2010 VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG Complaints

HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP ("HPFP") FAILURE RESULTED IN AN ENGINE STALL INCIDENT, AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS IN TRAFFIC WITH NO RESTART, CONTRIBUTING TO AN ACCIDENT. *TR

ON WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22, 2014 I WAS DRIVING WEST ON US ROUTE 9 IN BARRINGTON NH AT APPROXIMATELY 11AM IN MY VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG 2010 TDI. THERE WAS NOTHING UNUSUAL ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE OF THE CAR BEFORE I FELT A STRANGE LAG AND THEN A WARNING LIGHT STARTED FLASHING TO STOP THE CAR. BEFORE I COULD PULL OFF THE ROAD THE CAR LOST POWER AND DIED. SINCE THE WARNING TO STOP THE CAR CAME UP I DID NOT TRY TO RESTART THE CAR. I SAT ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD BEWILDERED FOR A MOMENT AS I'D ONLY PURCHASED THIS CAR 3 WEEKS BEFORE AND IT WAS ONLY A FEW MILES SHORT OF 30,000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. BEING STRANDED PARTIALLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WAS TERRIFYING AS I WAS IN A 50MPH ZONE AND PEOPLE WERE FLYING PAST ME UPWARDS OF 60MPH WHILE MY CAR WAS BARELY STRADDLING THE WHITE LINE. ALSO, IT WAS 8 DEGREES OUTSIDE AND THERE WAS NO PLACE FOR ME TO WAIT SAFELY OUTSIDE OF THE CAR DUE TO CONSIDERABLE FROZEN SNOW BANKS FLANKING THE ROADWAY. MY OPTIONS WERE TO PRAY NOT TO GET HIT OR RISK FREEZING WHILE WAITING FOR A TOW TRUCK. OVERALL THIS WAS A TERRIFYING EXPERIENCE TO HAVE IN A NEW CAR WHO'S SUPPOSED TOUGHNESS AND RELIABILITY WAS ONE OF ITS SELLING POINTS. THE DEALER (QUIRK VW IN MANCHESTER, NH) HAS TOLD US THAT THE FUEL WAS CONTAMINATED LEADING TO A HPFP FAILURE WHICH MY HUSBAND SAYS THIS SAME VEHICLE HAS HAD REPLACED LESS THAN 8,000 MILES AGO UNDER THE PREVIOUS OWNER. HE ALSO SAID THAT I SHOULD MENTION THAT THIS IS THE SAME HPFP MADE BY BOSCH AS THE GOLF, JETTA AND A3 WHICH HAS BEEN INVESTIGATED UNDER EA11003 FOR FAILURE. *TR

WHILE TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH ON AN INTERSTATE THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST POWER/TURNED OFF. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHTS, NO NOISES, NO VIBRATIONS, NO SIGNS OF ANYTHING. VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO VW DEALER WHERE I WAS INFORMED THAT THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP HAD FAILED ALLEGEDLY DUE TO SUBSTANDARD/CONTAMINATED DIESEL FUEL. THERE WAS NO SIGN OF MIS-FUELING (NO GAS IN TANK WHEN TESTED), CONTAMINANTS ARE UNKNOWN. IT SEEMS THAT THE HPFP IS NOT DESIGNED TO PERFORM WITHIN THE TOLERANCES NECESSARY TO OPERATE SAFELY AND RELIABLY ON 'PUMP FUEL' AVAILABLE TO CONSUMERS. *TR

A KONI NORTH AMERICA ("KONI") SHOCK ABSORBER BENT, WHICH COMPROMISED SAFE VEHICLE HANDLING, INCREASING THE RISK OF A COLLISION, CAUSING A CRASH. THESE SHOCK ABSORBERS WERE PURCHASED IN APRIL 2011 FROM NEUSPEED. THE DEFECTIVE ABSORBERS WERE MANUFACTURED WITH AN INCORRECTLY WELDED BRACKET WHICH CAUSED THE SHOCK ABSORBER TO CATASTROPHICALLY BEND AND REST ON THE DRIVE SHAFT, THEREBY COMPROMISING VEHICLE HANDLING, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH. KONI MODEL NUMBERS: 8245 1146L 8241 1146R 8245 1147 *TR

DURING THE PROCESS OF FILLING THE ALMOST EMPTY TANK WITH DIESEL FUEL, AN ELECTRICAL SHORT (PER REPORT OF THE LOCAL FIRE DEPARTMENT THAT WAS CALLED IN) CREATED HEAT THAT WAS ABLE TO MELT PART OF THE TANK IN THE AREA OF THE FILLING NOZZLE, COMPLETELY MELTED THE RUBBER STRAP HOLDING THE FUEL CAP AND MELTED/BURNED THE SPLASH RING ON THE FUEL DISPENSER. THE METALLIC RING OF THE FILLING NOZZLE TURNED SO HOT, THAT FUMES/SMOKE BECAME VISIBLE. DUE TO THE POSITION OF THE BATTERY BENEATH THE DRIVERS SEAT, THE FD WAS NOT ABLE TO DISCONNECT THE BATTERY.