I drove to a friends house and about two hours later got in the car and started to drive then 10 of my exterior lights all went out the same time. My footwell lights I cannot dim or brighten through the controls and back up sensor stopped working. I had no headlights while I was driving at night at around 11pm. All this happened at once at the same time. All of the bulbs were fine. I replaced them. They weren't even blown. Fuses were fine. This is a real safety hazard and can lead to crash if not looked into.

- Sauk Village, IL, USA

I have been having this truck for 13 months now I have more than 20 payments still to make on this truck every time it rains the truck gets filled with water in the passenger side fills more than 5 gallons of water depending on how bad it rains my heated seats don't work am assuming it's due to the water damage and my back lights continue to blow out I am actually fighting a ticket due to this matter there is water damage on top of the roof top and feel I got rip off with this junk

- Chicago, IL, USA

The contact owns a 2010 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that the exterior lighting failed to operate. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the a fuse for the exterior lighting overheated and caused the fuse panel to become damaged. The fuse panel needed to be replaced. The dealer stated that the repair for NHTSA campaign number: 13V569000 (electrical system) was previously performed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

- Dublin, OH, USA

I received a safety recall 97Z9 letter asking me to take my VW Tiguan to a VW dealer to have the affected fuse (plug-in position F16) replaced. I responded and informed the company that there's no VW car dealership on St. Croix, in the us virgin islands where I have the Tiguan. I asked if the part could be shipped and the VW mechanic could install it, and I was told that can't be done. The gentleman then told me that the nearest VW dealership is in puerto rico, and I should ship my car there to have the work done. Puerto rico is separated from the virgin islands by approximately 12,000 miles of water. It is not practical for me to ship my car there. I need some help in resolving this problem. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Frederiksted, VI, USA

Warning message "check front left headlight". tested the light and it was not working. Purchased a new bulb, replaced the bulb and the new bulb was not working. Tested the bulb and it was good. Opened the fuse box under the hood and noticed the 30 amp fuse (top left corner of box) was burned/melted. Attempted to remove and was unable to remove. In addition the corresponding 15 amp fuse was burned out but not melted. Contacted the dealership and was informed that my particular vehicle was not involved in the NHTSA investigation for faulty fuse box. Researched further and discovered that Tiguan models from 09-12 were under investigation. In addition to the front headlight I also replaced the right rear light which was also out. I did not test the existing bulb on this light. Just replaced. I would like for this to service a formal complaint to the NHTSA regarding what appears to me as an unsafe condition in the fuse box.

- Fort Worth, TX, USA

The contact owns a 2010 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the passenger's side headlights, turn signals and brake lights failed to illuminate. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, who stated that the fuse box had overheated. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign id number 13V569000 (electrical system, exterior lighting) however the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

- Bluemont , VA, USA

Right headlight and high beam out, right turn signal out, left front parking light out and left rear turn signal out all at the same time.

- Vancouver, WA, USA

Fuse at fuse box under hood melted (not blowing) a 30amp fuse.several light warnings came on after occurrence. Headlamp, marker lights, tag lights did not work.

- Dallas, GA, USA

While driving the fault indicator light came on saying that the right front headlight was out. After parking for a period of time and restarting the car, the mmi was indicating numerous faults with about half of the lighting on the right side of the vehicle. I took the vehicle to a VW dealer that did a diagnostic test and the result was that a fuse had melted into the fuse block and that was causing the light outages. The entire fuse block needed to be replaced and the total repair with labor was just over $600. I called VW North America on 12-6-2013 and they say there is no recall for that issue on my VIN and that of course if there is one in the future that I could possibly be reimbursed at that time for some or all of my expenses.

- Castle Rock, CO, USA

While driving headlights stopped working, brake light stopped working, and license plate lights stopped working. Brought in to service and they said fuse box overheated causing a poor electrical connection. They told me it was dangerous to drive vehicle, as if I wouldn't have caught it this early it could have lead to more serious issues like power steering or even brakes to go out. Then on 9/4/2012 battery went dead and had to have it replaced. Then on 10/13/2012 the right side headlight stopped working again, they replaced and worked fine until now. On 11/30/2013, headlight stopped working again, checked fuse box for bad fuse, fuses look fine but car will not start. Having it towed in the dealership. Pretty sure it's fuse box again.

- Baton Rouge, LA, USA

During a morning commute to work several lights were out on the vehicle. Warning lights continued pop up on the info display in the dash. Half the exterior lights had stopped working. 1/2 of each tail light, 1 of the 2 back up lamps, the license plate lamp, 1 high beam, 1 low bean 1 of each sets of turn signals (front and rear). I investigated the fuse panel under the hood only to find a completely melted fuse (slot 16, 30A fuse). After speaking with several VW dealers, some admitted to seeing he issue some did not. Most of the dealers however had the part available or could get it in 1 day. Not having many options, I purchased the part ($280), and replaced the entire (non serviceable) fuse panel myself. At this time, the issue has not re-occurred with the new part. I still have the parts (fuse block and 30A melted fuse) for review if necessary, along with the receipt front he dealer I purchased the part from. I believe this is something VW should be concerned with and should be taking steps to support the repair, not sticking their owners with the $$$ and potential safety hazards inherent to electrical faults and lack of visibility for the driver (and to other drivers).

- Kentwood, MI, USA

Upon starting my car one morning, I was greeted with many alerts having to do with the right front headlight, fog light, blinker, brake light, rear parking light and license plate lights, all of which did not work. The alerts continued to cycle through during the entire trip (20 minutes from home to work) and the status did not change when I restarted my car to go home that night. As I was driving home that night (10 minutes into the drive) my right headlight suddenly turned on and all of the alerts went away. The next morning, the alerts were back on and none of the right exterior lights were working. I had the car checked and it turns out the 30 amp fuse in the back of the fuse box was melted along with part of the fuse box that sits around the fuse. It is going to cost me over $600 to fix this problem and this is clearly not caused by normal wear and tear. I've done some research online and it seems that a lot of other drivers are posting about having the same issue with their Tiguans. This is a safety issue since it is imperative to have both headlights and brake lights while driving at night and the melting of the fuse box and fuse indicates there was a small fire under the hood. This needs to be addressed by Volkswagen and the safety hazard needs to be fixed.

- Lake Tapps, WA, USA

Upon starting my 2010 Volkswagen Tiguan, the dash indicator will begin cycling through the exterior lights, (e.g., right front low beam, right front fog light) noting that each is not working. This issue initially happened about 6 months ago and has occurred intermittently since then. Each time, the lights that have been noted as not operational on the dash have, in fact, not been working. Until recently, the problem would self correct, typically after re-starting the car. However, as of yesterday (11/3/2013), the lights that the dash is now indicating are nonfunctional have not started working again. This includes the right head light, third brake light, license plate light, and all turn signals. When I called my local Volkswagen dealership, a mechanic told me that I needed to bring it in so that a mechanic who specializes in electrical could look at it. When I asked if this was a problem they had seen with other Tiguans, he let me know that similar issues had been reported and that the culprit was often a melted fuse box under the hood. He also indicated that my separate complaint regarding the intermittent failure of the remote for unlocking (but not locking) the car may be a related electrical issue. I have not taken the car in yet, but I will need to do so given the safety issues presented by failing and unreliable exterior lights.

- Columbia, SC, USA

Upon starting my Tiguan an emergency appeared on my dashboard, a light bulb. Message stated that the left tail light was out. Got out and checked the light and it was out. Then it stated my front right low beam headlight was out, then my brake lights and the light for my license plate. This was the 1st time the car had experienced this issue. No previous warnings. Took the Tiguan to my dealer, the car was inspected and I was told that the fuse box had melted. I asked what the cause was and they gave me no explanation, but did state it would cost around $630 to repair. Work was completed and the system is working fine, but they could give me no guarantee it wouldn't happen again.

- Northbrook, IL, USA

I started my car and the right side exterior lights were completely out. The dash display said to check 11 different lights (fog light, side light, low beam, high beam, license plate light, etc.). I opened the fuse box and found a melted cap to a 30A fuse in socket 16.

- Jacksonville , FL, USA

Intermittent erratic behavior of several lights (headlights, blinking, rear brake light, license plate light). Dangerous for visibility at night. After investigation turned out to be a partially melted 30 a fuse in the fusebox (30A fuse at the back of the box). This exact problem has been reported by many other VW Tiguan owners on different online fora, thus seems to be a manufacturing defect. May easily cause more severe damage because of short-circuiting or arcing of 30 am circuit.

- Jupiter, FL, USA

I started up the car and multiple dash warnings then went off. The epc light, check engine light and the head lamps warnings all turned on. I then popped the hood and opened up the fuse box to make sure the fuses were seated correctly. Upon checking the fuses I noticed the box itself was melted and scorched meaning there had been fire at some point under the hood. I then took my Volkswagen to the closest VW dealership service station. It cost $400 (Michigan) to replace the fuse box, also leaving me questioning if this will happen again. After some investigation online I found that this is not rare. The VW dealership that did the repair stated that this was the 8th one he himself has done. Hopefully this does not happen again. Lights randomly going out is a safety hazard, and could lead to car accidents, injurys, and fatalities.

- Ferndale, MI, USA