8.0

pretty bad
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
5,000 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.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2003 Volkswagen Passat:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

problem #1

Dec 142004

Passat 4WD 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,000 miles
New '03 Passat purchased in Dec. '02. Feb. '03 I noticed difficulty with steering when the wheel was turned to the extreme left or right. After several trips to the dealership in which power steering fluid was found to be low and refilled, it was determined that the power steering rack needed to be replaced. In Mar '03, the power steering rack was replaced by Volkswagen under warranty. Nov. '04, I again noticed difficulty with the steering in extreme left or right wheel positions. Dec. '04, VW determines that the power steering rack again needs to be replaced. They claim that there is no larger problem with the car leading to repeated failure of the power steering rack. Likewise, they insist that there is no intrinsic problem with VW power steering racks. However, I find it difficult to believe that two power steering racks from VW placed in the same car in a two year period just happened to be faulty.

- Trumbull, CT, USA

Add Complaint