A fuel leak has developed from the top side of the fuel tank on the drivers side of me vehicle. A fuel leak in this manner is a serious critical and immediate safety risk. Recall 08V156000 was 'performed' on my vehicle back in 2008 but the exact same fuel system safety defect has returned. VW acknowledges the recall and claims it was completed while only an inspection to check for fuel leaks was performed at the time. VW Care and my local dealership refuse to address the ongoing issue. This poses a continued fire risk, and I am now being told to pay out of pocket for a known safety recall that clearly failed to remedy the original defect.
2004 Volkswagen Passat: fuel leak
15 of the 279 complaints about the 2004 Volkswagen Passat describe fuel leak.
- owner complaints
- 15
- of this car's complaints
- 5%
- typical mileage
- 130,000
- recalls
- 2
Is there a fix? There are 2 recalls for this area of the car. See below
Fuel leak by model year
What owners say
There was a recall reported by the manufacturer, Volkswagenm in 2008. There were multiple Fuel System issues: A Heat Shield that may contact the exhaust system and result in a vehicle fire; a fuel leak from a fuel line or fuel tank ventilation valve, in the presence of an ignition source, can lead to a vehicle fire. In 2008, my car was inspected and the recall was deemed "complete." However, the car was only 4 years old at the time and no repairs were made. Only a visual inspection was done. I bought the car used 6 years ago, and it has been diagnosed as having a defective fuel tank ventilation valve. VW should pay for the parts and labor to have this fixed because it was never fixed. I've been told there's no statue of limitations on recalls. VW claims that because the recall was deemed "Complete" that they "fixed" the issue but they didn't.
When you fill up the fuel tank it leaks it leaks a quarter of a tank of fuel roughly 4 to 5 gallons of fuel drip out there's a factory recall on this issue I took it to the volkswagen dealer paid money to have them inspect it and they said yes it's leaking at the factory recall I've had an independent dealer confirm that! Volkswagen will not do anything due to what they claim a remedy was done by moving fuel lines 10 years ago, obviously it was not or I would not have 4 gallons of fuel spill in my driveway vehicle is basically in operable and they want $3000 to put a new fuel tank in when it's a factory recall which never expires I have talk to the volkswagen rep and the only thing I have found in forums is do you have to go to volts wagon of america and fight them and this is ridiculous when they know they have an issue!! To drive this vehicle we never fill it over a half a tank of fuel so we do not leak fuel or explode while we're driving hopefully please help in anyway you can thank you
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen passat. After refueling and parking the vehicle, the contact later discovered fuel had leaked out from the vehicle onto the floor of the garage. Fuel was also visible underneath the rear seat of the vehicle. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that fuel was leaking from the fuel valve. The failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but the local dealer was not notified. The failure mileage was 160,000.
Gas tank/ fuel line fracture, leaking gas when I fill it up, strong gas smell/odor. Stops leaking at around 3/4 tank. Very dangerous for my 16 year old to drive. Vw dealership refused to correct, wants to charge me 2600, to fix I bought the car for 4200 3 months ago.
Gas fuel line/tank leaking gas
Leaking at vent/top of gas tank. Exactly the same description of that past heat sheild/vent gas leaking recall from about 10 years ago
2004 volkswagen passat 4motion, the fuel tank rollover/vent valve on the top of the tank has cracked and is leaking gasoline onto the exhaust system. The tank was filled up on 2/22/2015 and started leaking large amounts of fuel from the top of the tank over the exhaust. This continued until the tank reached 3/4 full. If the fuel tank is filled above 3/4 it will leak fuel until it gets to 3/4. If the vehicle is parked with the front downhill, it continues to leak beyond the 3/4 point. This failure was part of a previous vw 2008 the federal safety agency mandated recall 08v156000, but only required dealer inspection of the rollover/vent valve and not replacement of the fuel tank with a functional part, if it was not leaking when inspected then do nothing. The rollover/vent is integral to the vw passat awd tank, and the complete fuel tank has to be replaced. Vw claim as the car was inspected in 2008, they are not responsible for the subsequent failure of the rollover/vent valve.
Fuel began leaking from the top of the fuel tank after fill up. My daughter was heading back to college, and as she pulled away I noticed a large puddle of gasoline in the street. The federal safety agency had previously recalled the vehicle in 2008 (26e5/r5) action number (pe08008). Vw dealer inspected and installed heat shield. No fuel leak at this time. In september 2012 fuel tank began leaking, vw dealer replaced the fuel tank, washer, gasket and clamp under the recall. In september 2014 I brought car back to vw dealer, and they said they are only responsible to fix the car once. Fed up with vw, I brought car to my local mechanic, and upon inspection he found the nipples on the fuel tank rollover valve were again cracked. I had him replace the tank. Obviously vw didn't properly fix the problem, and or replaced the tank with the same defective design and the tank cracked again. This is a very serious safety issue, and I feel that vw should pay for this repair. If it was done right and corrected, the tank would not be leaking again after less than 2 years, and 20,000 miles. This could have caused a fire with my daughter in the car, and that is very upsetting to me.
Vehicle: 2004 vw passat 4motion sedan w/1.8l turbo, automatic transmission filled vehicles fuel tank, noticed strong gasoline smell inside vehicle, noticed fuel dripping from fuel tank of vehicle to ground. Cannot fill tank without gas dripping to ground; fuel leak is next to exhaust system underneath vehicle (very dangerous). Found following information: manufacturer: volkswagen of america, inc summary: volkswagen is recalling 412,000 my 1999-2005 passat (5th generation) vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions and produced after june 14, 1999. These vehicles may have an underbody heat shield that can become damaged. In addition, affected vehicles with automatic or manual transmissions may have a fuel line (1.8t engines only) or fuel tank ventilation valve (4motion/all wheel drive only) that can leak due to fracture.
Fuel tank ventilation valve is leaking fuel. Vw dealer refused to fix it under the existing recall: the federal safety agency campaign id number: 08v156000 the federal safety agency action number: pe08008 I have vw passat 2004 gls 4 motion w/manual transmission.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen passat. The contact stated that while he was away, he left the vehicle parked in an airport parking garage. The vehicle was later impounded by the police due to fuel leakage in while it was parked. The police reported that the vehicle was not safe to be parked in the garage. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The dealer diagnosed that a heat shield that may contact the exhaust system could result in a vehicle fire. In addition, a fuel leak from a fuel line or the fuel tank ventilation valve in the presence of an ignition source could lead to a vehicle fire. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified and stated that the vehicl was not included in the recalls associated with the federal safety agency campaign id numbers 08v156000 (fuel system, gasoline:delivery) and 04v586000 (fuel system, diesel). The failure and current mileages were 83,529.
Related recalls
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery
- What is wrong
- Volkswagen is recalling 412,000 my 1999-2005 passat (5th generation) vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions and produced after june 14, 1999. These vehicles may have an underbody heat shield that can become damaged. In addition, affected vehicles with automatic or manual transmissions may have a fuel line (1.8t engines only) or fuel tank ventilation valve (4motion/all wheel drive only) that can leak due to fracture.
- Risk
- A heat shield that may contact the exhaust system can result in a vehicle fire. In addition, a fuel leak from a fuel line or fuel tank ventilation valve, in the presence of an ignition source, can lead to a vehicle fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install additional underbody heat shields on vehicles with automatic transmissions to cover the possibly damaged areas and flash all 1.8t engines with a precautionary software update. Dealers will also inspect and adjust the fuel line routing on 1.8t vehicles and the fuel tank ventilation valve on 4motion/all wheel drive vehicles, and replace components if necessary free of charge. The recall began on june 13, 2008. Owners may contact volkswagen at 1‑800‑822‑8987.
Recall number 08V156000 · Recall details
Fuel system, diesel
- What is wrong
- On certain passenger vehicles, the high pressure diesel pumps were produced with an improper fastener, which could allow diesel fuel to escape from the pump.
- Risk
- Fuel leakage in the presence of an ignition source may lead to a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the diesel pump. The recall began on february 8, 2005. Owners should contact volkswagen at 1‑800‑822‑8987.
Recall number 04V586000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2004 Volkswagen Passat fuel leak
Is fuel leak a common problem on the 2004 Volkswagen Passat?
15 of 279 owner complaints about the 2004 Volkswagen Passat (5%) mention fuel leak. The model year with the most reports is 2002.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2004 Volkswagen Passat?
There are 2 recalls and 0 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2004 Volkswagen Passat
Fire or smoke 24Check engine light 21Jerking 19Stalling 16Fuel pump 14Engine failure 12Hesitation 9Loss of power 8ABS 7Overheating 7Transmission failure 7Harsh shifting 6Adaptive cruise 5Fuel smell 5Tire blowout 5Water leak 5
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