2013 Volkswagen Touareg Owner Complaints

The weld broke at the rear pre cat connection

NHTSA ID

11609208

Incident

Aug 8, 2024

So there’s a campaign to add a bracket to one of the catalytic converters. That’s great except I never knew about it and the thing they added the bracket to prevent happened to me. The exhaust pipe from the catalytic separated from the flange connecting to the manifold. It’s a 2000 dollar part from the dealer. Luckily I found a mechanic who is welding the flange and fixing what I got. Just another example of a car company knowing there’s an issue but not really attempting to fix it, only in a policy no one reads.

NHTSA ID

11562529

Incident

Dec 25, 2023

The sunroof glass of the car spontaneously exploded while driving on the interstate. No rock or object ever hit the glass, and it exploded, sending glass and debris all over myself and my passenger while driving 70mph. The noise was deafening and caused me to swerve as I was so shocked. I easily could have gone in the ditch or hit another car. To make matters worse I was 50 miles from home on a Friday evening so there was no way to get help. I have seen this issue on other Touareg’s but Volkswagen has denied accountability and refuses to cover it. The issue was repaired at a VW dealer and was $2143 to repair. The issue was inspected by my Progressive Insurance rep. This issue came out of nowhere and there were no warning signs.

NHTSA ID

11461600

Incident

Sep 10, 2021

MY SUNROOF IS NOT DRAINING PROPERLY, WATER IS ACCUMULATING IN MY SPARE TIRE WELL IN MY TRUNK WHENEVER IT RAINS.

NHTSA ID

11404744

Incident

Apr 1, 2020

THE DRIVER'S SEATBELT APPEARS TO BE BUCKLED, BUT RELEASES UNDER LOAD. WHEN INSERTING THE END INTO THE BUCKLE IT CLICKS AND LOOKS AND FEELS BUCKLED, BUT WHEN LOADED RELEASES WITHOUT WARNING. THIS OCCURRED WITH DIFFERENT DRIVERS AND RELEASED UNEXPECTEDLY MULTIPLE TIMES WHILE THE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN. REPLACING THE BUCKLE END RESOLVED THE DEFECT.

NHTSA ID

11271256

Incident

Sep 1, 2019

Mileage

60,000 mi

ON JUNE 3, 2019 I WAS TRAVELING SOUTHBOUND ON THE I-5 NEAR TULARE, CALIFORNIA, AT APPROXIMATELY 75MPH WHEN AN INDICATOR LIGHT CAME ON THAT I HAD NEVER SEEN BEFORE. LESS THAN A MINUTE LATER, I BEGAN TO LOSE POWER AND WAS UNABLE TO ACCELERATE. I QUICKLY MOVED TO THE RIGHT LANE AND PREPARED TO EXIT THE FREEWAY LESS THAN A MILE AHEAD. A FEW SECONDS LATER, THE ENGINE COMPLETELY SHUT OFF. I WAS FORCED TO COAST OFF THE FREEWAY, NO POWER, NO POWER STEERING AND QUICKLY LOSING MY BRAKES. I WAS LUCKY THAT THERE WAS AN OPEN PARKING LOT IMMEDIATELY OFF THE FREEWAY THAT I WAS ABLE TO COAST INTO. AFTER SAFELY COMING TO A STOP, I ATTEMPTED TO LOOK UP THE INDICATOR LIGHT ICON IN THE VEHICLE MANUAL. UNABLE TO FIND THE CODE / REASON FOR THE ENGINE FAILURE, I CALLED FOR A TOW TRUCK. THE NEAREST VW DEALERSHIP WAS 45 MILES AWAY SO I OPTED TO HAVE THE VEHICLE TOWED TO A LOCAL EUROPEAN CAR SERVICE SHOP IN TULARE, FRANK'S AUTOMOTIVE. AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, THEY HAD A VW MASTER TRAINED TECHNICIAN ON STAFF. HE RAN THE CODES, CHECKED THE ENGINE AND DETERMINED THAT MY HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP HAD FAILED. HE SAID THE PUMP LITERALLY DISINTEGRATED AND SENT BITS OF ALUMINUM 'SHRAPNEL' THROUGHOUT MY ENTIRE FUEL SYSTEM. THE ENTIRE FUEL SYSTEM WOULD NEED TO BE REPLACED. HE INDICATED THAT THIS WAS A KNOWN ISSUE AND THAT THERE WAS PARTIAL RECALL AS A RESULT. UNFORTUNATELY, MY PARTICULAR MODEL WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL AND VW DECLINED TO ASSIST. THE REPAIR ENDED UP COSTING ME MORE THAN $8,000. IF VW HAD GIVEN ME A WARNING ABOUT THIS ISSUE, I WOULD MOST CERTAINLY HAVE HAD THE PUMP REPLACED BEFORE IT CATASTROPHICALLY FAILED. VW NEEDS TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THESE FAILURES. WHEN THE PUMP FAILS, IT'S CATASTROPHIC!

NHTSA ID

11246442

Incident

Jun 3, 2019

Mileage

163,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE HORN FAILED TO WORK. THE CONTACT RESTARTED THE VEHICLE AND THE STEERING WHEEL MALFUNCTIONED. BAXTER VOLKSWAGEN LA VISTA (7108 S 124TH CIR, LA VISTA, NE 68128, (402) 983-9801) STATED THAT THE AIR BAG CONTROL MODULE AND ASSEMBLY WERE CORRODED, WHICH AFFECTED THE STEERING WHEEL FUNCTIONS, AIR BAGS, AND HORN. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THERE WERE NO RECALLS AND OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE WITH THE REPAIRS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 73,600.

NHTSA ID

11219734

Incident

Jun 11, 2019

Mileage

73,600 mi

STEERING FLUID LEAKED OUT , INTERNAL FAULT WITH RACK SEAL, REPLACED RACK AND PINION ASSEMBLY IN MAY 2019 THIS IS SECOND REPLACEMENT OF RACK AND PINION ON THIS VEHICLE PRIOR REPLACEMENT IN NOVEMBER 2015 I FEEL ITS VERY UNUSUAL TO CHANGE RACK AND PINION ASSEMBLY ON SAME VEHICLE TWICE IN 4 YEARS TIME I HAVE BEEN TOLD IT HAPPENS OFTEN IN VW TOUAREG BUT HAS NOT BEEN REPORTED TO NHTSA

NHTSA ID

11218128

Incident

May 24, 2019

Mileage

2 mi

2013 TOUAREG 3.0L TDI-INTERMITTENT JERKING MOTION OF VEHICLE WHEN IN MOTION, INITIALLY AT LOWER SPEED AND NOW AT 80MPH ON HIGHWAY, INTENSE JERKING OF VEHICLE CAUSING VEHICLE TO LOSE POWER AND NEAR COLLISION WITH VEHICLE BEHIND ME. IT HAS BECOME MORE FREQUENT, ALMOST DAILY OCCURRENCE NOW. I TOOK THE VEHICLE IN IMMEDIATELY TO VW DEALERSHIP. PAPERWORK STATES "ROAD TEST VERIFIED CONCERN" (OF JERKY MOTION AND NOT RUNNING RIGHT). "SCANNED FOR FAULTS. NO FAULTS STORED. NO TSBS, OR TECH TIPS REGARDING CONCERN. SEEMS TO BE A SOFTWARE ISSUE WITH NO REMEDY AT THIS TIME". THE DEALERSHIP ADVISED ME THAT THIS IS A SOFTWARE BUG IN THE EMISSIONS SOFTWARE FIX AND THAT VW HAS NOT SUBMITTED A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN (TSB) TO OPEN AN INVESTIGATION FOR FIX. THEY SAID THAT THERE IS NOTHING THEY CAN DO TO FIX THE PROBLEM. THERE IS ANOTHER CUSTOMER WITH EXACT ISSUE AS MINE. I AM TOLD THAT VW IS NOT COMMUNICATING ANY INFORMATION ON THIS ISSUE BUT IT IS ACKNOWLEDGED THAT THIS IS A SOFTWARE ISSUE BROUGHT ON BY THE EMISSIONS FIX. THE VEHICLE IS NOT DRIVEABLE WITH THIS ISSUE! THE JERKING MOTION IS EXTREMELY UNSAFE TO BE DRIVEN AT ANY SPEED, EXTREMELY UNSAFE ON THE HIGHWAY FROM MY LAST EXPERIENCE WITH NEAR COLLISION WHEN UNPREDICTABLE, SUDDEN, INTENSE JERKING MOTION OCCURRED. SYMPTOM: VEHICLE LOSES POWER BRIEFLY, LIKE IT'S CHOKING, THEN REGAINS CAUSING A FORWARD THRUST FOLLOWED BY ANOTHER POWER LOSS...CAUSING THE JERKING MOTION. DEALERSHIP CLAIMS THERE MAY NOT BE ENOUGH COMPLAINTS FILED ACCORDING TO VW CORPORATE TO INITIATE A TSB. THIS VEHICLE IS NOT DRIVEABLE, NOT SAFE. EVEN ONE COMPLAINT SHOULD INITIATE CAUSE FOR CONCERN TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE OR BUY BACK THE VEHICLE IF THIS IS CAUSED BY THE EMISSIONS SOFTWARE FIX. VEHICLE HAS ALWAYS BEEN SERVICED BY A VW DEALERSHIP ON RECOMMENDED SCHEDULED SERVICE INTERVALS.

NHTSA ID

11195562

Incident

Apr 10, 2019

Mileage

41,000 mi

SUNROOF EXPLODED OUTWARD AND ENTIRE FRONT GLASS SUNROOF WAS SHATTERED. DRIVING ON HIGHWAY AT APPROXIMATELY 70MPH. ALL CAR DOOR WINDOWS WERE OPEN. TEMPURATURE OUTSIDE WAS APPROXIMATELY 85 DEGREES.

NHTSA ID

11118510

Incident

Aug 5, 2018

Mileage

75,000 mi

THE AC EVAPORATION VALVE IS BLOCKED AND THERE IS BETWEEN 2-5 CUPS OF DIRTY CONTAMINATED WATER COMING INTO MY DRIVER SIDE AND PASSENGER FOOT WELL. IT HAS NOW BECOME A PROBLEM MORE THAN WATER DAMAGE AND A CONCERN BECAUSE MY SHOES GET WET AND MAKE THE PEDALS SLICK AND UNSAFE AT TIMES WHILE DRIVING. I JUST DON'T WANT ANYONE TO GET HURST OR CRASH BECAUSE OF THIS ISSUE THAT SHOULD BE RECALLED AND FIXED. I KNOW IT'S HAPPENED TO OTHER VW/AUDI/PORSCHE CARS.

NHTSA ID

11113126

Incident

Jul 20, 2018

Mileage

68,000 mi

AIRBAG LIGHT APPEARED. HORN NOR STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS WORK. ADVISED IT WAS A STEERING WHEEL CLOCK SPRING FAULT. THERE WAS A RECALL BUT THIS PARTICULAR VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED.

NHTSA ID

11072745

Incident

Jan 24, 2018

Mileage

42,000 mi

2013 VOLKSWAGON TOUREG RECALL

NHTSA ID

11065926

Incident

Jan 4, 2018

2013 TDI -HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP FAILURE. HAVE NEVER PUT GASOLINE IN THE TANK. VW HAS REJECTED COST OF REPAIRS.

NHTSA ID

11040499

Incident

Oct 27, 2017

Mileage

100,000 mi

THE CAR JUST SUDDENLY STOPPED WHILE DRIVING ON THE HWY 91 IN LOS ANGELES IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC. VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST POWER AND WITHIN 10 SECONDS COMPLETE STOP AND STALL ON THE HIGHWAY. TOWED TO VW DEALERS AND I WAS INFORMED THAT IS FAILURE OF THE HIGH PRESSURE FUEL PUMP . HTTPS://WWW.EDMUNDS.COM/CAR-NEWS/FEDS-CLOSE-PROBE-INTO-VW-AUDI-TDI-VEHICLES-FOR-HIGH-PRESSURE-FUEL-PUMP-FAILURE.HTML

NHTSA ID

10980989

Incident

Apr 25, 2017

Mileage

64,200 mi

DRIVERS SIDE SEAT WARMER BURNED THROUGH THE SEAT COVER & BURNED THROUGH MY COAT. I WAS DRIVING ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY & FELT THE SEAT BECOME HOT. I TURNED IT OFF & WAS UNAWARE MY SEAT & COAT HAD BURNED UNTIL I REACHED MY DESTINATION. CAR & COAT WERE TAKEN TO DEALERSHIP TO ORDER NEW PARTS TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA ID

10966266

Incident

Mar 13, 2017

Mileage

73,100 mi

I HAVE JUST OVER 50,000 MILES ON MY TOUAREG TDI AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. DEALERSHIP TELLS ME THE ADBLUE HEATER NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AND IT IS NOT COVERED UNDER THE 80K EMISSIONS WARRANTY AND WILL COST ME $1,200 TO REPAIR. HOW CAN THIS NOT BE COVERED WHEN ADBLUE'S SOLE PURPOSE IS TO REMOVE NO2 FOR EMISSIONS? NOW I AM FACED WITH AN EXCESSIVE REPAIR FOR A VEHICLE THAT DOESN'T EVEN MEET EMISSIONS ANYWAY! OWNERS OF TDI 3.0 LITERS, SUCH AS MYSELF, STILL HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE FATE OF OUR VEHICLES WILL BE SINCE THE VW DIESEL SCANDAL BROKE OVER A YEAR AGO. NO IDEA IF THERE WILL BE A FIX OR A BUYBACK. I AM STUCK WITH A CAR THAT IS NOT ONLY LEAKING HARMFUL NO2 INTO THE AIR, BUT HAS SIGNIFICANTLY DIMINISHED IN VALUE. AND NOW I NEED TO INVEST ANOTHER $1,200?!??! I CALLED VW AND THEY ARE NOT WILLING TO OFFER ANY FINANCIAL COMPENSATION FOR THIS REPAIR, NOR IS THE DEALERSHIP WILLING TO PROVIDE A GOODWILL REPAIR. AND I'M TOLD IF I DON'T REPAIR IT, AFTER A CERTAIN NUMBER OF MILES THE CAR WON'T START. SO, I'M HAVING TO INVEST IN A PART FOR THE EMISSIONS SYSTEM AND IT STILL WON'T BE EPA-COMPLIANT. THAT JUST DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10920342

Incident

Sep 16, 2016

Mileage

54,000 mi

ADD BLUE HEATER SYSTEM ON THE DIESEL ENGINE WENT BAD AFTER LESS THAN 42000 MILES. I THOUGHT THIS WAS PART OF THE EMISSION SYSTEM IN THIS CAR BUT VW DOES NOT SEE IT THIS WAY. THEY WANT OVER 1,000 TO FIX THIS ON A CAR THE LIED ABOUT IN THE FIRST PLACE. SEEMS TO BE A BIG MONEY MAKER FOR SOMETHING TO MAKE THE CAR EXAUST CLEAN.

NHTSA ID

10907990

Incident

Jun 15, 2016

Mileage

2 mi

WHILE TRAVELING AT NIGHT ON A 4 LANE HIGHWAY AT 70 MPH IN HEAVY TRAFFIC THE VEHICLE WENT INTO LIMP MODE WITHOUT WARNING OR ANY SYMPTOMS OF A POWER PROBLEM. WE HAD TO MOVE ACROSS FOUR LANES OF CAR AND TRUCK TRAFFIC WHILE RAPIDLY DECELERATING. LUCK AND SKILL PREVAILED TO AVOID A SERIOUS AND POTENTIALLY FATAL ACCIDENT. NO WARNING INDICATORS WERE DISPLAYED. SAFELY IN THE BREAKDOWN LANE THE VEHICLE CONTINUED AN APPROXIMATELY 1300 RPM IDLE AND WOULD MOVE AT ABOUT 15- 20MPH. I STOPPED THE VEHICLE AND THE ACCLERATOR PEDAL CONTINUED TO BE UNRESPONSIVE. I PLACED THE VEHICLE IN NEUTRAL WITH NO CHANGE IN THE ABILITY TO INCREASE RPM WITH THE ACCELERATOR. I SHIFTED BACK TO DRIVE AND NORMAL ACCELERATION FUNCTION RETURNED. WE DROVE ANOTHER 35-40 MINUTES WITHOUT FURTHER PROBLEMS. THE NEXT MORNING THE VEHICLE DROVE NORMALLY AND I TOOK IT TO THE VW DEALER. THEIR DIAGNOSTIC REVIEW SHOWED NO ISSUES AND NO MALFUNCTIONS WERE DETECTED.

NHTSA ID

10898760

Incident

Aug 25, 2016

Mileage

38,350 mi

THE STEERING WHEEL HAS A SHAKE, SHIMMY, OR VIBRATION BETWEEN 70-80MPH. 72MPH BEING THE MOST OBVIOUS. IT ALSO TENDS TO PULL MOSTLY TO THE RIGHT. IT CURRENTLY IS IN FOR ITS 2ND ATTEMPT AT REPAIR. THE FIRST WAS A REMOUNT AND REBALANCE OF ALL 4 WHEELS AS WELL AS "CLEANING" THE HUBS. THIS WAS TO COMPLY WITH THEIR OWN INTERNAL TSB. I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS FIXED AND IT IS NOT. I'M WAITING TO PICK IT UP.

NHTSA ID

10717211

Incident

May 12, 2015

Mileage

18,400 mi

WHEN THE VEHICLE IS DRIVEN AT SPEEDS BETWEEN 60 MPH - 75 MPH THE STEERING WHEEL SHAKES BACK AND FORTH. THE STEERING WHEEL SHAKE IS NOTICEABLE TO THE POINT THAT IF YOU TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF THE STEERING WHEEL YOU LITERALLY CAN SEE THE STEERING WHEEL VIBRATE BACK AND FORTH. THE AIR PRESSURE IN THE TIRES HAS BEEN CHECKED, THE TIRES HAVE BEEN ROTATED AND THE VOLKSWAGEN DEALER HAS ROAD FORCE BALANCED THE TIRES 2X IN AN ATTEMPT TO RESOLVE THE ISSUE OVER THE DURATION OF A YEAR. THE ATTEMPTS BY VOLKSWAGEN HAS NOT RESOLVED THE ISSUE AND THEY HAVE NO ANSWER TO WHY THE VEHICLE IS NOT PERFORMING CORRECTLY. *TR

NHTSA ID

10644612

Incident

Jul 22, 2013

Mileage

6,000 mi

2013 VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE FACTORY TRAILER HITCH ISSUES. *SMD THE CONSUMER STATED THE ADVERTISING OF THE VEHICLE ABLE TO TOW 7,600 WAS MISLEADING, WHEN IN FACT THE OWNER'S MANUAL READ USE ONLY A WEIGHT-CARRYING TRAILER HITCH. NEVER INSTALL A WEIGHT DISTRIBUTING OR LOAD EQUALIZING TRAILER HITCH ON THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE IS NOT DESIGNED FOR THIS PARTICULAR KIND OF HITCH. THE CONSUMER STATED HE WAS NOT AWARE OF ANY ITEM, SUCH AS A BOAT, CAMPER, ETC, OF OVER 4,000 POUNDS THAT WOULD NOT REQUIRE THE USE OF A WEIGHT-DISTRIBUTING HITCH. THE CONSUMER DECIDED NOT TO PURCHASE THE VEHICLE. *JB

NHTSA ID

10605258

Incident

May 16, 2014

MY DAUGHTER WAS DRIVING AND I WAS WITH HER. SHE HAS HER PERMIT. MY TOUREG STALLED THREE TIMES. ONCE AT A STOP LIGHT AND SHORT AFTER WITH HER DRIVING. IT WAS VERY SCARY AND DANGEROUS. IN ADDITION, ON WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11TH. I EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM. MY CAR IS AT THE DEALERSHIP CLOSE TO ME. THEY SAID THEY ADJUSTED SOMETHING WITH THE THROTTLE. I ALSO HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH THE SHAKING IN THE STEERING WHEEL AT SPEEDS OF 65-70 MPH. THEY ARE ALIGNING IT TO SEE IF THAT WILL SOLVE THE PROBLEM. I AM KIND OF SCARED TO DRIVE WITH THE STALLING PROBLEM. I HOPE THIS RESOLVES IT, OTHERWISE IT WILL BE BACK IN THE SHOP! THIS IS SOMETHING THAT VW NEEDS TO TAKE SERIOUSLY. I LOVE MY CAR BUT WANT IT TO BE SAFE! *JS

NHTSA ID

10598064

Incident

Jun 11, 2014

Mileage

21,000 mi

I WAS TURNING ACROSS TRAFFIC (LEFT). I STARTED TO CROSS TRAFFIC AND THE VEHICLE STALLED, ALMOST SEEM TO DIE, THEN RECOUPED AND WENT ACROSS. THIS HAS HAPPENED 2 TIMES IN 1000 MILES. I ALMOST GOT HIT BY ON-COMING TRAFFIC THE FIRST TIME. IT IS A VERY SERIOUS SITUATION AND ONE THAT COULD CAUSE INJURY, OR WORSE, DEATH. I WAS TOLD BY A VW SERVICE MANAGER, AT A DEALERSHIP, THAT IT WAS A TRANSMISSION HESITATION AND THAT IT WAS NORMAL FOR A DIESEL. I HAVE DRIVEN DIESELS ALL MY LIFE AND THIS IS NOT NORMAL FOR A DIESEL, OR ANY OTHER VEHICLE FOR THAT MATTER. I HAVE ASKED TO HAVE A VW REPRESENTATIVE CONTACT ME BUT HAVE HEARD NOTHING SO FAR. *TR

NHTSA ID

10578592

Incident

Mar 26, 2014

Mileage

34,978 mi

THE CAR KEEPS HAVING A CLICKING NOISE ON THE BACK, SUSPENSION PARTS WERE REPLACED BUT IT DOES KEEP HAVING THE SAME NOISE, BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP IT IS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10559317

Incident

Oct 22, 2013

Mileage

8,000 mi