2022 Volkswagen Tiguan

An error, "Travel Assist Not Working" intermittently pops up and then disappears. This has been happening for several months. Sometimes many times per minute. In one instance, up to 10x in one minute. It is a safety issue as it has a loud ding every time it happens and sometimes it surprises me and distracts me from driving. Because there is no common thing that causes the error to pop up, it has been difficult to reproduce. When it is doing it, videos have been taken to show the error. Dealer states there this no error code when they look over the vehicle. There is a warning that pops up on the display and sometimes a small yellow error exclamation point stays on for about one minute, other times it disappears right away.

I was informed from the Volkswagen dealership of where I purchased the vehicle that there are malfunctions with the Lane Assist system and other driver assistance functions caused by a fault in the steering wheel. However, I was also told that Volkswagen no longer manufactures or provides a replacement steering wheel for my vehicle. This leaves me without a viable solution to restore the safety systems that are integral to the vehicle’s operation.

The car will constantly alarm “travel assist currently not available “. Lane assist is not turned on. It will alarm and shut off and alarm again. There are times when is will alarm 10-15 times in less than a minute. It will also alarm when in park. The alarm is often distracting, irritating and create alarm fatigue. I am unable to have a 5 minute conversation on the phone without having to hang up during your the alarm constantly going off.

Steering wheel Travel Assist is disabled which includes Adaptive Cruise Control and Lane Keep Assist. The warning lights flash on and off, sometimes multiple times a second, sounding a loud beeping each time. It is triggered at engine start and persists through all speeds. I have experienced it 0-70 mph. The flashing lights and associated rapid beeping indicating the failure is extremely distracting while driving. Warning lights and warning sounds are designed to alert the driver to a potential safety issue so ignoring the lights and sounds is dangerous in the event it is a different caution/warning. However, also not ignoring it is dangerous because of the frequency of the warnings which causes the driver to look away from the road. After speaking with the maintenance department at my VW dealership, they indicated that this is a widely known problem that is remedied only with the replacement of the steering wheel. There are several other sensors that are triggered by the same issue I was told by the maintenance department. They are uncertain at this time if it impacts the airbag system which is another potential safety concern. The steering wheel can only be ordered after inspection by the maintenance department and there is shortage and/or back order of the part to fix the problem.

Travel assist not available warning is showing multiple times when driving. I start the car, start driving and no issues. Then randomly the warning issues shows up along with an audible alert. It appears to be an issue with the steering wheel as several online posts indicate VW replaced the steering wheel to resolve the issue, only to have it show up again, several months later.

Vehicle purchased 10.31.2023 at Volkswagen Jackson (Ritchey Automotive) in Jackson, Mississippi. During the course of normal vehicle operation, multiple Travel Assist system failures and alerts as documented within Volkswagen Technical Service Bulletin 2070207/1 occur. Three repair attempts have previously been performed by Volkswagen Jackson (Ritchey Automotive) in Jackson, Mississippi as documented by invoices dated 20 FEB 2024, 27 FEB 2024, and 12 MAR 2024. These efforts appear to conform with the previously cited Technical Service Bulletin 2070207/1 and confirm the defect(s) and/or nonconformity as per the Bulletin's summary of "48‐23‐ 01-Travel Assist Currently Not Available." The frequency and persistence of visual and auditory safety alerts pose significant hazards to the safety of the driver and vehicle occupants as an unnecessary distraction and nuisance in addition to the direct hazards of antecedent electrical malfunction and driver assistance system defects/nonconformity/failure. This matter has been discussed with dealership staff, yielding no productive resolution, and further assistance is being pursued through Volkswagen Customer CARE. All rights to resolution through alternative means are documented as expressly reserved.

Since I purchased this vehicle new, there have been several persistent, and dangerous problems. I have repeatedly reported these to my local dealership, Larry Miller VW, in Lakewood, Colorado, and they have effectively ignored me. The first problem is with the steering column/lane assist functions. The failure light/beep for lane assist is frequently alarming, and the control of the steering changes depending on whether lane assist is "on" or "off" or malfunctioning. Sometimes the steering jolts severely in one direction. This is manifestly dangerous. The second problem is that the radio malfunctions in all manner of distracting and dangerous ways. The radio sometimes shuts off without warning and cannot be turned back on. Sometimes the sound remains "on" but the screen goes "black" so that you cannot read a map or make a selection from the control menu. Sometimes the radio alarms that the driver is about to hit an object in front or in back of the vehicle, when there is no object anywhere around. This is very dangerous because the alarm is loud and the brakes are applied if the car believes an object is near. I have videos of these problems occurring. There is no specific date as these problems have been happening since I purchased the car new, until today, 7/10/24.