2004 Volkswagen Passat: recalls and complaints
NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2004 Volkswagen Passat. The newest campaign is 08V156000. NHTSA received the report on 7 Apr 2008. The NHTSA record gives the component Fuel System, Gasoline / Delivery. NHTSA has 279 complaints on file for this model year. 3 NHTSA investigations name this model year.
The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.
This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.
Remedy of the newest campaign, 08V156000, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will install additional underbody heat shields on vehicles with automatic transmissions to cover the possibly damaged areas and flash all 1.8t engines with a precautionary software update. Dealers will also inspect and adjust the fuel line routing on 1.8t vehicles and the fuel tank ventilation valve on 4motion/all wheel drive vehicles, and replace components if necessary free of charge. The recall began on june 13, 2008. Owners may contact volkswagen at 1-800-822-8987.
Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .
Since the last update
No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks
Recall campaigns
3 campaigns, newest first. 1,433,284 units in total.
08V156000Received . 412,000 units.
Fuel System, Gasoline / Delivery
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
Volkswagen is recalling 412,000 my 1999-2005 passat (5th generation) vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions and produced after june 14, 1999. These vehicles may have an underbody heat shield that can become damaged. In addition, affected vehicles with automatic or manual transmissions may have a fuel line (1.8t engines only) or fuel tank ventilation valve (4motion/all wheel drive only) that can leak due to fracture.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
A heat shield that may contact the exhaust system can result in a vehicle fire. In addition, a fuel leak from a fuel line or fuel tank ventilation valve, in the presence of an ignition source, can lead to a vehicle fire.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will install additional underbody heat shields on vehicles with automatic transmissions to cover the possibly damaged areas and flash all 1.8t engines with a precautionary software update. Dealers will also inspect and adjust the fuel line routing on 1.8t vehicles and the fuel tank ventilation valve on 4motion/all wheel drive vehicles, and replace components if necessary free of charge. The recall began on june 13, 2008. Owners may contact volkswagen at 1-800-822-8987.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC. Manufacturer campaign number 26E5/R5. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
07V063000Received . 1,002,000 units.
Exterior Lighting / Brake Lights / Switch
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
On certain passenger, wagon, and convertible vehicles equipped with or without cruise control, a brake light switch may malfunction if it was installed incorrectly.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
The brake lights could become inoperative, or remain on. Failure to provide the proper signal when braking could lead to a crash without warning.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will install the newly designed brake light switch free of charge. The recall began on april 27, 2007, and will be conducted in several staggered mailings through september 21, 2007. Vehicles within the make, model, and model year of this population may be involved in either this recall or 06v-183, but not both. The remedy is the same for each recall. Volkswagen dealers will apply the remedy based on the VIN number of the vehicle. Owners may contact vw at 1-800-822-8987.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC. Manufacturer campaign number N4. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
04V586000Received . 19,284 units.
Fuel System, Diesel
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
On certain passenger vehicles, the high pressure diesel pumps were produced with an improper fastener, which could allow diesel fuel to escape from the pump.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Fuel leakage in the presence of an ignition source may lead to a fire.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the diesel pump. The recall began on february 8, 2005. Owners should contact volkswagen at 1-800-822-8987.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC. Manufacturer campaign number VY. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.
Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.
Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.
Complaints by component
279 complaints, 348 component mentions.
A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. The figure per 1,000 component mentions shows how many of each 1,000 mentions name the component.
- 2004 Volkswagen Passat
- All 2004 vehicles
| Component | 2004 Passat | All 2004 vehicles | Passat, all years | Mentions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 178.2 | 60.7 | 91.1 | 62 |
| Power Train | 109.2 | 113.4 | 47.6 | 38 |
| Seats | 100.6 | 18.1 | 20.4 | 35 |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 92 | 27.9 | 44 | 32 |
| Electrical System | 69 | 129.3 | 118.6 | 24 |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 63.2 | 22.1 | 44.7 | 22 |
| Engine | 51.7 | 36.9 | 61 | 18 |
| Structure | 46 | 73.3 | 24.3 | 16 |
| Exterior Lighting | 46 | 33.1 | 30.4 | 16 |
| Visibility | 37.4 | 39.6 | 32.9 | 13 |
The table shows the 10 components with the most mentions, of 28.
- Complaints that report a crash
- 9
- Complaints that report a fire
- 25
- Injuries in the complaints
- 23
- Deaths in the complaints
- 0
- Date of the newest complaint
- 1 Aug 2025
These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.
Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.
Investigations
| Number | Type | Subject | Component | Opened | Closed | Campaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EA11002 | Engineering analysis | Engine Compartment Fire | Electrical System | 26 Jan 2011 | 17 Feb 2012 | |
| PE08008 | Preliminary evaluation | FUEL TANK LEAK | Fuel System, Gasoline / Storage / Tank Assembly | 31 Jan 2008 | 30 May 2008 | 08V156000 |
| EA07014 | Engineering analysis | PASSENGER ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES | Electrical System / Ignition | 28 Sep 2007 | 7 Jul 2008 | 08V156000 |
Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.
Other model years
The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.
- 19881
- 19891
- 19902
- 19911
- 19921
- 19933
- 19941
- 19951
- 19961
- 19970
- 19984
- 19995
- 20003
- 20013
- 20023
- 20036
- 20043
- 20053
- 20067
- 20077
- 20084
- 20094
- 20104
- 20110
- 201211
- 20139
- 201410
- 20157
- 20165
- 20177
- 20184
- 20191
- 20203
- 20211
- 20220
A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.
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Official channels
- NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
- NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
- NHTSA page of the 2004 Volkswagen PassatThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.
Cite this page
Recall Register. 2004 Volkswagen Passat: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/volkswagen/passat/2004/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .
Sources
- Source
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
- Licence
- US government work, public domain
- Recall file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- Complaint file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- First complaint in the file
- 1 Jan 1995
- Manufacturer in the recall file
- VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC
The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.
Questions
- How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2004 Volkswagen Passat?
- 1,433,284 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
- How many recall campaigns does the Volkswagen Passat have for all model years?
- NHTSA lists 54 recall campaigns for the Volkswagen Passat, model years 1988 to 2022. 3 of them name the 2004 model year.
- Which component do the complaints about the 2004 Volkswagen Passat name most often?
- Engine and Engine Cooling: 62 of 348 component mentions, or 178.2 per 1,000. For all 2004 vehicles the figure is 60.7 per 1,000.
- Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2004 Volkswagen Passat open?
- No. Each of the 3 investigations that name this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.