7.2

pretty bad
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
7,727 miles

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problem #9

Jan 102022

Atlas

  • miles
My 2018 Volkswagen Atlas has a defect that has impaired my ability to use the vehicle as intended. It is not only unsafe but I am in fear of driving freeways because I do not know when my car will cut off. Manufactures were fully aware of their defective products. I have read forums pertaining to the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas engine sputtering (Causes and Diagnosis). It states that the causes could be a bad fuel system, ignition system, MAF sensor, or bad converter. I have owned my vehicle for over a year and a half. During this time my vehicle has repeatedly started sputtering, deccelerated and turned off. It has happened 3 times and I do not feel safe. Have taken to dealership only to be told nothing was wrong with car. On October 18, 2022 Volkswagen Group of America recalled 74,067 SUV'S due to Engine Failure that could result in stall, increasing risks of crash. Troublesome connecting rod bearings that potentially lead to oil leaks and fire. Volkswagen has recalled 2022-2023 Volkswagen Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport.This is a Manufacturer's defect. The defect did not start in 2022-2023 models the problem occured in 2017 when the Volkswagen Atlas was launched as a one of the most innovative technical platforms in automotive industry. I understand that the Federal law requires safety recalls repairs to be provided up to 15 years because safety recalls do not expire. NHTS I am requesting that safety recalls be performed on 2018 Volkswagen Atlas because the same problems exit. I am requesting that Volkswagen Group of America stand behind their products, take ownership of the necessary repairs to keep consumers safe from harms way. I thought there was nothing more terrifying than being buried alive until I drove up and down the streets of San Francisco in a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas. The fear of not knowing when your car will start sputtering and decelerating causing you to plunge to your death is the most terrifying experience that I have just indured in my life.

- North Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #8

Jul 282019

Atlas

  • 18,000 miles
The car stops on its own while driving, all lights on dash illuminate, and car starts again as if nothing happened. Twice going up the driveway and three times while on back roads. No one was in front of or behind us for two of the times. One of the times, it was during traffic so the speed was slow enough not to have an impact. One other time it stopped about half a car length away from the curb when parking the car. While on the highway, going 70, with the blinker on to get over to the center lane, the car jerked me back to the right..I was in the right lane, a car in front of me, a car behind me, no cars in the middle lane, and two in the far left lane coming up. Absolutely no reason for the car to think there was a car to the left of me. The two cars in my original lane and the two cars in the far left lane remained in those lanes. I have taken the car to two different dealerships, a total of three times and they could not recreate the problem, so they are unable to fix the issues. My case was escalated to the SE regional case manager, who put the case in for review to buy back the vehicle and was notified today, 10/18/2019, that they are not going to buy it back but they will continue to service the vehicle under the warranty. How can they service the vehicle if they can't find anything wrong with the vehicle. I can't believe they expect to drive this unsafe vehicle until someone dies! I paid extra to buy this vehicle for the safety features, which is what is causing this to be unsafe. It would be unethical to sale the car, but too unsafe for me to drive and put my family at risk of getting in a vehicle accident and dying. Please have a recall issued to address the issues before someone dies and telling consumers to disable these functions is not the right answer either. I have had issues from the beginning, but thought it was hiccups. Date is approximate.

- Chapin, SC, USA

problem #7

Jun 102019

Atlas

  • 33,000 miles
On Monday 6/10/2019 at 18:10, I was driving West on California highway 91 in riverside California. I was on the phone with my wife, the car was on cruise control, going 65 mph. There were no cars in front of me, I was driving in the second lane from the right. My car approached an 18 wheeler truck and it was passing the truck. The truck was on the right lane, my car approached on the next lane to the left. The car was still on cruise control and I was still on the phone with my wife. As the car was passing the truck, the VW Atlas executes an emergency brake as if something was in my way. The car gave no warnings before applying the brakes hard.

- Riverside, CA, USA

problem #6

Jul 122018

Atlas

  • 85 miles
The forward collision avoidance and object detection were not working when I picked up the new lease vehicle from the dealer on June 19, 2018. Upon starting the vehicle a message appears on the console that the front assist is "not available". automatic braking, collision avoidance is affected. Acc (assisted cruise control) is also not operational without the front assist functioning. The dealer has made several attempts to fix the problem. There have been five separate attempts by VW service to fix this problem. Each time they corrected the problem it stops working within 1-5 days. I have taken the SUV in for repair for this problem on 7/12/18, 7/24/18, 10/8/18, 2/12/19, 2/26/19.

- Brooklyn, NY, USA

problem #5

Aug 012018

Atlas

  • 10 miles
The contact owns a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced several failures ever since it was purchased brand new. The contact stated that the automatic cruise control malfunctioned and caused the driver to slam on the brake pedal to avoid a rear collision. The vehicle was taken to gunther Volkswagen of coconut creek (4300 fl-7, coconut creek, fl 33073, (954) 590-3750), but they refused to diagnose the vehicle even though the contact had an appointment. Several days later, while driving 35 mph, the vehicle shut off. The contact was able to pull the vehicle over to the side of the road. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle, but it shut off again. After a few hours of waiting, the vehicle was able to fully restart and was driven back to the dealer. Once at the dealer, the contact discovered that his customer profile had been deleted from their system. The contact had his information re-entered into the system. The dealer kept the vehicle for two days and they performed a software update. Afterwards, the failures recurred even more frequently, including multiple times each day. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer for a third time where it was kept for three days, but they could not duplicate the failures. The dealer insisted that the vehicle was functioning normally even though the contact captured many of the failures on video. The manufacturer was contacted, but they refused to buy back the vehicle based on the dealer's information. The manufacturer also refused to look at any of the videos and advised the contact to schedule an appointment with another dealer. The failure mileage was 10.

- Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

problem #4

Jun 252018

Atlas

  • 1,000 miles
I have had this car two months and it has now been in service twice. As of today they have had it for two weeks. The autonomous break system is way too sensitive and the car stops going down steep inclines or going over pot holes while in motion. The car has stopped in the middle of driving at least 7 times. I take it to service, they say there is no record in the cars computer of the incident. The front sensors are always beeping. I pull up to a stop sign, the sensors go off. I do a U-turn and the sensors go off. Some days way too excessively, some days not at all. It scares me to death and I slam on my brakes because I am afraid I am going to hit something. I take it to service, they say there is no record of it in the cars computer. Front end collision alert, I was driving down the road and was the only one on the road and the front end collision alert went off. I of course slam on the brakes in the middle of the road with no traffic, thank god no one was behind me. I take it to service, they say there is no record in the cars computer of it. Service has been able to recreate the issue with the front sensors, but says there is no fix. The customer care rep for VW stated today on the phone that they recognize there is an issue with the sensitivity of the autonomous breaking but has no fix for it so I will have to deal with it. I live in houston, I will die if I hit a pot hole and stop. It's unacceptable and a huge safety hazard. I am reading all over the internet about this issue with the autonomous braking problems. It should not be allowed to continue. Someone is going to die. I was able to video the issue with the sensors and VW has the video and recognizes a problem but states that's just the way the car is going to work. States they see the issue there too, but there is no fix.

- Magnolia, TX, USA

problem #3

Apr 152018

Atlas

  • 6,000 miles
When descending an incline at slow speed to turn onto a roadway the sensor perceives the road as an obstacle which causes the car to auto-stop partially in the road. I then have to disengage the emergency brake and begin again. This is totally unsafe. It has happened 10 times when leaving my own driveway.

- Bar Harbor, ME, USA

problem #2

Jul 022018

Atlas

  • 7,000 miles
The auto braking and warning sensors go off when you are driving from an inclined driveway to a roadway. This has happened to us multiple times, the most recent was on 7-2-2018, and it brings the vehicle to a complete stop. This is supposed to be a safety feature that was an extra cost, but this is going to cause a crash if not rectified. I have taken the vehicle in for this issue, and multiple other issues and all I get back is ' system is performing as designed.' If the system is performing as designed, the system needs to be changed. This is without a doubt a safety issue in itself. There are multiple other owners on message boards that are having the same issues and having the same answers from the dealerships. On one of the message boards, there is actually a video of the vehicle coming to a complete stop driving from a bank parking lot to a main road.

- Martinsburg, WV, USA

problem #1

Jul 032018

Atlas

  • 4,446 miles
Automatic braking system is faulty. When I pull out of driveways or parking lots the sensors are activating and the maneuver braking is applied and the car comes to an abrubt stop in the middle of the road. Everytime this has occured there has not been an object or car present. This system is faulty and dangerous. I have 3 children in the back seat and this makes me very concerned for their safety when I drive this vehicle. VW service is looking into the issue and has given me a loaner Atlas that is doing the exact same thing. I have a video of the issue occuring.

- Montrose, CO, USA