2016 Volkswagen Tiguan Problems

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 58,000 miles. Parts named most: Frontal: driver clockspring / spiral cassette (6).

What to check before you buy

• The air bag (SRS) light should come on at startup and go out within a few seconds. If it stays on, the system may not work in a crash.
• Air bag recalls are some of the most serious. Check this exact VIN for open recalls and get proof any recall work was done.

Tools that help

What owners said

The electric connection for the air bag has malfunctioned . The same vehicle with different VIN numbers have already been recalled for the exact same reason. Not sure why my car was not included. Many people on the VW forums are having the same issues. Please recall.Owner complaint, filed 2023

Steering Wheel Clock Spring has gone out on my VW Tiguan, driver air bag is on which means the airbag wont come if we get in a accident. Pressure light is on as well. This will be the 3rd Steering Wheel Clock Spring installed.Owner complaint, filed 2023

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 47,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Test every switch: windows, locks, mirrors, seat heaters, the screen, the backup camera, Bluetooth and every USB port.
• Watch the dash at startup. Every warning light should come on briefly and then go out.
• Have the battery and charging system tested. A weak alternator or battery drain shows up here.

Tools that help

What owners said

2016 Tiguan - 75k Miles. Steering wheel starting making clicking noises when taking sharper turns, a few days later, the airbag light came on along with an airbag "error" message. That same day, all buttons on the steering wheel stopped working, along with the horn. I took the car into the dealership and they IMMEDIATELY knew what was…Owner complaint, filed 2021

Driver's side window will not roll down when the [VIN] outside is warm or hot. Also will not work when the [VIN] outside is cold but the heat inside the car is being used. If it stops working when the window is open I can close it but it will not roll back down.Owner complaint, filed 2021, at 42,000 miles

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 55,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Turn the wheel lock to lock while parked and listen for groaning, clicking or binding.
• On a straight road the car should track straight with the wheel centered and no loose feeling.
• A power steering warning on the dash, even briefly, deserves a mechanic’s look before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

Steering failure all of a sudden safety concern steering became very difficult the steering wheel became stiff and felt really unsafe. Red light for the steering turned on.Owner complaint, filed 2026

I’ll be driving for 2-10 minutes and power steering cuts out. Wheel will jerk a little and alarm will sound with the alert light remaining red through remainder of drive. Sometimes it will not work at all while driving, but I’ve found the it usually works for the first few minutes until I speed up a little more.Owner complaint, filed 2025

Half of the owners who gave a mileage had the problem by about 81,000 miles.

What to check before you buy

• Ask the seller not to warm the car up, and start it cold. Listen for ticking, knocking or a rough idle in the first minute.
• Pull the oil dipstick and the oil cap. Low oil, a gasoline smell or a milky film on the cap are reasons to walk away or get an inspection.
• Plug in an OBD2 scanner. Stored or pending codes matter, and so do readiness monitors that show "not ready", which usually means the codes were cleared right before the sale.
• Ask for oil change records. A gap in the records on a model known for engine complaints is a negotiating point at minimum.

Tools that help

What owners said

* Purchase Date: January 23, 2016 * Current Mileage: Approximately 71,500 miles For the past several months, my vehicle has experienced continuous engine oil loss. The oil level drops approximately one gallon every two months, and the engine oil warning light has illuminated on multiple occasions. Because of this recurring problem, I…Owner complaint, filed 2026

I have taken my 2016 VW Tiguan to a VW service center, and they have notified me of a faulty water pump in my car that is leaking coolant. This is endangering the engine of the car and its safety. There has been a class action lawsuit regarding this exact issue with VW in the case Zhao, et al. v. Volkswagen Group of America, Inc., et…Owner complaint, filed 2022

What to check before you buy

• Smell around the engine bay and under the rear of the car for raw fuel.
• On the test drive, accelerate firmly from a stop and up a grade. Stumbling, surging or a flashing check engine light are red flags.
• Fuel pump recalls are common. Check this exact VIN for open recalls before you buy.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2016 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, an abnormal fuel odor was detected. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a fuel line leak. The dealer informed the contact that the fuel pump needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer…Owner complaint, filed 2022, at 36,000 miles

I previously filed a complaint on NHTSA (id 11310178). Since then the vehicle has not started twice and left me stranded having to tow to vw dealership an additional two times. After the vehicle broke down in march, I opened a claim with vw corporation of america, inc. The claim was denied with a generic response and vw blatantly ignored…Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 44,700 miles

Parts named most: Body (6).

What to check before you buy

• Look underneath with a flashlight. Utah road salt is hard on frames, brake lines and the bottoms of doors.
• Open and close every door, the hood and the liftgate, and lock and unlock each one.
• Use a paint thickness gauge and compare panels. A panel that reads very differently from the rest has likely been repaired.

Tools that help

What owners said

The sunroof/moonroof glass shattered while my daughter was driving on the highway, causing glass to fall down on her while driving. She stated that it sounded like a gunshot, then glass was breaking while driving. She was upset and crying, which could easily have caused an accident if it weren't that it happened in the evening. The car…Owner complaint, filed 2023

I was driving on the interstate to work, without any other vehicles immediately in front of me, when my glass sunroof shattered suddenly. The noise of it shattering was like a gunshot going off in the cabin. I had my cloth ceiling liner extended so I didn't get hit by the falling glass shards but it still spooked me. I didn't end up…Owner complaint, filed 2020, at 20,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• The pedal should feel firm and the car should stop straight without pulling, grinding or a pulsing pedal.
• The ABS and stability control lights should go out after startup and stay out.
• Look through the wheels at the rotors. A deep lip on the edge means brakes are due soon, which is a fair thing to negotiate on.

Tools that help

What owners said

While driving on the freeway, the car came to a sudden stop in the fast line. I tried multiple things.....moving it in and out of gear, and flipping the parking brake switch off and on. After maybe a minutes, the brakes unlocked and I was able to move the car over to the shoulder. There was not warning, the car just stopped. I have just…Owner complaint, filed 2022

Brought 2016 tiguan less than 10 months, noticed scraping noises when breaking at local speed. Also hear clanking noise occasionally from bottom of the vehicle. Sent car to volkswagen service center and found the rear rotors pitted and rusted. Service center just clean the surface and suggest to [VIN] when noise return. Call volkswagen…Owner complaint, filed 2016

What to check before you buy

• Check every light: headlights on low and high, fog lights, brake lights, turn signals and reverse lights.
• Run the wipers on every speed with washer fluid, and run the defroster front and back.

Tools that help

What owners said

The contact owns a 2016 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 40 MPH, the sunroof exploded and shattered inside the vehicle. There were no injuries sustained from the falling glass. The local dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The…Owner complaint, filed 2021, at 112,000 miles

The contact owns a 2016 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated that while driving at unknown speeds, the entertainment, cruise control, and TPMS turned on and off without application. The horn was inoperable. The seat belt, air bag, and tire warning lights were illuminated. A tree fell on the vehicle, and the sunroof was leaking. The…Owner complaint, filed 2025, at 55,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Drive it from cold if you can. Shifts should be smooth in every gear, including reverse.
• Feel for slipping (revs rise without the car speeding up), shudder at low speed and a delay when you put it in gear.
• Listen for whining, which is a common CVT complaint, and clunks when you go from drive to reverse.
• If it has 4WD or AWD, engage it on the test drive and ask when the transmission and differential fluids were last changed.

Tools that help

What owners said

Oil consumption issue. “Normal” oil consumption is 1 quart per 1200 miles according to VW. My Tiguan with 70k miles is burning 3 quarts every 2,000 miles. No obvious oil leak or burning of oil. I’m told I need a new engine and this is a known issue for VW. Car no longer under warranty after 60k miles.Owner complaint, filed 2023

Subject: Known Carbon Buildup Issue in 2016 Volkswagen Tiguan TSI, Request for Recall and Accountability To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to formally express my concern and request action regarding a well-documented and dangerous issue affecting Volkswagen TSI engines, specifically, severe carbon buildup. I am the current owner of a…Owner complaint, filed 2025

What to check before you buy

• On the test drive, press the gas gently and firmly. The response should be smooth with no lag or surge.
• Set the cruise control, then use resume and cancel to make sure each one works.

Tools that help

What owners said

While driving at any speed, decreasing the set speed using cruise control multiple times in succession LED to an increase in the set speed.Owner complaint, filed 2021, at 37,000 miles

Vehicle had been parked for several days. Upon pulling out of a parking space, heard a snapping noise from the steering wheel. Immediately received an airbag error warning, horn ceased to function, and all steering wheel controls stopped working.Owner complaint, filed 2019, at 58,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Drive over a few bumps and potholes slowly with the radio off and listen for clunks or rattles.
• Check the tires for uneven wear on the inside or outside edges, a sign of alignment or suspension trouble.
• Look behind the wheels for oily, wet shocks or struts.

Tools that help

What owners said

I had a coolant leak and needed to replace the water pump. My control arms were corroded out at 67k miles and needed to be replaced.Owner complaint, filed 2022

The car was shut down by keyless ignition and the fob was removed when I entered a building. After 15 minutes it rolled away and hit a sculpture and rolled over. I as the driver failed to place the transmission in park or someone tampered with the car as someone was spotted in the car after it flipped over. My complaint is that when the…Owner complaint, filed 2019, at 30,000 miles

What to check before you buy

• Pull out and latch every seat belt, and let each one retract on its own.
• Try every seat adjuster, and watch for a passenger air bag "off" light when an adult is in the seat.

Tools that help

What owners said

My volkswagen tiguan 2016 with 28,00 miles driver's seat is peeling/cracking. It is still under warranty.volkswagen will not pay for its repair. I paid $3000 extra for extended warranty via the dealer ourisman of bethesda-they informed me the extended warranty will not cover it. I have spoken to the volkswagen's corporate office and…Owner complaint, filed 2019

I have had to have the seatbelt replaced twice in the last month on my new vw tiguan. The female connector that the tongue of the belt fits into has broken apart twice, requiring an entire [VIN] of the belt. This work was covered under warranty. The first time it broke when the loop of my pocket book caught on it. The second time it…Owner complaint, filed 2016

What to check before you buy

• Read the four-digit DOT date on each tire. Tires older than about six years should be replaced, whatever the tread looks like.
• Check tread depth on all four. On AWD vehicles all four tires should match.
• The tire pressure light should go out after startup.

Tools that help

What owners said

Side wall bubbling on the continental tires twice. Tires had to be replaced twice. I barely scraped a curb and the tire had a huge bubble on the side wall that grew each day. The tires are defective a small I have never had this problem with tires on any car ever.Owner complaint, filed 2017, at 15,000 miles

Check engine light went on for no apparent reason. Had taken my car for a battery recall issue and was told by vw service provider that they would not cover the problem. Next day check engine sign popped up. I have never driven a worse car in my entire 20 years.Owner complaint, filed 2018, at 53,200 miles

What to check before you buy

• Where it is safe, try the adaptive cruise and lane keeping on the test drive and watch for sudden braking or warnings with nothing there.
• Check the windshield in front of the camera and the bumper sensors for cracks, chips or poor repairs.
• Ask whether the windshield has been replaced. The camera has to be recalibrated afterward, and many shops skip it.

Tools that help

What owners said

Parking Brake locks up and renders vehicle immobile- has occurred twice and parking switch has been replaced three times.Owner complaint, filed 2022