2015 Volkswagen TIGUAN

Problems, Recalls & Reliability Report

Below Average

Quick Summary

The 2015 Volkswagen TIGUAN has 106 owner complaints filed with NHTSA — that's 1.3x the segment average of 80. The most common issue is air bags problems (26% of all complaints), specifically: my vehicle only has 42000 miles on it. 6000 miles over warranty. as i was turning i heard a rattling and the airbag light came on, horn doesn't work and steering wheel buttons do not work. dealership said it's the steering wheel clock spring in the steering wheel. same issue as 2010-2014 recalls. t. ⚠️ 3 fire reports filed.

3 fire reports 1 crash report 3 injuries

106

Total Complaints

Recalls Issued

—/5

Safety Stars

1.3x

vs Segment Avg

Known Problems

AIR BAGS

28 complaints

26%

• MY VEHICLE ONLY HAS 42000 MILES ON IT. 6000 MILES OVER WARRANTY. AS I WAS TURNING I HEARD A RATTLING AND THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON, HORN DOESN'T WORK AND STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS DO NOT WORK. DEALERSHIP SAID IT'S THE STEERING WHEEL CLOCK SPRING IN THE STEERING WHEEL. SAME ISSUE AS 2010-2014 RECALLS. T
• OCT 19TH, 2017 CLOCK SPRING BROKE, WHILE EXITING OUT OF PARKING LOT, FOLLOWED BY AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT APPEARING ON DASHBOARD, ALONG WITH ALARM SOUND. AS I CONTINUED TO DRIVE ON SIDE STREET, I WAS NOT ABLE TO USE MY HORN AS ANOTHER STARTED TO ENTER MY LANE. UPON RETURN TO PARKING LOT, WHILE CAR WAS
• THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT CAME ON, AND THE CONTROLS ON THE STEERING WHEEL DO NOT WORK, AND THE HORN WILL NOT WORK.

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500💥 1 crashes

“MY VEHICLE ONLY HAS 42000 MILES ON IT. 6000 MILES OVER WARRANTY. AS I WAS TURNING I HEARD A RATTLING AND THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON, HORN DOESN'T WORK AND STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS DO NOT WORK. DEALERSHIP SAID IT'S THE STEERING WHEEL CLOCK SPRING IN THE STEERING WHEEL. SAME ISSUE AS 2010-2014 RECALLS. T”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ELECTRICAL

23 complaints

22%

• BACKUP CAMERA SCREEN TOO DARK. CANNOT SEE WHAT IS BEHIND YOU. ALL SOFTWARE ADJUSTMENTS TRIED TO IMPROVE VIDEO I.E. INCREASE BRIGHTNESS DOES NOT HELP. CHECKED ANOTHER 2015 TIGUAN AT DEALER AND IT HAD SAME PROBLEM. WORRIED THAT POOR PERFORMANCE OF BACKUP CAMERA SYSTEM WILL NOT DETECT OBJECTS BEHIND
• WHEN PLACING THE CAR IN REVERSE, THE VIEWING SCREEN SUDDENLY TURNS DARK AND UNVIEWABLE, THEREFORE CREATING A DRIVING HAZARD FOR TODAYS DRIVING REQUIREMENTS. THE COMPANY SAYS THEY CAN'T DO ANYTHING ABOUT THE CONDITION?? THIS HAS OCCURRED IN ALL THE 2 YEARS I HAVE HAD THE CAR. OTHER VW OWNERS HAVE T
• 1 MONTH OLD AND BATTERY DISCHARGED, TOOK TO DEALER NO ISSUE FOUND , 2 YEARS LATER SAME ISSUE BATTERY DISCHARGED PURCHASED NEW BATTERY WORKED FOR 2 DAYS THEN WOULD NOT START AGAIN. ALTERNATOR NOT CHARGING THE BATTERY, TOOK TO DEALERSHIP THEY SAID NO ISSUE WITH ALTERNATOR OR BATTERY. WHEN I WENT TO S

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“BACKUP CAMERA SCREEN TOO DARK. CANNOT SEE WHAT IS BEHIND YOU. ALL SOFTWARE ADJUSTMENTS TRIED TO IMPROVE VIDEO I.E. INCREASE BRIGHTNESS DOES NOT HELP. CHECKED ANOTHER 2015 TIGUAN AT DEALER AND IT HAD SAME PROBLEM. WORRIED THAT POOR PERFORMANCE OF BACKUP CAMERA SYSTEM WILL NOT DETECT OBJECTS BEHIND”

— NHTSA complaint filing

OTHER

15 complaints

14%

• WATER SPOTS ON WINDOWS. THEY COLLECT DUST MAKING VISIBILITY DIFFICULT. CAN NOT REMOVE WATER SPOTS WITH ALCOHOL, AMMONIA, OR PROFESSIONAL FINE-CUT CLEANER.
• THE SUNROOF GLASS EXPLODED WHILE WE WERE DRIVING DOWN THE FREEWAY. WE WERE SHOWERED WITH GLASS FRAGMENTS INCLUDING TINY SHARDS. SOME PIN PRICK SIZE INJURIES ON HANDS AND ARMS. WE WERE CRUISING AT 70MPH ON I-90 AT THE TIME OF THE EVENT. IT WAS ABOUT 65 DEGREES OUTSIDE AND WE HAD ONE REAR WINDOW D
• I PULLED MY 2015 TIGUAN OUT OF MY GARAGE AND BACKED OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY. I STARTED TO DRIVE BUT THERE WAS A STOPPED SCHOOL BUS A BLOCK AHEAD OF ME WITH CARS STOPPED BEHIND IT. I DROVE ABOUT 20 FEET AT NO MORE THAN 5 MPH AND STOPPED BEHIND THE LINE OF CARS AHEAD OF ME. SUDDENLY I HEARD A LOUD EXPLOSIO

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“WATER SPOTS ON WINDOWS. THEY COLLECT DUST MAKING VISIBILITY DIFFICULT. CAN NOT REMOVE WATER SPOTS WITH ALCOHOL, AMMONIA, OR PROFESSIONAL FINE-CUT CLEANER.”

— NHTSA complaint filing

STEERING

9 complaints

• OCT 19TH, 2017 CLOCK SPRING BROKE, WHILE EXITING OUT OF PARKING LOT, FOLLOWED BY AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT APPEARING ON DASHBOARD, ALONG WITH ALARM SOUND. AS I CONTINUED TO DRIVE ON SIDE STREET, I WAS NOT ABLE TO USE MY HORN AS ANOTHER STARTED TO ENTER MY LANE. UPON RETURN TO PARKING LOT, WHILE CAR WAS
• STEERING WHEEL HAS CONTROLS THAT NO LONGER FUNCTION, THE HORN IS NON-FUNCTIONING AND CAN NOT BE USED TO ALERT A CAR WHEN DANGER IS EMINENT, SUCH AS BACKING UP WITH BYPASSING CARS, CARS IMPROPERLY CHANGING LANES OR DRIFTING INTO LANE, ALSO THE AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT IS ON AND THE CAR DISPLAYS ERROR AIR
• AIRBAG ERROR LIGHT ON, CLICKING SOUND WHEN TURNING STEERING WHEEL, HORN STOPPED WORKING, BUTTONS ON RIGHT SIDE OF STEERING WHEEL STOPPED WORKING, DISPLAY STUCK ON BLUETOOTH PHONE CONNECTION

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500

“OCT 19TH, 2017 CLOCK SPRING BROKE, WHILE EXITING OUT OF PARKING LOT, FOLLOWED BY AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT APPEARING ON DASHBOARD, ALONG WITH ALARM SOUND. AS I CONTINUED TO DRIVE ON SIDE STREET, I WAS NOT ABLE TO USE MY HORN AS ANOTHER STARTED TO ENTER MY LANE. UPON RETURN TO PARKING LOT, WHILE CAR WAS ”

— NHTSA complaint filing

ENGINE

9 complaints

• THESE ENGINES ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO CARBON BUILD-UP, WHICH MAKE THEM RUN EXTREMELY ROUGH, JERK, MISFIRE, AND OVERALL CANNOT GET UP TO SPEED WHEN COLD. THIS IS DANGEROUS, A WASTE SINCE MPG FALLS DRASTICALLY, AND COULD RESULT AN ACCIDENT. OVER NORMAL WEAR AT 70,000 MILES, MY TIGUAN NEEDED A MANUAL CAR
• MY CAR WAS PARKED IN A PUBLIC AREA AND CAUGHT FIRE AFTER I GOT OUT OF IT ON A CITY STREET
• THE ENGINE STARTED TO SHAKE AND WOULD ACT LIKE IT WOULDN'T TURN OVER , THEN IT BROKE DOWN ON US ON A ROAD TRIP , GOT IT TOWED AND FIXED BUT THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPEN AGAIN COUPLE MONTHS AFTER OF GETTING IT FIXED , AND NOW IT'S LEAKING OR SMELLING LIKE GASOLINE LEAKING INTO THE CABIN OF THE CAR THROUGH

Typical onset: 50K miles Est. repair: $500🔥 1 fire reports

“THESE ENGINES ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO CARBON BUILD-UP, WHICH MAKE THEM RUN EXTREMELY ROUGH, JERK, MISFIRE, AND OVERALL CANNOT GET UP TO SPEED WHEN COLD. THIS IS DANGEROUS, A WASTE SINCE MPG FALLS DRASTICALLY, AND COULD RESULT AN ACCIDENT. OVER NORMAL WEAR AT 70,000 MILES, MY TIGUAN NEEDED A MANUAL CAR”

— NHTSA complaint filing

Estimated Repair Costs

AIR BAGS(~50K mi)

$500

ELECTRICAL(~50K mi)

$500

OTHER(~50K mi)

$500

STEERING(~50K mi)

$500

ENGINE(~50K mi)

$500

Estimates based on average reported repair costs. Actual costs vary by location, shop, and severity.

🔍 Pre-Purchase Inspection Checklist

Based on 106 owner complaints for this specific year, here's what to check or ask about:

☐
AIR BAGS: MY VEHICLE ONLY HAS 42000 MILES ON IT. 6000 MILES OVER WARRANTY. AS I WAS TURNING I HEARD A RATTLING AND THE AIRBAG LIGHT CAME ON, HORN DOESN'T WORK AND STEERING WHEEL BUTTONS DO NOT WORK. DEALERSHIP SAID IT'S THE STEERING WHEEL CLOCK SPRING IN THE STEERING WHEEL. SAME ISSUE AS 2010-2014 RECALLS. T
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
ELECTRICAL: BACKUP CAMERA SCREEN TOO DARK. CANNOT SEE WHAT IS BEHIND YOU. ALL SOFTWARE ADJUSTMENTS TRIED TO IMPROVE VIDEO I.E. INCREASE BRIGHTNESS DOES NOT HELP. CHECKED ANOTHER 2015 TIGUAN AT DEALER AND IT HAD SAME PROBLEM. WORRIED THAT POOR PERFORMANCE OF BACKUP CAMERA SYSTEM WILL NOT DETECT OBJECTS BEHIND
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
OTHER: WATER SPOTS ON WINDOWS. THEY COLLECT DUST MAKING VISIBILITY DIFFICULT. CAN NOT REMOVE WATER SPOTS WITH ALCOHOL, AMMONIA, OR PROFESSIONAL FINE-CUT CLEANER.
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
STEERING: OCT 19TH, 2017 CLOCK SPRING BROKE, WHILE EXITING OUT OF PARKING LOT, FOLLOWED BY AIRBAG WARNING LIGHT APPEARING ON DASHBOARD, ALONG WITH ALARM SOUND. AS I CONTINUED TO DRIVE ON SIDE STREET, I WAS NOT ABLE TO USE MY HORN AS ANOTHER STARTED TO ENTER MY LANE. UPON RETURN TO PARKING LOT, WHILE CAR WAS
Typically appears around 50K miles. Repair cost ~$500
☐
General: Get a pre-purchase inspection from an independent mechanic ($100-$200)