There are 3 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2013 Volkswagen Touaregin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The weld broke at the rear pre cat connection
So there’s a campaign to add a bracket to one of the catalytic converters. That’s great except I never knew about it and the thing they added the bracket to prevent happened to me. The exhaust pipe from the catalytic separated from the flange connecting to the manifold. It’s a 2000 dollar part from the dealer. Luckily I found a mechanic who is welding the flange and fixing what I got. Just another example of a car company knowing there’s an issue but not really attempting to fix it, only in a policy no one reads.
I HAVE JUST OVER 50,000 MILES ON MY TOUAREG TDI AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. DEALERSHIP TELLS ME THE ADBLUE HEATER NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AND IT IS NOT COVERED UNDER THE 80K EMISSIONS WARRANTY AND WILL COST ME $1,200 TO REPAIR. HOW CAN THIS NOT BE COVERED WHEN ADBLUE'S SOLE PURPOSE IS TO REMOVE NO2 FOR EMISSIONS? NOW I AM FACED WITH AN EXCESSIVE REPAIR FOR A VEHICLE THAT DOESN'T EVEN MEET EMISSIONS ANYWAY! OWNERS OF TDI 3.0 LITERS, SUCH AS MYSELF, STILL HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE FATE OF OUR VEHICLES WILL BE SINCE THE VW DIESEL SCANDAL BROKE OVER A YEAR AGO. NO IDEA IF THERE WILL BE A FIX OR A BUYBACK. I AM STUCK WITH A CAR THAT IS NOT ONLY LEAKING HARMFUL NO2 INTO THE AIR, BUT HAS SIGNIFICANTLY DIMINISHED IN VALUE. AND NOW I NEED TO INVEST ANOTHER $1,200?!??! I CALLED VW AND THEY ARE NOT WILLING TO OFFER ANY FINANCIAL COMPENSATION FOR THIS REPAIR, NOR IS THE DEALERSHIP WILLING TO PROVIDE A GOODWILL REPAIR. AND I'M TOLD IF I DON'T REPAIR IT, AFTER A CERTAIN NUMBER OF MILES THE CAR WON'T START. SO, I'M HAVING TO INVEST IN A PART FOR THE EMISSIONS SYSTEM AND IT STILL WON'T BE EPA-COMPLIANT. THAT JUST DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026