2023 Volkswagen Tiguan

I am filing a safety complaint regarding my 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan SE R-Line with approximately 54,000 miles. The vehicle experienced a significant engine-related failure involving the oil separator/PCV system. Volkswagen diagnosed a failed oil separator/breather that caused excessive crankcase pressure, resulting in substantial oil expulsion and damage/leaks involving the plastic/composite oil pan and timing-chain cover. Volkswagen also identified oil contamination around engine sensors and a P0341 camshaft-position fault. The vehicle has previously experienced EPC/check-engine warnings and entered limp mode, creating concern about potential loss of power while driving. The dealer’s repair required replacement of the oil separator/PCV system, oil pan, timing-chain cover and associated gaskets, along with cleaning oil from the engine compartment and sensors. The repair estimate was approximately $2,490, later reduced to approximately $2,300. Volkswagen declined my request for goodwill assistance. I am concerned that a failure of the oil separator/PCV system can create excessive crankcase pressure and cause oil to be expelled from the engine, damage other engine components, contaminate sensors, trigger fault codes, and potentially result in reduced engine power or limp mode. Sudden oil loss or loss of engine power can create a serious safety hazard, particularly at highway speeds or in traffic. This vehicle has also experienced recurring alignment problems, requiring three alignments in approximately six months, raising additional concerns about the vehicle’s overall reliability and safety. I request that NHTSA investigate whether oil-separator/PCV failures and their resulting oil loss, component damage, sensor faults, and potential loss of power represent a broader safety defect in 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan vehicles.

Jittery acceleration. Intermittent accelerator hesitation from a stop. The car hesitates or bogs down which can be unpredictable when pulling into traffic. Sometimes the RPMs surge during low speed without input from the gas peddle. I have had the car serviced twice since leased in July 2023. The dealership is fast to say they are all the same. there are no warning lamps for this issue and the dealership states no faults can be found with VDAS or GFF.

Acceleration fails or hesitates on acceleration from zero mph. This has occurred every day since new (June 2023) and only happens for 5 minutes after start up. It feels like it is going to stall out, but so far it has not. Each time I accelerate for the first time, my car makes a jerky start. It usually goes away after I've been driving a bit. I've tried letting it warm up a couple minutes, but that does not seem to matter. I took it to the dealer at 3,000 miles and they said they could not duplicate the problem (but the car had warmed up by then) and that I should use B&G gas additive. I was unable to find that brand but did use Gumout gas treatment and it did not make a difference. It is a safety issue because when I need to accelerate even moderately to get onto the street, the car bucks enough that another car coming could hit me because I was expecting it to accelerate. I previously had a 2020 Tiguan and it did not have this problem. There is a Reddit thread on this as well as this link so it is not just my car. [XXX] [XXX] According to these sites it could be a transmission problem or a fuel system problem INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

From a cold start, the vehicle seems to have an issue with fuel/acceleration. When pressing the gas through an intersection, the vehicle seems starved for gas and does not accelerate and almost stalls. This is very dangerous in a city environment, as the gaps between cars is sometimes small. There are no warning signs, just reports from several of my drivers experiencing the same issue with the same vehicle. We just purchased 13 of the same vehicle.

Malfunction with power delivery/transmission: I often experience inconsistent acceleration/power while driving at low speeds, the loss of power and jerks feel very similar to an engine misfire. Safety Risk: This behavior is very dangerous as we instinctively push down gas pedal to overcome lack of power and it causes the car to rocket forward as too high throttle has been opened and one can easily lose control and crash. Occurance: I feel this loss/inconsistent power situation happens at cold start and once the car is warmed up it doesn't occur anymore. If I don't push the gas pedal the power delivery is very inconsistent and car will jerk which feels like like a misfire while slowly the power delivery smoothens out.

The vehicle stutters or hesitates when accelerating from a stop. This is even more prevalent when the car has first been started. This is a major safety issue as when my family is pulling out into traffic the car just lurches forward initially before then finally just taking off. It's almost as if there is a delay in fuel being sent to the engine to move it forward. It shakes a little and then goes really fast. You can hold your the gas peddle down some and the car won't move then after a second or two it finally accelerates without moving your foot at all. This is a brand new car. Seems incredibly unsafe especially when I have a family of 6 in the vehicle.