Beware of the 2006 VW Passat. I have had ongoing issues with this car. Major issue: Stalling out without warning. My car was worked on 6 months ago approx date of 1/11 for stalling. Car ran great, July 7th,11 traveling high rate of speed on interstate, car stalls, almost got hit! taken to (2) two diff dealerships and (2) diff opinions. Dropped off at dealership on July 14th,11 part needed is on back order until July 25,11) they say the stalling is caused from cam shaft high pressure fuel pump! and apparently they (VW) has decided to cover this under and extension of the warranty up to 120,000 miles! no recall. Hmmmm wonder why" they would be out alot of money! there is a problem with the fuel system on this car. The way it was designed is a joke! six months ago my fuel pump was replaced and now another problem exists. My point is this: My car has stalled out on the interstate and various other places. Someone is going to get killed. I have read several complaints regarding this issue! this car is unsafe. I made a complaint to VW and they basically stated it was my problem! I have had my car on the diagnostic machine 2 times and all have come back with diff issues! when speaking to the rep from VW, I advised they all gave me diff opinions due to diagnostic readings and she stated "maybe your car has all of these problems" maybe" so I pay for all of these "maybe's" to get my car fixed and "maybe" it will run the way its supposed to, or "maybe" it wont! I'm not the only consumer that has had this problem, it still exists for many others.

- Deatsville, AL, USA

The contact owns a 2006 Volkswagen Passat. While driving 80 mph, the vehicle began to loose power and stalled without warning. A mechanic diagnosed that the fuel pump and hose needed to be replaced and that the high and low pressure sensors were defective. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer for further inspection and the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable and the current mileage was 105,000. The VIN was unavailable.

- Delpsville, AL, USA

I've had my 06 Passat for little under 2 years now, it was bought used from carmax and it has been horrible from the start. As other consumers have noticed I have a big problem with the key getting stuck in the ignition to the point that I have to start and stop the car at least five or more times before it will dislodge. Also, if the key isn't stuck the engine itself won't crank, also taking at least five tries before the engine will start. I have to take the car to a dealership regularly, about once every two to three months, fixing the same problems repeatedly. The check engine light is constantly on and no matter how many times I change the headlights they never last. My most recent problem has been the noises my car is making. It's like a rattling, knocking noise that has only gotten louder since taking it to the shop. The mechanic has said it would take around 3 to 4 thousand dollars to fix, which is only a small amount less than I've put into buying the car, not including the money I've been pouring into constant repairs. This is a horrible car and now that I've done some research and seen just how many other people have had the same problems I have (and more severe, potentially deadly problems in some cases) I make it my business to make sure everyone knows what a dud this car is and how VW does not care about its consumers by not doing anything to fix these ever prevalent problems.

- Chapel Hill, NC, USA

2006 VW Passat VR6 3.6L 1./2. on a hot day (90 +/-) and the engine is in idle (normal around 650 RPM) unexpectedly the revs go over 1000 RPM. To keep the car stopped the foot brake pressure must be increased by the driver. This is quite hard to time because the problem does not occur at every stop/idle. It looks like that this occurs more often with the A/C on. 3. so far I did nothing but I read that other VW Passat 2006 VR6 owners have the same issue. I will make a service and ask my dealer if he is aware of this problem next week.

- Chicago, IL, USA

Started vehicle in normal fashion, noticed large amount of vibration from engine compartment, check engine light came on. Upon acceleration, vehicle hesitates drastically. Took to VW service center and they ran diagnostics. 3 fault codes - PO300 multiple cylinder misfire detected, PO304 cylinder 4 misfire detected, P3073 throttle transfer pump electrical malfunction in circuit. VW service center swapped ignition coils and plugs - duplicated faults. They wanted to put in new injectors, exhaust lifters, exhaust rockers and fuel pump control module for $1800 - and since they were already in there, they wanted to replace timing belt, tensioner, and water pump for another $340 I was told that if I don't mind the bad performance/hesitation then it won't hurt the engine any more then it already is. This is a 2006 VW Passat 2.0T lux with 80,000 miles. Crazy that all these problem occur just after the 75,000 warranty was up.

- Springfield, OH, USA

I got 2006 VW Passat 2.0T - 77,000miles. Last week, I got engine light came on during the drive and went to dealership and they checked computer system then fixed air filter housing. I paid $585. I don't understand how it can break, but I don't have choice. And next day on the driving it happen again and I went to dealership again. This time they told me PCV valve was not working so another fix cost $281. Last September I did regular maintenance service and they told me everything good. But after every month it happened again and again, first problem was steering columns......I paid $485 second problem was battery........I paid $130 third problem was engine light came on I paid $585 and this time another engine light came on $281 within two day. Now I knew VW cars are pieces of junks. It is really junks.

- Houston, TX, USA

I have a 2006 VW Passat that had a crankcase breather valve foul up for no reason. The vehicle was maintained in accordance with the VW recommended maintenance schedule and this is documented, however, the VW service rep indicated this was a result of not properly maintaining the vehicle. Specifically he stated that this is what happens when the owner fails to change the engine oil. (note: VW recommends changing the oil every 10K miles and calls for the use of synthetic oil. Both recommendations were followed in this case). This incident occurred when the vehicle had approximately 48,000 miles on the vehicle. The vehicle was driven under "normal driving conditions"--primarily highway driving in a non snow, non desert environment. As a result of this defect, there was an increase in emissions. Also, the engine began to seize up while I was traveling on an interstate highway thus putting me and my family in danger.

- Schertz, TX, USA

1. started hearing "ticking" noise from engine 2. "ticking" became louder, slow performance 3. replaced intake cam / lifters, H.P. fuel pump, valve cover gasket and sealant, vacuum pipe to leak detection pipe (all 2 times each).

- Rosemont, PA, USA

I own a 2006 VW Passat 3.6, engine died suddenly after pulling out across a 45mph state route, after engine failed, there was no steering or brakes, had to push car out of traffic with my 2 young sons inside. Young VW, easton pa. Stated the failure as a oil pump bolt that had backed out and sheared off, causing the catastrophic engine failure. After some research I found 58 failure of this type of this same year and engine, at: forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3462993-attn-3.6L-owners-has-your-engine-failed, - this is clearly an issue VW was aware of several years ago, as evidenced by the replacement or repair of so many, 58+ engines that I can document, and chooses not to recognize the issue, I believe due to financial reasons as this fix is $3,000 in labor alone. I contacted vwoa, (ref. # [xxx]) and VW ag, (,ref. No.: [xxx]) with this issue and neither had recognized this as a known issue, my vehicle is out of warranty, and VW estimated the repair at $12,800 for a rebuilt engine. Aside from being abusively expensive, this failure should not be allowed to occur randomly, in traffic or anywhere creating a very unsafe and life threatening situation, vwoa should be well aware of these potential problems with this year engine, by the many they have replaced or fixed and should make the public aware and effect a fix to prevent a loss of life due to this known engine defect. My VIN # [xxx], 2006 VW Passat 3.6L 4motion. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Walnutport, PA, USA

Attempted to start 2.0T engine, heard odd noises coming from engine bay...sounded like a diesel engine though it was a gasoline/petrol engine, shut off and turned on again, check engine light and low oil pressure light activated...shut engine off again and had towed to dealership. Bolt that holds oil pump sheared off, oil pan shows metal debris, drive sprocket loose, engine needed total replacement, engine is total loss, VW claims no fault for repairs, VW needs to recall issue, without dealer warranty, repairs would have cost over $7K if this happened on the road it would have resulted in a loss of power and become a potential road hazard/accident.

- Newaygo, MI, USA

The car will occasionally, yet sporadically, not start. The key gets stuck in the ignition. The car sounds like it is going to start but it stalls. The error message sometimes says steering wheel lock defective. This happens at all times of the day, including when I leave from work. The car was taken to the dealership once before the warranty ran out and once after and they could not diagnose the problem.

- North Brunswick, NJ, USA

When braking or idol, my 2006 VW Passat will have an engine surge that amounts to a sudden increase in RPM. This will make the car difficult to brake and has almost resulted in a accident numerous times. The car will continue to idol at this higher RPM until you begin driving again and the problem will likely occur at the next traffic light. It is very difficult to hold down the brake pedal under this increased engine speed and makes it difficult to bring the car to a stop. My wife struggles to keep the car stopped for 3 minutes at a traffic light because of the high amounts of force required to keep the brake pedal down and the car stopped. The problem seems to be extremely frequent when under hot temperatures or when the ac is being run. This has been ongoing for years but they have been unable to fix it. There are other reports of this happening from other drivers. I have taken it to a dealer 4 times to try to resolve the issue. They acknowledge the issue and can easily repeat it but have been unable to fix it. This car is now dangerous to drive, especially for my wife. Please help resolve this issue. Thanks

- Lake Mary, FL, USA

Symptom #1) car will not start or if it does start it will immediately stall and steering column will lock. After moving the steering wheel back and forth repeatedly, reopening the door several times and attempting to start the push ignition 5-10 times it will eventually start and run. Symptom #2) major safety issue! car will lose all power without warning at highway speeds. This defect causes the engine to stall immediately, the loss of power steering and the loss of all power controls at speeds at least up to 70 mph. There is no warning from the car itself. There is no stuttering or noise. Suddenly the car is just dead and rolling along at extreme speeds. The fix is to shift the car into neutral and attempt to restart by removing and reinserting the key until it starts again. The dashboard will light up "steering column defect" and prompt a warning light for the steering column as if it were locked from a car alarm prompt. Occasionally, I have been unable to restart the car while in motion and have had to pull off to the side of the road. This is done without the aid of power steering and can be very dangerous in traffic and at high speeds as there is no way of "knowing" when the defect will occur. This defect is occurring daily. I took the car into the dealer for diagnosis. Was told it was a defect in the steering column requiring a complete replacement. Estimated cost to myself was $1,000-2,000. Car is now out of warranty (58,000 miles). I believe this defect is not a result of any habit of myself as the driver but rather a defect in the workmanship of the vehicle and the dealer should be subject to a recall. A search on google about this issue revealed thousands of other drivers with the exact same problem (stall at highway speeds, loss of power steering, difficulty starting and restarting, possible stranding of the driver). I urge a recall to move forward immediately!

- Louisville, KY, USA

2.0T fsi engine with 44K miles has had multiple issues with misfires in cylinder #2, unresolved after 5 visits to dealership for warranty service. Dealer has followed VW corporate techline instructions and replaced ignition coils (twice), camshaft, fuel pump, hydraulic lifter in bad cylinder, intake breather hose, intake manifold sensor and other parts with no improvement. Car will run ok with no error codes for an average of 3 - 5 days after repair before problem recurs, and condition of engine continues to deteriorate. Due to misfires, unburned fuel is now reaching the catalytic converter (detected by sulfur smell) and likely damaging that component as well. Entire engine vibrates severely due to improper firing sequence and feels as if it wants to jump out of engine compartment. Car has 1 month left on warranty; was advised by dealer that "we want to make sure this is fixed while the car is still under warranty, so you don't have to deal with this out of pocket, " but they appear either unable or unwilling to fix the root cause. Dealer has not offered to provide rental or loaner car during multiple repairs, so I have had to rely on a 15-year old vehicle as primary transportation during multiple repairs lasting 1 to 5 days. Will call VW customer care today but do not expect satisfaction, despite the reliability and safety concerns.

- Roswell, GA, USA

The contact owns a 2006 Volkswagen Passat. While starting the vehicle the engine coil for the spark plug made a rattling noise. He smelled an electrical odor, then the engine stalled. After turning the vehicle off, smoke was released from the coil itself. He used a fire extinguisher to extinguish the flames. The dealer was contacted, and they stated that they wanted to buy the vehicle back from him and give him credit to another vehicle. The vehicle has been at the dealer for about 2 weeks now and they are waiting for permission from the manufacture Volkswagen to diagnose the vehicle. The dealer was waiting for him to accept. The offer to buy the vehicle back. The failure and current mileages were 14000.

- Nobleboro, ME, USA

Catastrophic engine failure caused by a faulty bolt. The oil pump bolt fails on 3.6's and the engine self-destructs due to no oil pressure.

- Cheyenne, WY, USA

2006 VW Passat 3.6 L in shop for two weeks now with seized motor at just over 64K miles - oil light alarm came on suddenly at 70mph....immediately stopped vehicle and had roadside assistance tow to VW dealer...been there ever since...still waiting for VW to decide what they are going to do for me...

- Columbia, NJ, USA

On a warm day with the A/C running, my 2006 Passat 3.6L will have an engine surge increasing RPM to 1,000 while stopped. This has almost amounted in a crash on numerous occasions as it makes the car difficult to keep stopped and causes it to lunge forward. It also results in low fuel economy as the car idols much higher than the normal 600rpm.

- Longwood, FL, USA

Engine RPM increases when vehicle is stopped and air conditioner is running causing the need for additional pressure on brakes to prevent car from moving forward

- Garland, TX, USA

Sheared oil pump bolt at 16,000 miles. Enigne lost all power. Dealer replaced oil pump, timing chain and all related hardware. Asked manufacturer (Volkswagen) and dealership for new engine due to likley oil starvation after oil pump was inoperative. Request denied. Very unhappy as this very low mileage car may have a severly damaged engine that VW is unwilling to replace.

- Chicago, IL, USA