Volkswagen Passat

Volkswagen Passat Reviews

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About Volkswagen Passat

The Volkswagen Passat is a large 4-door coupe that's marketed as a family car. Read more Volkswagen reviews to learn about other models.


Volkswagen Passat Reviews

ConsumerAffairs has collected 348 reviews and 1,201 ratings.

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Page 1 Reviews 0 - 10
PricePunctuality & Speed

Reviewed Nov. 11, 2023

Timing chain failed on our 2016 Passat. All oil changes done on time with full synthetic as specified in the manual. Engine ruined and costs more to repair than the car is worth. I'd never touch a VW again. Strictly Toyota or Honda from now on. There was a class action lawsuit on this issue but it was already settled so our car didn't qualify. Plus it only went to 100,000 miles. A chain should not fail this early. A belt yes, it should be replaced at 90K, but not a chain. Clearly this problem hasn't been fixed.

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Reviewed Sept. 8, 2023

They say they will keep my car in service for 1 month or more, but they do not give a loaner. If I had not contacted Volkswagen about the claim I made 3 years ago, they would not have informed me that the claim was approved.

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    Reviewed June 2, 2023

    I have a 2021 VW Passat R-Line. My rear pads are grinding into the rotors at 19K miles. Service stated that the calipers are not sticking or seized, therefore, it's considered normal wear. My fronts are still brand new. I have had over 25 cars in the my life, last 5 being VW's. I had a 2018 Passat R-Line before this one. I have never seen anything like this. I couldn't do that to the rear brakes even if I tried to sabotage them intentionally. I was charged $630 for the repair. I'm a former auto tech and I have never seen this. Either VW changed their brake pad supplier or there is a defect in the rear braking system. If this is normal as the shop foreman stated, how is VW even selling cars?! He stated that there's a possibility I may need to replace them again before my lease is up. This is a plenty a reason NEVER TO LEASE/BUY ANOTHER VW. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE AND NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED.

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    Sales & MarketingPunctuality & Speed

    Reviewed Jan. 12, 2023

    On Dec 15, I was driving to pick up my son at College 60 miles (New Jersey Turnpike) from my house. It was after 7 p.m. and fully dark. The EPC light and Check Engine light came on. The car started bucking and shuddering. It was storming; raining very hard and very windy. I was afraid to pull over and wait for Triple A. The car made it home. A friend graciously lent me their car. NO VW Dealers were open at that time. The next morning I called the VW Dealers in my area, informed them of my emergency. They said “SORRY. CAN’T HELP YOU. Can’t see you for several weeks, Bye.” So, now what? A single-working mom, an essential worker, a child in school and a disabled child at home in an emergency situation and getting NO help with the VW which I bought because of the VAUNTED warranty.

    Should I miss work, have the car towed to either of the unhelpful dealers and let it sit for WEEKS until they could take a quick look and let me know what the issue is? Should I also prepare to RENT a car for that time? Those options are NOT options... I called a local shop – 2 miles from my house. They diagnosed the issues and told me that since they don’t carry VW parts they would have to order them. They DROVE ME HOME, picked up the parts and fixed the car all in one business day. They picked me up and I paid the $1200 bill.

    But hey, I have a warranty! With VW “the people’s car” It will work out. Needless to say, it has not worked out. I called CS. This is what I have learned so far: The warranty is a sham. I needed to break completely down, be stranded on a dangerous stretch of highway late at night. Then I should have had my car towed miles to a dealer, where it could sit for weeks while I rented a car. THEN, I might have qualified for warranty coverage/reimbursement. Do I have that right? That is really how you would treat a customer? Do you think I am trying to scam you out of any portion of $1200???? Does your word mean nothing? This is how you do business?

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    Customer ServicePunctuality & SpeedStaff

    Reviewed Dec. 7, 2022

    Worse experiences ever. VW CANADA IS USELESS AND WON'T DO ANYTHING FOR YOU, DOESN'T EVEN CALL YOU BACK WHEN THEY SAY and yes I mean more than one. I have been stuck dealing with them for yes 3 years with nothing but headaches. They say they fix one thing and then week goes by and it's broken again. I had under warranty my turbo go, they fixed it and week later not even a week the turbo went again. Then they took around 2 years to get the second turbo with telling me that it would be there soon and no communication only lies. Then I wanted to return the car because sitting there for two years would only create problems and sure enough they wouldn't take it. I did not take a loaner car for the time they had it, as I didn't want them to say that they gave me something while I was waiting. Customer service team sucks from VW that is a joke as well. I will never buy another VW again. What a joke.

    The dealership is also bad then. When they gave me my car back the seal *(of course I as I said sitting for 2 years) went on the cooling system. I had to pay for that. They fixed it. Only two weeks later I have a damaged radiator with a leak in it that they say just happened. Now another bill for that, this is a joke. Every mechanic said there is no way that would happen by itself. Oh and the rad fan is cracked with no physical damage anywhere on the vehicle, remember this is a inner rad and fan. Nothing can get in except the mechanic that worked on it. What a joke.

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    Reviewed May 31, 2021

    Being a senior citizen I have had without exaggeration at least 50 cars. The Volkswagen Passat TDI SEL was the best car I've ever owned. When Diesel Gate first came out I thought I'm not doing anything I'm keeping the car. Well Volkswagen made me an offer I could not refuse. I drove that car for 5 years for absolutely free. We took the money and ended up with an Audi Q5 which has been a gem and I love it but it is not my favorite car. I am so sorry to hear all the other Passat owners were having issue upon issue as our Passat never had one lick of trouble. If I could find that very car today I would buy it without question.

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    Price

    Reviewed Jan. 19, 2021

    My opinion about my Volkswagen Passat 2007 Rline: Generally the car is overwhelming. Everything is great when we consider a car from a 2007 still running on such harsh terrain like Libyan land and crashed roads With ease Even if the car parts is little expensive though. But the Passat is super great choice for families such as mine. Everyone can enjoy the the sedan car luxury in cheap and flexible way.

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    Reviewed Oct. 3, 2020

    I bought a brand new Volkswagen Passat and had nothing but problems. Electrical issues, and motor burned up on window and now EPC light on and Check engine light on and only has 45k miles on it. Best advice is don’t do it. I feel this car has been a lemon from day 1. I would not recommend this car to anyone.

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    Reviewed July 4, 2020

    My German built Passat 2.0 TDI DSG is now 18 months old with 10,000 km on the odometer. Have not returned to the dealership even once because I've had zero problems. The Passat's positive attributes include comfort, and being nice to drive due to the torquey engine, smooth gearbox, well weighted steering & brakes. Controls are logical, the instruments clear, and the LED headlights bright. The interior accommodates four adults, the trunk is large and regularly shaped, you get spare wheel and not a useless puncture repair kit, build quality and interior finish are best in class.

    This Passat TDI was purchased post-diesel-gate, it produces a genuine 44mg NOx/km (a minimal amount) and the highway fuel economy (55mpgUS / 4.3 litre/100km) is the best of any car I've driven, better than even small sub-compacts. City driving consumption is approximately double that figure, the 66 litre fuel tank is good for over 500 miles. Some nice touches include heated front seats, headrests which adjust forward & back, door mirror dips when reverse is selected, remote opening/closing of windows from remote, trunk lid springs-up when remotely opened, but best of all must be the adoptive cruise control which works very well and rarely needs to be over-ridden.

    There are of course a few areas for improvement. The back seat does not fold down low enough meaning the pass-through from the trunk is restricted. There are auto wipers & headlights, but no auto dim function. The only really annoying issues I have discovered are; it appears VW has designed-in an obstruction in the sump which prevents the insertion of an oil suction pipe through the dipstick tube, this and the subterranean location of the oil filter mean it's necessary to put the car on a lift, and remove the lower panel to perform a simple oil and filter change. Will this discourage frequent oil changes, a must have for long trouble-free engine life?

    Another longer term concern is the large number of engine components and fasteners manufactured from low grade black recycled plastic which becomes brittle with age leading to lots of problems starting around year eight or nine, sooner when the car is owned in hot locations such as Texas. Best not to keep this car too long!

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    CoveragePrice

    Reviewed Feb. 13, 2020

    So I purchased a 2014 Passat TDI back in OCT 2019 which was one from the big buy out after the diesel gate fiasco. Since then, I've been in the dealership every month of owning this car. Nov 2019 went in to change the NOX sensor. Dec 2019 the O2 sensor failed, the didn't have the part so had to return to have it replaced in Jan 2020. I didn't pay anything because it was all covered under the emissions modification warranty. However just recently (Feb 2020) I went to fill up and was unable to because the fuel was spill out of the tank since it just kept shutting off the gas station pump.

    Went to the dealership (Again!) and it turns out a couple components failed related to the fuel tank that need to be changed and is not covered under the warranty. Customer relations and the dealership said the fuel tank is covered but not the components and that it would have been if the car was 4 years/ 80,000 km. Now the first owner only had the vehicle for 3 years when it was resold to VW and sat in a lot for about 2 years. The emissions modification was done in Aug 2019 and I got it with 38,000 km+. The components ARE related to the fuel tank!! because without it you can't fill up and the car one huge expensive paper weight!!! I ended up paying $455.00 +tax just 4 months into ownership for something that should fail like this in the first place!!. I wanted to own a VW for a long time especially a TDI but man I'm really regretting this purchase and mow just looking forward to getting rid of it!!! I'm done and recommend you stay clear of VW TDI!!

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    Volkswagen Passat Company Information

    Company Name:
    Volkswagen Passat
    Website:
    www.vw.com