I went to start the car in my driveway and a red warning icon appeared on the instrument panel. I looked it up in the owners manual which stated the icon indicated a steering system failure. Further, the ignition key then stuck in the ignition switch/lock and could not be removed. As a result the truck's transmission gear selector could not be taken out of the "park" detent. This resulted in my not being able to get the truck to a position where a tow truck could access the car until the snow melted two months later. The vw authorized repair center diagnosed the problem as a failure in the steering column. Further, they stated that this is a common failure mode for this model and they believed a recall or campaign was imminent. This is a serious design flaw. If it had failed while being driven the results could have been catastrophic. Also vw markets this truck as suitable for off road travel in remote places, if it failed while I was in a remote area, I could have been stranded and placed in grave peril since I would not been able to roll the truck to an area suitable for recovery or flat tow it if necessary.
2004 Volkswagen Touareg electrical complaints
Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 49, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Constant repair of 2004 vw touareg: this vehicle has been certified in all states of the union as being a certified lemon. When I purchased the vehicle I had no idea of this. I have had to replace a fan sensor which is a certified vw defect, but I had to pay for the cost, repair and labor in the amount of $550 and further, the vehicle left me stranded because the faulty sensor allowed a fan to keep blowing thereby draining my battery completely. Rear windshield wiper disintegrated during heavy rain and cost 65 to repair although the piece looks like something a child put together. Front windshield wiper flew off of car while raining, causing me to pull over and be stranded once again. I got stranded again because the vw engine coils burnt out without notice leaving me stranded in blizzard conditions in chicago. I had to get a new battery but was charged $250 for the battery and installation because vw chose to put the battery under the front driver's seat. Not three weeks have passed and I haven't even driven the vehicle but both fuel pumps and the flange module have gone out. I had to pay $1500 for labor, parts, shop and repairs. Vehicle has 91,000 and brakes and rotors have gone out again for the 3rd time. Right door opens when driving although the vehicle is locked, which is another certified defect. Vehicle lunges forward from a stopped position and then hesitates when trying to speed up on the highway.
Tl* the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen touareg. The contact stated the gear shift selector would not move out of park and he was unable to remove the key from the ignition. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer. While the vehicle was being towed, the entire console and warning lights illuminated. In addition, the contact stated water was entering the vehicle and settling in the trunk near the spare tire. The dealer removed the shifter cable and replaced the harness, a wire and the shifter column. The failure mileage was 75,285 and the current mileage was 76,065. Updated 11/02/10. *lj the consumer stated the trunk would not open properly. The tire sensors would come on. The ignition switch was defective and had to be replaced. Updated 11/04/10
2004 vw touareg v-8 many problems but 3 worth reporting: for no apparent reason passenger door could not be opened or unlatched by using any known means including the inside door handle or outside door handle, electric lock actuator clicks as if the door is unlocked but the door can not be opened or unlatched. Vehicle had to be brought to vw dealership and worked on by destroying the door handle to open the door and perhaps cutting a whole in the body pannel at the cost of 2 hours of diagnostics, 8 hours of labor to open door and probably 2 or 3 additional hours of replacing door handle if body of door is not bent, plus parts vehicle has many electrical glitches including but not limited to intermittent malfunction of air bag igniters....once again having the potential to cause serious harm occupants given the right circumstances this is a potential dangerous situation and has made me lose all faih in this manufacturer. Vehicle lunges forward when stopped at trafic lights and beginning to procceed on a green.
Unexpected and sudden electrical malfunction of the steering column lock causing the vehicle to shut down, unable to start or move shifter lever out of gear.
Stranded with a dead battery on multiple occasions as a result of a electrical system failure which vw issued a technical service bulletin on and failed to notify the consumer that there was an issue while under warranty. *tr updated 01/25/10 *bf updated 01/26/10.
I have had my 2004 vw touareg since june 2006 and have had problem after problem with the vehicle. The catalytic converter went out within 6 weeks of buying the car, the drive shaft had to be replaced, the air conditioning compressor had to be replaced, the brakes have had to be replaced and I am getting another "check brake pads" error again, the tire monitoring system continually tells me I have a flat, the radio amplifier was making a loud cracking so the dealership replaced a fuse and blew the 2 back speakers (which they would not fix, hewlett vw in georgetown, texas), the auto differential is going out. There seems to be no end in sight for repairs.
Multiple engine light failures for over 4 years. Engine light came on and engine shut down immediately while wife was on the freeway. Very dangerous...essentially no warning. Have replaced wiring harness in the vehicle and have had it in the shop for electrical issues many times. Unsafe handling and acceleration...car jumps forward at stops while it is downshifting. Think the transmission, tires and brakes should be tested. Think you will find they are defective. Engine blew up at 44,000 miles. Very dangerous car..and you will find other touaregs with similar issues. Should be recalled.
The esp light came on steady and the lights around the differential switch came on flashing. Then the vehicle lost electrical power and would not start. I had it towed into the dealer and the service people indicated there were numerous recalls on this vehicle that caused this problem. I was never notified of these recalls.
Tl*the contact owns a 2004 volkswagen touareg. The warning tone of the tire pressure monitoring system sounds intermittently. In addition, the headlights failed, and the vehicle pulled to the right sporadically and without warning. The dealer was unable to diagnose the cause of failure. The contact possessed the repair invoices. The failure mileage began at 100. *ak the consumer stated the failures continue, she has had multiple problems with this vehicle brake rotors replace at 15,000 miles, brake pads had to be replaced at 18,000 miles, two tires replace at 16,000 miles, tps lights continue to go on and off been fixed, four new tires at 30,000 miles. The consumer states that there have been 9 recalls and tps lights still in failure. Update 05/04/07
Tl*- the contact stated that while driving the 2004 volkswagen torgue with 31000 failure mileage at any rate of speed the tps monitoring system light turned on, and staysed on until the vehicle was restarted a couple of times. Also, the vehicle pulled to the front passenger side and was wearing out the tires and brakes on that side.
If I drive the car for one hour and turn the engine off, when trying to restart the engine, the starter won't crank. After another hour it will reset and restart. In and out of the dealer for 7 months and several repair attempts, the starter still fails to crank.
Dt*: the contact stated a week after having the transmission replaced by the service dealer, the vehicle was driven 60 MPH on the highway, and the engine warning message read "turn the motor off immediately", as the electrical system failed and stalled the engine. The contact was able to steer and coast to a stop on the break down lane. The vehicle restarted and stalled 7 times before making one mile to the contact's driveway. The service dealer provided a number to a towing service. The service dealer diagnosed the problem as an alternator and electrical failure, due to leakage from the engine when the engine was removed to replace the transmission. No evidence was found in the garage or driveway, before or after the problem or while parked in the driveway while waiting for the tow to the service dealer. The manufacturer was notified. Updated 10/25/2006 -
I've been having various problems with the electrical system on my 2004 vw touareg from the purchase date of 08/19/03. The alarm would sound, without cause, the doors would not unlock and various switches would not work at times. All of the problems were random. I brought the car in for repair several times. But, the problems were not fixed. In april 2006, my car battery was replaced because it was no longer handling a charge. The battery change was a warranty item. After the battery change, the electrical problems became more frequent. My turn signals began to act up. When I signal for a right turn, the blinker will click to the left one to three times, then to the right. I told murrieta vw about the problem and brought the car in for warranty service on 06/30/06. They couldn't find a "fault code" and couldn't make the car duplicate the problem. So, they didn't fix the car. I video taped the problem five times, on two different occasions after the 06/30/06. I also have two different witnesses who witnessed the problem. I e mailed the videos to murrieta vw and scheduled an appointment. I brought the car back on 07/08. Murrieta vw wasn't able to diagnose the problem. I feel that the car is now dangerous. If I were to signal a right turn at an intersection, with an oncoming car assuming that I am turning left because of a defective turn signal, I could end up in an accident. I'm not looking for special treatment from vw. I just want my car fixed. 2004 vw touareg serial# w v g c m 67 l 04 d 002863.
Volkswagen 2004 touareg sport utility 4d has serious alignment problems resulting in premature tire wear on all 4 tires! Front 2 tires are down to metal showing with only 19,880 miles. Car has been in for all scheduled services and rotations. Almost lost control of car while driving! Also, pre-mature wear of front & back brakes & pads due to the alignment/tire problems! Condensation on front windshield that defogger does not remove. Fuel injection recall that on service bulletin stated it could result in a fire if not fixed! Tire pressure monitoring system failure, esp failure, computer software failure!
Currently, vw has published technical service bulletin 27-05-01 and 27-05-03 for the touareg related to bad ground connections at the battery and a faulty batch of ground/positive wires that run from the generator to the battery. However, vw will only repair the vehicle if the car goes completely dead, leaving the driver and occupants at the mercy of the environment they are stranded in. As this is a SUV, the environment could be one that poses a threat to the well being of the occupants. I have opened case # 60111160 with vwoa and expressed my concerns to dwight harrison vw in snellville, ga and have received the same response......the car has to have an existing no-start condition to qualify.
I took delivery of my 2004 vw touareg on 7-11-04. By 9-9-04 it was having problems. It has been in 6 times for electrical problems, 3 times for the AC, 3 times for the battery, and 1-2 times for other things. Tomorrow, I will be taking it in again for further A/C problems, brakes that catch on their own while in drive, intermittent faulty triggering of tire pressure monitoring system, and a hole that I discovered only day in the fire blanket under the hood. Apparently the engine heat has been burning a hole in it and has burned away a hole right through the blanket to the hood itself, but not through the hood yet. This car has meant time lost from work and an inordinate amount of time spent in the shop and paying for rental cars. This car is a fire and safety hazard. Fairfax county consumer protection (roy seger) had contacted vw as this car falls under the lemon law. Vw responded that they would not comply, stating that they had fixed the battery. Their response failed to account for the multitude of other problems...and now this. I have never felt so powerless. Is there anything you can do to help??
My vehicle, a 2004 vw touareg looses power, the volt meter drops to zero and then the turn signals stop working. All the lights in the vehicle dim and if you switch the vehicle off, it will not start again. The vehicle was drive a few hours earlier, with no problems. This has been a re-occurring problem with the vehicle at the dealership at least 5 or more times in a 2 month period.
My 2004 v8 touareg is absolutely the biggest lemon ever built. It has been in the dealership for 11 full weeks this year with a variety of issues. The two most significant which have taken vw 5 weeks each to identify and resolve are the electrical system was completely malfunctioning and the pump to change the suspension has a leak. Vw has been completely in the dark on these major problems and only after repeated trips to the dealer and many denials from vw did the admit that this car is an over engineered and poorly built car.
My 2004 v6 volkswagen touareg frequently stalls after the engine is cranked. This has been a problem since we purchased the vehicle in oct 2004. After cranking you can press all the way down on the gas pedal but the car will not move at all. After a few seconds, it will sputter a little then move then sputter again then it will drive normally. There is no way to tell when this will happen and I am concerned that it will cause an accident if I start the vehicle then pull out into oncoming traffic.
Dt: the vehicle hesitates on acceleration, and this happens intermittently. While stepping on the gas pedal and the vehicle hesitates. The consumer took the vehicle to dealer, and they said this was normal, but they did say volkswagen programmed a delay in the computer chip. There is no forewarning, no lights come on, and there is no noise. This first happened on march 1, 2005.
I am having trouble with my vw touareg v6. Since then I have had numerous visits to the dealer for failures in design. Footlight would not shut off when the car was off due to trunk door latch being broken at time of purchase. Tires were wearing faster than normal and the alignment was bad. I was given new tires, however, when I asked if this could happen again, I was told yes and they were unsure what vw would do in the future. Tire pressure light goes on and off at any time. I was told this was a malfunction that happens when you have numerous computer options. It came on after a tire rotation and oil change and the dealer said "don't worry, it will reset itself and go off".radio has mysteriously stopped working for 24 hours at a time. Car has actually been dead on two occasions and has left me stranded. I was told by the dealer that the battery in the touareg can't support the car and the computer modules. I was told there was nothing that could be done about this as the battery was fully charged. I was told this was a mistake by vw and I would have to live with it. I was also told to not drive in the city as this makes the problem much worse. I was told that they aren't sure how that happened, but simply resetting the car made it return. Cd player would not work,car was "reset". I find this car to be the biggest joke ever made. I unfortunately am over the mileage for the lemon law in maine (I have 27,000miles on the car). I really think things are getting worse in my car the longer I have the thing. My biggest concern with the car is that there is a possibility it could stop working at any moment. I feel I should not have to carry a self jumping system in a practically brand new $34,000 car. I was also told by my dealership when I stated I was thinking of selling the car, that they didn't blame me as they had heard a lot of people say that about the touareg. Yeah, I feel really safe with this car. I think it is time someone do something about this car and vw.
Passenger door opened going down the road, handle does not retract sometimes. A litany of electric quirks and excessive tire wear, also jerky acceleration.
The radio in the 2004 vw touraegg is extremely dangerous due to its design which requires the driver to take their eyes off the road to change the stations on the radio in a way that is untypical of any radio being designed today. You must push between 4 to 6 buttons to go between am and fm stations and find the station you want to listen to. It requires the driver to take their eyes off the road and be distracted for way too long. When doing city driving you can do it at red lights but on the highway it's very dangerous. Please look into this and test it in a touraeg - it can't be understood unless you get in the car. Cup holders are so shallow that cups and bottles go flying out and land under the feet of the driver near the gas pedal or going flying into the passenger foot area. Also very dangerous. The categories don't really identify this complaint but I hope you'll take it seriously and check the car. I have been driving for almost 40 years and this was a "sleeper" issue not evident at purchase but is the most dangerous ridiculous feature I've ever seen in a good car. I have been to the dealership and they told me to simply listen to one radio station. My children bought me an ipod to solve the problem and the radio is programed so that you can't use an ipod easily either because it doesn't allow you access to unused stations.
2004 vw touareg, in the first year of ownership the car has been in the shop or in alarm mode for 220 days. I have had the car in eight times for a "tire scrubbing" problem and three times for an alarm problem. I have noe filed a law suit and sold the car without ever hearing any concerns from vw.
1.the clock on the dashboard: the time is running almost 1 minute faster per day. If you dont fix it for 10 days, it would run 10 minutes ahead. 2.the drivers seat: when I purchased this car, I asked for power seats but the dealer didnt have it. I was a little uncomfortable with the manual seat, but the sales person convinced me, so I decided to take the one with manual. Since then, ive felt that the drivers seat is always sinking down so I consistently have to pull up the stick to push up the seat quite often while im driving. 3.rear seat: I had to fold the rear seat once to load something in the back. After, I tried to unfold the seat but it didnt go back. I brought this car to the dealers service on nov. 15th, 2004. While one of the service persons was trying to unfold the rear seat, he had to cut the seat belt and has scratched the seat and broken some piece on the seat. He said hes going to order some parts and it would take a few days. Ever since then, nobody knows the status of this order. Both the service dept and the customer care dept, in headquarters have always been telling me its on backorder with no further information, and they dont know when for last six months. I asked them if you dont have the part, even in germany, how long will it take for the manufacturer to make the part? And they keep saying is dont know and we are still checking the status of the part everyday. In a common sense, the period of four months should be enough time to make the part and ship it to the dealer. I also sent a complaint letter to the ceo of the dealer/mckenna & vw north america headquater a couple of months ago. But still they don't know about the part.
The radio display system (displays radio station info,song title, and artist) quit working. The dealer has reconnected the radio and replaced the radio. Each time it works fine for a few hours after returning home then it quits displaying information. The dealer said the radio isn't designed to display this info, yet it worked for a month after getting the vehicle! It works on my other car. The radio is the upgrade monsoon system with cd.
My 2004 touareg with less than 5000 miles has been in for servicing 7 times. The brakes have been worked on and looked at three times. They still squeal but the problem has lessened. Of more concern are the safety issues that have affected me. I have been locked out of my vehicle twice, each time with a different resolution. Updated software was the latest fix. My airbag fault light is now on. Another software resolution is on the way. I have no confidence in the quality or safety of this vehicle or when the next issue will arise. Volkswagen told me my car was not problematic and I had "buyers remorse". I am in awe of their lack of concern especially when I know I am not the only touareg owner out there with problems.
Intermittently, the factory entry remote controller fails to function. The doors have to be opened manually . The system regenerates itself when the keys is turned in the ignition. The dealership inspected the system and installed a new battery. The failure still occurs.
Continuous failures of the electronic system leading to: 1) sporadic failure of turn signals (blinking at the same time on both sides) sending wrong messages to other traffic participants about drivers intentions. 2) requiring numerous efforts to open car doors (driver's door, key being removed form ignition lock). In a case of emergency this can lead to severe consequences; in daily use it can cause panic. 3) computer setting to "all doors open, tailgate open" changes by itself to single door open. (no hazard by itself but proof that the electronic system fails).
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