Owner-reported complaints naming the airbag system, filed with NHTSA
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Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2015 Volkswagen Passat submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 88 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 88, in the owner's own words
The vehicle was rear-ended, lost control, traveled approximately 500 feet, and rolled multiple times. Side and curtain airbags deployed; however, the front airbags did not deploy. The vehicle was declared a total loss. The driver exited the vehicle without assistance. The vehicle is currently preserved at a tow lot.
The airbag system/clockspring assembly in the steering column appears to have failed. The airbag warning light turned on and all steering-wheel controls stopped working at the same time, which indicates that the driver airbag may not function in a crash. The vehicle can be inspected upon request. This is a major safety risk because the primary airbag might not deploy during a collision, putting the driver at high risk of injury. The issue has remained constant since it first appeared. I had the vehicle inspected by a highly reputable independent repair shop, and their assessment was that the clockspring/airbag component has failed. They advised that the necessary replacement part is unavailable to order, leaving the vehicle without a functional airbag system. I have also seen many other owners of similar 2015 Passat models reporting the same failure online, which suggests this may be a widespread defect. The airbag light is the only warning I received. It turned on a few months ago and has stayed on continuously since. UNKNOWN if there are other related electrical faults.
Clock spring failure. 2015 passat steering wheel started clicking then it snapped my airbag light came on and steering wheel functions didn't work. The sa
I was driving the car as usual. I needed to make a u turn at a light where it was safe and legal to do so. I heard a clicking sound and I don’t know what happened. I can’t use anything on the steering wheel.
The vehicle was totaled but I continue to receive recall notices to the point of harassment. I have called the hotline number and notified them dozens of times. I signed the vehicle over to the insurance. It is scrapped. I don't know how else to make that more clear.
The three issues above seems to be related or affect the other and does not allow cruise control to operate. The air bag light remains on and associated component light up the dash. Surprisingly, my VIN does not show up for air bag repair. I wish I did not have to wait for possible recall announcement for my vehicle before I can get it repaired and instead to fix it now. Frustrating.
While driving the EPC light came on and the car stopped driving. Vehicle was towed to local VW dealership, a FULL engine rebuild took place and a faulty intake valve spring was found, after replacing the injectors and seal kits. Then to replace the faulty electronic ignition switch. Over $3k in repairs for faulty parts. It was a safety risk because the vehicle stopped working in the middle of driving, in traffic with no other indication that something was wrong prior on a major road in the city. Since then, the vehicle has had constant issues with oil being low even after an oil change, no leaks were detected or reported. Also, the airbags and clockspring was supposed to be replaced. My airbag light came on in 3/2023 and it sounds like the clock spring is broken. Horn and electronics do not work from the steering column.
I was driving my 2015vVolkswagen Passat and noticed that the airbag light came on without any prior warning. It's not showing for a recall but a couple years ago Volkswagen fixed something on the car pertaining to the airbag. The horn , none of the control buttons on the steering when work
Failed part: Clock spring. Yes, the work was appropriately installed. This is my fourth replacement within less than 100k miles. No additional inspections as of yet. No warning lights, just a faint click coming from the steering wheels while making turns two days prior to hearing a snapping noise. My air bag light illuminated and my dash notified me of an air bag error. Lost all connection to steering wheel controls and horn. This is the same thing that has happened every time prior. The car is inoperable, once again, due to clock spring failure. I cannot drive my vehicle as I am concerned about not having safety features of an air bag and a horn. This has been an ongoing issue with VW. I have been the only owner of this vehicle for almost nine years.
Clockspring is bad as noted by many other owners. Airbag light is lit and horn doesn’t work
I purchased this car from what I believed was a private individual for my 15 year old daughter as her first car. This individual knew the purpose of this sale and was accutely aware that a new driver would be the primary driver. Before allowing her to drive this car, I had a detailed safety and condition inspection completed by a local import repair specialist. They found that there had been a deployment of the air bags resulting in the clock spring and front seat belt retractors being unusable. In addition, the air bag warning light had been removed from the instrument cluster and the bulb was removed, disguising the fact that there was an issue with the air bags. Further inspection showed overspray on one headlight lens from the repairs, the ac condenser was bent upwards, none of the splash shields under the front were intact or completely missing, body panels do not line up, and there is an issue with the front brakes. It is the opinion of the inspector and the business owner that this car had been reconditioned for a quick sale, intentionally hiding the fact the air bags had been deployed and the air bag system was rendered unusable. The CarFax shows minor damage to the rear and left rear, nothing about front end. The title reflects this car was at Adesa in Jacksonville FL (a car reconditioner) and sold to NES Enterprises of Jacksonville, then sold to Performance Motor Group, who sold it to me, all between 9/22/2022 and 10/31/2023. The individual I was dealing with was not involved in this sale.
In a multi-vehicle rear end collision, the airbags in the vehicle did not deploy. My vehicle was totaled and I sustained medical injuries.
Drivers airbag and horn do not work. According to VW it's due to a defective clock spring. The problem has existed since February 2022 and we still cannot get it fixed. According to VW the part is on back order. The car is available for inspection upon request. This creates a significant safety concern for the driver of the car as the air bag is one of the primary safety features. The problem has been confirmed by the O'Steen VW in Jacksonville, FL. The car does have a warning message that alerted us to the problem. My concern is VW has not been able to fix the problem for over 6 months and still cannot provide a timeframe for when the part will be available. According toe O'Steen VW this is a nationwide issue and that over 8,000 people are waiting on the part, which is very concerning.
The clockspring on my 2015 Passat went out at the beginning of July. The part is on major backorder and I was told that it won't be in for at minimum a year. I do not have an airbag, a horn, or access to any of the controls on the steering wheel. My local dealership was of no assistance. There was no warnings when the clockspring failed.
The clock spring has broken again. The clock spring had been replaced on this vehicle in spring 2020, it is currently summer 2022. The vehicle currently has approximately 162,000 miles. I am concerned because the VW dealers state that there is a nationwide back order on this part, with people waiting since early 2022 for the part at this time.
The contact owns a 2015 Volkswagen Passat. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V014000 (Air Bags) however, the contact stated that the part to do the recall repair was available; however, the dealer and the manufacturer denied the repair due to a breathalyzer being installed in the vehicle. The contact had not experienced a failure. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. Parts distribution disconnect.
Hello, Airbag light on, horn doesn't work, volume control on steering wheel doesn't work, clicking when turning steering wheel. Huge safety issue with the airbag and horn not functioning at all! Cannot get pass Massachusetts inspection in its current state and have reached out to the dealer. Car was brought to Mattie Volkswagen Fall River, MA on 02/18/2022 and was told part was on backorder and they will contact me when it comes in. It has been 6+ months and still now clocksprings in stock. I check in often with them and they either don't respond or say still on backorder with no ETA. This could cause a catastrophic accident and VW needs to step up to either expedite manufacturing of these parts, offer loaner/rental vehicles or replace the vehicle with a comparable model that doesn't have these issues. Dealer needs to replace the Clockspring on the vehicle, which they claim is in warranty. However, the clocksprings have a huge backorder and don't show any signs of being filled.
The airbag on the driver's side, along with the horn and buttons on the steering wheel do not work. The VW dealership has looked at the car and said it needs a new clock spring, and that it is on back order with no estimation of arrival. The car is unsafe to drive and both the VW dealership and VW head office have not offered a loaner vehicle for me to drive my family in safely while we wait for the parts. Without an airbag, I could be seriously injured in an accident. I was also very nearly in a car accident that would have been prevented had the horn worked to alert the other driver sooner that nearly backed into me. The other continuing issue with this car is that there are still ongoing issues with the Diesel Exhaust Fluid system. This system has had problems for years. The VW dealership has replaced parts on it numerous times but it continues to have problems. This car should never have gone back on the market after the initial recall, as the DEF system was never repaired correctly, and the airbag should be on recall already.
The clockspring has failed. It was identified by Safford VW in Fredericksburg in March 3 2022 because of the airbag light illuminating. I was told the clockspring part is on national backorder and given my car back. The Horn does not work, the airbag light is on, the airbags would not function in the steering wheel if needed and none of the steering controls work. The vehicle will not pass state inspection. The dealer will not provide a rental for this issue and VW cannot provide any information on this backordered part. VW requires the dealer to provide a rental for 10 days before they will consider a buyback of the vehicle for a warranty repair and the dealer refuses to provide a rental for clockspring issues. I have repeatedly called Safford VW for updates who told me they have multiple vehicles waiting for the same part and cannot help me. I called VW and they also cannot provide any updates for this part and have no resolve on how to make my vehicle safe to drive on a factory warranted part. I requested a vehicle buy back with VW and the request was denied because the vehicle has to have been at the dealer for more than 10 days OR multiple repairs for the same problem. I am stuck in a loop with VW and a faulty factored warranted part that cannot be produced.
Clockspring broke so no airbag and the dealership won’t fix it and it’s under warranty.
The contact owns a 2015 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the air bag warning light illuminated. Additionally, the horn was inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the clockspring needed to be replaced; however, the clockspring part was on backorder. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was opened. The manufacturer informed the contact that an ETA for parts was not available. The failure mileage was approximately 167,000.
Clockspring broke when making a turn in the drive-thru pharmacy. Loud pop, then lost all power to steering wheel. Horn does not work, none of the controls work and the airbag is not guaranteed to work. Car has been at dealership for 5 months waiting for a repair. No ETA for 5 months now....
The car have received the airbag replacement per the takata airbag recall approximately 2 years ago, as of Jan 29 2022, the clock spring has failed shortly after hearing the crunching sounds as I steered the vehicle. immediately airbag light came on, horn and steering wheel buttons wont work at all. we took the car in and VW confirmed that was a failed part. They even mentioned that the clock spring itself is new along with the airbag. fast forward few months and we still are waiting for the clock spring. I even contacted my trusted vendor that sells only OEM parts and they have one in stock, exact same part number and VWoA refused to reimburse me if I am to buy it. this is a serious safety concern! I cant even use my horn at all to warn rude drivers that cuts me off almost everyday. we have 3 children to think about!
While at the dealership for other emission related warranty items, the vehicle clock spring broke which disabled the driver side air bag, the horn and other steering wheel related controls. This occurred in late December 2021. The replacement part was on back order with no definitive delivery date provided. As of today, 4/5/22, the item is still on backorder with no estimate date for parts.
During a left hand turn a loud "pop" occurred in the steering wheel while illuminated the Air Bag error light and disabled the horn and all steering wheel controls. I called Volkswagen about the errors and was transferred around on phone system, hung up on while transferring, message left with no contact back. While searching online have found numerous air bag recalls with clock spring issues but this model is not showing it although it is obvious it has failed. The car is not currently safe to drive and is parked, I currently own 4 of these VW TDI Passat's and need this addressed. Thank You
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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