2014 Volkswagen Passat problems
NHTSA has received 791 complaints about the 2014 Volkswagen Passat, and 45% of them involve air bags. After that come engine (10%) and electrical system (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 791 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Air bags 45% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 37 and 7
- Injuries and deaths
- 25 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 46,000 miles 373 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 | 89 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 68 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 85 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 56 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 34 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 15 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 16 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 9 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 373 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 46,000 miles. For air bags specifically, the median reported mileage is about 50,000 miles (89 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 37 complaints mention a crash; 7 complaints mention a fire; 25 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2014 ranks 3rd most-complained-about out of 31 model years of the Volkswagen Passat with enough data (559 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 10 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.
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 volkswagen passat. While driving approximately 20 MPH, another vehicle drifted into the contact's lane. As a result, the contact crashed into a cement divider. The air bags deployed and a white, powdery substance flew into the eyes of the contact and his wife, followed by metal fragments. The contact also stated that the passenger side air bag caught fire. The contact extinguished the fire.
Tl* the contact owns a 2014 volkswagen passat. While driving 35 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed but the vehicle failed to stop. As a result, the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into the front of another vehicle. The contact, who was the front passenger, sustained rib injuries, the driver sustained hand injuries, and the rear passenger side occupant sustained minor abrasions. All passengers required medical attention. A police report was filed.
Car gas pedal was stuck and continued to accelerate getting up to 58 MPH after pressing on brakes lightly the car continued to go faster and faster. As I was getting closer to an intersection, that was red, and in fear of getting hit cause the gas would not slow down I slammed on brakes and hoped it would stop the car but the car lost control hit a curb and hit a fire hydrant in the front middle of car, the car flipped over and no airbags deployed.
In august of 2017, my airbag light came on and my horn stopped working. There was also a clicking sound when turning the steering wheel. I took the vehicle to volkswagen and was informed that the clock spring had failed and needed to be replaced. After conducting some research, I found that other 2014 passats had been recalled for the same exact issue. My VIN was not covered under the recall, and so I had to pay out of pocket for a new clock spring.
While turning the steering wheel, there was a clicking noise followed by an airbag error on the dash. The steering wheel controls and horn no longer work.