← New search

2015 Volkswagen Passat

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Passat years

Owner complaints for the 2015 Volkswagen Passat are substantially higher than the model-year median of 110.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

132 reports with mileage · 111 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Air Bags. Review the 88 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 53 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 48 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

11 crash reports2 fire reports7 injury reports

Air Bags complaints

88 reports
Clear category filter
Mileage unknown · Nov 18, 2022
Air BagsElectrical SystemSeat Belts

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 …

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11494168

Mileage unknown · Nov 1, 2022
Air BagsCrashInjury

In a multi-vehicle rear end collision, the airbags in the vehicle did not deploy. My vehicle was totaled and I sustained medical injuries.

NHTSA ODI #11491742

Mileage unknown · Oct 3, 2022
Air Bags

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 th…

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11487735

Mileage unknown · Sep 13, 2022
Air Bags

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 clocksprin…

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11484292

Mileage unknown · Sep 11, 2022
Air BagsElectrical SystemSteering

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 pa…

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11483905

Mileage unknown · Sep 8, 2022
Air Bags

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 …

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11483551

Mileage unknown · Aug 19, 2022
Air BagsUnknown Or Other

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 Volkswa…

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11480147

Mileage unknown · Jul 5, 2022
Air BagsUnknown Or Other

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 …

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11472349

Mileage unknown · Jun 17, 2022
Air BagsUnknown Or Other

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 a…

Read full complaint

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.

NHTSA ODI #11469780

Mileage unknown · May 24, 2022
Air Bags

Clockspring broke so no airbag and the dealership won’t fix it and it’s under warranty.

NHTSA ODI #11466003

Official recalls

7

19V862000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

Dec 4, 2019

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2015 Passat, 2011-2014 Golf A6, and 2011-2013 Audi A3 diesel vehicles, thought to have been previously repaired under one of the Takata air bag recalls. The driver's side air bag inflator may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's side air bag inflators, free of charge. The recall began December 20, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 69R6, 69Q8, 69Q9, and 69Y5.

19V389000 · Exterior Lighting:headlights

May 22, 2019

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2020 Volkswagen Passat and 2018-2019 Atlas vehicles. The blocking cap disabling the adjustment of the headlight's horizontal aim may not have been installed. As such, these vehicles fail to conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Without the blocking cap, the headlight aim can be adjusted out of specification, reducing visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, block the headlight horizontal adjustment, free of charge. The recall began July 16, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 94L9.

19V014000 · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module

Jan 11, 2019

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2015 Passat, 2015-2016 Eos, 2015-2017 CC, 2016-2017 TT Roadster, TT Coupe, 2017 Audi R8 Coupe, and R8 Spyder vehicles. Upon deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, excessive internal pressure may cause the inflator to explode.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could explode with metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants potentially resulting in serious injury or death.

Remedy: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's frontal air bag inflator with an alternative inflator, free of charge. The recall began March 4, 2019. Volkswagen owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298; Audi owners may contact Audi at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69S8 (Audi) and 69Y5 (Volkswagen).

15V705000 · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine; Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist:vacuum

Oct 26, 2015

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Jetta, Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Passat, Golf and Golf SportWagen vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the camshaft lobe that drives the brake vacuum pump may shear off, resulting in a loss of brake assist.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the camshaft lobe shears off there would be a loss of brake assist, lengthening the distance needed to stop the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen dealer will update the engine control module (ECM) software. The recall began March 2016. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 23R1.

Additional source detail variants (2)

Engine And Engine Cooling:engine

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Jetta, Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Passat, Golf and Golf SportWagen vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the camshaft lobe that drives the brake vacuum pump may shear off, resulting in a loss of brake assist.

Consequence: If the camshaft lobe shears off there would be a loss of brake assist, lengthening the distance needed to stop the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen dealer will update the engine control module (ECM) software. The recall began March 2016. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 23R1.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist:vacuum

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Jetta, Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Passat, Golf and Golf SportWagen vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the camshaft lobe that drives the brake vacuum pump may shear off, resulting in a loss of brake assist.

Consequence: If the camshaft lobe shears off there would be a loss of brake assist, lengthening the distance needed to stop the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen dealer will update the engine control module (ECM) software. The recall began March 2016. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 23R1.

15V373000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings

Jun 15, 2015

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2015 Passat vehicles manufactured May 18, 2015, to May 21, 2015. The affected vehicles have a brake line at the left rear wheel area that may not have been properly tightened.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: If the brake line was not properly tightened, it may leak brake fluid, causing a reduction in braking performance, lengthening the distance needed to stop the vehicle and increasing the risk of crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen has notified owners, and dealers will tighten the brake line fitting, free of charge. The recall began on June 11, 2015. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 47M3.

15V028000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:fuel Injection System:fuel Rail

Jan 23, 2015

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 Jetta vehicles manufactured March 28, 2014, to November 24, 2014, 2014-2015 Passat vehicles manufactured April 7, 2014, to November 18, 2014, 2015 Golf and GTI vehicles manufactured July 1, 2014, to November 20, 2014, and 2014-2015 Beetle and Beetle Convertible vehicles manufactured March 31, 2014, to November 27, 2014. A sealing cap at the fuel rail may fail, allowing fuel to leak into the engine compartment.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A fuel leak, in the presence of an ignition source, can result in a vehicle fire.

Remedy: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel rails with new parts, free of charge. The recall began February 6, 2015. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 24BL. Note: This recall expands and supersedes recall 14V-809 (Volkswagen recall number 24Bi) and only affects vehicles not previously repaired under that campaign.

14V670000 · Seats

Oct 24, 2014

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2015 Volkswagen Jetta and Passat vehicles manufactured September 23, 2014, to October 9, 2014, and equipped with manual front seatback recliners. In the affected vehicles, the seatback recliner retaining bracket may not engage correctly, resulting in unexpected movement of the seatback.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: Unexpected movement of the driver's seatback may distract the driver, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the assembly of the seatback recliner retaining bracket, correcting it as necessary, free of charge. The recall began in October 2014. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 72F1.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.