2021 Volkswagen ID.4 Exterior lighting Problems

The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen ID.4. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle shut off while driving to the residence from the dealer. The vehicle was restarted and operated normally. Prior to the failure, several software updates were performed under recall. The contact was referred to an out-of-state dealer to perform the software updates. No further information was available. Recently, the contact exited the vehicle and discovered that the doors would not open and the front headlights were illuminated. The contact crawled through the hatch to open the trunk and disconnect the 12-Volt battery. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000.

NHTSA ID

11720381

Incident

Nov 19, 2025

Mileage

58,000 mi

Dome lights in vehicle turn on and off on their own. Trying to turn them off does not work. They keep turning off and on. This seems to be a known issue by other owners and the dealerships. At night it is very distracting and could be dangerous when a lone driver is paying more attention trying to turn them off or having visibility issue with the light turning on inside the car.

NHTSA ID

11707298

Incident

Dec 7, 2025

I have turn signal lamps burned out on both sides of my 2021 VW ID4. When driving straight, the burnt out lights are part of daytime running lights. Half of the light is burnt out. But when you turn on your turn indicator, this light IS the turn indicator. So half my turn indicator on both sides, isn’t working. The only way to fix this where VW is concerned is to buy and install new headlight assemblies. The cost to replace both is $4300 as you must remove the bumper and other parts, install the new headlamps, put everything back together and then recalibrate everything. This is safety equipment on LED lights, something that was advertised and expected to last the lifetime of the vehicle, and it is failing only 2-4 years into ownership. There are many many people complaining about this exact failure on ID4 national websites and given this is a systematic failure of safety equipment, I feel VW should bear the entire cost of fixing it, not the consumer.

NHTSA ID

11681657

Incident

Feb 1, 2025

when purchased from dealer . was told there were no recalls. Called Volkswagen america. said they would fix soon. no repair aviable. Car is unsafe.

NHTSA ID

11618254

Incident

Jul 7, 2024

I bought my ID4 new at the end of May 2021. When it started to get cold my car started losing Mileage Very Rapidly and I kept getting an Error for 12Volt power supply. Carnet would not work and car could not be opened without pushing unlock "key". Car was serviced Jan 24 and still had a problem. Next time the individual who works on EVs talked to VW and ordered a new battery, Feb 9. Battery replaced Feb 23. When leaving dealership and pulling out onto the main road the car appeared to completely stall out . Started right back on it’s own but I could have been hit by the car coming up behind me easily. When I mentioned it to the Service guy he stated it was proably the computer resetting the system. Fault notice appeared that stated Fault Electronic Child Safety Lock. Cook VW was notified when I took my car in for service. Since then Warning and Information not available light came on and they did not work. Interior ID lighting not working correctly. March 9 more alerts have come on. Individual that worked on the car has been great and listened to my concerns then gone back, rechecked, called VW and now has ordered more parts. The ID indicator light in front dash still not working. Passenger side door will not open until 3-4 attempts. Has been an ongoing problem Rear drivers side door will not open from the inside. March 30 2022. Fault Electronic Child Safety Lock keeps coming on when car is started (picture.) Unable to open Drivers rear side door in back from the inside. Light does not show it is locked.

NHTSA ID

11461195

Incident

Jan 9, 2022

The reverse illumination AT NIGHT is non-existant and this puts our safety and the safety of others at risk. When we called the dealership they told us we would be wasting our time to bring the car in, they knew of the problem and said it was a defect in the design and they could not fix it. We were put in contact with the VW Customer Service and spoke with Region Case Manager Kenneth Swantek and he denied the existence of a problem. To document the problem we brought our vehicle to the Tracy VW dealership and had it examined by a QTM. His response was that the vehicle is "operating as designed" without offering any solution to this problem. This problem has existed since the purchase of our vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11458035

Incident

Mar 23, 2022

When driving in reverse my vehicle does not have a clear view based on the rear lights installed. The lighting design does not light the area behind the vehicle sufficiently and poses great risk of hitting child or object behind vehicle. Rear camera is essentially rendered useless during nighttime driving and or parking.

NHTSA ID

11446814

Incident

Jan 9, 2022

The back up camera lighting is so poor it poses a danger at night. Backing up at night even in well lit areas poses a threat to those around the car. If you apply the brakes this emits some light but if not braking the screen is almost black so it is difficult to see if you are on the road/driveway and if an object was below the camera would pose a threat to life or damage to the vehicle.

NHTSA ID

11444780

Incident

Dec 22, 2021

On 9/28, I purchased my vehicle from Fairfax Volkswagen. On that date, I noticed the error message on the display, but the salesman said it was nothing to worry about. That following week, I noticed several vehicles flashing their lights at me. Later that evening, I discovered the left headlight day running lamp was not functional, and the high beam would not turn off. In addition, I notice the right headlight was not functioning properly as well. The following day, I took the vehicle to be inspected at Ourisman Volkswagen of Waldorf Maryland. I was informed the left and right headlight would need to be replaced on the vehicle due to some form of electrical malfunction.

NHTSA ID

11437691

Incident

Sep 28, 2021