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Owner-Reported Problems · NHTSA

2013 Volkswagen Tiguan — Problems & Complaints

NHTSA has 139 owner complaints on file for this vehicle. Every report below was filed by a real owner with the US government's road-safety agency.

139

Complaints

filed with NHTSA

Involved a Crash

owner-reported

Involved Fire

owner-reported

Injuries

across all reports

Years to Avoid

Volkswagen Tiguan — Complaints by Model Year

Years flagged AVOID have at least twice this model's average complaint count — the strongest public-data signal of a bad year.

2010 Volkswagen Tiguan

110 complaints

2011 Volkswagen Tiguan

162 complaints

2012 Volkswagen Tiguan

153 complaints

2013 Volkswagen Tiguan

139 complaints

2014 Volkswagen Tiguan

84 complaints

2015 Volkswagen Tiguan

62 complaints

2016 Volkswagen Tiguan

96 complaints

2017 Volkswagen Tiguan

76 complaints

2018 Volkswagen Tiguan AVOID

286 complaints

2019 Volkswagen Tiguan

193 complaints

2020 Volkswagen Tiguan

141 complaints

Problem Areas

What Owners Complain About Most

Air Bags 63 reports

Electrical System 35 reports

Engine 29 reports

Steering 27 reports

Unknown Or Other 16 reports

Fuel/propulsion System 14 reports

Service Brakes 6 reports

Power Train 6 reports

In Their Own Words

Recent Owner Reports

Steering ODI 11057341 12/29/2017

MY AIRBAG LIGHT COME UP AND MY HORN IS NOT WORKING.

Unknown Or Other ODI 10816886 12/29/2015

MY CAR WAS IN MY DRIVEWAY FOR A WEEK AND IT WAS NOT DRIVER FOR A WEEK WHEN THE AIR START COME OUT OF MY TIRE AND IT BUBBLE UP AND LEFT A CUT ON THE TIRE A DEFECTIVE IN THE TIRE. THE NAME OF TIRE IS CONTINENTAL / CONTIPROCONTACT ... SIZE IS 235/50 R 18.

Fuel System ODI 10668928 12/29/2014

THE LOCKING MECHANISM FOR THE GAS DOOR STOPPED WORKING PROPERLY AND THE DOOR REMAINS UNLOCKED WITH THE DOOR POPPED OPEN THE MAJORITY OF THE TIME. IF THE DOOR ISN'T POPPED OPEN THEN IT'S LOCKED SHUT AND CAN'T BE OPENED NORMALLY AND MUST BE PRIED OPEN. *TR

Electrical System ODI 10937581 12/27/2016

MY 2013 VW TIGUAN SUDDENLY HAD A SNAPPING AND CRINKLY SOUND WHEN I TURNED THE WHEEL. I NOTICED IT WHEN I WAS TURNING IN MY DRIVEWAY VERY SLOWLY. HOURS LATER AND "ERROR:AIRBAG" MESSAGE APPEARED ON THE DASH AND ALL OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE STEERING WHEEL STOPPED WORKING, INCLUDING THE HORN.

Air Bags ODI 11560920 12/19/2023

The contact owns a 2013 Volkswagen Tiguan. The contact stated while driving approximately 25 MPH, the check air bag warning light illuminated. Additionally, all the buttons on the steering wheel became inoperable. The contact stated that he was unable cycle through the service screen options due to the steering wheel buttons not functioning. The contact had taken the vehicle t…

Same Vehicle

Recalls & Crash Tests

Complaints are one half of the picture — see the official recalls and NHTSA crash-test stars for the 2013 Volkswagen Tiguan, or check your exact car by VIN with the free VIN lookup.

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Problems Checker

Any year, make and model: open the Car Problems Checker. Data: NHTSA (US DOT, public domain), cached up to 7 days.

Questions

FAQ

Is the 2013 Volkswagen Tiguan reliable?

Owners have filed 139 safety complaints with NHTSA for the 2013 Volkswagen Tiguan, most often about air bags. Compare the complaint counts across model years above — a year with far more complaints than the model's average is the strongest 'avoid' signal in public data.

Which Volkswagen Tiguan years should I avoid?

The rule of thumb used by analysts: a model year whose complaint count is well above the model's own average (we flag 2× or more) usually had a real manufacturing or design problem — not just noisy reporting. Use the year-by-year strip on this page.

Where do these complaints come from?

Directly from NHTSA, the US government road-safety agency. Any owner can file a Vehicle Owner Questionnaire; NHTSA publishes them as public domain data. We cache each lookup for up to 7 days.

Do complaints mean a recall is coming?

Sometimes. NHTSA opens defect investigations when complaint patterns emerge, and investigations can end in recalls. Check the recalls page for this vehicle to see what has already been recalled.