3.8
definitely annoying- Crashes / Fires:
- 0 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 0 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 32,913 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 clock-spring in our VW Tiguan broke/snapped disabling the electronics on the steering wheel - including the vehicles horn and airbag which are both safety features. There are numerous other people having a similar experience on Twitter. We are being told by VW that the vehicle is still safe to drive which is frankly, insulting. The VW dealership/Indigo Auto Group in San Rafael, CA has verified this as an issue and there is a clock-spring shortage with no ETA on resolution.
- Mill Valley, CA, USA
The floor on passenger side occasionally fills with water and I'm not sure where it is coming from. After not driving my car for a month (due to the quarantine) I was shocked to find about a gallon of water pooled in the vehicle and signs of mold. I'm concerned for my health as well as the health of my newborn baby. Of course I didn't bring the baby with me when I went to the mechanic, but I was in the car for all of ten minutes (that's how long it takes to get there) and was inflicted with a headache due to the mold. The mechanic told me that the car needs to be recalled because its new and hasn't been in any accidents and after researching myself, there has been a lot of complaints about the same issue.
- Yeadon, PA, USA
Our town had a lot of storming/raining recently and the car began to collect mold on the inside even as the doors and windows were closed. The seal on the windshield seems to have came loose and possibly the back windshield as well.
- Woodland, AL, USA
The airbag, horn, steering wheel and steering wheel controls on my 2013 VW Tiguan stopped working twice in the last 1 1/2 years and just stopped working again. The clock spring was replaced which solved the issue but this is the 3rd time this issue has happened in 1 1/2 years. This is a serious safety issue since and I don't feel safe letting my wife drive this vehicle anymore. Something needs to be done about this issue. Stories like mine are all over the internet and the vehicle should be recalled.
- Danville, CA, USA
My car leaks from the inside when it is raining. After a day (or any period of time) of rain, water comes in from underneath my back seats and floods the interior floor. It also leaks from the rooftop. This happens when the vehicles is stationary or in motion.
- Eagan, MN, USA
Lost coolant and needed a new water pump
- Bohemia, NY, USA
An airbag error message went on while my wife was driving in June 2018. She noticed that the after the airbag error cane on that the controls on the steering wheel and the horn stopped working as well. We took the vehicle to dirito brothers VW for servicing and they said the clock spring failed and needed to replaced. They replaced the part which resolved the issues until today when the airbag error light came on again and the steering controls and horn stopped working again. That is a second failure in 3 months. My wife drives my kids in this vehicle and it's unsettling to think that there is an obviously defective part that renders her airbag and horn useless putting them in harms way. I have an appointment with dirito brothers to replace the part again but have lost confidence. I noticed many articles and blog posts about this issue as well as an NHTSA investigation into it. Please re-investigate this issue. I can't imagine that I'm the only person complaining. Thank you.
- Danville, CA, USA
Vehicle flooded with standing water after a heavy rain. On Monday April 30, 2018 the Volkswagen dealership reported that the 2 drain lines from the sunroof had "disconnected themselves" and allowed rain water into the vehicle cabin. In 2007 a class action lawsuit was filed against Volkswagen of America for this very issue citing poor design to be at fault. In 2012 the appellate court approved a $69 million dollar settlement by Volkswagen, but apparently did not make any drain design changes that would prevent the occurrences from taking place in the future. Please see https://www.law360.com/articles/402373, https://www.carcomplaints.com/news/2014/Volkswagen-settles-lawsuit-leaking-sunroofs.shtml, and www2.CA3.uscourts.gov/opinarch/103618P.pdf. when I asked Volkswagen of mandeville, la if there was any outside condition that would cause a drain failure, they said it was a bad design and that they were "very familiar" with the problem. Volkswagen have made no voluntary recalls or issued service bulletins to address the problem. My 2013 Tiguan has approximately 10,500 miles so wear & tear is not a contributing factor here. My repair bill is nearly $3,000.
- Hammond, LA, USA
Not sure if this involves the takata recall or not. While was executing a righthand turn on a city street, I heard a snap/click from inside the steering wheel. Immediately, the airbag light turned on and I discovered the next day that the horn and steering wheel controls had stopped functioning. After doing some research, I discovered that 2013 Tiguans were included in the steering wheel clock spring recall in 2015, so I checked to see if my car's VIN was included. It wasn't, so I reached out to VW customer care and told them that my car was exhibiting the same issues that were outlined in the recall notice. They initially told me that my vehicle wasn't included because it didn't receive the faulty factory parts, then later changed their story to say that my vehicle already had been repaired in response to the recall. When I explained that the repair hadn't prevented the safety hazards, they told me that the recall repair is out of warranty so I would need to pay for the repair myself.
- Dallas, TX, USA
In 2015 there was a recall for clock springs in the 2013 Volkswagen Tiguan which I own and other of their vehicles. My previous owner got it replaced then and I bought the car in 2016. I heard a clicking noise and then my airbag light came on and the controls on the steering wheels stopped working and my horn stopped working also. Being that my car has $46000 miles and I have extended 100,000 mile warranty... I went to VW to complain as clearly this recall didn't do anything because it hasn't been even that long for it to be breaking again. They denied to cover it because it had been fixed previously when the recall happened. This clearly is an issue that wasn't resolved with the recall as I googled what this was when I first heard the noise and there are sooooo many people complaining of the same issue after it was fixed the first time around. This is a $500 job that I'm going to have to pay now and it's frustrating because I truly feel this is a defect in the car and should be covered.
- Lemon Grove, CA, USA
Air bag light on dashboard is lit up. At first steering wheel felt harder to turn left and right and then it sounded like a spring was moving back and forth on plastic. I was pulling out of the driveway when this occurred turning left.
- Worcester, MA, USA
On April 3, 2017 I noticed a smell in my car, and subsequently found that the passenger side flooring was very wet. I made an appointment at ray brandt Volkswagen new orleans for the following day, although my car was outside of its warranty period. On April 5, 2017 I arrived at the ray brandt Volkswagen dealership to have my car looked at. The leak was diagnosed as a clogged sunroof drain, with the cost of $150 to clear the drain. I asked the service technician whether there was any maintenance that could have been done to prevent the significant water damage to the interior of my vehicle. He informed me that the there was recommended maintenance that should be done at the 4 year - 40,000 mile check (which my vehicle does not yet qualify for). I believe this issue is a defect within the design of the vehicle and clear instructions regarding this unusual maintenance issue should have been provided. It is unclear what caused this issue with the drain, but it is clear that VW was fully aware of this problem and has failed to communicate to new owners the problem with its sunroof design and the steps needed to prevent problems, and subsequent damage to the interior of the car. Two VW service technicians indicated the sunroof drain probably had been clogged by parking the car under trees. If this is indeed the case, it would seem that VW should clearly warn all new car buyers that parking under trees may cause significant damage to their vehicle ($150 for drain cleanout, and subsequent $600 to dry the interior of the car to prevent mold), and loss of use of their car. The sunroof drain design has been an issue previously brought to Volkswagen's attention: Class action lawsuit dewey vs. Volkswagen and current Audi recall #17V0010000
- New Orleans, LA, USA
My car was in my driveway for a week and it was not driver for a week when the air start come out of my tire and it bubble up and left a cut on the tire a defective in the tire. The name of tire is Continental / contiprocontact... size is 235/50 R 18.
- Miami, FL, USA
When the car stops completely while being run for a while, everything shut downs completely. Need to place the car in "parking" and restart the car. The car restarts immediately. However, the shutdown can happen more than once during the same trip every time is stops completely.
- Newnan, GA, USA
- East Orange, NJ, USA