1999 Volkswagen Passat problems
NHTSA has received 854 complaints about the 1999 Volkswagen Passat, and 29% of them involve brakes. After that come suspension (16%) and engine (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 854 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Brakes 29% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 15 and 18
- Injuries and deaths
- 13 and 3
- Typical mileage
- 76,000 miles 499 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 20 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 25 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 84 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 138 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 112 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 54 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 29 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 17 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 9 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 5 |
| 200k+ miles | 6 |
What the data shows
Among the 499 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 76,000 miles. For brakes specifically, the median reported mileage is about 86,000 miles (174 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 15 complaints mention a crash; 18 complaints mention a fire; 13 injuries reported; 3 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1999 ranks 5th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Volkswagen Passat with enough data (471 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 5 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Car caught on fire shortly after being driven. The car was parked in the garage when the fire started. The fire spread to the rest of the house. The fire was witnessed to originate on the right side (passenger) of engine compartment under the hood. Dt
Vehicle was involved in a frontal collision at 60 MPH, and airbags did not deploy, causing minor injuries. Dealer and manufacturer will be notified.
Consumer was driving a 25 MPH in rainy conditions when another vehicle going opposite direction lost control of vehicle/ fishtailed, hitting consumer's vehicle on driver's side twice. Dual frontal and side air bags failed to deploy, causing injuries. Please provide further information.
The vehicle experienced the same defect with its tie rods as stated in recalls 99v248000 and 00v414000, but the vehicle was not included in the recall due to VIN.
Dt: the contact took vehicle to dealer for recall repairs. Upon inspection the technician noticed the steering assembly came loose. The vehicle was being repaired at the dealership. They replaced both lower control arms and both tie rods. Also, the dealership also found there was an oil leak and the ABS was defective. The technician discovered the steering rack assembly was loose to the point it could have fallen of from the frame. Updated 11/29/05.