10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 0 / 1
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 1 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 83,000 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
The front passenger seat heater burned through the seat fabric. The burn-through location is on the vertical surface of the seat, mid-line, at about the lumbar height. Please refer to the attached photograph. A passenger was seated in the aforementioned seat when the burn-through occurred. The vehicle was in motion at highway speed at the time of the burn-through, but the passenger was not injured.
- Seattle, WA, USA
I was driving my daughter to school today and we had put the heated seats on in my 2002 VW Eurovan. As we approached the school my daughter yelled ouch and grabbed her back. We discovered a hole in the seat that had burned through the seat fabric and burned a hole in her North face jacket. It had started to heat up her shirt but luckily she felt it before it got even hotter. This could have caused a severe burn to her back. She had a large red patch on her lower back but nothing more. This is a major hazard to the passenger and driver - as both seats are heated and could have this problem at any time. I have read multiple complaints online and there are some as recent as this year already. It sounds to me that VW will not do anything to remedy the situation, which is ridiculous as it is a safety issue. I have never received a recall for such a problem and it sounds to me like many others have not either.
- Harwich, MA, USA
Heated front passenger seat smoldering. No fire. Manufacturer will not correct. Out of warranty. Passenger seat heating element previously replaced under extended vehicle warranty. Heating element burned through cloth fabric. I believe this to be a manufacturer defect that does present a fire danger and there should be a recall.
- Universal City, TX, USA
- Denver, CO, USA