2018 Volkswagen Passat Brakes
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
I was driving down the road and the wheel locked up and I lost control of the car. I thought it was just a flat tire. I noticed the tire was flat and brake caliber was lying on the inside of the rim. There was extensive damage to the vehicle, tire, rim, suspension components and brake components. There was no warning and it just happened suddenly. My family and other drivers safety were at risk. The dealership said it was due to impact but their estimate didn't mention or included any of the brake components. The brake caliber bracket is broken and the holes were the caliber bolts attached are elongated. The brake caliber and bracket are protected inside the rim and brakes just don't fall off. It is a VW certified car. I put 4,000 miles since I purchased and the accident happened on November 17, 2021. I have all the components and pictures.
I PURCHASED MY CAR AS A CERTIFIED PRE-OWNED VEHICLE. WITHIN FOUR DAYS, I NOTICED THAT THE FRONT BRAKES GET EXCESSIVELY HOT DURING NORMAL STOPPING. I HAVE REPLACED THE BRAKE PADS & ROTORS, AND THE CONDITION STILL EXISTS.
ABS INTERMITTENTLY COMES ON WHEN BRAKES ARE BEING USED UNDER REGULAR PRESSURE. SOMETIMES WHEN TRYING TO STOP AT A LIGHT OR SLOWING DOWN WHEN A CAR IS TURNING IN FRONT OF ME, THE ABS COMES ON AND THE CAR DOES NOT STOP AS IT SHOULD. I HAVE ALMOST HIT THE BACK OF A CAR IN FRONT OF ME BECAUSE THE ABS CAME ON WHEN THE CAR NORMALLY WOULD HAVE JUST STOPPED AS USUAL. THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN INTERMITTENT FOR ROUGHLY 6 MONTHS. *TR
UPON INSPECTING THE BRAKES FOR WEAR I FOUND THEY NEEDED TO BE REPLACED, I CHOSE TO GO TO PEP BOYS FOR THE BRAKE PADS. THESE PADS CAME WITH A WEAR SENSOR INSTALLED, SO I CALLED VOLKSWAGEN TO VERIFY WITH THE PARTS DEPARTMENT MY VEHICLE INDEED NEEDED THE WEAR SENSOR THEY CONFIRMED UTILIZING MY VIN HOWEVER, MY VEHICLE IS NOT EQUIPPED WITH THE WEAR SENSOR. I TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALERSHIP AND WAS INFORMED THAT I SHOULD JUST CUT THE WEAR SENSOR CABLE AND INSTALL THE BRAKE PADS AS THIS WOULD BE WHAT THE TECHNICIANS WOULD DO AS WELL. I CALLED OTHER DEALERSHIPS TO CONFIRM THESE ACTIONS, WITH POSITIVE CONFIRMATION OTHER DEALERS WOULD FOLLOW THE SAME PROCESS. THIS DOES NOT SEEM SAFE TO CUT A SENSOR THAT IS MEANT TO NOTIFY THE DRIVER OF BRAKE PAD WEAR.
FRONT BRAKES MAKES WHISTLING NOISE WHEN ACTIVATED. SLIPPAGE OCCURS IN RAINY CONDITIONS. THE FRONT BRAKE DISCS ARE NOT VISUALLY SMOOTH.
I BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE ON JUNE 8, 2018, FROM HERITAGE VW. THE CAR ALREADY HAD A SAFETY RECALL FOR BRAKES WHICH WAS ISSUED ON MAY 25, 2018. THE DEALER FAILED TO INFORM ME ABOUT IT BEFORE PURCHASE. LATER AFTER MY PURCHASE ON JUNE 22 A DO NOT DRIVE WAS ISSUED ON THIS VEHICLE, THEY ASKED ME TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO THEIR DEALERSHIP STATING THAT IT IS FINE TO DRIVE IT.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT. WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE CONTACT DEPRESSED THE BRAKE PEDAL AND THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP. THE CONTACT HAD TO APPLY EXCESSIVE FORCE TO THE BRAKE PEDAL TO STOP THE VEHICLE. AFTER THE FAILURE, THE BRAKE FLUID WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO VYLETEL VOLKSWAGEN BUICK GMC (LOCATED AT 40555 VAN DYKE AVE, STERLING HEIGHTS, MI 48313, (586) 977-2800), BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED, BUT THERE WAS NO RESPONSE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 800. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.
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Quick Summary
The 2018 Volkswagen Passat has 7 Brakes complaints on file. 1 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.