel safe in this car! passatt is a time bomb!
Driving on expressway. Auto lost power and started shaking. Luckily I was able to get over to shoulder of road. Dealer stated it was ignition coil failure. The car was in the shop for 26 days waitnig for parts because of the ignition coil problem with the Passat.
Injection coil failure on 1.8T engine-VW Passat 2002. We have had 3 failures spanning 16 months. Car was purchased 8/01. Injection coil at cylinder #2 occurred on 1/02, 7/02,1/03 every 7000 miles. We went back to the dealer and the manager has confirmed that this is a known problem with the 4 cylinder engines but won't take the car back. We are actually lucky because we only have problems with one coil. Other drivers have had multiple coil failures. When I spoke to the tow truck driver on 1/03, he mentioned that he's had about 100 Audi A4's ( same engine as the VW 1.8T) recently( we've had a cold spell in Chicago for the last 2 weeks). They all have the same problem. The engine light goes on while driving. The car idles roughly and it dosen't go. The cars are in for repeated injection coil replacements but they still keep failing. This has been a frustrating experience. There should be a recall with this situation because it involves both the Audi and VW cars with 1.8T engines. A4's, beetles, jettas, and Passats!
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Brooklyn, NY, USA