2001 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT Complaints

I OWN 2001 VW PASSAT WITH 43200 MILES. THIS PAST YEAR I NOTICED FAILURES OF OUTER CV JOINT BOOT BOTH SIDES AND RUBBER DUST BOOTS ON ALL BALL JOINTS WHICH CAUSES A DIRT AND WATER TO DESTROY BALL JOINTS. I CHANGED OUTER CV JOIN BOOT BOTH SIDES AND ONE UPPER CONTROL ARM BALL JOINT AND OTHERS WILL FAIL SOON. *JB

THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON WITH A MESSAGE DISPLAY OF "EMISSIONS WORKSHOP!" AROUND 73K MI. THE CAR DEALER I BOUGHT IT FROM THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE THE O2 SENSORS, BUT IT TURNED OUT NOT BE TO. I TOOK IT TO THE LOCAL VW DEALER AND THEY TOLD ME THAT IT WAS A "RECALL/SERVICE BULLETIN" PROBLEM OF SOME SORT SO THEY RESET MY ONBOARD COMPUTER. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AGAIN WITH THE SAME MESSAGE SHORTLY THERE AFTER. I TOOK IT IN TO THE VW DEALER AGAIN AND THEY REPLACED BOTH OF MY CATALYTIC CONVERTERS (WHICH WERE COVERED BY THE VW EMISSIONS WARRANTY). THIS SEEMED TO HAVE RESOLVED THE PROBLEM. (THE PROBLEM OCCURRED THE SAME DAY I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE SO IT WOULD BE A GOOD ASSUMPTION THAT THIS PROBLEM HAD OCCURRED BEFORE I ATTAINED THE VEHICLE). *NM

MY VW PASSAT IS ONLY 4 YEARS OLD AND I HAVE ALREADY REPLACE MY EXTERIOR HEADLIGHTS/TAILIGHTS REPLACED 9 TIMES. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND THE DEALER ALONG WITH THE VW CUSTOMER CARE SAYS THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO ABOUT IT. BASICALLY, I HAVE TO KEEP PAYING TO GET NEW HEADLIGHTS THAT ONLY LAST ABOUT A YEAR. *NM

AT APPROX. 74,300 MI. OUR 2001 VW PASSAT GLS V6 AUTOMATIC HAD AN ABS FAILURE. WE PURCHASED THE VEHICLE NEW FROM A VW DEALER IN 2001 AND HAVE IT SERVICED BY VW DEALERS. OTHER VW OWNERS I HAVE SPOKEN TO (SOME WHILE IN THE SERVICE AREA OF THE DEALERSHIP!) HAVE ALSO HAD ABS FAILURE. THE ABS UNIT IS BACK-ORDERED AND WAIT LISTED BECAUSE SO MANY HAVE FAILED AND BEEN REQUESTED. I AM ON MY 4TH WEEK OF WAITING FOR THE PART, AFTER HAVING TO PAY FOR IT IN FULL UP FRONT. THIS IS A VERY EXPENSIVE PART: REBUILD KIT IS $650 WHILE THE UNIT ITSELF IS APPROX. $1,100. I BELIEVE THIS PART SUFFER CHRONIC FAILURE AMONG VW'S AND AUDI'S. I ALSO BELIEVE THE IGNITION COILS SHOULD BE RECALLED AS MINE ARE FAILING AND SO MANY OTHERS ARE FAILING.*JB

DT: ON AUGUST 25 ONWER WAS UPSET BECAUSE HE HAD TO REPLACE TIE RODS, AND HAD THE VEHICLE ALIGNED. HE SAID THE TIE RODS HAD TO BE REPLACED BECUASE THEY WERE FROZEN. THE REPAIR SHOP REPLACED THE TIE RODS.*AK *NM

LACK OF POWER WHEN PRESSING THE ACCELERATOR MAY HAVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT, PULLING OUT IN TRAFFIC. THIS WAS DUE TO WATER LEAK IN POLLEN FILTER BOX (CRACKED) WHICH AFFECTED THE SHIFT LOCK SOLENOID, AFFECTING THE TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE. *NM

FUNCTION OF TURN SIGNALS AND HAZARD LIGHTS ON MY 2001 PASSAT (40,000 MILES) HAS BEEN DEGRADING OVER TIME. BOTH SYSTEMS ARE NOW COMPLETELY INOPERABLE. VW (800-822-8987) CLAIMS THEY HAVE NEVER HEARD OF THIS PROBLEM, ALTHOUGH THERE IS AN ACTIVE VW RECALL FOR THIS PROBLEM ON 2000-2002 GOLF, GTI AND JETTA, AND THE NHTSA REPRESENTATIVE TO WHOM I SPOKE HAS TOLD ME THERE ARE MANY REPORTS OF THIS PROBLEM ON 2001 PASSATS (BUT NO CURRENT RECALL). OBVIOUSLY, WE WILL BE GETTING THIS FIXED ASAP. HOWEVER, I WOULD REQUEST THAT 1) A RECALL BE INITIATED AND 2) VW PROVIDE REIMBURSEMENT TO ALL OWNERS SUCH AS MYSELF WHO WILL HAVE PAID FOR THIS REPAIR OUT OF THEIR POCKETS. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS PROBLEM THAT IS CLEARLY WIDESPREAD ON 2000-2002 VW VEHICLES OF ALL MODELS. *NM

THE FRONT CONTROL ARMS ON MY 2001 VW PASSAT NEED TO BE REPLACED. THE CAR ONLY HAS 54K MILES ON IT. *JB

NHTSA 01V157000 SITES A PROBLEM WITH THE FUEL TANK GAUGE MY VEHICLE ABSOLUTELY HAS THIS DEFECTIVE PART. THE GAS GAUGE WILL RECORD 280 MILES THEN AFTER DRIVING A FEW HOURS IT WILL SAY 380 MILES LEFT FOR FUEL THEN IN A 30 MILE DISTANCE IT WILL PLUMMET DOWN TO 60 OR LESS. THE CAR IS A 2001 PASSAT AND NEITHER THE DEALERSHIP NOR VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA HAS THIS AS A RECALL AS OF 08/04/05 *JB

CAR WAS MAKING NOISE AT SLOW SPEED AND WOULD SHAKE AT FASTER SPEEDS. I WAS TOLD I NEEDED 2 TIE RODS WHICH WERE REPLACED. THE PROBLEM CONTINUED AND I WAS THEN TOLD IT WAS THE CONTROL ARMS AND I NEEDED ALL 4 REPLACED. MY CAR IS NOT EVEN 4 YEARS OLD AND HAS ONLY 45,000. I UNDERSTAND FROM OTHER SITES THAT THIS IS A PROBLEM ON VW'S AND AUDI'S. *JB