I was driving and I pulled into my parking lot and my engine caught on fire. I put it out with snow thank god or it would have been a lot worse. I always have coolant and oil and I checked it a lot cause of the freezing weather we have had recently had -30 for quite awhile. I called vw customer care and they were very worried about my safety at 1st then they had a product something guy call me after see the picture I sent them. I understand they have people always looking for a quick escape goat but this was a fire it could have been so much worse if there was not snow near by. I want my car fixed but I am more worried about the next person this could happen too. I should tell you after ask him if he just wanted to find the reason behind it he said no. Personally a car fire is not a normal thing.
2001 Volkswagen Passat: fire, smoke or burning smell
10 of the 430 complaints about the 2001 Volkswagen Passat describe fire, smoke or burning smell.
- owner complaints
- 10
- of this car's complaints
- 2%
- typical mileage
- 99,800
- recalls
- 0
Fire, smoke or burning smell by model year
What owners say
2001 passat 1.8t manual transmission developed fuel leak on the firewall attachment area, on the middle line directly over catalytic converter; car compartment smelled heavily of gasoline. Stopping car and inspecting the fuel line showed the crack. This is a very serious issue and was very lucky in this case not to have car on fire. Please investigate this as there seems to be related recalls from vw on this issue. I'm scared to have kids on board the passat.
Car had been sitting all day drove it once caught fire around 4am in the morning car total alot burn bad in the front. I had notice that some features were not working but I did not attribute it to a electrical problem according to the fire dept who came to put the blaze out.
My foster son was driving our 2001 vw passat when he noticed a large amount of smoke coming out from under the hood. He pulled over into a parking lot and there were flames engulfing the passenger compartment. Fire and police were on the scene. It was determined by the fire department and a mechanic that looked at the car later that the fire started in the computer located in the dash area of the car. The car is a total loss with the passenger compartment melted beyond repair. We have a fire report and pictures.
I was driving home and my car caught on fire from unknown defect my life was in big dangerous.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 volkswagen passat. While parked in the driveway, the vehicle burst into flames underneath the hood. The fire department stated that the fire was due to an electrical malfunction. The vehicle only had liability coverage; therefore, the insurance company would not investigate. The vehicle was destroyed. The contact will give the manufacturer a report. The current and failure mileages were 87,000.
I bought the car from a dealer and know from carfax report the car was recently off lease. I put 15 miles on it and internally inside the dash black smoke radiated from the vents and sparks fell under the car. Within seconds flames shot out from under the dash. The fire company arrived in less than 5 minutes but by then the car was an inferno.
I have a 2001 vw passat. I turned the seat heater o onthe dirvers side and in about 5 minutes their was smoke coming from the seat and the heating coil had burned a hole in the seat.
2001.5 passat gls 1.8t the coil pack fouled and caught the coil on fire. Had I not opened it up and removed the valve cover along with the coil pack itself, the car would have went up in flames. I feel sorry for those who dont know much about cars. This is an ongoing issue with vw coil packs. Vw claims that if they go bad you can still drive it to the dealership. I dont believe this to be a safe idea.
Vehicle caught on fire because of electrical system in engine. No prior warnings . Contacted dealer, and dealer was not willing to do anything.
Service bulletins that may apply
- Battery testing and charging using special tools VAS6161 & GRX3000VAS Charger
- Alternative method for radio code retrieval.
- Battery Testing and Charging instruction
- This information bulletin contains instructions for checking the pins/terminals for contacts and nano...
- Installation of original remote start feature accessory
- Tip for Scan tool concerns that may occur duing a test plan
- Update to model year applicability.
- Updated to include model year 2014 thru 2018 applicability.
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 2001 Volkswagen Passat fire or smoke
Is fire, smoke or burning smell a common problem on the 2001 Volkswagen Passat?
10 of 430 owner complaints about the 2001 Volkswagen Passat (2%) mention fire, smoke or burning smell. The model year with the most reports is 2003.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2001 Volkswagen Passat?
There are 0 recalls and 32 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2001 Volkswagen Passat
ABS 44Check engine light 24Ball joint 23Headlights 23Loss of power 17Stalling 16Engine failure 14Fuel gauge 12Water leak 10Airbag light 9No deployment 7Brake failure 6Fuel leak 5Misfire 5Overheating 5
VIN decoder
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