2011 Volkswagen Passat problems
NHTSA has received 27 complaints about the 2011 Volkswagen Passat, and 22% of them involve engine. After that come air bags (19%) and electrical system (15%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 27 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 22% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 5 and 3
- Injuries and deaths
- 3 and 1
- Typical mileage
- 75,000 miles 21 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 | 3 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 0 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 7 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 1 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 3 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 2 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 0 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 3 |
What the data shows
Among the 21 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 75,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 5 complaints mention a crash; 3 complaints mention a fire; 3 injuries reported; 1 death reported. Its complaints are more severe on average than those of 97% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2011 ranks 27th most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Volkswagen Passat with enough data (11 complaints in that window).
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.
Daughter was killed in a head on collision in her 2011 volkswagen cc when her airbag did not deploy. She purchased the vehicle from a dealer on october 30th, 2018, 5 months prior to the crash. She was traveling the posted speed limit on a county 2 lane road when another vehicle hit her head on. The attached photograph is her car after the crash. As you can see, the airbag 100% should have deployed in that crash.
Vehicle missing engine cradle after being repaired at a certified dealer. Vehicle missing subframe screw after being repaired at certified volkswagen deslership(stone mountain VW and marietta VW) both locations in georgia. Vehicle was driven with defect without my knowledge. Vehicle has multiple settlements. Dealership in jacksonville, florida: o'steen VW, was caught shredding records. Company refused to provide vehicle VIN history. Vehicle is located at o'steen VW, without repair.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 volkswagen passat. While driving 35 MPH, another vehicle crashed into the rear driver side door of the contact's vehicle. The air bags failed to deploy. The contact mentioned that the air bag warning light was illuminated prior to the failure. There were no injuries and a police report was not filed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, but the technician was unable to diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired.
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 volkswagen passat. While reversing in a parking area, a cracking sound was heard from the steering wheel. In addition, the power steering lost power and the air bag warning indicator illuminated. The dealer diagnosed that the issue was related to a clock spring recall. The dealer resolved the recall issue, but the failure recurred six months later.