2002 Volkswagen Passat problems
NHTSA has received 772 complaints about the 2002 Volkswagen Passat, and 29% of them involve electrical system. After that come engine (19%) and fuel system (10%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 772 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 29% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 15 and 53
- Injuries and deaths
- 23 and 4
- Typical mileage
- 50,000 miles 548 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 | 171 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 64 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 90 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 67 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 54 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 31 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 42 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 11 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 7 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 5 |
| 200k+ miles | 6 |
What the data shows
Among the 548 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 50,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 14,000 miles (147 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 15 complaints mention a crash; 53 complaints mention a fire; 23 injuries reported; 4 deaths reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2002 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Volkswagen Passat with enough data (525 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 3 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.
1 year old VW passat, twice same problem with coil, broken turbo, it is on warranty but how many times can one go to dealer with a car which has 15000 miles ,
In late january, the heated seat on my 2002 volkswagen passat burned through the seat cover. It also burned through my pants and gave me a minor burn. Volkswagen repaired the problem, but the mechanics informed me that I was the third such problem in a 48 hour period. The other two cars were jettas. Another mechanic said that the heated seats ran too hot on the highest setting and weren't meant to run on setting 5 for too long.
An ignition coil failed, disabling the vehicle and potentially damaging the catalytic converter (according to the manual's description of the warning light that was activated.) these failures appear to be widespread due to defective parts. The failed coil was replaced under warranty, but the dealer indicated the manufacturer would not authorize replacement of the other coils. I await further failure and fear that it will happen at an unsafe or inconvenient time.
Coil pack #2 failed upon warm start after having sat for approximately 20 minutes. Mil was flashing indicating a serious problem. Drove car on three cylinders less than 2 miles to home, and called VW customer service to coordinate towing and dealer. **dimsii ivoq entry posted after 12/12/02 cut over to artemis**770849