Creaking, groaning, clunking, squeaking out of the front end, most notably at low speeds over broken pavement, speedbumps, coming to a slow stop and pulling away slowly from a stop. Control arms issue.

- Rialto, CA, USA

Catastrophic failure of front end parts (tie-rods, upper links) when car had 59,000 miles on it.

- Dallas, TX, USA

Over the past couple of years I have noticed various noises coming from the front end of my vehicle. Upon inspection, no problems were noted by the service centers I took the vehcile to. However, the steering control on the vehicle has suddenly gotten very bad. After taking the vehicle to a service center, they told me both of the tie-rod ends in my 2000 VW Passat have failed at 100,000 miles. Both of the front wheels have a huge amount of "play" in them which leads to the car being difficult to control, especially at highway speeds. I have owned many cars and it is very unusual to have these critical parts go bad in a vehicle this early. The estimate for the repair work was well over $500. I have gotten numerous second opinions, and all have come to the same conclusion: The tie-rods are bad. All of them also tell me they have seen this failure on these vehicles before and not on any other vehicles and that it seems to be a defect in the design. As of yet, I have not had the vehcile repaired but I hope to do so soon.

- Slidell, LA, USA

The boot covering the ball joint for the tie rod ends and both front and rear upper control arms has failed on both sides of the vehicle. The boot failing has caused the ball joint to fail causing excessive play in the wheels. This is causing the vehicle to be difficult to control and could possibly cause an accident. Volkswagen recalled the parts due to the same failure for 1998 & 1999 Passats, so they should also include the 2000's.

- Dallas, TX, USA

There is a noise in front, underneath vehicle while wheels are in motion. Dealership is aware of problem.

- Dayton, NJ, USA

Sun roof leaks - drains cleaned by dealer twice - still leaking. Driver's seat back moves forward when brake applied. Dealer claims this is normal. Seat back can be moved by hand. Car has vibration and steering wheel shakes at most speeds. Dealer claims tires are the problem. However, tires have been inspected twice (at my expense) by independent dealers who state tires are O.K. wheels rebalanced, front end aligned, (all at my expense) and proplem persists. VW refuses to help claiming problem is related to tires.

- Burr Ridge, IL, USA

Dealer has failed several times to correct steering problem. Car has constant vibration and steering wheel shake on turns. Front end aligned (not needed) wheels balanced and rotated (at my expense) without problem correction. Sunroof leaks. Driver's power seat moves when coming to a full stop. Dealer states this is

- Burr Ridge, IL, USA