Hmmm. Very interesting. I just got a VR6 97 Passat, but have not experienced the missing problem (yet). Would be interested in any other Passat problem pages you happened to run across, though (just for future ref.). Love VW/Audis, but they do seem to have electrical problems that can drive one buggy.

-Posted by Darren Addy on September 22, 2002 11:48 PM

Well, I brought the car in for service, and they quoted me a $3k estimate for the wide panalopy of problems with my car (it's a long list).

They wanted to charge me $348 just for the coil pack!

-Posted by Dan on September 25, 2002 09:21 PM

Well, over the many years of refining the Passat, by the 2002 model year I think they tweaked the planned obsolesence of the ignition coils to too short a period. Although it is obvious they can replace them quickly, being into the VW dealership 8 times in the first year of the car's life is not exactly winning me over. I'll pass along the epoxy tip to them.

-Posted by Marc on November 7, 2002 12:22 AM

They say they've tweaked out all the problems in the 2001 model passats... boy are they wrong... had more than 4 misfires... latest one, 3 cylinders misfired symotaniously causing vehicle to stall while driving in the city... misfire killed one cylinder completely resulting in check engine light and loss of power output. other problems... headlights burn out too quick.. car "shimmys" as you drive, worsens with speed, brakes squeak, burns gas very fast when using car in lower gears (tip) .. what else... smooth ride deteriorates with age.... the car is only just over a year old!

-Posted by Jonathan on November 7, 2002 09:52 PM

Bought 2002 Passat in 5/02. At 2000 miles first coil went out, 8000 miles 2nd, 10,000 3rd. Lemon law attorney says if the check engine light comes on one more time for ANY reason it should trigger the California Lemon Law. Hope, Hope. Honda here I come.

-Posted by Kim on November 11, 2002 07:54 PM

Bought a 2002 Passat 1.8T last June. So far have had two ignition coil failures while driving on an Interstate (on wet rainy days). Last time was almost overrun by a tractor trailer. VW wont change all four coils!. What should I do?. I am afraid of driving my car!. What a LEMON (my 8 yr. old Toyota never, ever let me down)

-Posted by Julio on November 18, 2002 05:59 PM

2001.5 Passat ... bad ignition coils twice in 17,000 miles. Last time they changed all the coils. One of the techs told me off the record that this happened to him 7 weeks in a row and that it's because the engine gets too hot for these coils and it burns them up. Also, I've been through 2 left low-beam headlights in less than a year.

-Posted by Ken on November 21, 2002 09:59 AM

Same story. 2002 1.8T and 2000 miles coil pack 2 died. I am afraid to road trip now. Where the hell is the "drivers wanted" gang now?

-Posted by Jim on November 22, 2002 01:49 AM

2002 Passat 1.8T: first coil went after 7 months, second 3 months later....VW dealer said that VW refuses to allow them to replace more than one coil at a time. Car's been in the shop for over a week now waiting for a coil to be shipped. The second coil burnout happened during rainfall. We need a recall!! Does anyone know how to pressure VW? We had headlight problems also.

-Posted by Bob on November 22, 2002 03:37 PM

2002 Passat 4 cyl. 5400 miles. 2 coils bad - took dealer 12 days to get the parts and replace - they only replaced 2. Got the car back 3 days ago. This morning I start it up, its running rough and the engine light is flashing for about 10 seconds, then it smoothed out and the light went out.
I'm checking lemon laws for Washington State.

Has anyone seen whether there are any Service Bulletins from VW to their mechanics about this issue? Local law says I have the right to see all bulletins regarding my model and year, so I am going to request them ASAP.

No headlight problems yet.

-Posted by Dave on November 23, 2002 11:21 PM

2002 1.8 on my 3rd coil pack. This time no one has them. Try the German aftermarket Beru part# 06B905115H.

Runs too hot and fries the stock nazi coil. These Beru work great if only I could get them.

-Posted by Matty V on December 9, 2002 12:18 PM

I'm back. One month later. Another coil blown--suprise, surprise. Hired a Lemon Law attorney today (I'm in California). They have successfully gotten VW to take back 100 Passats and Audis so far this year. Check Google for the lemon laws in your state. That's how I found these guys. Kim

-Posted by Kim on December 10, 2002 08:12 PM

Same problems w/ 2002 V6 Passat Wagon. Two bad coil packs and the wagon had to be towed into VW. Three days later after 1 1/2 weeks in the shop check engine light again. This time two bad cat. converters. After 1 1/2 weeks in the shop I get the car back. Now three days later car is still missing dies on the road twice and needless to say it's back in VW's hands. I'm check AZ lemon laws, too.

-Posted by Gregg on December 15, 2002 02:17 PM

Have the 2002 Passat, just 5 months old. The check engine light has been on and off since I bought it. It eats gas like crazy. I took it in to the dealer today and they have to replace the electrical "brain" of the car, whatever that is...I was told this is a signaficant repair and my car will be in the shop for about a week.
Any similar suggestions or comments???

-Posted by Joey on December 16, 2002 07:38 PM

Back again w/ update and good news. VW agreed to repurchase my 2002 Passat today as a "gesture of goodwill" one week after my attorney sent the demand with threat to sue per the Califonia Lemon Law. I get all my money back, they pay off the loan, and take back the car, and pay the attorney!!! First time in my life the legal system has worked for me. Kim

http://www.lemonlawamerica.com/

-Posted by Kim on December 17, 2002 09:27 PM

I just graduated from college and was so excited to finally get a new car. However, this morning when it was snowing and icy I had to have my new car towed in for the 3rd time in 3 months. I called the customer hotline, but they could care less. Under Indiana lemon law if it happens 4 times they have to replace it. I just can't believe I pay that much to have a car that doesn't run right or is in the shop half the time. Pretty sad.

-Posted by Stephanie on January 2, 2003 03:30 PM

I purhased a 2003 VW Passat Wagon in August of 2002. This is the four cylinder 1.8 engine, if I am not mistaken. It is snowing today; I picked my older boy up at his Kindagarten at 2;30 PM. I noticed the "check engine" light had appeared; I checked the engine oil--dow one quart. This car has 2000 miles on it. It devours fast, almost as fast as my conversion van that I traded in--a Chevy 20 which was extremely reliable. I callled my sister. Her 25 year old son recently purchased an Audi A4--he's on his second or third round with replacement of the ig. coils. My sister said this is likely the issue. I went on the net subsequently and now see the frequency of this problem. And consumer reports test ratings rated the PASSAT highly--but now it sounds like a giant piece of sugar.(not my first choice of words).

-Posted by Keith R. Bond on January 3, 2003 04:20 PM

should read: "down one quart"
"It devours gas fast.."
"but now it seems I made a big ass mistake in getting this freaking expensive piece of shit."

-Posted by Keith R. Bond on January 3, 2003 04:25 PM

Have a 2002 Passat 12,000 miles. have replaces 4 coils, three in the past month. Volkswagon Roadside Assistance took three hours to come and 24 hours to return the car to the dealership. No one seems to claim responsibility for either problem.

-Posted by Susan Schlossberg on January 4, 2003 11:06 AM

Have a 2002 Passat 12,000 miles. have replaces 4 coils, three in the past month. Volkswagon Roadside Assistance took three hours to come and 24 hours to return the car to the dealership. No one seems to claim responsibility for either problem.

-Posted by Susan Schlossberg on January 4, 2003 11:06 AM

The putative ignition coil problem turned out to be a faulty purge valve. The dealer was prepared tp outfit me with a rental, as the service manager explaned that ignition coil replacements are taking awhile to show up. I found the Service department at Minuteman VW in Bedford, MA (near Lexington and Concord) to be courteous, and very professional--which was the really good since I wound up having to take the day off from work. The Service manager, incidentally, initially suspected the ignition coils; he seemed genuinely relieved to show me the small plastic part cause the problem. Overall: good experience today at the Service department. Still, the reliability issue concerns me. When was the last time you heard of a brand new Honda or Toyota with 2K miles start showing the "check Engine" logo? I have owned two Accords and each car was extremely reliable. I have owned a 1972 Squareback Sedan--VW, a 1980 VW Rabbitt, and both were very problematic. My step-father in the 1960's drove around in a Beetle, but I don't know how reliable that tin can was. It will be a hard sell to convinve myself, now, that VW builds cars as reliable as say, Honda, or Toyota. If I lost my cool with my previous post, i apologize, but I really was not expecting car problems WITH A BRAND NEW VEHICLE THAT IS COSTING ABOUT ME $365/month!!

-Posted by Keith R. Bond on January 7, 2003 07:03 PM

Taking 02 passat in 2nd time today for bad coil pack.

-Posted by mike vahey on January 10, 2003 07:55 AM

I now have to get my 2002 Passat Wagon towed in for the 2nd time. We have a new baby and installing and uninstalling the car seat for all of these repairs is RIDICULOUS - not to mention this car is totally unreliable now (reading all of your comments).

Does one really have to wait until 4 times to consult LEMON LAW???? I don't want to be stranded in this winter with my baby!!??

Any thoughts?

-Posted by Alison on January 11, 2003 11:27 AM

I understand perfectly Alison's concerns. My two boys are a little older now, 5 1/2 and 4 1/2 years, but driving a car with a baby inside, during winter, with reliability issues of the VW Passat, can't leave one with warm and fuzzy feelings. Keep your cell phone charged, if you have this device; if not, consider obtaining a cell phone, emergency flares, keep a blanket in the car, and bottled water, and Cheerios, or something the baby enjoys eating. Heaven forbid that these measures ever have to be put into play.

-Posted by Keith R. Bond on January 11, 2003 11:44 AM

I own a 2000 1.8T Passat. I'm not sure if misfiring is the problem but twive in the last 6 months I get a check engine light and the car goes to half power and then stalls. If you get off the road without being run over and restart the car it seems to run fine. The last time this happened, I got the car home and took it out for 3 short trips, and the check engine light went out like it healled itself. I have also had problems with the secondary air pump. It fills with water and seizes up. It has been replaced twice.

-Posted by Dale Miller on January 19, 2003 02:18 PM

2002 Passat towed to the dealer for last time today. Got my check for $4371. Have bought a wonderful 2001 Honda Accord fully loaded--so happy with it!! This crummy car fiasco is over. Call a lemon law lawyer today even if you aren't sure you qualify. Kim

P.S. Dale if it actually stalls you may have a faster Lemon Law case depending on your state. Was it doing this while under warranty. Check into it. http://www.lemonlawamerica.com/

-Posted by Kim on January 21, 2003 06:54 PM

I assume the Passat and Eurovan VR6 engines have the same coil pack issues. I was having very similar problems. Loss of power especially on wet,rainy days. The automatic car wash really bogged it down. The dealer said I needed a new coil pack. $520 (parts + labor). I began the search...I found Marc Gallagher's info on the net for pasting epoxy over the plastic part of the coil pack. His instructions were so simple and made perfect "common sense". So far so good. I took it out on the snowy, wet highway this morning and it ran as smooth as ever. I recommend this to anyone with similar problems. I love the Eurovans. I've had three of 'em. I've actually been thinking of getting a 2002 Jetta Wagon TDI. Anybody know if these have the same issues? Kevin

-Posted by Kevin on January 27, 2003 09:19 AM

I have a 2002 1.8T. It's been towed twice. The first time they replaced 2 coils. The second time it broke was 3 days after I had surgery and I couldn't walk more than a block. I was completely dependent on my car. The service manager told me he couldn't diagnose my car for a couple days so he couldn't authorize a rental car. I was stranded in my apartment for 2 days. Once they diagnosed the problem they replaced 1 coil. The service manager "joked" with me about how I was lucky because I only had one more coil to go before my problem was solved. Then he realized he had replaced one of the coils twice! That pretty much tells me this is a never ending problem with no solution. This is my second Jetta. I had a 1994 Jetta III before this and it was the best car I had ever had. Its reliability is why I came back to VW. NEVER AGAIN.

-Posted by on January 27, 2003 12:12 PM

I have a passat 2002 with 11,000 miles. I've replaced two of the four coil packs. VW's service tech told me the problem is only with the four cylinder engine and that the later model 2003 editions have upgraded the coil packs (you can still buy the bad ones if you get an early 2003 model.) the most frustrating thing is they only cost about $50-$60, but VW won't replace all four even if you pay for the part because it's afraid it's going to run out of them. thus you have to wait until you're stranded again (and again)to get the problem fixed. anyone else know if the problem is limited to the 1.8 engine? I really like the car otherwise and would consider going with the 6.

-Posted by jerry on January 27, 2003 04:11 PM

Remember me from back in November?, Passat 1.8 Turbo (2002). Almost run over by a tractor trailer when car stalled at most dangerous highway interchange in America (Springfield Mixer in Northern Virginia). The again car stalls on my way to the office. Yet once more car stalls coming back home from a long-trip. This is crap!!. VW couldn't care less. No response to my letters. Roadside assistance COULDN'T get a tow truck last time.

Called my Lemon Law lawyer today. We shouldn't put up with this from VW. I have owned 10 or 12 cars. Always japanese stuff. I have NEVER .. EVER experienced anything like this. I will get my money back and go buy a HONDA and quit this FAHVERGNUGEN, drivers wanted bunch of lies.

If anyone gets into an accident because of i-coil problems this could be grounds for a CLASS ACTION lawsuit.

-Posted by julio on January 28, 2003 10:46 AM

2002 GLS Passat Wagon w/ 21k miles. Coil failed while 350 mi from home on a Saturday. Had to wait till Monday AM to get replaced and missed day of work. They won't replace remaining coils. Reading these stories makes me worry. Why isn't there a recall?

Also replaced running lights 3 times and had to have car in shop to "reflash" software, when engine light came on.

Not happy.

-Posted by Sam Figuli on January 28, 2003 12:40 PM

Same story. 2002 Passat 1.8T. Lost 3 coil packs inside of 1 week. Been to the dealer for the last 2 days in a row with same problem. Dealer has refused to replace all 4 since I asked during the first visit. Probably would have same me and them a lot of headaches. Car is too old for lemon law to apply, but I sure am looking for a way to dump it!

Any answer to how we put pressure on VW?

Not happy either.

-Posted by Mark Mathewson on January 28, 2003 06:24 PM

Same story. 2002 Passat 1.8T. Lost 3 coil packs inside of 1 week. Been to the dealer for the last 2 days in a row with same problem. Dealer has refused to replace all 4 since I asked during the first visit. Probably would have same me and them a lot of headaches. Car is too old for lemon law to apply, but I sure am looking for a way to dump it!

Any answer to how we put pressure on VW?

Not happy either.

-Posted by Mark on January 28, 2003 06:24 PM

Same story. 2002 Passat 1.8T. Lost 3 coil packs inside of 1 week. Been to the dealer for the last 2 days in a row with same problem. Dealer has refused to replace all 4 since I asked during the first visit. Probably would have same me and them a lot of headaches. Car is too old for lemon law to apply, but I sure am looking for a way to dump it!

Any answer to how we put pressure on VW?

Not happy either.

-Posted by Mark on January 28, 2003 06:25 PM

Anyone know if VW has fixed the ignition coil issue in the 2003 model?

-Posted by Dominick on January 28, 2003 10:21 PM

I own a 2000 Passat GLX wagon. Dealer replaced cam adjuster gaskets as they had apparently been
seeping a little. Since the gaskets were replaced, the car has been in the shop for over two weeks as the Emission workshop light continues to indicate a malfuntion. Technician
said the codes indicate that the engine is misfiring but can't figure out why. In fact he has said that he is stumped and doesn't know what to do next. Anyone had a similar problem and had success in repairing the problem?.

-Posted by kelly on January 29, 2003 01:42 PM

So, we're talking about two issues. One the coil packs go bad which subsequently causes the coils to go bad. Is this right? Does anyone know if bad coil packs, and/or coils would cause an emissions leak? I realize it would but I've already dealt with the coil pack. If one of my coils was shot underneath would I still smell the gas?

-Posted by Kevin on January 29, 2003 02:08 PM

So, we're talking about two issues. One the coil packs go bad which subsequently causes the coils to go bad. Is this right? Does anyone know if bad coil packs, and/or coils would cause an emissions leak? I realize it would but I've already dealt with the coil pack. If one of my coils was shot underneath would I still smell the gas?

-Posted by Kevin on January 29, 2003 02:08 PM

I hate VW Customer Care. I hate VW Roadside Assisitance. I hate my VW turbo Jetta. It makes me sad because I was so excited when I bought it. I convinced two of my friends to buy the same car. They are so angry that they listened to me. You can file a complaint on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website (NHTSA.dot.gov). They review the complaints and investigate them. If they find the problem to be a safety concern they can force VW to issue a recall. So register a complaint immediately and hopefully these cars will be off the road quickly before someone gets hurt. There are already hundreds of complaints about these cars on the website.

-Posted by on January 30, 2003 07:56 AM

I was never aware of the issues with the Passat, silly me, and I bought a 2003 2.8 V-6 all wheel drive in Sept 2002. Does anyone know if the electrical problem extends to this model? Are the coils the same or are better ones being used. I will say I am very disappointed with gas mileage - using premium gas as manual instructs and I'm getting 17 miles per gallon - my old Mazda 626 got 24 even in the city! Had that for 11 years - based on all these comments, I don't think I'll be that lucky with this car!

-Posted by Jeff on January 30, 2003 09:57 AM

Ditto, ditto, ditto...I have a 2002 Passat GLS wagon,and I've had 3 coils replaced - the only way to bump up the turnaround time at the shop/dealer is to threaten VW-America with the lemon law or a lawsuit. I loved this car, and that's no exaggeration. I loved the feel, the zippy driving experience and size...until it was back at the dealer for over a month in November. I just picked it up from the dealer today after coil #3 went bad on Monday. My attorney is getting the papers together for the lemon law filing. I'm so heartbroken, but I bought the car for it's reliability, and it doesn't have any...and let's not even get into the dismal "customer care representatives" you get on the phone. Just one hint, VW: do not ever, EVER say "I understand" to an irate woman who has not seen her car in over a month. You can bet that if I was late with a payment for over a month, they wouldn't "understand..."

-Posted by Paula on January 30, 2003 02:30 PM

we have a passat 2000.5 w/ less tan 10k miles replaced 2 coils..shortly thereafter replaced 3rd coil...does anyone know if vw has been using the old defective coils to replace the new ones or can a person by new updated coils themselves for the dealership to put in...for the safety of my family i would foot the bill

-Posted by james on January 31, 2003 12:49 PM

Sounds like I made it further than most-almost 24000 miles before the infamous flashing engine light came on on my 2002 Passat. Diagnosis: coils. My Honda had 270000 miles on it when I sold it 1.5 yrs ago and its still running. I shouldve bought another.

-Posted by Eric on February 1, 2003 02:35 AM