1976 Volkswagen Rabbit: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 5 recall campaigns for the 1976 Volkswagen Rabbit. The newest campaign is 83V116000. NHTSA received the report on 9 Nov 1983. The NHTSA record gives the component Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings. NHTSA has no complaint on file for this model year. 2 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, 83V116000, in the NHTSA record

The dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the interior brake lines at no cost to owner. Owners are also advised that all brake lines should be inspected at two-year intervals.

NHTSA VIN lookup

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 1 Oct 2026. Complaint file through 30 Sep 2026. Recall file through 30 Sep 2026.

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

5 campaigns, newest first. 1,560,663 units in total.

83V1160009 Nov 1983Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings
80V03500026 Mar 1980Structure / Body
79V12000017 May 1979Electrical System / Starter Assembly / Relay
77V24500030 Dec 1977Vehicle Speed Control / Cables
77V17500013 Oct 1977Equipment / Other / Labels

83V116000Received 9 Nov 1983. 661,585 units.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic / Foundation Components / Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Brake lines installed underneath the carpeting in the passenger compartment may rust due to the entry of water and road salt. If rusting remains unchecked, it produces leaks in the lines and brake fluid may be lost.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
The dealer will inspect and, if necessary, replace the interior brake lines at no cost to owner. Owners are also advised that all brake lines should be inspected at two-year intervals.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA,INC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 18 Jan 1984.
80V035000Received 26 Mar 1980. 140,000 units.
Structure / Body
Defect, in the NHTSA record
On some vehicles, the fender opening through which the antenna cable is routed may not be properly sealed. As a result, splashed water from the tires could enter passenger compartment through the opening, enter the fuse relay board and cause corrosion of the terminals. Also, because water is a good conductor of electricity, the starter can be activated accidentally; the high flow of electricity may exhaust the battery within a short period of time. Thus restarting the engine would become impossible and parking lights and emergency flashers would become inoperative.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, seal the radio antenna holes and replace corroded components without charge to owner..
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA,INC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 9 Jun 1980.
79V120000Received 17 May 1979. 540,000 units.
Electrical System / Starter Assembly / Relay
Defect, in the NHTSA record
Due to an improperly sealed antenna mounting hole, water could seap into the fuse relay board. The water entering the fuse relay board acts as a conductor of current, thereby charging the starter.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
The dealer will seal all radio antenna cable holes. In addition, electrical parts of the relay/fuse board will be checked and replaced in the case of corrosion.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA,INC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 20 Aug 1979.
77V245000Received 30 Dec 1977. 219,000 units.
Vehicle Speed Control / Cables
Defect, in the NHTSA record
The accelerator cable assembly in the involved vehicles could fail prematurely under certain operating conditions. This would either prevent the accelerator pedal from returning to the idle position or cause a loss of adequate engine power.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealer will inspect and, if necessary, install a new accelerator cable, without charge to owner.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA,INC. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 27 Mar 1978.
77V175000Received 13 Oct 1977. 78 units.
Equipment / Other / Labels
Defect, in the NHTSA record
The involved vehicles do not conform to federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 105, "hydraulic brake systems". The involved vehicles were inadvertently equipped with a brake fluid container cap on which the warning text was printed in german.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
The dealer will install a supplement label, printed in english, on the brake fluid container, displaying the required statement, free of charge.
Report filed by VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA,INC.

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

The NHTSA complaint file has no complaint for this model year.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 1976 Volkswagen Rabbit
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
DP83003	Defect petition	BRAKE SYSTEM FAILURE DUE TO CORROSION OF	Service Brakes, Hydraulic	4 Nov 1982	18 Nov 1982
DP82002	Defect petition	REAR VIEW MIRROR	Visibility	17 Nov 1981	2 Feb 1982

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.

19755
19765
19776
19789
19796
19803
19813
19821
19831
19841
19851
20061
20072
20082
20092

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 1976 Volkswagen RabbitThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 1976 Volkswagen Rabbit: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/volkswagen/rabbit/1976/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through 30 Sep 2026.

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 1976 Volkswagen Rabbit?: 1,560,663 units in 5 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Volkswagen Rabbit have for all model years?: NHTSA lists 20 recall campaigns for the Volkswagen Rabbit, model years 1975 to 2009. 5 of them name the 1976 model year.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 1976 Volkswagen Rabbit open?: No. Each of the 2 investigations that name this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.