10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
5 / 0
Average Mileage:
63,386 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.

2009 Volkswagen Routan electrical problems

electrical problem

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2009 Volkswagen Routan Owner Comments (Page 1 of 8)

problem #146

Jun 232024

Routan

  • miles

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

Volkswagen dealership does not want to fulfill the recall.

- Albuquerque , NM, USA

problem #145

Jul 242023

Routan

  • 170,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V194000 (Electrical System) however, the parts to do the recall repair were not yet available. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, the engine failed to turn over. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the ignition switch failed and needed to be replaced; however, the dealer confirmed that parts were not available for the recall repair. The vehicle had not yet been repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 170,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

- Berwick, ME, USA

problem #144

Jun 202023

Routan

  • miles
While driving the vehicle flashed several of the dashboard waring lights, starting dinging and then stopped, started flashing and dinging again then the vehicle completely turned off. I was able to pull over out of traffic but the vehicle would not restart. None of the interior lights would come one and the emergency lights would not come on. I could not unlock any of the doors. The battery has been replaced with in the last year and is working correctly.

- Stephenville, TX, USA

problem #143

Feb 012023

Routan

  • miles

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

the car shuts off while driving which is scary. requires restarting while in traffic. there was a recall in past and the fix clearly did not work. This incident has occurred multiple times.

- Milwaukee, WI, USA

problem #142

May 232022

Routan

  • miles
The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V194000 (Electrical System) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The dealer was made aware of the issue. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect

- Westerville, OH, USA

problem #141

May 122022

Routan

  • miles
After getting wires regrounded at the mechanic, the car continues to malfunction. The wiper blades turn on, the entire dash blinks, the seat moves back and forth, resetting repeatedly. If seat is disconnected for safety, the seatbelt does not register as secured. Eventually doors stop functioning, have completely lost lock function, tried replacing battery and sending to mechanic specialist. Still the car malfunctions at random.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #140

Dec 052021

Routan

  • miles

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

My vehicle shows no pending recalls, but ignition switch still malfunctioning whenever it is bumped or a lanyard is on the key. Brakes malfunction, car seat moves, windshield wipers move, car seems to think it is resetting as original recall states is a problem.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #139

Apr 192021

Routan

  • 134,000 miles
Thank god I was not going fast. Vehicle shut down completely while driving. Was able to put in park and was able to start it back up. Apparently, the Routan is manufactured by crysler and this issue also happens with the 09 town and countries as well.

- Girard, PA, USA

problem #138

Dec 152020

Routan

  • 104,000 miles
Van has stalled while driving on multiple occasions. Power steering is lost. Vehicle will then start right back up. This is extremely dangerous for a minivan used to Transport multiple children. No codes or faults are recorded.

- Easton, MD, USA

problem #137

Oct 082020

Routan

  • 119,000 miles
Five times in the past 6 months the power in the van basically turns off. The steering becomes next to impossible and the brakes become extremely tight to the point you can't even use them. It is terrifying to have zero control over your car considering I have 4 children. It has happened while I was going only 30mph and also when I was going 45 mph. It happens when I'm going straight and has also happened while turning. Since the latest issue I refuse to drive anywhere that I can't take back roads to.

- Waterford, CT, USA

problem #136

Aug 112020

Routan

  • 180,000 miles

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

Dash flashing, hard start after putting in a new fuse box and after flash from the dealer

- Lbuquerque, NM, USA

problem #135

Aug 032020

Routan

  • 124,000 miles
The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact stated that while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle stalled with an unknown warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure occurred after the vehicle was repaired under NHTSA campaign number: 15V194000 (electrical system). The vehicle was towed to Volkswagen of macon located at 4786 riverside dr, macon, ga 31210, (478)781-7701, to be diagnosed. The mechanic was unable to start the vehicle. The contact stated that the mechanic was unable to retrieve any information from the computers in the vehicle. The contact was informed that the part needed to repair the vehicle was on back order. The contact stated that the tow truck operator provided a diagnostic test and informed the contact that the ignition switch module needed to be replaced. The ignition switch module was replaced however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 124,000.

- Jesup, GA, USA

problem #134

Jul 022020

Routan 6-cyl

  • 122,000 miles
My drivers side back seat door will not close all the way and will open back up if it does not latch correctly. The engine wiring will make my cars dash lights all come on and make the wipers go off. The door only does this while stationary however, the dash lights go off while in motion on a regular street going less than 40mph

- Desplaines, IL, USA

problem #133

Apr 042020

Routan 6-cyl

  • 153,000 miles
While driving car it turns off. Has to be restarted. Faulty ignition switch. Noticed a past recall.

- Orlando, FL, USA

problem #132

Mar 022020

Routan

  • 160,000 miles
There are two issues that keep occurring that may or may not be related. First, sometimes when I start the vehicle every single light on the dash will be lit up, the wipers will be on, the radio won't work, and none of the gauges will be working. I have to use my gps just to know what my speed is since the spedometer doesn't work. I also can't turn on my defrost when this happens so I'm stuck sitting in the parking lot waiting. Eventually it will randomly switch back to normal and then everything works. My second issue is that I will lose all power while driving. This happened in a roundabout once which almost caused a crash! I lose ignition, power steering, everything. I have to get to the side of the road, put it in park, and turn the ignition off and back on again. One of these days this is going to cause a crash and then I will be suing Volkswagen when my babies get injured because of this. From the looks of the other complaints this is happening to a lot of these vans!

- Weston, WI, USA

problem #131

Feb 122020

Routan

  • 67,098 miles
I take my VW Routan to finish the recall.becaused my door open when I was driving from Georgia to Florida with my 2 daughter in the back seat and driver rear slide door open at 70 miles.. VW dealer talk me no have the parts but they fixed and when I take to different dealer they talk me they ready did the recall and replaced the harness.. Thursday my wife driving and has the same problem door open when she driving.. take the mini van to shop and they talk me dealer never did the recall... I alway have the mini van and no one touch dear before...

- Tampa, FL, USA

problem #130

Sep 012019

Routan

  • 85,000 miles
There are so many complaints for the same thing yet VW refuses to admit it is a problem. My electrical will shut off completely. I will normally loose anything electrical, throttle, sometimes power steering. Then the electrical comes back on and all the lights on the dashboard cluster come on. It will continually do this, even when you are on the freeway. They are going to continue to deny this until somebody is killed or severely injured due to this malfunction. I bought my 2009 VW Routan used and the service department is dodging replacing the tpim/ignition switch, probably because it is expensive. VW should also take responsibility for this since it is hazardous to drive. Please if you are reading this and have a VW Routan with this issue, make a report and bring this to light.

- Colorado Springs, CO, USA

problem #129

Nov 152019

Routan

  • 130,000 miles
We purchased this used in February 2019 and have since experienced numerous issues with the radio, backup camera, and dvd player not working. Recently the car now just shuts off while driving down a mountain road, power steering freezes and brakes are very limited which was very scary. It happened earlier in the year when pulling out of a parking lot and leaving the driveway and I thought that the issue was behind us and our mechanic couldn't replicate it. When I called the dealership they didn't know anything about it and weren't aware of any recalls. As of today I contacted VW and they said that our van ignition switch was previously repaired as part of the recall and it is now outside of the warranty period. I understand that the warranty can't last forever, but this is now occurring frequently 4 more times in the last few days, normally just after starting the vehicle and driving taking off for the first time. It restarts when put in park, but the starting process cranks more than usual. Depending on the situation it is merely an annoyance or extremely dangerous and there is no warning, just turns off and the steering stiffness is the first indication. The van is now parked as it is not safe for my family to drive.

- Jones, MI, USA

problem #128

Aug 112011

Routan

  • 21,432 miles
Even after rebuilding the entire transmission, every time the vehicle is placed into reverse, there is a pause, then a jarring as it slips into R gear; but every time acceleration is attempted in R, there is a delay, followed by consistent lag; if attempting to R up an incline, if speed is not already over a specific minimum, vehicle then assumes action as if it is in N. even an incline slope of simply backing into a driveway, if vehicle is not entirely across the incline, it's not possible to continue controlling a reverse movement, though engine responds as though in N. this has been an ongoing issue; that has persisted even after rebuilding the transmission. Another issue that began several years ago; is that the door's locking mechanisms for several of the doors, no longer operate properly. Locking via key fob, or door panel, does not actually engage the door to lock. Nor does unlocking the doors via key fob, or door panels.

- Moorestown, NJ, USA

problem #127

Oct 012019

Routan

  • miles
Tipm box needs to be replaced, VW dealership says it is faulty and has glitches that need to be repaired but it exceeds my warranty. I purchased this van 3 weeks ago and the radio will go out or stay on, the wipers will come on by themselves and the tire pressure light will come on.

- Burlington, NC, USA

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