2003 Volkswagen Passat: battery drain or dead battery

Filed May 6, 2019 · Seats · 56,000 miles · PA · fire

05/01/2019 car had a dead battery---charge over night still would not start---had the car towed to auto shop--upon arrival with key on approx. 15 min drive--smoke started billowing---disconnected battery---drivers side seat warmer completely melted--mechanic says unit pulling 30 amps--there was a previous recall--not sure if totally corrected--donot want to replace immediately--please advise

Filed Jul 28, 2008 · Body, Fuel system · 31,000 miles · AZ

This car was never inspected for recalls, or safety issues. The moment the car was handed to us the battery died. The dealership quickly change the battery. The car was hesitating on acceleration ever since. It was on july 27 2008 that finally the check engine light came on. Took the car to a garage and it has coast us 270 dollars to fix it so far. We have not had this car for more than a month. There are two recalls on this car that were never look at or fixed by precision toyota of tucson . One of these recalls can cause fire.

Filed Jun 26, 2007 · Lights · OH

Regarding recall 07v063000. I own a 2003 volkswagen passat that had the exact same problem with the brake light switch. The brake lights came on and stayed on all day. I had no idea there was a problem. I parked the car, and the brake lights stayed on all night and drained the battery. The dealership refused to honor the recall, staying vehicle was excluded from the recall due to the VIN. I had to pay the repair costs out of pocket and volkswagen corporate refused to reimburse me.

Filed Mar 9, 2007 · Electrical · 35,000 miles · CA

Vehicle battery goes dead if car sits for more than 3 days without being started. Alternator wiring harness has been replaced once. Battery has been replace 5 times in 6 months. Dealer can not find anything that is draining the battery and insists that "nothing is wrong with the car and that it is perfectly normal (except for a dead battery) for this to happen. "just start the car every 1-2 days" is their remedy. I have never heard of anything so lame in my life!!

Filed Jan 6, 2007 · Engine, Lights · 30,000 miles · NY

My 2003 vw passat 4-door sedan has experienced multiple occurrences where the brake lights continue to remain on while driving and even after the engine is shut off. This happened again today and I noticed this time that the emergency engine light came on while driving earlier in the day - this is also another issue that also comes on/off for no reason. I've reported the warning light a couple of times as well to the vw service and they don't know why that happens either. The warning light will at least shut off when the car is turned off, unlike my brake lights. Since today is saturday, leaving my brake lights on until the service department reopens on a monday is probably going to run my battery dead. With that concern in mind, I immediately called the vw roadside assistance hotline, 800‑822‑8987, to see if they had any repair instructions I can look into and the operator said she was unable to find any documentation. She advised that vw roadside can come tow my vehicle to a dealership (that won't reopen until monday) or they can come to jump-start my car (which can take up to 45-60 min. After dispatch). This seems a terribly long time to wait & a huge inconvenience esp. Since it also took 30 min. Just to reach the live operator in the first place. I love driving my passat; I bought it brand new direct from the dealership in 2003. Car safety is very important to me which is why I'm adamant about following service guidelines and bring my car in for regular maintenance & oil changes. I only bring it into a vw dealership service, never a local garage mechanic. Can the federal safety agency please look into both issues: 1. Sporadic check engine light warning while driving 2. Brake lights remaining on while driving and after the car is shut off. I am very concerned as both are major causes for safety concern, in addition to further expensive repairs which may be defects that the manufacturer should cover instead. Thanks.

Filed Apr 15, 2005 · Engine · 33,000 miles · NY

I have a 2003 volkswagen passat. In the two years I have owned this car I have had it towed to the dealership 5-6 times due to transmission problems. When putting the car in park it kept moving forward. I had to put on the emergency brake to stop the car. Luckily, I was in a parking lot, and was going very slow. Again, I had a problem with my car not too long after. My car display read stop engine, and the car was overheating. Vehicle was towed to the dealership and water pump had to be replaced. Another problem involved the brake lights staying on, draining the battery, twice had to have a vehicle towed to the dealership. Yesterday, oil light came on, and the display again read stop engine. I had the car towed again. Dealership said that unless I have a complete record of my oil change receipts they will not cover it. I have read literally hundreds of complaints with the same problem. What is going on!!! I am fighting with the dealership, and volkswagen corporation to have this problem resolved under warranty. This should be a recall item! Help!!!