2021 Volkswagen Tiguan
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 141 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 7th highest complaint count among 17 Tiguan model years with reports.
Of the 2021 reports, 2 involved a crash. 2 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Back over prevention, sensing system, cameraJul 20, 2022
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Golf GTI, Jetta GLI, Jetta NF, Arteon FL, Tiguan LWB, 2022 Taos, Jetta PA, Tiguan PA, 2021-2022 Atlas Cross Sport, and Atlas FL vehicles. The manufacturing process of the eMMC memory module in the infotainment system may cause the rearview camera image not to display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
A rearview camera that does not display an image reduces the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will update the infotainment software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 16, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 91DV.
Campaign 22V514000 on NHTSA.gov
Structure, bodyApr 6, 2022
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2022 Tiguan and 2018-2021 Tiguan long wheel base (LWB) vehicles. Due to incorrect installation instructions, the accessory rear hatch spoiler may be insufficiently attached to the vehicle.
An insufficiently attached spoiler may separate from the vehicle, becoming a road hazard and increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will replace the spoiler, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 3, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 66N5.
Campaign 22V226000 on NHTSA.gov
SuspensionMar 23, 2022
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2022 Tiguan, Taos, and 2021 Tiguan long wheel base (LWB) vehicles. A second notice will be sent once remedy parts become available. The left or right rear suspension knuckles may corrode, crack, and break.
A broken rear suspension knuckle can cause a loss of stability, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace one or both rear suspension knuckles, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 13, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42L8.
Campaign 22V176000 on NHTSA.gov
SeatsFeb 1, 2021
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan Long Wheelbase and Jetta vehicles. Bolts may be missing from the front seat tracks.
The seat can move front and back without restriction if bolts are missing, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front seat tracks and, as necessary, install the bolts, free of charge. The recall began February 18, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 72L6.
Campaign 21V038000 on NHTSA.gov
Back over prevention, sensing system, cameraNov 18, 2020
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas Cross Sport, Tiguan LWB, Jetta NF, Jetta GLI, Golf GTI, Atlas FL and Arteon vehicles. The rear view camera could malfunction during an ignition cycle, leading to a black screen or infotainment system freeze. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
A black or frozen rear view image reduces the driver's visibility when reversing, increasing the risk of a crash.
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will update the infotainment system software, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 91BB/91BC.
Campaign 20V716000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
141 reports, newest first.
Visibility/wiper, Mar 22, 2024
We have a cracked windshield and VW has not been able to provide us with a replacement windshield. I have contacted VW parts at the dealership, called VW care, and called harrs auto glass. No one can get me any info on when a new windshield will be available for my car. I'm told the windshield is on backorder with an unknown ETA. I have been waiting for a windshield for 1 year with no news.
Visibility/wiper, Mar 12, 2024
The front windshield is very fragile. I am now replacing it again after having replaced it just a year ago from the same issue. Crack develops and travels across the entire window.
Exterior lighting, Mar 6, 2024
The seal on the passenger headlight on my 2021 Tiguan failed and condensation accumulated in the light. After a short while, the light shorted out and needed to be replaced. The dealer I went to was not very responsive and stated the light was on backorder and they could not obtain. Once the light shorted, the dealership took the car overnight, provided a loaner and replaced the headlight. For the record, I do not know if the light is VW or after-market and do not care as long as it continues to work. This is important b/c now the driver headlight seal failed and the light shorted out. Same story with the headlight on backorder and the dealership will not replace nor provide a loner. It is apparent the headlights used in VW Tiguans are faulty and run the risk of shorting out. So I am left a leased vehicle that is literally not legally fit to drive - no head light, turn-signal is also not operable.
Power train, Engine, Fuel/propulsion system, Mar 5, 2024
My Tiguan was towed on [XXX] to Beyer Volkswagen [4017 Valley Pike, Winchester, VA 22602] for service to repair a sudden and unexpected vehicle failure. On [XXX], I started the Tiguan and noticed a hard start. I drove the vehicle about 4 miles down the road and noticed a smell of gasoline when I stopped and opened the door. I immediately drove the car home at which point I noticed gasoline on the road and driveway, as well as a heavy persistent smell of gas. I moved the vehicle to the road and had it towed [$95 at my expense] to Beyer VW for service. This failure rendered the vehicle undrivable and luckily was able to get it towed before it became engulfed in flames. [XXX], after getting the vehicle back for 1 week (dealership claiming repair fixed) the problem was not fixed and in fact gas spewed from the engine at a higher rate. Pictures attach showing about of gas which instantly dispelled at start and move from driveway to road. This is a critical vw problem that will result in fire. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Other or unspecified, Mar 4, 2024
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? GPS, it intermittently does not work and so difficult to inspect upon request How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Directions not available on GPS system leading to incorrect turns, potential accidents and other dangers of relying on a map system Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Manufacturer (VW) was contacted, Case# 06128548 closed without resolution with a possible software update planned but no expectation of delivery Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No, GPS intermittently stopped working about a year ago
Electrical system, Latches/locks/linkages, Service brakes, Jan 29, 2024
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that while driving approximately 15 - 20 MPH the "Stop and Start Failure" message was displayed. The contact restarted the vehicle and the "Fault Electronic Brake" and "Driver Door Switch Failure" messages became displayed. The contact pulled to the side of the road and opened then closed the front driver’s side door and restarted the vehicle. The contact repeated the process three times however, the messages remained displayed. The contact continued to drive the vehicle at approximately 15 - 20 MPH and the parking brake suddenly activated. Once the parking brake had independently released the contact was able to get to the side of the road and turned off and restarted the vehicle several times. The failure had started occurring more frequently. The contact stated that several other unknown messages were displayed. The dealer had been informed of the failure however, the vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The vehicle had not been diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 20,000.
Electrical system, Forward collision avoidance, Nov 9, 2023
Vehicle keeps having all warning lights and warning messages come on whenever the car starts. Warning lights maintain on constantly and has audible beeping to indicate the warnings. Vehicle would also put itself into park randomly at, as well as disengage collision and lane sensors while driving. Vehicle has been taken to the dealership, and has been reproduced by them, stating "we have never seen this before and are not sure what to do, we need to reach out to Volkswagen directly" most recent update, they needed to replace the door harness and F5 module but are still unclear with the status of the repair. Dealership has indicated it's safe to drive if I wanted to pick it up while they figure out the issue.
Engine, Nov 3, 2023
My car is a 2021 Tiguan. Car is burning oil and should not be.
Vehicle speed control, Sep 21, 2023
While driving, using cruise control set to 75mph, I braked to slow down. That worked cruise control disengaged fine. I changed to the adjacent lane that was wide open and pushed the resume button on the steering wheel. I noticed I was passing several vehicles on both sides of me. Looked at the speedometer reading = 98 mph and felt further acceleration. Put my foot on the brake to disengage cruise control and slow down. I checked the cruise control setting on the dashscreen. It still read 75 mph. When the speed of the vehicle returned to 75mph, I again "SET" the speed of cruise control at 75mph, and all was normal again.
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Engine, Sep 5, 2023
Oil change/ low oil light didn’t come one. When car was initially checked due to check engine light being on it didn’t produce any codes. The dealer confirms it needs a new engine and turbo rebuild due to there being no oil in the car. Last oil change was May 29, 2023 at Pep boys.
Other or unspecified, Aug 17, 2023
Some light assembly/sun roof control panel falls down and obscures part of windshield
Other or unspecified, Jul 26, 2023
Last night I got out of work and got in my 2021 VW Tiguan and found my overhead console had completely dropped from the ceiling. I called Security where I work because I thought maybe someone had tried to break into my car. they took a report and taped it up for me so I could drive home. This prompted me to look up issues that have been reported here (NHTSA) and of course I found that numerous others have had this same issue!!!I I called the dealer in Macon, GA (about an hour away from where am) and scheduled an appt for August 1st. They said they knew it was an issue and as long as my car was under 50,000 miles it would be covered under warranty. . I guess my next question would be what happens if after they replace it, it happens again? I found a lot more complaints out on this site about the same issue. 3 pages of complaints - think there needs to be a recall so that this piece is covered for the life of the vehicle after replacement and so that VW will have to replace even after 50,000 miles. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Other or unspecified, Jul 25, 2023
The middle console have completely fallen out of the roof, held on only by the wires. It looks like the plastic attachments to the screws all broken. Incident occurred while parked during working hours on Tuesday, July 25.
Power train, Vehicle speed control, Jul 13, 2023
So this is not related to a specific incident, more long term. The throttle response in this vehicle is downright dangerous. MAny of times I feel like I am going to cause an accident. The throttle response is so laggy and jerky that off the line it seems to hesitate for almost 2 seconds. Light turns yellow? Good luck, it will barely downshift and get moving before it turns red. Sometimes the response is good, sometimes it terrible. No predictability. Have to turn it to sport mode when I have to make a left turn into traffic just to get a jump start. There are numerous forums that have talked about the issue. I have even brought it up to the dealership with no fix recommended. I have driven so many cars in my day, not one like this. Thinking about selling the car back just to get something safer unless they come out with a fix for it.
Engine, Jun 19, 2023
The vehicle continually reports low oil pressure every 5,000 miles and checking the oil confirms that the engine has burned through 4 quarts of oil. The vehicle has been inspected by the dealership from which it was purchased, and they report that the oil burn is within normal limits as defined by Volkswagen and that they cannot produce a result that would be consistent with the level of oil during I experience during a day-to-day commute. This problem has been ongoing for over 1 year
Visibility/wiper, Forward collision avoidance, May 22, 2023
I have had to replace multiple windshields for something barely hitting it on the freeway - I think this is my 4th windshield and have not been driving near big trucks or construction during the incidents. Another issue is that I have had the car abruptly break in both leaving the parking lot and on the freeway in traffic thinking I am going to hit something when nothing is there which seems to be a sensor issue.
Forward collision avoidance, Apr 7, 2023
When using the remote start the ACC and automatic braking system will fail and give an error. This is a known issue for VW and they have not provided a solutions in over 2 years. To make it work again you need to either turn the car off and back on without remote start or disable the ACC before using the remote start.
Visibility, Mar 20, 2023
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the sunroof shattered. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 7,000.
Electrical system, Engine, Dec 5, 2022
The car will suddenly shut off while slowing down or coming to a stop. The “start/stop” error message is displayed and the car displays to “manually restart car”. At first this happened only sporadically, but now this is happening while on the highway in traffic or while turning in an intersection. Today it has happened 5 times. Our car only has 10,000 miles and has had problems from the beginning. The fuel pump had to be replaced after sitting at the dealership for a MONTH while they tried to fix and unknown “EPC” error that displayed and completely shut our car off while driving on the highway—not coming to a stop.
Electrical system, Service brakes, Forward collision avoidance, Nov 22, 2022
From a cold start and backing down the driveway, the SUV displayed an error code “Error: Driver Door Contact Switch” and automatically put the park break on. The driver had to put the Tiguan in park, turn off the vehicle, and release the emergency break restart the Tiguan and pulled back up the driveway. The driver proceeded to open/shut all the doors to ensure that all doors were closed. The drive started the Tiguan and proceeded to back out the driveway and the same thing happened with the error code and the park brake. The driver restarted the Tiguan and pulled back up the driveway and turned off the Tiguan exited the vehicle locked it and noticed the error code was still showing on the dash.
Engine, Nov 21, 2022
I have to put oil into the engine every 2000 miles. The dealership has run 2 separate oil consumption tests and they claim they are unable to find anything wrong.
Air bags, Oct 3, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the air bag control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was advised to contact the dealer for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 13,000.
Electrical system, Sep 23, 2022
While coming to a stop, the car displayed an error code “ Error: Driver Door Contact Switch” and automatically put the car in park using the emergency break. The driver would have to put the car in park, turn off the vehicle, and release the emergency break to continue. The Volkswagen Tiguan would do this at every stop. The driver pulled over and opened/shut all the door to ensure that no doors were open and it was only after reading in a form that the driver discovered that it is an electrical issue/software issue that the computer registers the door as open.
Structure, Sep 7, 2022
On ~August 1, 2022, the "overheard console" (containing lights, BT microphone, and sunglass compartment) unexpectedly "dropped" out of the vehicle's ceiling. The plastic and adhesive keeping this part in place appeared to have cracked into pieces, and the weight of the part caused it to fall. I was driving during this incident and it startled me into nearly having an accident. When I called the dealership I purchased this brand new car from less than two years ago, (Hewlett Volkswagen of Georgetown, Texas) they informed me that I was one of MANY customers experiencing the same issue on Tiguans manufactured in the last 2 years. In fact, when I described what happened, the service advisor guessed my make/model before I provided further detail. The dealership refused to accommodate my safety (let along the inconvenience) by offering a tow/loaner vehicle, so I had to drive over 25 miles (~40 minutes) to bring the car in to get the broken console removed. In that trip, I almost got into another accident because the part dangling from my ceiling was obstructing my view while driving. I have been waiting 6 weeks to get this part replaced, which the dealership confirmed was back order issues because they've had so many instances with other VW Tiguans this summer. I have contacted VW Customer Service hotline AND the dealership about a recall on this, but both validated that they've never filed anything despite being fully aware that "dropping overhead consoles" have been a RECURRING safety risk for cars with my make/model/year for months. While I've waited for VW to take responsibility, I've injured myself getting into my vehicle at night because I have no lights inside the car, let alone at extreme risk for assault. And because I cannot use the BT microphone, a feature which encouraged me to buy this car brand new, I have had to make sacrifices in my career. My life and the lives of others have been put at risk because VW has refused to consider this a safety recall.
Electrical system, Structure, Aug 26, 2022
The contact owns a 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the overhead console detached from the vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the overhead console to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.