As a result of a persistent rattling in the front right end of my 4 cyl. 1999 vw passat, I took my car in for investigation. I have been advised by two independent repair shops that both upper control arms on both sides of the car as well as the tie rod ends must be replaced to the tune of $1200. If they are not replaced, I have been advised that one could break and I would have no steering. Obviously at a high rate of speed this could be dangerous or deadly. I have spoken with vw and even though they acknowledge issuing a tsb on this defect, they refuse to cover its repair. This is a safety issue that must be addressed sooner rather than later. Thank you for any help you can provide in this area.
1999 Volkswagen Passat suspension complaints
Page 3 of 5: complaints 41 to 70 of 118, newest first, as owners wrote them.
The control arms on my 1999 passat are wearing out and making a loud noise. I did research and saw that this is a serious hazard and that several other people have had this same problem. This issue should be taken care of by vw since it places people in danger.
I've had a clunking sound in the front suspension whenever I hit a bump. It has gotten progressively worse for the last several months. The dealer tells me it is the front upper control arms and ball joints and that there is a tsb on such. This is a common well known problem with this model and poses a safety issue.
Purchased my 1999 vw passat 1.8t wagon in august, 2002. It had apprx. 53,000 miles on it. By september, 2003, there was a significant squeaking, creaking, groaning noise coming from the front end. At that time, car had approximately. 75k miles. Diagnosis was front end suspension parts including control arms, ball joints, bushings were dangerously worn and in need of replacement. Vw dealership provided me with a copy of technical service bulletin issued by volkswagen of america dated may 31, 2001. It calls for installation of parts in repair kit no 3bo498 798a. Because of existence of the tech service bulletin for this problem, my extended warranty company (wynn's warranties) refuses to pay for repairs. Repairs still needed to tune of $1100. Front end is now so loose for safety reasons I will have to make repairs immediately at my own expense.
Control arm made a clucking sound when the vehicle was driven at low speeds. Dealership indicated that the noise occurred because the control arm was loose, and if this part failed, the ball joints could break will driving. The control arm on the front driver side was replaced, but the failure occurred on the front passenger's side.
Both control arms failed on 1999 passat glx @ 60000 miles on left and right side of the car. Repair covered by vw extended warranty to the tune of $689 per side of the vehicle, but these control arms should not be failing! Steering, control, and tire wear suffer serious impairment as a result of these failures.
Bushing has dried out on lower control arm on one side resulting in frequent loud creeking / squeeking noises. When making appointment with dealer I asked if it was a safety problem and should I rush the car in. They said "no, it's probably just a dry bushing" and scheduled me for 10 days later. When I learned of the $1200 repair cost and the need to keep the car overnight, I had to reschedule the appointment. Again, another 12 days wait (yet to come). If this is truely not a safety issue, then fine, but info on this site is to the contrary. Besides, why do suppose they call them "control arms?" if they mal function could that mean loss of control? Hmmm. 85k miles on this car, but in retrospect, the noise started a long time ago and the dealer attributed it to lack of steering fluid. The noise returned and came back. This car has a lot of highway miles. I'll bet the failure is time based rather than milage based. These rubber busing can only take so much exposure to the elements. Vw - change the material for your bushings, right!!
Control arm's of '1998-'2000 passats are failure prone much earlier then the norm for passaneger automobiles. (a fact they recognized by a redesign of the control arms on '2001 and up passat's. I purchased my car in 7/99. I drive 70 miles a day, mostly freeway, which as all know is actually very easy on an automobile. Yet with-in 2 years (40k) my front suspension was showing signs of premature wear. I get many "creaks" and "clunks" that are easy to hear at low speeds. After researching in popular internet forums for the car,(www.clubb5.com , www.vwvortex.com) I found out this failure is very common for this automobile. Vmoa (volkswagen of america) has not issued a recall yet (even though they have received thousands of complaints) as of this late date. (6/04) the response from vwoa and your dealer network has been inconsistent, to say the least. Some dealers will not even look at the car, some will look at it and say nothing is wrong, and some will say that it is the control arms, but will not help out the owner when the time comes to contact the customer care center at vwoa . Vwoa is not much more help, promising to get on the problem and telling you they will callback, only they dont. Or if they do ,it is, sorry we cannot help you. . So what happens is that many of the owners that are out of warranty, must pay for a costly repair out of pocket. A repair that should have never happened. (I have never had control arm bushing failure in my previous 13 automobiles!) repair costs run over $700 for parts, and the same amount in labor. I am purchasing my car from the bank soon. Overall it is a great car. I must replace the control arms very soon. I dont look forward to that and the high cost it will run me. I wish for vmoa to treat its customers like a modern customer focused company. Bad designs happen. They owe it to their customers to make it right. Thank you. John e. Tami.
Problems with front suspension arms on 1999 passat. *mr the right lower control arm was replaced under warranty at 23500 miles and the dealer suggested that there were earlier problems before the current owners. The suspension part were design defective. *sc
Creaking and groaning noises were heard coming from the front of the vehicle (1999 passat station wagon with 43,000 miles) while slowing and turning at low speed. Dealer confirmed loose sway bars/control arms and attempted to clean up, but noise persisted following service. At the next service the dealer replaced both lower control arms (conversion kit) and links. Vw customer care (?) center refused to acknowledge any responsibility for a defective design or parts, claiming that this is normal wear and is beyond warranty coverage.
Upper and lower ball joints making grinding noise dealer suggested replacing all upper and lower ball joints on left and right sides.
I began to notice an occasional creaking/knocking noise coming from the front end of the car about six months ago . About a month ago the noise became bad enough for me to take it to the dealership to try and diagnose. I described the noise in great detail. Service dept says they drove the car and didn't hear anything, but that the noise was probably due to my brake pads being worn down so far I had metal against metal. New brake pads and rotors: $1250. Cha-ching.*ak next day driving to work I still hear the creaking/knocking noise. I take it back to the dealership, very irate. They say they'll drive it again and give it another listen. This time they do hear something and inform me that it's "just a loose control arm, " that it's "expensive to fix" and that "[they] don't even have the parts on hand." but the guy assures me that the noise is only an annoyance issue and not a safty concern. The noise is consant now and very, very bad. I was actually getting a toasty, smoky odor coming from the car when driving across town the other day.
"99 vw passat VIN [xxx] has loud creaking sounds from right-front suspension. Tie rod ends were replace in earlier recall. Ball joints are not worn. Lube of control arm and other bushings does not solve problem. Vibration corresponding to creaking can be felt in lower control arms. Updated 07/30/2012 *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
The 1999 passat has had a number of problems from excessive oil consumption, electrical problems,water pump defects, front end assembly and transmission problems. (nar) *ph
The vehicle is a 1999 volkwagen passat. I took it in for regular maintenance at 48,000 miles and for my state safety inspection. Since I had just begun hearing noises in the front of the car, I asked that it be looked into. The dealer informed me that the car, albeit in excellent condition and routinely maintained, would not pass state inspection due to a serious problem with the control arms. If the problem was not corrected the car could lose control and crash. The dealer informed me that a recall had been issued (recall ul) for this exact problem on the same make and model and year of car. But, that for no explainable reason my VIN was not covered under the recall. I immediately contacted vw and they concurred but couldn't do anything about it. This is not only unethical, but vw is allowing people to drive around with cars that they know have a serious defect. Not only didn't vw cover all the applicable vins in their recall, but they did not inform their consumers ofthe potential problem. According to the dealer, this problem, if left uncorrected, could cause serious harm if the control arms failed at high speed. Vw will not recognize this problem. It should be noted once again, that this defect in the control arms occured at only 48,000 miles. Not only did I have to pay $1200 for a serious, and acknowledged, design defect, but the repair parts that were installed are exactly the same as the poorly designed ones. This problem will happen again. The only question is when. The government should look into this before someone gets seriously hurt or even killed. Vw refuses to stand by their product. The dealer has indicated that this is such a common problem that they stock the front end repair kit. If it is so common why aren't all the applicable vins covered?
My vw passaat developed excessive play and noise in steering and front suspension. Car would wander on road and would not track straight on a highway. This was a safety issue. My local vw dealer said to bring car in immediately. Dealer said 4 control arms had failed and needed replacement at cost of $1400. Car had been maintained well and driven gently previously. Defective control arms on this vehicle are a safety issue.
The control arms on the front driver's side failed and the car collapsed to the ground on the driver's side. The repairs are costly. The dealership and volkswagen are not receptive to paying the repairs or a discount.
Electrical problems from the start, melting of plastic, lights in the car working sporadically at best. Oil, drain, oil pump, camshaft,all blamed on lack of verifiable oil changes. Timing belt - let go on highway at 85000 miles (warranty for 1999 passat, 100,000 miles) blamed on oil changes. 82 days in shop steering goes during this time and I'm told I need an altenator [ 3rd one ] the story goes on and on......
The vehicle experienced a constant groaning and squeaking in the front end suspension when driving at low speeds. The dealer said the lower control arm needed to be replaced. The dealer indicated that this was not a safety problem. *ak
A loud noise was heard while driving the vehicle. The dealer determined the front upper and lower ball joints were cracked on the right side and leaking oil. Please provide details.
Front control arms.
Upper and lower front suspension control arm bushing failure. (left and right).
Lower control arm failure. Vehicle purchased from vw as certified like new with warranty to second owner. Vehicle had approx 30000 miles at purchase. Now has 67k miles. Appears to fit pattern relative to defective - should be recalled issue in which these parts fail every 30k miles. As noted on other incidents, no other vehicle exhibits this type of failure making this unique to vw and audi. Therefore more indicitave of factory defect and creation of hazardous driving situation.
Recall letter for replacement of tie rods on 1999 volkswagen passat. *mr the front end of the vehicle squeaked. The technician found lower and upper control arm damage, the control arm boots were torn open with no lubrication which caused the squeak noise. There was also a cam shaft tensioner gasket leak which was removed and replaced. *scc. The consumer took the vehicle to have the rods replaced after receiving the recall, however, the dealer called the consumer back and informed him, the vehicle had been inspected and it was not necessary for the work to be done, even though the recall letter stated it they would be replaced to prevent future problems.
Started to feel and hear a thumping, and creaking from my suspension. Took vehicle to a vw dealer and they said that I needed to have both upper control arms replaced on the left front of my passat. I called vwoa and they said that they were not going to help pay for it b/c it is considered a wear item. A 99 passat w/ less than 50k miles! And they consider that wear?!? From what I have researched, I am far from the only person that this is happening to. Now I have to dish out $500 easy to get it fixed. Buy another vw? Not on your life. Vw has been hearing the complaints about this situation for years now and still will not help. I would hate to see something tragic to someone just for them to fess up.
While driving at 65mph suddenly vehicle start shaking/ lost power, never went over 40mph.
Control arms and ball joints need to be replaced with only 43000 miles on the vehicle. Volkswagen went by recommendation of dealer not to help with the cost of repair.
1999 vw passat requires replacement of front suspension control arms at 64.8k miles. Symptoms reported initially at 3 years/49k miles. Appears to be related to service bulletin 400101. Problem well known among passat/audi owners. Dealer asking $1200 for repair. Vwoa declines to help, stating that suspension is "2 year 24k mile component". Mileage, existence of service bulletin, and widespread experience with this problem suggest that this is a defective component and should be at least partially covered by vwoa.
Front control arm failure.
1999 vw passat. Front suspension problems. Refer to tsb 4001-01. I brought my 1999 passat to the dealer regarding a noisy front suspension problem and informed them of a tsb on the vehicle. I was informed that vw provides a repair kit for this problem that requires the replacement of the lower control arm assembly. Which includes the defective ball joints (both sides). The dealer informed me that vw will not cover the repair and that the cost to me would be $875.00. Spoke with vw representatives on april 2 and was given a decision on 4/9 that they would not assist with the cost in any way since "this could also be caused by normal wear and tear". This assertion, in my opinion is bogus since a. Vw knows there is a problem, hence the tsb. Provide a "kit" to repair the defect. The case number is 30164333. Suspensions should not be falling apart on a 3 year old vehicle with 50,000 miles on it. And the cost ($875) is quite excessive. The noise started showing up in early january of 2003.
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