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2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport problems

The most common problem on the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport is engine and cooling. It has fewer complaints than a typical Atlas Cross Sport model year.

Typical yearClose to a typical year
Owner complaints
20
Recalls
6
Service bulletins
3436 warranty
Worst area
Engine
Fuel economy
20-23mpg

The worst 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

  • Engine
    6
  • Airbags
    5
  • Brakes
    3
  • Electrical
    3
  • Lights
    3

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

  • Engine
    6
  • Airbags
    5
  • Brakes
    3
  • Electrical
    3
  • Lights
    3
  • Fuel system
    2
  • Acceleration
    1
  • Driver assistance
    1

Recalls 6

Service brakesReported June 30, 2025 · 546 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2023-2025 Atlas, Atlas Cross Sport and 2023-2024 ID.4 vehicles. Certain bolts on the chassis, brake system and/or suspension (such as bolts for certain cross member, engine mount, control arm, subframe, rear brake carrier, etc.) of affected vehicles may not have been correctly tightened during the manufacturing process.
Risk
A loss of vehicle control increases the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the bolts as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 25, 2025. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1‑800‑253‑2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42HX.

Recall number 25V434000 · Recall details

Air bags: sensor: occupant classification: front passengerReported June 20, 2024 · 271,330 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Atlas and 2020-2024 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may experience a fault in the wiring and deactivate the front passenger air bag when the seat is occupied.
Risk
A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and wiring harness, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 30, 2024. Owner notification letters will be mailed in phases, on October 18, 2024, December 10, 2024, December 20, 2024, and January 17, 2025. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1‑800‑893‑5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69PZ.

Recall number 24V464000 · Recall details

Suspension: critical fastenersReported October 26, 2022 · 33 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2022 Volkswagen Atlas FL and 2022-2023 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The driver-side rear trailing arm bolts may not have been tightened properly, allowing them to loosen and fall out.
Risk
Unsecured bolts may cause the trailing arm to fracture, resulting in a sudden loss of vehicle control and increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the driver side rear trailing arm bolts, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed December 25, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1‑800‑893‑5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42M2.

Recall number 22V807000 · Recall details

Engine and engine cooling: engine: hard parts internal/mechanicalReported October 7, 2022 · 76,515 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Audi Q5 Sportback, Q5, 2022-2023 Volkswagen Atlas FL, and Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The engine connecting rod bearings may become damaged, which can result in engine failure.
Risk
A damaged engine can result in engine failure and a stall, increasing the risk of a crash. If the engine failure causes an oil leak, it can increase the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace an affected engine, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed December 6, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1‑800‑893‑5298 and Audi's customer service at 1‑800‑253‑2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 13i4 (VW) and 13i5 (Audi).

Recall number 22V753000 · Recall details

Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: hoses, lines/piping, and fittingsReported September 26, 2022 · 555 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2023 model year Atlas FL and Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. Certain brake lines may leak at the threaded connections.
Risk
A brake fluid leak may increase the distance required to stop, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the affected brake lines, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed on November 23, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1‑800‑893‑5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 47T2.

Recall number 22V718000 · Recall details

Air bags: side/windowReported March 28, 2022 · 222,892 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Atlas, 2020-2023 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021-2023 Atlas FL vehicles. The door wiring harness electrical contacts may corrode, disrupting the electrical connection and delaying the deployment of the driver or passenger front side air bag during a side impact crash.
Risk
A delayed air bag deployment can increase the risk of injury.
Remedy
Dealers will secure and, as necessary, replace any the front door wiring harnesses showing a fault code, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 20, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1‑800‑893‑5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 97GF.

Recall number 22V152000 · Recall details

See all 6 recalls for the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Technical service bulletins for the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport 343

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

See all 343 bulletins for the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport fuel economy

Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.

EngineDriveCityHighwayCombined
2.0L 4‑cylFWD212523
3.6L 6‑cylFWD182420

What 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Oct 28, 2026 · Lights · LA

I have a 2023 Volkswagon Atlas cross sport. The vehicle day running light went out on both sides. On doing a little research, I came across that this is a common problem with this vehicle and the cost is 1800 per side. Should there be a mass amount of customers reporting this same issue, this replacement should be replaced free of charge. Please advise if this should be an option

Filed Sep 30, 2026 · Lights · TX

Daytime Running Lights Failure - 2023 Model with 82,000 miles. Found numerous instances in online forums and social media post about problem. Daytime running light doesn't work which puts at risk Yes, problem has been confirmed. No component has not been inspected. No warnings or messages. Noticed daytime running light was not working.

Filed Jul 20, 2026 · Engine · MS

After noticing an oil leak and blue smoke in my 23 VW atlas, I took it to my local dealership in Tupelo, MS. I realized there was an open recall for the PCV Valve / Oil separator under code 10LP. However, the bad PCV valve also caused the timing chain cover to go bad. The dealership called me back and said VW would not cover this issue. I then called VW to see if they would step in and provide some sort of Goodwill and they denied me. They would not transfer me to a supervisor or provide any written approval that they denied covering the new timing chain cover... the call was super unprofessional and the failing part was a corresponding issue to the page PCV valve. I would like any assistance on getting VW to make this right for myself or others. This sounds like a very common issue!

Filed Jul 20, 2026 · Lights · 18,000 miles · TX

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact stated that while seated inside the parked vehicle, the contact became aware of a reflection and exited the vehicle and discovered that the daytime running lights were inoperable. No warning light was illuminated. A dealer was contacted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the headlight assembly needed to be replaced. The headlight assembly was replaced, and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 18,000.

Filed Sep 17, 2025 · Brakes, Driver assistance · FL · crash

Our VW Atlas Cross Sport 2023 was involved in an accident on August 3, 2025 where the Automatic Emergency Braking and Forward Collision Warning did not work. Firstly, we reported issues with our brakes several times and took the vehicle to Rick Case VW in Weston/Davie more than once to rectify this problem. However, the problem has never been fixed, and persisted up until the time of the accident. Secondly, the vehicle's navigation system stopped working during the week of July 28th, and this was reported to Rick Case VW on July 30th. Attempts to address the fact that the car's non-working features contributed to the accident remain unresolved with Rick Case VW (seller) and VW Corporate (manufacturer), as of September 17. We made several amicable and fair requests, up to and including: 1) giving us another/newer vehicle without any charges or fees whatsoever, or change to payment amount unless it is less, and/or 2) refunding all monies paid to date so we could find a new car on our own. To date, there has been very little communication from either party and no genuine care or effort to assist us with this case. The Rick Case Collision Center has been in possession of our vehicle for approximately 6 weeks to fix an array of damages. At this point, we do not feel the car is road-worthy or safe to drive and we have made this expressly clear in emails and voicemails to VW/Rick Case VW. The management of Rick Case VW has made no offer of a loaner nor have they acknowledged our request to exchange this vehicle. They are well aware that their faulty, non-functioning systems in our VW 2023 Atlas SE contributed to the accident in August. Their professionalism and respect for the customer would have gone a long way in resolving this in a timely and amicable manner. Now we may have no choice but to resort to taking this a step further, legally.

Filed Feb 3, 2025 · Airbags · MD

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V464000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Dec 16, 2024 · Airbags · WI

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V464000 (AIR BAGS); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Sep 16, 2024 · Airbags · CA

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V464000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed Aug 26, 2024 · Airbags · NY

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 24V464000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer was contacted. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

Filed Aug 21, 2024 · Airbags · MI

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number:Â 24V464000 (Air Bags) and would like to be removed from the recall distribution list. The local dealer and manufacturer were not contacted.

Used buying checklistWhat to check on a 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport before you buy

Compare the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Other model years

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Questions about the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Is the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport reliable?

Owners have filed 20 complaints about the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, fewer than a typical Atlas Cross Sport model year.

What is the most common problem with the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport?

Engine and cooling, with 6 complaints. Next is airbags (5).

How many recalls does the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport have?

6 recalls, covering service brakes, air bags and suspension.

Was there a recall on the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport engine?

Yes, 1 recall: 22V753000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.

What year does the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport have bad engine?

The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport model years with the most engine complaints are 2021 (35 complaints), 2022 (21 complaints) and 2024 (18 complaints).

What gas mileage does the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport get?

Official estimates for the 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport range from 20 to 23 mpg combined. The most efficient version (2.0L 4-cyl, FWD) gets 21 city and 25 highway.

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