Complaint volume
456 consumer-submitted complaints are matched to this model year. Treat the count as a research signal, then read the actual summaries for repeated symptoms.
Complaint records
2019 Volkswagen Atlas Complaints
456 consumer-submitted complaints on record for the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas, grouped by component category.
456 Total complaints
7 Crash reports
0 Fire reports
9 Injury reports
Complaint data reflects consumer-submitted reports. A complaint is not proof
of a defect, recall, or manufacturer fault. Enriched severity fields come
from official bulk records when the complaint can be matched by ODI number.
Buyer interpretation
How to use these complaints before buying
Complaint records are most useful when they turn into inspection points, seller questions, and comparison checks against nearby model years.
Pattern to inspect
The most common categories are air bags, forward collision avoidance, service brakes. Use those categories as a test-drive checklist instead of judging the vehicle from the total count alone.
Severity flags
Enriched records include 7 crash reports, 0 fire reports, 9 injury reports, and 0 fatality reports. These fields come from complaint records and should be read in context.
Mileage clue
Mileage is available on 135 complaints, with an average reported failure mileage of 20,040 miles. Compare that with the mileage on the listing.
Questions to ask the seller
- Have you had any problems related to air bags, forward collision avoidance, service brakes?
- Can I see recent maintenance and repair records?
- Has the vehicle ever been towed, involved in a crash, or repaired for the same issue twice?
- Can we also check the recall record for this 2019 Volkswagen Atlas?
Used-car checklist
Use these complaints before the test drive.
Build a buyer checklist to turn these issues into questions and inspection points.
2019 Volkswagen Atlas
Build buyer checklist Compare with other years Sends year, make, and model to pre-fill your checklist.
How severe are the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas complaints?
7 Crash
0 Fire
9 Injury
0 Fatality
7 Towed
4 Medical attention
What are the most common 2019 Volkswagen Atlas complaint categories?
AIR BAGS 110
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 36
SERVICE BRAKES 26
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 26
STEERING 21
ENGINE 19
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 12
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES 12
POWER TRAIN 12
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 8
456 total complaints on record
Latest complaints
| Date | Component | Summary | Severity | Mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,ENGINE | First issues started with the engine surging at low speeds or coming to a stop which progressed into complete engine stalls. Had the car at the dealer 3 different times, it doesn’t stall anymore but still surges. Have had multiple occurrences of instrument panel indicators going off to include Error:airbag, seatbelt light and beeps while seatbelt was fastened, frontal crash warning lights and sounds as well as watch for rear traffic lights and sounds (one being while I was backing out of the garage where there are no cars) and the last being engaging the parking brake multiple time while at a stop light. This vehicle definitely does not feel safe for me to drive myself and 2 children around in. A major accident could occur if airbags deploy randomly or don’t deploy when needed or if the parking brake is engaged while in motion and not while at a light next time. I don’t see how any of these issues aren’t a recall or being told by dealers that they’ve never heard of an issue before. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | STEERING,POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | Military Combat Retired Veteran, purchased CPO 2019 Atlas from VW dealer. Claim filed with VW Customer care. Numerous issues with Steering Rack, and excessive vibrations at normal speeds. Vehicle has never sounded or handled like would be expected. First alignment and 4 wheel balance 1 month after purchase - 2 months later, steering rack replaced. 5 months and 5500 miles after rack replaced, brakes and tires worn 50% post-steering rack replacement. Dealer state 'steering rack retorqued', and ware on tires and brakes due to 'underinflation'. When asked what psi was on the tires, dealer did not take a readings. Tire ware does not indicate 'underinflation', or misalignment. Indicates issues with toe or camber - presumably from when steering rack was replaced. Dealer resolution was to replaced tires, brakes, and rotors at a cost of over $2000 - all of this without knowing exactly what is causing the excessive ware... each time, dealer indicates that "underinflation" or "alignment" issue - of which tire tread ware does not align with cause. Dealer still 'unsure' of what has caused issues, but 'is confident that it is good now'. At this point, without knowing the 'why' something is happening, and with dealer unable to determine root cause of problems, do not feel safe with my family in this vehicle. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Apr 2022 | LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES | The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that while using the key fob, the doors would not unlock and the contact was unable to open the doors. After manually opening the front driver’s side door, no other door could be unlocked and opened from inside the vehicle. In addition, both the front driver’s side and passenger’s side floor carpets were wet from the air conditioning condensation and moisture coming from under the front dash panel. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer who was unable to determine the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 40,000. | Crash: No Fire: No Towed | 40,000 |
| Apr 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I was driving the car about 30 mph when it abruptly came to a screeching halt. All warning lights on the dashboard lit up. There was no other cars in front of me or behind me. This could have caused a rear end collision had there been a car behind me. The engine did not die but the brake came off and I was able to start driving again. This threw me forward and I almost hit my chest against the steering wheel. I have taken the car to the Ken Garff VW dealership in Orem, UT. They said this is a known problem by VW corporate, but the do not have a fix because it is a faulty cable harness manufactured in Ukraine. They also said I was not eligible for a fix because they can not make it recreate the problem. They suggested that I call VW corporate which I did. VW corporate called me back and said they would get back to me in 4 business days. I told them this was unacceptable. When called back the next day they informed me that Ken Garff VW had not been able to recreate the problem and could not find the error in the computer system so it must not have happened. This is a known problem and VW is refusing responsibility and said there is nothing they can do about it. I asked if they would buy the car at fair market value and they said that would be at the discretion of the dealer. I am scared to drive this vehicle with my kids in the car and I fear for anyone else driving or following behind a VW Atlas. This is an accident and possible death waiting to happen. I have shared the same fears with VW and they told me according to the computer it never happened. The lack of responsibility is disappointing. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | We were driving down the road on a normal sunny day when the sunroof decided to spontaneously combust out of no where with no warning. There was not anything that hit the sunroof or would have caused the glass to shatter. All we heard was a loud pop like a bomb going off in our vehicle and we looked to the back seat to check our 2 year old daughter to find that she had glass all over her and the sunroof had perfectly shattered everywhere. Luckily my husband could think past the initial shock and close the fabric cover over the sunroof so that we wouldn’t have more glass fall on our 2 year old. There is glass all over the vehicle in tiny fragments and I had to get the glass off my 2 year old and her car seat and have my in laws pick me and my daughter up because the vehicle is not safe to drive in this state. We tried contact the dealership we purchased the vehicle from as well as customer care and road side assistance with no luck whatsoever. The dealership just kept sending us to voicemail when asking for someone to help us figure out what to do and how to have the problem fixed and we didn’t get any calls back from the voicemails. Since then my husband has tried to talk to the dealership and The vehicles customer care line with no luck when all we want is to figure out what to do now and how to get the problem fixed. This issue has happened to other people after researching online and there has been lawsuits for it already. We just want the issue fixed. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | AIR BAGS,SERVICE BRAKES | My car is showing an airbag error sign off an on and the emergency brake came on during a right turn and nearly caused an accident. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Purchased car from VW on 04/24/21. Noticed an issue the car breaking on its own at low speeds less then 5mph and then completely shutting off, about a month into owning it. 08/19/21 car was taken in for service to fix the automatic breaking issue/shutting off. Car was returned to me about a week later stating the "problem" was fixed. In December 2021, I started noticing the problem again, as this point I assume since the "problem" was fixed maybe this was just how the car was. Finally in March of 2022 while driving at a speed of about 30MPH the car started breaking on its own and completed shut off in the middle of driving! At that point it called my local VW and told them they need to take the Car in ASAP to have it looked at the fix this problem once and for all, as of now this is a MAJOR safety issue. Myself and my children could have been seriously injured from this incident!! After my local VW having the car for a few hours they called and said the issue was the newest recall with the door wiring harness and they will have my car for the "unforeseeable" future due to no repair in place at this time. Even if they claim to have "fixed" this issue again, I will never trust them as they claimed to have fixed it a previous time and they clearly DID NOT!! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | There have been two incidents where my wife was driving our Atlas and the automatic braking engaged for no reason as if it were trying to avoid a collision. I am upset that my VIN number was not included the the latest recall as this has happened twice to us, luckily with no cars behind to rear end us! | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,ENGINE | Vehicle is completely shutting down while in drive. Occurring during acceleration and deceleration. No warning given before car shuts down. Just immediately stops in road. I had to restart car and avoid traffic. Dealership has been notified. Service department has stated there is a solution but no availability of parts. Suggested appointment for service to inspect vehicle and to put order in for recall part. Will inspect car but says the vehicle issues seem related to the recall. Unable to provide loaner cars and unable to provide date that part will be available. Service department does not have date of when part will be available, anticipates one to two months. Dealership has been notified. Service department has stated that car should be safe to drive even with no remedy for recall at this time. Owner told its kind of just a faith thing right now and it should be okay to drive. False warning sensors illuminating when vehicle is being driven. Forward collision warning lighting up while driving but no vehicles or objects in front of vehicle. Dealership has been notified. Service department indicates it may be related to the recall. Driver side window hesitating to roll up and down. Window has moved without the driver pushing window button. Intermittent parking break sensors go off and emergency break automatically stops car. Message appearing that there is rear traffic. Occurs when no other vehicle, persons, and or objects are in the vehicle's rear area. When reversing I physically am using the vehicles mirrors and my own vision before making any attempt to reverse. This false alarm and sudden emergency break initiated by the car causes a major safety concern for the driver , passenger, as well as the safety of everyone in the area of the vehicle. Warning for Airbag error appears randomly and then dissapears. This is a major saftely concern for the driver and family. First recall for Front Stabilizer Coupling Rod completed 12/22/2021. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | PARKING BRAKE,VISIBILITY | The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while driving approximately 55 MPH, the driver's and front passenger’s side window failed to operate as needed. The contact also stated that the parking brake failed to operate as designed. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed; however, the dealer was not able to assist. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 20,000 |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | I originally filed a complaint regarding my vehicle wiring harness issue which has been recalled recently. It is stated "no fix is available" at this time. My Atlas has been at the dealer for 57 days as of today. SMITH VW let me know that they have received a wiring harness to replace in my vehicle.... but WHY if the recall specifically states " NO FIX is available". Is another defective wiring harness being installed as a short term remedy?I told VW corporate I was contacting an attorney for assistance on Tuesday AM, 24 hours later the part magically became available to install in my 2019 Atlas?? | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER | I had a routine oil change, the Manager asked me if I had been having any issues because an error code showed up in the inspection. I said I hadn't, so he said it must have been nothing. I drove across town, when all of the sudden alarms and warning messages started going off in my car (pictures attached). Additionally, my car unexpectedly had the emergency brake come on while I was driving through the parking lot. It was a frightening experience and I felt that the dealership let me leave in an unsafe car. They assured me it was nothing they had done, just a coincidence that it happened during the oil change. They kept my car and gave me a loaner while it was being fixed. I am now wondering if I have to go to back and have it fixed on the passenger side. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | UNKNOWN OR OTHER,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Windows- The drivers side window and back passenger windows rolled down while I was driving down the highway. I was going approximately 75MPH at the time. This happened on 2 separate occasions. My vehicle has braked extremely hard on numerous occasions. Two of those times I was traveling on Interstate 40 going at approx 65MPH. I have had taken my vehicle in for a "software update" on my cruise control and on my air bags. The unlock feature doesn't always work. This vehicle seems to have a lot of electrical issues. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Vehicle applies emergency braking without warning when no objects are in front of it. This has happened on the highway and at lower speeds. Car will stop in the middle of the road and i have had a number of close calls with people nearly hitting me. I have taken it to my dealer that i leased it from and a dealer in South Carolina while on vacation and spoken to VW customer service directly but they tell me there is no issue. To stop the warnings going off i have to put the car in custom off-road which disables the front sensors and turns off the front assist manually. But i worked this out myself and VW insist there is no problem. I should not be searching for a work around to ensure the safety of my family in my car. This has happened on numerous occasions when may wife was pregnant in 2021 with the belt buckle pulling tightly around her waist upon emergency braking but VW did not express any concern. While driving from NJ to SC in 2021 with my children and wife in the car we had to stop numerous times on the side of the highway, turn the car off and turn it on again as the sensors were warning of an impact with nothing in front of us. We contacted a lawyer on the side of the highway but at that point we did not file a claim as we were trying to get to our destination. Upon telling VW i would not drive it home they told us to go to the local VW garage in SC but they found nothing wrong with the car. The problem still persists today. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | POWER TRAIN | Since the purchase of this vehicle in 2019 I have complained that it was not shifting gears properly and upon first acceleration the Atlas would feel jumpy or hesitate. When slowing down even at 5 or 10 mph the vehicle would stay in 3rd gear. In June 2020 I had it documented, VW tech tested vehicle and stated performing to manufacturer's specs. It stayed like this and I took to another dealer in April 2021, Nov 2021, & Dec 2021 & was told transmission fine, then it began making a loud noise at 60 mph, car would softly shake or vibrate & took back to dealer in Feb 2022 and it was found that the transmission was faulty. Big chunks of metal scrap were found in pan by dealer tech. VW advised dealer to change out transmission & cooler for a new one. Vehicle was returned to me with new transmission & cooler. I have since noticed that it continues to jump or hesitate at first acceleration and I am afraid that I will continue to have the issue and my vehicle will no longer be under warranty in a few thousand miles. NO WARNING lights or messages ever appeared so to them it was fine until the sound was undeniable and big chunks of metal were found. This is unsafe for anyone to drive around with a faulty transmission. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | SERVICE BRAKES | The steering wheel shakes uncontrollably when braking going past 50mph. Took it in to VW dealership several times and they didn’t know the cause of the shaking. They said the rotors and the brakes were still good. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,AIR BAGS,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL | Windows roll down by themselves. Parking brake applies itself without warning. Multiple warning lights saying parking brake error, start stop error, hill assist error, window sensor code, and constant dinging. Hill assist will come on even when not on a hill jarring you at higher speeds. Airbags deployed late during no fault Accident. The flaws in the vehicle didn’t cause the car accident, yet it wasn’t protecting me as it should have, but could very well cause an accident with the abrupt stopping, for no reason. I do have videos of the caution codes, it wouldn’t let me up load them so I took pictures of the videos. | Crash: Yes Fire: No Injuries: 1 Towed Medical attention | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | While stopped at a stop light the parking brake will come on without being in park and without any notification. The warning lights on the dash will all light up at random times. One day while driving the locks all started locking and unlocking on all four doors on their own while I was driving. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,ENGINE | The vehicle has had issues with the torque converter, head, head gasket, electrical system, gas cap door, seat belt. VW has not been able to fix the issues | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle jerked and then stalled. The contact stated that the START/STOP, ABS, and check engine warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the passenger’s and driver’s side rear windows would roll down independently. The door locks would also lock and unlock without driver input. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer and was diagnosed with door wiring harness failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 29,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 29,000 |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | My 2019 VW Atlas with approx 23,000 miles on the odometer randomly initiated the emergency braking system while I was driving and the car forced itself to brake without warning. Only once the vehicle was turned off did the problem “reset”, releasing the emergency brake. Only for this problem to continue to happen on multiple occasions any time I slowed down or came to a stop. The tried to tell me the car was safe to drive. Thankfully no accident occurred. The following warnings were displayed: driver door contact switch, electronic parking brake failure, engine is running while idling. The front and back driver side windows were automatically rolling themselves half way down while the car was beeping that the door was open while I was driving, which the door was not. I have been told by the dealership that this is a known issue and the part to fix the problem is backordered and has no ETA. Meanwhile I am paying a lease payment on a vehicle I cannot drive that is sitting at Volkswagen with 11 other vehicles awaiting this part. I have filed a complaint with VW Corporate and have currently been without my Atlas for 52 days and counting. WHY is this not a recall yet.... definitely a safety issue. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE | Vehicle's autonomous emergency braking system activates without any reasonable cause (nothing in front of the vehicle). Often the system doesn't apply the brakes, it will just alert (red logo in instrument cluster screen). However, sometimes the brakes will immediately apply. This occurs sporadically without warning on multiple streets, up to 20 miles per hour. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES | My 2019 VW Atlas with approx 29k on the odometer randomly initiated the emergency braking system while I was Highway driving and the car forced itself to brake without warning. I was unable to control the car at that point. Only once the vehicle was turned off did the problem “reset”. Thankfully no accident occurred, but the problem continued and the vehicle was towed to the dealership. The following warnings were displayed: driver door contact switch, electronic parking brake failure, park pilot error, engine is running while idling. The back windows were automatically rolling themselves half way down. I have been told by the dealership that this is a known issue and the part to fix the problem has no ETA. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SEAT BELTS,SERVICE BRAKES | I have a 2019 VW R line that has been in the dealer repair for 2 months. All the lights on the dash mysteriously come on. The parking brake engages by itself and the rear window goes down. While in the parking lot, I videotaped one occurrence and the car would not stop beeping until I shut the car off and had to restart several times. I was told by dealer that the car was still not repaired because they are waiting for a part but still no part 2 months later. I was told it could not be driven because the car could suddenly brake whe driving and cause an accident or worse. | Crash: No Fire: No | Unknown |
| Mar 2022 | POWER TRAIN,ENGINE | The contact owns a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the vehicle made an abnormal squealing noise while accelerating from a stationary start. The contact indicated that the noise was present for approximately three seconds before ceasing. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced an engine valve however, the failure continued. No further information was available. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 13,000. | Crash: No Fire: No | 13,000 |