2016 Volkswagen Touareg Recalls & Complaints

Incident: October 1, 2026 · Filed: October 9, 2026

The interior door release mechanism broke, trapping my wife in the driver's seat and unable to open the door. Our VW dealer was not able to evaluate the broken mechanism for several days so we took the vehicle to a local repair shop. A disabled senior [XXX] was unable to exit the vehicle, unable to climb over the center console or into the back seat which is a serious safety issue. The outside door handle release was still functional and I was able to open the door. If I were not at home, my wife would have had to call a neighbor, police or fire department to free her from the vehicle. Photograph of broken part is part of this report as well as receipt for the repair. A quick web search indicates several other owners have had this issue. No injury except a bruised arm trying to reach the exterior door release (unsuccessfully). INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: January 23, 2023 · Filed: November 13, 2025

The car will stop (while driving) for no apparent reason. “Phantom Braking”. This is without any known objects/people approaching our vehicle. It’s a part of the electronic automatic braking system but obviously it is not programmed correctly. It is DANGEROUS. A brief review on internet shows these sudden stops have caused accidents (people rear ending vehicle after sudden stops). Cars have also had to move quickly off highway to avoid collision. Another issue: the Panoramic Sunroof has had frequent issues with water leaks. We’ve already had to pay for one such leak ($1000) and now face payment for a second serious leak which they can’t seem to fix. Internet searches show that VW Corporation has known about this manufacturing defect since 2016 but has “hidden” these manufacturing defects from customers. These leaks have caused pools of water to form in the trunk (under spare tire). The pool of water inside vehicle can range up to 1.5 feet and more! We’ve heard issues that if not caught sooner, these leaks case severe damage to electrical systems (battery, etc…) due to excess water in vehicle. It burns out electrical systems. To our knowledge, VW will take NO RESPONSIBILITY. People who own these cars have to pay for the fixes. Very expensive fixes which are not working. We no longer feel safe driving this car. VW will not offer us a solution.

Incident: April 4, 2024 · Filed: August 16, 2025

My lane assist camera is not functioning and Volkswagen is telling me the part is now obsolete and can't be repaired. It is part #7p6907217bxz1y. I took it to Pompano Volkswagen on 4/4/24 and have been waiting for the part which has been out of stock and they (Gunther Volkswagen since Pompano closed) just told me on 8/8/25 the part is no longer available and offer no solution to fix this issue. Seems very odd that a car manufacture would be allowed to not supply a replacement part or be able to fix the problem for a car that is 8 years old. Especially for such an important feature like lane assist and collision avoidance systems - how am I supposed to sell a car without these features functioning? I have contact Volkswagen Corporate Customer Care without any avail as well.

Incident: May 19, 2025 · Filed: May 19, 2025

UNKNOWN- simply picking up my kids and various alerts came on the dashboard including the ABS brakes error, Parking brake error, and others that I am not sure of. I just bought this suv on Friday from DCH Acura of Montclair, NJ/ Lithia Motors in Verona, NJ [XXX]. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Incident: April 12, 2025 · Filed: May 6, 2025

Rear viewing camera does not display when vehicle is placed in reverse.

Incident: February 5, 2025 · Filed: February 5, 2025

Vehicle manufacture (Volkswagon) has quit supplying/manufacturing a safety guidence parts for my auto. 7P6-907-217-BX-Z1Y Collision Avoidance Camera NOT AVAILABLE i would like my anti Self collision guidance repaired, but no parts for my 8-9 year old car. part was on order (from 2024) and notified today NOT available and local car dealership order was cancelled. i might understand if I had hit a 10year threshold, but sure hurts now.

Incident: June 1, 2022 · Filed: January 21, 2025

My ACC/AEB went out over 2 years ago. At the time this vehicle was out of warranty. The dealer ordered the part (camera) and charged me for it. I waited over a year for the part. During this time VW lost a class action lawsuit regarding this and notified me that this was now going to be covered under warranty. I returned to the dealer to file the warranty claim. Warranty claim is now 6 months old and VW still has no news on getting parts and repairing this safety feature.

Incident: November 13, 2021 · Filed: August 22, 2024

car has a design flaw. If car sits in the sun the emergency stop braking system will fail due to heat. The camera/computer board is mounted in the ceiling behind the rearview mirror. when the sun is out the system will fail do to heat. This problem is in Volkswagons, Audi's and Porche's with various models. The issue is described in detail in multiple blogs and car clubs. I bought the car used. I think this system is as important for safety as airbags. As a 2 stage safety feature to avoid an accident. This failure also affects the Adaptable Cruise Control. Car color and climate affect this system. Volkswagon has an AEB recall but refuses to acknowledge the design flaw. Problem keeps occurring.

Incident: August 1, 2022 · Filed: January 10, 2024

The windshield camera that is responsible for the imaging used for many of the system on the 2016 Touareg is a high failure item and has been constituently backordered from VW. When this camera fails, the advanced systems that were part of this option fail to operate. This includes adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking and lane departure warning. The system does provide warning notifications, but they may occur at any time and there is no confidence the system is working. These notifications overtake other system displays making it difficult or even hazardous to navigate vehicle system menus at times. In addition, this vehicle does not offer standard cruise control, which can accelerate driver fatigue due to the loss of this basic and common feature. The original part on this vehicle is not available used in the USA, or from VW USA. There is a company in Aus that repairs them, but in this particular instance, it appears the repaired unit has failed as well now. This system is very expensive to recalibrate, adding to the expense of the repair, especially without new parts available there is little route to be able to remedy this situation permanently for a safety device that is expected and was an added cost option on this model. Much of the diagnostic work has been performed by myself as I am a Master Automotive Technician.

Incident: February 10, 2023 · Filed: September 10, 2023

I was driving to lunch one day when my 2016 Volkswagen Touareg TDI stalled in the middle of the road and was not able to be restarted due to a failed CP4 HPFP (High Pressure Fuel Pump) this repair was major and everything that the diesel fuel touches was replaced such as fuel pump, lift pump, all fuel lines, fuel filter canister, injectors, fuel rails, etc…