2013 Volkswagen Passat Complaint Log

VW has a back order of over 7,000 clock springs with no time table for delivery. No relief provided by VW. Drive vehicle at your own risk.

I noticed my car was sitting lower than normal all the way around. While driving, I heard some unusual noises coming from the rear. I took the car to a mechanic for evaluation. The mechanic said three of the four coil springs had broken (both rear and drivers side on the front. I did some research and found there is an existing recall for broken springs in Volkswagen automobiles. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42J5. NHTSA’s campaign number: 19V188000.

The airbag light came on, the horn won't work, and none of the steering wheel controls work. I think it is the clockspring failure that wasn't fixed right.

Driver side low beam headlights failed. Bulb works. Bulb Holder works. Confirmed by moving bulb and bulb holder assembly to passenger side where it operates fine. Search on-line finds many people with same problem. It appears to be an electrical connection problem within the headlight assembly. There was a reportedly recall for this problem that did not cover all VINs. This is definitely a safety issue that also reportedly costs up to $600 to fix.

My horn doesn’t work Airbags don’t work Car cut off 2 times on highway

My vehicle was involved in a crash where Vehicle 1 (V1) ran a red light and my vehicle struck V1 along the rear passenger side door, causing my vehicle to spin 180 degrees. The front end of my vehicle was torn off and no airbags deployed, causing injury to the driver of my vehicle. The driver sustained a concussion and whip lash. My vehicle was traveling under 10mph and V1 was approximately 40-50mph. There were no recall repairs listed for my vehicle, but there was a recall in the past for the airbags. I do believe the airbag recall was repaired by a dealership. My vehicle had no warning/indicator lights on the instrument panel showing any problems with the vehicle or the airbags.

The steering wheel is making a clicking noise and the airbag error light came on. The horn and steering wheel control buttons no longer work. My car was fixed in the last airbag recall but will now need a new clock spring. It hasn’t been fixed yet but the airbags will not deploy if anything occurs.

The infotainment screen and system have malfunctioned. The screen goes black and attempts to reboot repeatedly, never actually starting up. This prevents any access to the infotainment system and and use of the backup camera. Not only is this an inconvenience but a safety hazard as all cars are now required to have a backup camera. Upon further research, this is a common problem among many Volkswagen models and has cost Volkswagen customers thousands per incident/case.

Recall still from 2015!!! Clock spring defect NEED TO HAVE FIXED ASAP!!! Dealer says have to replace ourselves REALLY???? It’s a manufacturer RECALL

The timing belt are known to go out on the Volkswagen CC even though Volkswagen says they should last the entire life of the engine. Also the camshaft, cam bridge, and spool valve will need replacing when it goes out. The Volkswagen dealer also said that is a common issue.

Noticed the carpeting getting wet on the drivers side floor. After doing some research online tracked it down to the drivers side drain for the moonroof. The hose shrunk over time and disconnected from the rubber piece that goes through the firewall and allows the water to drain outside of the vehicle. Had to splice a piece of hose to the original so it would be long enough to connect again. Worried that the condensation from the water leaking inside the car may affect electrical components over time.

Reporting a safety issue which impacts the ability to make use of the vehicle. The vehicle's horn and front driver-side airbag no longer works. The Airbag light is now on. The steering wheel was turned while maneuvering in a parking lot. The steering wheel makes a clicking sound when it's turned. The steering wheel audio/cruise/function controls also no longer work. The clock spring has broken. The vehicle is under a 10yr/120k extended manufacturer's warranty for the clock spring problem. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/inv/2018/INOA-EA18003-2066.PDF https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2015/RCRIT-15V483-0471.pdf https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2018/MC-10149942-9999.pdf

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated the that while the vehicle was idling, there was an abnormal clicking sound detected. The contact stated that the air bag warning light illuminated and the horn became inoperable. The contact called the local dealer however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was 236,000. The VIN was not available.

My VW Passat has no turn signals, horn, bright lights, wipers just all steering column and steering wheel controls don’t work. Have even heard airbag don’t work. VW shop in St. Peter’s Missouri said my clock spring is broke but part is back ordered. They said come get the car it is drivable until unknown time part will come in. My car might drive but it is illegal and unsafe to drive without wipers in rain and no turn signals. Unsafe to not have horn, bright lights, or air bag.

VW BCM unit causes vehicle to idle then shut off while driving making it impossible to steer or increase speed.

The clockspring was repaired June 14 2018, my airbag light turned on when I was backing up my vehicle and none of the steering wheel control buttons operate.

Was driving on the freeway and the vehicle suddenly died. Leaving me stranded in the car left lane with no way to pull over

The Air Bag Inoperative Light illuminated in the dashboard display. All steering wheel electrical functions including horn, display control for items such as speed display stopped working, radio control, and phone control eased to function. There was a grinding noise coming from inside the steering wheel when I turned the wheel. I took the car to the dealer. The dealer said it is a known issue concerning the steering wheel clock spring and VW has known about this for years and has issued an extended warranty. However, VW has the parts on back order and is not supplying the parts to fix the problem in a timely fashion as it should with an emergency safety condition. I called VW of America to report this. They gave me a case number. They then sent me an email a week later saying they would get back to me in a month to let me know the status. This is negligent and unacceptable. This is not a dealership issue. VW is not supplying the part to fix the airbag system. This is a SAFETY ISSUE. Thousands of cars are affected, not just mine. THE AIRBAG SYSTEM IS INOPERATIVE AND IN THE CASE OF AN ACCIDENT THE AIRBAG WILL NOT DEPLOY. Just like the Takata airbag scenario, this should be acted on immediately before someone is seriously hurt or killed because VW will not fix a known safety issue with their air bag system. There is still no resolution from VW. This has been a known issue with VW for over 5 years.

* Driver air bag, horn, all controls in steering wheel. * Not having a horn or working air bag * Yes, defective clock switch has been confirmed-this was a recall, was replaced and failed again * No- dealer/recall repair center only * No, air bag light came on and that was it. At that moment nothing worked This occurred in March 2022. I was told it would take 1-2 months to get the part. The part is still unavailable. Called VM Customer Care-they instructed me to call the dealer. The dealer has no control over parts coming from VW. Now driving 8 months without an airbag or horn. All controls in the steering wheel are inoperable. Most are convenience items. Air bag and horn are safety issues.

The headlights on this vehicle are constantly going out. I’ve had to repair, replace or pay someone to fix it multiple times since I had the vehicle. One repair shop told me that they needed to take the tire off in order to fix the light and charged me $130+ to replace the bulb. I don’t think that the bulbs are the issue, I think that the sockets are. I sent the car in last year because there was a recall on the headlights but they were working fine.

Stalling? Have to put in DRIVE in order to forward in order to get car to back up? Air bags Dealer will not fix wo $245.00 DX fee. Clock wheel has more connection to what is wrong/Air bags connections as well Connected to HORN (which stopped working) DRIVE? All fuses replaced with new ones; horn would still not work; Dangerous driving in FLORIDA without a HORN** I just want ALL of the DEEMED REPLACEMENT PART OF THIS VW 2013 PASSAT DONE WITHOUT ANY CHARGE Whatsover; even an UNNECESSARY DX FEE** I am driving a car with DEFECTIVE AIR BAGS THAT CAN EXPLODE LEADING TO A LETHAL SITUATION FOR MYSELF AND/or my DISABLED GRANDCHILD** There have been a lot of complaints online other than for what these recalled products are allowed on this vehicle. I am not the only one dealing with this stalling issue/go forward to go backwards issue** DANGEROUS*** what is I have to suddenly put it in reverse to get out of another vehicle or another harmful situation?????

Took my car to Heritage.Volkswagen in 2022. They said the fuel tank needed replaced. Had engine light on and epc light on. They replaced the the upper and lower fuel tanks. When I picked up my car it still had the same problem. Still have the same lights on.I get hesitation when the car gets to the 2 ohms mark. I have to add fuel injection cleaner often.

my 2013 vw passat with only 61576 miles showed problems with heat on driver side and no heat for passenger side .brought car to dealer on 2/15/2022 and was told heater core was defective and should be changed because it could cause car to over heat and cause damage to engine if not taken care of. i had the car repaired at $1000.00 out of my pocket because they wouldnt cover it in their warrenty. Multiple vw forum members have the same experiance . i contacted vw customer care and they would not help.i believe this is a major recall that could cause someone to blowup their engine for a poor quality heatercore

The clock spring was diagnosed to be faulty in February '22 and a new part was ordered and not in yet. This has made the airbag, wipers and horn stop working. This is a failure that affects thousands of VWs and they have no idea when the new parts will be available. This auto is my only transportation!

Horn and drivers airbag in steering column no longer work. The clock spring is broken that powers both units.

i hit a dog in the middle of the road and had my insurance from Geico repair the item through our insurance with them. I had the repairs done but the air bag never went off but the light came on. The repair shop did everything they could to try and fix the problem when the replaced my bumper and front panel but could not get the airbag light to turn off the dash. They called the dealer and no code came up. they never found a way to fix it and the light still remains on to this day.

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated that the vehicle had been parked in the driveway all night and as she was approaching the vehicle, she noticed that the driver’s side air bag had deployed. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V148000 (Air Bags). The dealer and the manufacturer were not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 17,000.

On 12/24/21, while driving the Passat and turning, a loud bang could be heard in the steering column and the airbag light illuminated. All steering wheel controls, such as the radio, screen toggles, volume and other associated controls ceased working. Drove straight to our trusted mechanic and was diagnosed with a broken clockspring. Repair was estimated at $436 dollars. Part is still not available to remedy. VW America insists it’s not their problem to fix.

Per Volkswagon the vehicle is known to have a defective steering clock spring. When the part fails, the vehicle steering wheel looses all electronic function. the Airbag is deactivated and the horn does not work. This failure have happened with my vehicle. Volkswagon has initiated a recall; however, it has been 2 months and they can still not provide an eta of when the vehicle will be repaired and have instructed to drive the unsafe vehicle until the parts come in. The failure initially happened in Dec 2021. This week in Feb 2022 I was run off the road by an elderly drive in an SUV that changed lanes. I was unable to notify the other diver that I was next to her because the horn did not work!

Both left and right low beam headlights became inoperable leave vehicle with only high beams. There has been a recall submitted by VW for the exact year/make/model/and production date. I have contacted closest dealership and have been given several reasons from the vehicle isn’t included in the recall but no explanation as to why it isn’t even though it meets every single criteria listed which vehicles it included and I was also told the recall was completed by another dealership but can not give the date or location of when the recall was supposedly done. If it was done, hypothetically speaking, then it obviously wasn’t done correctly because the same issue is still occurring, placing me and any passengers in extreme danger.

My clock spring broke in December, I am 50 on the list at our dealer. We called another dealer and was told it is a National back order and there are thousands on back order.. I called VW customer care and there does not seem to be any sense of urgency to rectify this. They are blaming Covid and the war in Ukraine.

Vw cc r line burn alot oil 1.000 he burn 1 qr oil

Airbag light is on

My car's engine performance weakened and it would not go past 40MPH. Two loops appeared on the dashboard flashing, pulled over turned off car then started it again. Two loop icon on dash went away. Started driving again and car would not drive past 20MPH and started making a weird loud noise. I was driving through Patterson Pass Road (very dangerous and super narrow road to even consider pulling over in) Pulled over again and parked my car and walked away from my car since that is too narrow to even consider waiting in the car. I called a towing company to have my car towed to VW dealership. I bought this car not even 2 years ago from VW with only 16k miles. Have done all maintenances on it and this is the second engine problem Ive had in less than 2 years. The first problem was replacing the EGR valve and now this.

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V483000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that the horn was no longer operable. The air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the clockspring needed to be replaced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V483000 (AIR BAGS). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 91,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

I have had an issue with my transmission since I’ve got it . I got it with only 38,000 miles on it in july 2021. When i touch my brakes going slow or pull off from a red light my vehicle will make a choppy noise and shake. When i switch gears it will occasionally get stuck and shake when i pull off. I took it to volkswagen service a couple times in 2021 where they assured me i had no transmission issue. I had other things like control arms and water pump issues that i had fixed. But my car was still doing the same thing. So i took it to various shops and volkswagen service many times throughout the entire year of 2022. Then finally they told me there is a issue with my whole clutch gearbox kit and dual mass flywheel as well. During the time they found that issue it was only about 45,000 miles on my vehicle. Volkswagen is known to have transmission issues so i was shocked there wasnt any recall on the issue since my car had very low miles on it and it is a known volkswagen issue. It is progressively getting worse to where it is becoming a hazard and i cant continue to drive my vehicle.

When parallel parking, the steering wheel began making a clicking noise when turning. The volume and duration of the clicking increased after pulling out from parking spot into the street and the instrument panel airbag light/chime came on within a mile of driving. Clicking in wheel while turning persisted intermittently throughout driving. All electrical controls on steering wheel are no-response. Horn does not work, airbag deactivated, and all steering wheel electronic controls are no-response.

Plugged heater core. OBD code present P2457. Defroster was compromised. Confirmed by VW dealer. Advised by manufacturer to replace heater core and flush system per technical test and repair procedure.

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated that the low-beam headlights failed to illuminate as needed. The contact replaced an unknown part of the headlights; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

The battery died. It's located in the trunk. There was no way to get to the battery because there's no keyhole in the trunk lid and without power nothing works. As in the trunk latch. Once I was able to jump the car bypassing the battery the trunk latch in the driver's side door malfunctioned. Now I can't get into the trunk at all. The latched to let the backseat down are located in the trunk. It's a horrible design and I'm just grateful I was stranded alone somewhere when the trunk latch failed.

MY STEERING COLUMN STARTED MAKING A CLICKING NOISE WHEN I TURNED IT, AND THEN MY DRIVER-SIDE AIR BAG LIGHT CAME ON.

I TOOK MY CAR TO A LOCAL REPAIR MECHANIC THAT TOLD ME THAT HE HAD TO TROUBLESHOOT THE PROBLEM WITH VW PARTS EXPERTS I WENT TO FREMONT AUTO CENTER IN FREMONT CALIFORNIA, 94536 THEY HAVE A RECORD OF MY VISIT AND TROUBLESHOOTING THE PROBLEM. THEY IDENTIFIED WITH VW THAT THE FUEL PUMP MODULE WAS ACTUALLY RECALLED, NOW WHEN YOU LOOK UP THE VIN NUMBER THE RECALLED PART DOES NOT COME UP. SO I TOOK MY CAR TO THE VW DEALERSHIP LOCATED HERE: 39695 BALENTINE DR, NEWARK, CA 94560 THEY IDENTIFIED THAT THE PART IS RECALLED BUT SAID THEY WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO REPLACE THE PART BECAUSE IT DID NOT COME UP UNDER A RECALL WHEN YOU SEARCH THE VIN AND INSTEAD WANT ME TO PAY $180 TO RUN A DIAGNOSTIC TO "IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM" AND THEN "REPLACE THE PART" WOULD COST ITS OWN AMOUNT. WHO THE HELL SAYS SOMETHING LIKE THAT

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE VEHICLE JERKED FORWARD WHILE DEPRESSING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WENT INTO LIMP MODE WITH AN ABNORMAL KNOCKING SOUND COMING FROM THE ENGINE. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER AND INSPECTED THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE ENGINE WAS RATTLING AND OVER HEATING. AT START-UP, THE RPM'S REVVED UP WHILE THE RATTLING PERSISTED, WITH THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. BERGSTROM VOLKSWAGEN OF APPLETON (3019 N VICTORY LN #102, APPLETON, WI 54913, (800) 398-6846) WAS CONTACTED AND AN APPOINTMENT WAS SCHEDULED FOR THE VEHICLE TO BE INSPECTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE CONTACT WAS PROMISED A CALL BACK WHICH WAS STILL PENDING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT YET REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 59,000. CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO BE REPAIRED AND PAID $300 BUT WARNING LIGHT IS STILL ON.*JB

Clock spring broken in vehicle

MY 2013 VW PASSAT 2.5 S ONLY HAS 59K MILES AND I WAS DRIVING I NO DOWN ROAD ALL SUDDEN THE CAR JERKED FORWARD AND WENT INTO LIMP MODE. I HAD IT LOOKED AT THEN PARTS REPLACED AND STILL HAVING ISSUES AND THEY CAN'T FIGURE OUT ISSUE. AND NOW NEW CODES KEEP COMING UP AND KEEP GETTING NEW PARTS PUT IN BUT IT STILL FEELS LIKE ENGINE ABOUT SHAKE RIGHT OUT OF THE CAR. I TRIED CALLING VOLKSWAGEN AND THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO CALL ME BACK WITHING 2 DAYS AND I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING BACK. I TAKE REALLY GOOD CARE OF MY CAR AND HAD ALL THE PARTS REPLACED BUT ITS STILL HAVING THROTTLE AND ELECTRICAL ISSUES AND I CAN'T GET AHOLD OF ANYONE. MINES HAVING A LOT OF SAME ISSUES AS THESE PEOPLE TOO WHICH IS WEIRD ESPECIALLY AROUND SAME TIME.

I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM STORE ON A HIGHWAY AROUND 7:30 PM CST ON MARCH 21, 2021 WHEN SUDDENLY MY LIGHTS ON MY CAR STOP WORKING ON THE PASSENGER SIDE. THE A WARNING MESSAGE STATING TO CHECK RIGHT LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT. I DID MY RESEARCH ON THE ERROR AND BOUGHT A REPLACEMENT LIGHT BULB FROM O'REILLY AUTO PARTS TO SOLVE THIS ISSUE. AFTER REPLACING THE BULB, THE PASSENGER SIDE LIGHTS STILL DIDN'T WORK. I CALLED THE VW DEALERSHIP THE NEXT DAY TO GET SCHEDULE AN APPOINTMENT TO FIX THE PROBLEM. IN THE MEANTIME, I DID FURTHER RESEARCH ON THE PROBLEM. I DISCOVERED THAT VW HAD A VOLUNTARY RECALL ON THE 2012 -2013 MODEL YEAR VW PASSAT HEADLIGHT (LOW BEAM) DATED MARCH 17, 2014. THE VEHICLES INCLUDED IN THIS RECALL WERE THOSE MANUFACTURED FROM JANUARY 2011 - NOVEMBER 2012. THIS SEEMED TO BE THE PROBLEM WITH MY VEHICLE WHICH WAS MANUFACTURED IN APRIL 2013 (NOT IN THE RECALL DATE OF MANUFACTURE). I FURTHER DISCOVERED THAT COMPLAINTS OF THIS LOW BEAM ISSUE STARTED IN MAY 2013 AFTER INTERNAL QUALITY ANALYSIS RECEIVED A REPORT OF A QUALITY DEVIATION HAVING BEEN FOUND AFFECTING APPROXIMATELY 150,201 VEHICLES. THERE IS SOME GREY AREA FOR VEHICLES MANUFACTURED BETWEEN DECEMBER 2012 - APRIL 2013. REMEMBER THE BASIS OF DETERMINATION STARTING IN MAY 2013. ON MARCH 25, 2021, I WENT TO THE DEALERSHIP TO GET THIS ISSUE RESOLVE. I EXPLAINED TO THE SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE ABOUT THE RECALL ABOUT THE LOW BEAM HEADLIGHT. HE CHECKED HIS COMPUTER WITH MY VIN AND STATED THIS WAS NOT COVERED ON THE RECALL. THEY SERVICED THE LIGHTS. AFTER GETTING MY KEYS BACK AFTER SERVICE, I CHECKED MY LIGHTS. THE PASSENGER LIGHTS WEREN'T WORKING. THE TECH CAME OUT A WIGGLE THE LIGHT WHICH THEN CAME BACK ON. WHEN I GOT HOME, THE ENTIRE PASSENGER AND DRIVER LOW BEAM NOT WORKING. I WENT BACK THE NEXT DAY WHEN THE REPAIRED THE LIGHT WITH FIX FOR THE RECALL BY REPLACING SOCKET IN HEADLIGHT. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY HAZARD.

THE VEHICLE LOST ALL BRAKING PERFORMANCE WHILE PULLING INTO DRIVEWAY AFTER COMMUTE HOME. THE PEDAL BECAME EXTREMELY HARD TO PUSH AND VEHICLE WOULD NOT SLOW NORMALLY. THE BRAKE VACUUM PUMP FAILED TO PRODUCE VACUUM AND ALSO PRODUCED A MASSIVE OIL LEAK. 2.75L OF OIL WAS GONE AFTER SECONDS. IT WAS PARKED AND TOWED TO REPAIR FACILITY.

AS I WAS TURNING INTO THE APARTMENT COMPLEX I FELT MY BRAKES BEGIN TO LOCK UP. I PULLED INTO MY PARKING SPOT AND THE INSIDE OF THE CAB BEGAN TO SMOKE. MY CAR GAVE ME NO WARNING AND I COULD NOT LOCATE THE ISSUES OF THE SMOKE. I CALLED MY MECHANIC AND GOT THE VEHICLE TOWED OVER THERE. WHILE THE CAR WAS GETTING TOWED, OIL BEGAN TO FALL FROM BELOW THE ENGINE. MECHANIC REPORTED THE VACUUM PUMP WENT BAD. THAT IT ALSO LOCKED UP AND WAS LEAKING HEAVILY. HE ALSO STATED THIS WAS THE WORSE HE HAS EVER SEEN AS WELL AS TO REPORT THIS INCIDENT. I WILL INCLUDE PHOTOS WITH THIS REPORT.

WHEN I WAS DRIVING ON A CITY STREET, THE ENGINE STARTED TO MISFIRE AND SHAKE. AS A RESULT, I HAVE TO STOP AND PARK MY CAR IN A PARKING LOT. AFTER A PROFESSIONAL CHECK OF THE CAR, THE REPORT STATED THAT THE TIMING CHAIN AND CAMSHAFT BROKE AND HAVE TO BE REPLACED, WHICH COST MORE THAN THE WORTH OF THE CAR ITSELF AT 83000 MILES.

NO HEAT COMING FROM BLOCKED HEATER CORE SO DEFROST SYSTEM INEFFECTIVE. RESULT IS OBSTRUCTED VISION BECAUSE THE DEFROST SYSTEM IS NOT WORKING EFFICIENTLY. KNOWN DEFECTIVE PART ON THIS MODEL CAR (INTERNET RESEARCH) BUT VW REFUSES TO RECALL. HAPPENS AT ALL TIMES, STATIONARY AND MOVING. NO HEAT IN PASSENGER CABIN AT ALL.