CSR

Volkswagen · NHTSA safety record

2017 Volkswagen Tiguan

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

73

Complaints

6

Crashes

0

Fires

4

Injuries

1

Deaths

Owners of the 2017 Volkswagen Tiguan have filed 73 safety complaints with NHTSA between May 2017 and June 2026. The most complained-about system is the air bags, named in 30 of them (41%). The typical failure was reported at 26,000 miles, the median across the 23 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 4 recalls covering this vehicle.

Recalls (4)

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

21V321000 · May 5, 2021

The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017 Touareg GP, Tiguan, Golf A6, E-Golf GP, CCF, 2016-2017 Passat GP, 2018-2019 Golf R GP, and 2018 Atlas vehicles. These internal-use vehicles were sold without confirmation that they were built to all applicable regulatory requirements and may have been modified prior to sale. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of various Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
The risk
Vehicles that do not meet all regulatory requirements may have an increased risk of injury, crash, or fire.
The remedy
Volkswagen will repurchase the vehicles. Owner notification letters were mailed May 20, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 01F1.

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. · up to 46 vehicles across all model years covered

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

18V329000 · May 16, 2018

The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2016 Eos, 2012 Passat, 2012-2016 CC, 2015-2016 e-Golf, 2011-2015 Touareg, 2012-2015 and 2017 Tiguan, and 2011-2016 Golf and 2011-2013 GTI vehicles. Modifications made while the vehicles were in an internal evaluation period may cause the affected vehicles to not comply with all of the applicable regulatory requirements.
The risk
If the vehicles do not meet all regulatory requirements, there could be an increased risk of a crash, fire, or injury.
The remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles to make them fully compliant or Volkswagen will repurchase them if necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 29, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298.

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. · up to 252 vehicles across all model years covered

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

18V102000 · February 9, 2018

The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Tiguan Limited vehicles. The front driver air bag installed on these vehicles may not be intended for use in vehicles sold in the United States. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
The risk
In the event of a crash, the incorrect air bags may not protect the driver as intended, increasing the risk of injury.
The remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel and front driver air bag module, free of charge. The recall began May 30, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69V2.

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. · up to 3,768 vehicles across all model years covered

SEAT BELTS:PRETENSIONER

16V955000 · December 29, 2016

The defect
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2017 Audi A7, A4, A6, Volkswagen Golf and Tiguan vehicles and 2016 Volkswagen e-Golf vehicles for driver frontal air bags, passenger frontal air bags or head air bags that may not deploy properly. Additionally, certain 2017 Audi Q7, A4 Sedan, A4 Allroad, and 2018 Audi Q5 vehicles are being recalled because the seat belt pretensioners may not activate properly.
The risk
In the event of a crash, if the air bags and/or the seat belt pretensioners do not inflate or function properly, the vehicle occupants have an increased risk of injury.
The remedy
Volkswagen and Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected air bags and seat belt pretensioners, free of charge. The recall began April 2017. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834.

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. · up to 5,947 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 73.

AIR BAGS 30 41%
ENGINE 15 21%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 11 15%
STEERING 11 15%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 9 12%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 5 7%
POWER TRAIN 5 7%
STRUCTURE 4 5%
SERVICE BRAKES 3 4%
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 2 3%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 1 1%
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 1%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2022 at 21.

2017 2022 2026
2017 to 2026, the last of them a part year

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

AIR BAGS

1 death · 1 injured · crash · towed · 3,834 miles

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 VOLKSWAGEN TIGUAN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 45 MPH, THE CONTACT HIT A POT HOLE, LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING WHEEL AND CRASHED INTO A TREE. ALL AIRBAGS DEPLOYED ACCEPT THE FRONT DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED HEAD CHEST, BRUISING INJURIES. HIS WIFE WHO WAS SEATED IN THE PASSENGER SEAT SUSTAINED INJURIES FROM THE SEATBELT WHICH CAUSED BRUISING AROUND HER NECK AND CHEST. HOWEVER, 40 DAYS LATER THE CONTACT WIFE PASSED AWAY FROM HITTING THE DASHBOARD WITH HER HEAD, SEATBELT PENSIONER CAUSED BY SEPTIC SHOCK. MEDICAL ATTENTION WAS CONTACTED WHICH THE CONTACTS WIFE WAS HOSPITALIZED FOR COUPLE OF DAYS. A POLICE REPORT WAS MADE AND TOWED

NHTSA complaint 11306689, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed · 26,000 miles

PURCHASED 05/19/2017. HORN AND DASHBOARD LIGHTS DID NOT WORK IN APPROXIMATELY 12/2017. WAS REPAIRED AND TOLD WAS A COIL PROBLEM. THEN ON 04/12/18 IT SUDDENLY FLASHED ALL THE DASHBOARD AND STEERING WHEEL LIGHTS IN THE MIDDLE OF MY DRIVING AND SUDDENLY DIED ON ME WHEN I TURNED INTO MY DRIVEWAY AND THE STEERING WHEEL GOT LOCKED. LUCKILY HAPPENED NEAR MY DRIVEWAY!! HAD TO BE TOWED AND TOLD THEY FIXED THE BATTERY PROBLEM. THE NEXT DAY IT ACTED UP AGAIN WHEREBY THE RADIO KEPT SHUTTING OFF AND COMING BACK ON! BEFORE I COULD TAKE IT IN AGAIN I WAS INVOLVED IN ACCIDENT ON 04/16/18 AND THE AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY CAUSING MY HEAD TO WHIP EVERY WHICH WAY!!

NHTSA complaint 11088947. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY

1 injured · crash · towed

I suffered a front-end collision on 11/15/2022 in my 2017 VW Tiguan. I was going on I-66 in Virginia 40-45mph back to college at Howard University, and a car stopped suddenly after being cut off, but it was raining horribly and I was in half a foot of water, so even with braking, I hydroplaned into the vehicle in front of me, causing insubstantial damage to them but very significant damage to my vehicle as well as whiplash.

NHTSA complaint 11494504. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

1 injured · crash · towed

My [XXX] daughter was a front seat passenger in her friend‘s car the 2017 Tiguan when the driver swerved to avoid another car and struck a pole. The damage was primarily on the front passenger side of the car. My daughter hit the windshield. It was broken in two places and she sustained several other injuries. The airbags never deployed. The car was totaled. I’m interested in knowing whether or not it can be determined if the airbags should have deployed and did not, and if the seatbelt worked properly or not, and whether or not you’ve had other complaints about this make and model. My daughter has sustained a concussion and has been out of work since he accident thank you. INFORMATION

NHTSA complaint 11652619, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS
No crash or incident occurred. While starting the vehicle normally, the airbag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed fault code P0588 — driver side airbag igniter at resistance limit. The mechanic confirmed that all airbags are non-functional as a result of this fault. No accident, collision, or unusual event preceded this failure. The part failed during normal use and operation. This is the same component covered under Safety Recall 69P4, issued February 2017 for driver and passenger airbag igniters on 2017 Volkswagen Tiguan vehicles. My VIN was not included in that recall but is experiencing the identical failure. I purchased this

NHTSA complaint 11745250, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
I am filing this complaint to seek a full buyback and debt cancellation for a 2017 VW Tiguan (VIN: [XXX] ) sold to me by Carvana for $40,000. Summary of Deception: Carvana sold this vehicle as "Certified" with a "150-Point Inspection" guarantee. This was a fraudulent misrepresentation. Within six months, the vehicle required 45+ mechanical services, including a full internal teardown that revealed catastrophic wiring corrosion caused by a long-term sunroof leak. These were latent defects present at the time of sale. The vehicle has has 2 Turbos: one recalled (now currently being recalled again) and one replaced 3 months into ownership. The vehicle slowed down on [XXX] traffic and I had to

NHTSA complaint 11729125, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

ENGINE
On December 3, 2025, Volkswagen of XXX performed an intake manifold recall repair on our 2017 Tiguan (VIN: [XXX] ) while the vehicle was under factory warranty. Approximately six weeks later the low coolant warning light appeared and the vehicle began actively leaking coolant. No other work had been performed between the recall and the onset of the leak. Our independent mechanic discovered physical damage to the original water pump consistent with a tool strike during the recall procedure. A new OEM water pump was installed but failed immediately due to an underlying pressure issue originating underneath the intake manifold. The vehicle has been at VW of South Charlotte since February 11,

NHTSA complaint 11728157, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Steering rack and pinion, yes. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? There is no power steering and unable to make a quick turn to maneuver the car around a potential hazard in the road. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Yes, two independent service centers. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? Just a power steering light

NHTSA complaint 11693994, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
when was driven i lost power and got the ECU light and check engine light when scan for codes got fuel system and also car went into limp mode and had low fuel reading from live feeding and since have replaced the high pressure fuel pump and live reading are good now it still won’t start and won’t come out of limp mode

NHTSA complaint 11683981. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

AIR BAGS

crash

During a collision in which my vehicle was struck by another driver, the airbag warning light activated, my seatbelt locked in place, and white smoke with a strong electrical smell filled the cabin. No airbags deployed (frontal or side). There is now an "ERROR: Airbag" warning on my dashboard, and the seatbelt is completely locked. The vehicle currently has multiple open safety recalls for airbag systems, including frontal and side/window airbags. I am concerned that these recalls may be related to the malfunction experienced. This failure could have resulted in serious injury if the impact had been greater. I am requesting investigation and confirmation as to whether the non-deployment is

NHTSA complaint 11680342, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Volkswagen Tiguan

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 45 2
2024 57 2
2023 60 1
2022 251 5
2021 132 5
2020 137 3
2019 188 5
2018 276 13
2016 96 2
2015 62 4
2014 83 3
2013 139 3
2012 152 3
2011 160 3
2010 109 2

Other 2017 Volkswagen models

Every Volkswagen on this site — 152 vehicles, 256 recall campaigns and 2 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst