2023 VOLKSWAGEN ATLAS Complaints

The daytime running lights are not working. It is a safety concern by not being seen easily by oncoming drivers. No warnings were given prior to going out. This seems to be a common problem among same vehicle make and model according to forums on the internet. The only way to be repaired is to replace the entire headlamp assembly at a cost of $1500-$2000 which is not feasible.

When vehicle was pitched Feb of 2023 VW Atlas crosssport. The screen would go black and when I called Harnish VW of Puyallup in WA. They said they were aware of the issue and there was no fix. Recently saw online that VW was aware of this issue and that it could cause further damage to the vehicle and there is still no fix. My screen still goes out (black screen) and nobody has been able to fix it when asked about it.

Our Atlas’ engine will turn off unexpectedly from time to time. This usually happens when the vehicle is stopped whether it be at a stop light, stop sign, carpool, etc. We brought it to the dealership and the replaced a part and indicated it should fix it; however the problem has persisted.

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH he noticed the headlights were out independently. No warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that headlight assembly needed to replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacture was notified of the failure and offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 55,000.

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The contact was advised to take the vehicle for a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or a dealer. The contact referenced an unknown recall with a similar failure; however, the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 33,843.

My vehicle is a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas. It has a serious and recurring safety issue where the vehicle shuts off unexpectedly while driving. This has occurred on the freeway while driving at approximately 65–70 mph, which is extremely dangerous because the vehicle loses power while in traffic. After a previous repair at the dealer, the issue returned again after several months. The vehicle was previously scanned with a basic diagnostic tool, but no permanent solution was found. I have contacted dealerships, but I have had difficulty receiving assistance in Spanish, and I have been ignored when requesting Spanish-speaking support. Because of this, I will need to visit in person with someone who can help me communicate in English. I travel with my child in this vehicle, and the vehicle shuts off regardless of how long I have been driving, which creates a serious safety risk. This is a major safety concern as the vehicle shuts off without warning while driving at highway speeds. I am requesting a full investigation of this issue as a potential safety defect.

I am reporting a significant safety compliance issue involving a Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) vehicle and the fraudulent reporting of a safety recall completion. On March 21, 2026, I attempted to purchase the vehicle listed above. This vehicle is subject to NHTSA Recall 22V753 (VW Campaign 13i4) regarding engine connecting rod failure. Before signing, I requested documentation proving the recall had been performed. The dealership staff repeatedly insisted that the recall "had to have been completed" as part of the CPO process. Upon my further insistence, the dealership finally admitted that the recall work had NOT been performed and stated it would "be completed on Monday." However, a check of the VIN on [XXX] and VW’s public portal shows "0 Open Recalls," indicating the dealership has officially marked this safety recall as "Closed" or "Completed" in the system despite the remedy not being applied. This dealership is actively marketing and attempting to deliver a vehicle with a known engine failure risk as "Certified" while falsifying federal safety records. This is a clear violation of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act and poses an immediate risk to any consumer who might purchase this vehicle believing the safety defect has been remedied. Vin number is [XXX] I can't personally verify that the vin number falls within the lot described, however given their response was "our bad we're doing this on Monday" I can only come to the safe conclusion in my purchase decision that it does recall this recall procedure and that they fraudulently marked this recall as completed. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds or while the vehicle was parked, there was an abnormal clicking sound coming from the engine. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was determined that the sound might be caused by unknown engine parts rubbing against each other. The mechanic related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V753000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); and referred the contact to the manufacturer for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 138,000.

While driving on the highway at 65 miles per hour, my Atlas shut itself off. I had to put it into park and restart the ignition. It turned on after 2 attempts but just barely. It turned on and gave enough power to move forward very slowly but virtually no propulsion. It turned on briefly, I pressed the gas and then it shut off but had enough to cruise to get to the shoulder across the highway. There was no shoulder next to the lane I was in. Luckily the cars around me saw that I put my hazzard lights on immediately and did the same. Once at the shoulder, tho the system had shut down again... the Atlas suddenly engaged and sped up on its own. The control panel of the car was "resetting" itself still from the initial shutdown. The system appeared to reboot itself after putting into park and pushing the ignition button. And was still "processing" while I attempted to get it to the side of the road while it shutdown again. Once it was "rebooted" that's when the system appeared to "catch" and the car "sped up" by itself. Once all that happened, probably in the span of 5 minutes or so, I was able to drive 15 miles away safely to a gas station, turned off the car, got gas and it re-started like nothing had happened and drive fine home, about 2 miles further. The instrument panel including map and "driving screen" has shut down before while driving a few times, but never anything with the engine. While stopped at a light a few times, the car has previously "shut itself off" and restarted fine after being put into park and restarting ignition. This is by far the worst and most dangerous experience I've had that could have resulted in a fatal collision, had the cars around me not also been paying close attention and helped me out by slowing behind me and creating awareness for others approaching at 65-75 MPH as well.

Current mileage: 55,000 miles, and the warranty expired at 50,000 miles. Shortly after the expiration, a bunch of warning alerts started to pop up, along with a solid yellow check engine light. I had the error codes read, and it came back as, “P2402 SAE: EVAP System Leak Detection Pump Control Circuit: High." In order for any work to be performed, VW demands a $212 diagnostic fee in order to even determine what is wrong with the vehicle. If the EVAP pump is found to be bad as the code suggests, it would cost anywhere between $700-900 to fix. So, I took to Google to figure out what is going on. There are pages and pages of documentation from other VW drivers who have the exact same issue. So, why has it not been listed as a safety recall yet? That's what I want to know. Many VW drivers reported that they were given a warranty extension for this KNOWN issue, so I thought...that's all it would take for me to be happy. So, I called the same dealership back and was told that my vehicle is ineligible for the warranty extension even though I am experiencing the exact same issue of the people who were given the warranty extension. Many other VW customers have reported this known issue as well because VW is aware of the issue but is not doing anything about it. As far as I know, the car runs fine, but the alerts and check engine light are there every time I start up the car and never go away. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request. My safety and the safety of others is put at risk every time I drive. When I get into my car, several alerts go off. Very distracting and dangerous. When I go to back out of my driveway, the backup camera works for a few seconds and then blacks out and goes back to the main screen and starts beeping new alerts. Very dangerous. As I am driving, all of the alerts are going off again, thus distracting me behind the wheel. With the codes present, it will not allow me to use remote start on either my key FOB or in the app.