2019 Volkswagen Atlas Airbags Problems

No accidents light just turn on saying airbag error light came on. no airbag was deployed.

NHTSA ID

11761071

Incident

Aug 30, 2026

My air bag light came on and said I have code b121400. It indicates that the passenger occupant seat sensor is not communicating/working. I see this issue was identified as a recall for similar vehicles but did not include my car. NHTSA ID: 22v815000

NHTSA ID

11760976

Incident

Aug 30, 2026

The airbag error light in the vehicle came on. I took it to the dealership where the vehicle was purchased. They are charging $300.+ per hour to repair the issue. The vehicle has never been in an accident. The airbag has never been deployed.

NHTSA ID

11754957

Incident

Jul 20, 2026

I am reporting a potential safety defect involving the airbag system of my Volkswagen Atlas vehicle. At approximately 65,000 miles, my vehicle displayed the warning message: “Error: Airbag, Faulty airbag.” Because an airbag malfunction creates a serious safety concern, I contacted my local Volkswagen dealer on September 23, 2025 to ask whether there was an active recall related to this issue. I was informed that there was no pending recall for my vehicle. I later contacted Volkswagen Customer Care because I was concerned about using this vehicle as a family vehicle for my two elementary school children. The Volkswagen representative informed me that there was an airbag recall affecting certain vehicles of same year/model and that an extended warranty/coverage was associated with that recall. However, when I contacted the Volkswagen dealership again, I was told that my vehicle was not covered because there was no recall and my vehicle was outside the warranty period. I am concerned that a known airbag-related safety issue may exist in vehicles of the same model, but my vehicle is excluded from the recall or extended coverage even though it is experiencing the same safety-related warning. I am also concerned about the inconsistent information provided by Volkswagen Customer Care and the dealership. I request that NHTSA review whether this airbag fault represents a broader safety defect and whether my vehicle should be included in any recall or safety campaign.

NHTSA ID

11747210

Incident

Dec 31, 1969

The air conditioning drain tube clogged and leaked into the air bag control module and caused an entire electrical failure in my car with air bag sensors, braking, windows rolling down, doors locking and unlocking automatically while driving, etc as well as the carpet getting mold.

NHTSA ID

11743656

Incident

Jun 5, 2026

The contact owned a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that when driving at various speeds, when veering towards the left or right with the vehicle, the vehicle would turn in the opposite direction the steering wheel was being directed. The contact would have to turn the steering wheel in the desired direction to straighten the vehicle and turn it towards the intended direction. The lane assist would cause the vehicle to misread the direction of the road and turn the vehicle in the opposite direction. The failure had become progressively worse and more persistent. The contact stated that while driving past a driveway, the Lane Assist determined there was a curb near the vehicle, aggressively turning the vehicle towards the curb, causing the vehicle to crash into the mailbox near the driveway. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was towed and totaled. The mailbox was damaged. The contact stated that they received bruises to their hands from attempting to correct the direction of the vehicle, and no medical attention was needed. The police were contacted, and a police report was made; however, the contact was waiting for the police report identification number. After the incident, the contact learned that their vehicle was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags), which explains that the air bags may fail to deploy. The remedy for the recall had not been completed before the incident occurred. The dealer was informed of the failure; however, the contact had not heard back from the department that they needed to speak with. The manufacturer was contacted; however, a complaint was not filed. The contact was advised to call back to file with the correct department, which was closed at the time. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.

NHTSA ID

11727979

Incident

Jun 30, 2025

Mileage

85,000 mi

The week of February 23, 2026, the airbag warning light has come on in my dashboard advising that there is something wrong with my airbags. It has barely been 6-7 months (in August 2025 ) that my VW Atlas was serviced due to a recall specifically for the airbags and now an alert on my dash for this safety hazard is appearing again. I called my local dealer who told me as the recall was already serviced, there is nothing they can do as far as honoring it and I would need to pay. Prior to the recall I didn’t have an alert and now after it’s been apparently fixed my vehicle has this alert. This is extremely dangerous as if involved in accident could cause needless deaths if the airbags are not properly working or malfunction and VW is not taking responsibility !!

NHTSA ID

11721286

Incident

Feb 26, 2026

PODS system recall from 2023 was replaced, but now the same error message for the airbag not working for the front passenger air bag is now coming on again. VW dealership will not replace a second time, they are aware of the problem and have refused to help in any way. No passenger can be in the front passenger seat because the airbag does not turn on when the seat is occupied.

NHTSA ID

11679555

Incident

Aug 1, 2025

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags). The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to a dealer for the recall repair; however, the contact was informed that parts were not yet available to repair the vehicle. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ID

11663779

Incident

Mar 29, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (AIR BAGS); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ID

11659253

Incident

Apr 5, 2023

I requested a repair for safety recall 69FB about a year ago and my dealer says that they still do not have the parts to make the repair. How can you decide that a problem may result in death or injury but not expedite the repair?

NHTSA ID

11658420

Incident

May 2, 2025

I have the same airbag error issues as same year and model car. They are not considering it as part of the recall.

NHTSA ID

11656937

Incident

Dec 1, 2024

Vehicles stalls randomly all the times ,moving or not . Almost got rear ended several times . Spent 3k at Vw in Brandon for brakes that were only 70k miles on them . But they still squeal . Can’t fuel with gas as the pressure just pushes the fuel back at me . Seems worse in warmer weather . Vw said they would not touch the charcoal canister as that what I’ve deemed is the issue.

NHTSA ID

11656356

Incident

Apr 2, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted and confirmed that the remedy parts were not available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and informed the contact that a second notice would be mailed when the remedy was available. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

NHTSA ID

11634685

Incident

Jan 7, 2025

I have an error for my passenger airbag sensor, it is the same error that is present on current recalled Atlas models from the same year that I have, however; my vin is included. I would like some type of solution from the manufacturer to resolve this issue due to the current status and frequency of this issue on 2019 Atlas models

NHTSA ID

11633775

Incident

Dec 16, 2024

While performing a low speed left hand turn the vehicle’s adaptive cruise control system falsely detected an imminent crash triggering the auto braking system and subsequently malfunctioned to release the vehicle’s side curtain airbags on both the passenger and driver side. The police were called and responded but no police report was prepared as there was determined to be no motor vehicle accident or property damage done (other than to the vehicle itself). The vehicle was taken to a dealer and a diagnostic test was performed, results attached. The manufacturer has verbally responded that they determine the airbag release to be of outside influences and they deny malfunction. They will not provide their response in writing. At the time of the accident there were no warning lights indicating a problem; however, the vehicle diagnostic results indicate that there were brake system issues earlier in the day. The vehicle diagnostic results include multiple system malfunctions that contributed to this malfunction.

NHTSA ID

11630803

Incident

Dec 5, 2024

passenger side airbag sensor indicated problem. Sensor mat in the passenger side was replaced once, now it needs to be replaced again. Being told that because the repair was done 19 months ago it is out of parts warranty and my bumper to bumper is out of warranty. This is the SAME problem as the vehicles with a recall from VW. If the airbag does not inflate upon impact, it will kill the passenger. The repair is estimated at $800. This is an airbag, as safety issue.

NHTSA ID

11628422

Incident

Dec 2, 2024

I own a 2019 VW Atlas SE, purchased it new. The car has never been in an accident of any sort. While away from town this weekend, on Saturday an "airbag error" popped up on the car when starting the car Saturday morning. Had no idea, texted my VW dealership and brought the car in Monday morning. Note: I had to drive home ~80 miles on Sunday. Apparently the drivers side from seat belt assembly has to be replaced. The front seat belt tension igniter N153 resistance malfunctioned, causing the "Airbag error." First, in hindsight, I presume this means that if I got in an accident while driving home on the highway yesterday, I could have died due to this error. Second, I am a very cautious driver, if there is a way to check on the car, would clearly see that there have been VERY VERY FEW hard braking situations so I'm not sure why this would happen. Very dangerous and should not fail in a 5 year period and cost nearly $750 out of pocket to repair. The code the the seat belt assembly 3CN-857-705-E-RAA, costing $286.15, and another $379.90 for labor.

NHTSA ID

11622225

Incident

Oct 26, 2024

Today, my atlas gave an error message; air bag error. I called my dealership, who informed me that there is a recall in this. But not for my VIN number. But it’s the same issue. Now, I have to pay out of pocket or chance my air bag not working properly.

NHTSA ID

11607396

Incident

Aug 8, 2024

Passenger Airbag on - Dashboard stating Airbag Faulty issue - Passenger Airbag turns off automatically

NHTSA ID

11599138

Incident

Apr 30, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ID

11595771

Incident

Jun 21, 2024

Manufacturer says they don't have the part to fix the Recall issue

NHTSA ID

11592544

Incident

Jun 3, 2024

Recall 23V215 has been open for a year with no remedy in sight. The vehicle's front passenger seat is critical to transporting my family from place to place as our other vehicle does not fit our entire family. We are forced to unsafely operate our VW Atlas on occasion, significantly increasing risk of a family member being harmed in a collision scenario.

NHTSA ID

11579502

Incident

Mar 29, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact was notified of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V215000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was made aware of the issue and confirmed that parts were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ID

11578095

Incident

Apr 5, 2023

It has been nearly a year since Volkswagen announced a recall effecting airbags in the Atlas. My warning lights continue to go off intermittently. I have brought this to the attention of Volkswagen many times, to no avail. The recommendation is to not drive with a passenger in the passenger seat. Well, it has been a year, I bought this car to seat six. With no solution in sight, I feel I am being taken advantage of and was sold a lemon. I would like pressure to be put on Volkswagen to correct the problem so my family can drive this vehicle with confidence, since that is what I spent my money for.

NHTSA ID

11578086

Incident

Mar 18, 2024