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Launched in 2020, the Volkswagen ID.4 is VW’s first fully-electric crossover SUV. It hit the market with multiple accolades and was voted the 2021 World Car of the Year by nearly 100 journalists from 28 countries. The company is advertising it as a car for “the millions, not the millionaires.”
This sounds great, especially with an electric car offering intelligent design (ID). But there are already 5 recalls for the new SUV, all of which relate to major safety issues that may result in accidents. And there are 60 complaints with the United States Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). These relate to problems across the board, some more serious than others.
Bearing in mind that the car is a global favorite, there are many more complaints other than those received by the U.S. NHTSA.
Click on another model year to view more problems: 2023
Contents
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NHTSA Complaints for the 2021 Volkswagen ID.4
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | |
| Service Brakes | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Vehicle Speed Control | |
| Power Train | |
| Fuel/propulsion System | |
| Engine | |
| Steering | |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking | |
| Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control |
Most Common Problems with the 2021 Volkswagen ID.4
In keeping with lots of other electric vehicles, the major complaint about the 2021 Volkswagen ID.4 is its electrical system. It is probably worth noting that only one of the recalls is related to the electrical system. Despite the fact that many complaints to the NHTSA and other platforms, this recall only potentially relates to 356 2021 VW ID.4s.
According to the recall issued in mid-March 2022, the malfunction of this particular malfunction is caused by the incorrect soldering of the car’s flexible printed circuit assembly (FPCA) inside the high-voltage (HV) battery. The possible result is an unreliable connection. Unfortunately, as a complaint filed with the NHTSA on July 5 points out, the part to do the recall repair is not available.
In terms of complaints, there are 60 in total to the NHTSA up to mid-September 2022. There are a whopping 28 complaints about the electrical system, 9 that are related to service brakes plus another one for service brakes (air), and 8 to forward collision avoidance. There are also 7 about vehicle speed control and 5 each about the powertrain, exterior lighting, steering, and the fuel/propulsion system. Most powertrain issues also involve electrical issues.
Additionally, there are 4 complaints about the engine, and 3 that relate to lane departure. There are 2 each about back-over prevention, equipment, latches/locks/linkages, and visibility/wiper. Finally, airbags, engine and engine cooling, seat belts, and tires, all have 1 complaint each.
There are a total of 9 “unknown or other” complaints. Most are combined with other components, including the electrical system. Only 4 aren’t combined with other components, and these relate to various technical issues as well as a rear window that shattered spontaneously.
So, it’s very varied.
Here is some more information about the most common problems reported to the NHTSA.
2021 VW ID.4 Electrical System Problems
It probably shouldn’t be a surprise to discover that electric vehicles have electrical system problems. Somehow, it is surprising to many consumers.
Electrical system issues mentioned in NHTSA complaints are, though very varied, so it’s difficult to pinpoint typical problem areas. For example, the first complaint on their system states that the infotainment panel shuts off sporadically. The concern is that this doesn’t just affect entertainment, but safety features as well including the backup camera and proximity sensors.
A particularly alarming recent complaint describes how the driver gets a warning message when depressing the brake when starting the car. The message says: “Electrical system not working properly, please service car immediately.” The owner has tried to do this several times but the VW technical team cannot replicate the issue “despite multiple images on multiple occasions of (the) same apparent problem.” Consequently, the owner has been told it is a software problem. But there is no resolution.
Another recent complaint is that the 12-volt battery ages very quickly. After just one year the voltage was dropping overnight, causing the internal systems to shutdown and report errors. The owner says: “If the car sits idle for 2-3 days, the voltage drops to the point where the car must reboot entirely, which includes an audio sweep calibration from the pedestrian warning speakers.”
Yet another complaint involves a driver pulling out of a parking garage slowly when the car shut down and lost all power. That happened twice. Other complaints report cars shutting down as well as fuel/propulsion issues.
The rear window defrost grid is another issue.
Rear Window Defrost Problems
It is very likely that the rear window defrost problem was the reason for the shattered rear window mentioned above. Ironically, though, the dealership was unable to pinpoint the problem. Rather, according to the owner of the car: “The repair shop manager suggested it was a stray BB from a BB gun.”
The owner of this 2021 VW ID.4 states: “The rear defrost had been turned on as I drove to the store. I shopped for about 15 minutes and came out of the store and sat down on the front driver’s seat, which starts up things like the radio and I believe the defrost again. This is when I heard an explosion, got out of the car to see what had caused the vibration and sound, and looked to find that the glass was shattered inward and there was a hole as if a brick had been thrown through it.”
A rear-facing toddler car seat was impacted with small shards of tempered glass. But luckily there wasn’t a child in the seat at the time. While the owner’s insurance covered the repair, they didn’t believe the damage was from a BB gun!
2021 VW ID.4 Brake Problems
Service brake issues are always a concern because a failure can result in a crash. A recent complaint describes a brake failure that resulted in a crash. To make matters worse, the airbags didn’t deploy. Luckily, nobody was injured, but the ID.4 is “a total loss.” The mileage on the clock was only 8,000!
Another complaint states that it felt as if the brake pedal was switched off. But the car accelerated and smashed into another car. But they state that VW isn’t accepting responsibility and is claiming the accelerator and not the brakes were applied.
One complainant whose car spontaneously accelerated and hit a parked car in front of her says:
“This has not just happened to me but to many others as well. I can send documentation for that if you need.”
Another very similar complaint states that when the car suddenly accelerated, “the steering wheel turned uncontrollably.” The driver wasn’t able to stop the car because the brakes didn’t respond.
Explaining what was “a terrifying experience,” the owner states: “The car was driving by itself, I couldn’t do anything to stop it, until I ran into two parked cars where it finally stopped; thank god no injuries. The car was undriveable, and was towed away.”
What to do if your 2021 VW ID.4 is a lemon? Your Lemon Rights
It’s a tough call when you buy what you believe is a top car. But, the reality is that some are 100%, but amongst them, there will be lemons. It’s not for us to decide why or how it happens.
We want you to know what to look for, and if you think you’ve bought a lemon, contact us so that we can help you resolve your issues.
Lemberg Law is a specialist consumer law firm that specializes in lemon law cases. We can help you get a replacement vehicle, a cash settlement, a trade-in, or a buyback.
Call our Helpline today and we’ll see what we can do to help you. VW will have to pay the legal bills, not you.
Complaint Data
| Category | Electrical System, Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control, Fuel/propulsion System |
| Date | Mar 20, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | I was attempting to trade in my id. 4 for a tesla and found out that my car had a major safety recall from tesla. The recall has been out since feb and I was never notified from vw. I called the dealership and the manager said he never heard of the problem and offered no solution except there is nothing they can do. Now I have to drive myself and my family around in a car that could crash. There is no insight when a fix will happen. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control, Service Brakes, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Mar 18, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | My vehicle was in travel assist mode (I. E. Adaptive cruise control) traveling at around 65 mph. A vehicle has cut into my lane and I felt that the car wouldn't slow quick enough to avoid a collision. I have applied breaks effectively taking the vehicle into my control and taking the vehicle off travel assist mode. When driver takes over by applying the breaks in this scenario, irrespective of how hard the breaks are applied, vehicle suddenly moves faster than expected for first few seconds. I had to apply the break harder than I would have applied if I was driving the car in manual mode to get the car to slow down. The expectation was that the vehicle slows down while applying the breaks. This would have caused a collision if I was not quick to react. There were no warning lights or messages on the dashboard prior to or during this incident. This could be a software issue which probably is conflicting between the breaks travel assist is applying and the breaking that the driver is applying. This has happened multiple time to me and on date mentioned on this my wife had same experience confirming that this is in deed an issue that needs some investigating into before it cause any accident(s). |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Mar 10, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v040000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. While driving approximately 65 mph, the vehicle shifted out of drive(d), powered down, and started coasting. The contact stated that the power steering and brakes were still functioning as designed. The contact was able to steer safely through traffic and stopped the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle reset independently after 2 minutes and resumed normal operation at full electrical power. The contact drove the vehicle to his residence. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage 11,000. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Mar 10, 2023 |
| State | OR |
| Description | The contact owns a 2012 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v040000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that while his wife was driving into the residential driveway at approximately 5 mph, the vehicle lost electric power and shifted into park(p). The stop had been so abrupt that the vehicle was rocking. The contact stated that all the exterior lights flashed off and on. The contact stated that his wife restarted the vehicle and the vehicle resumed normal operation. The contact stated the failure had become recurring. The contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer, who could not duplicate the failure and wanted the contact to retrieve the vehicle. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The failure mileage was approximately 4,600. Vin tool confirms parts not available. |
| Category | Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch |
| Date | Mar 10, 2023 |
| State | CO |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated while exiting a parking lot, the front passenger's side door opened independently. No warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to stop and close the front passenger's side door. The contacted stated that the front passenger's side door failed to lock as designed. The dealer was contacted, and the dealer stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The manufacturer was contacted and stated that the vehicle needed to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 110,000. |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Mar 07, 2023 |
| State | VA |
| Description | Driver's door keeps unlocking while driving. Swung open several times while driving. Also, sometimes difficult to unlock driver's door from the outside. All this seems to be be related to error messages concerning auto hold (which this vehicle does not have) and travel assist not being available. All this began after my first one year scheduled service on 2/17/23. Taking in vehicle on 3/10 concerning these problems. I had made an appointment for an earlier date, but cancelled it because everything went back to normal. The dealer said if the messages were not active, I would be wasting my time. I called the vw customer service number and reported my concern on 2/24. I am not driving my vehicle as it is not safe if the driver's door opens while driving. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Mar 04, 2023 |
| State | UT |
| Description | I was driving around 45 mph when several warning lights lit up on my dashboard at the same time, indicating an issue with the battery. The car slowly rolled to a stop, and I had no control of the vehicle. This was in the middle of traffic and very dangerous. There were no warnings or indications beforehand that would suggest there was an issue. This was completely out of the blue. |
| Category | Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection |
| Date | Feb 28, 2023 |
| State | AR |
| Description | The blind spot warning on the right side has not worked since I purchased the vehicle in april 2021. I have taken it to two different vw dealers three times and they have failed to repair it. I consider this safety issue! |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Feb 23, 2023 |
| State | NJ |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v040000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated while driving 30 mph, the vehicle stalled with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact stated the front driver's side door latch opened independently. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, but the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000. Vin tool confirms parts not available. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Feb 22, 2023 |
| State | WA |
| Description | The driver side door no longer automatically unlocks from the outside of the car when pressed with fingers near door handle. Door can only be unlocked or locked with the key fob. While seated in the driver's seat with the door shut the door will make random clicking noises as if the door is confused if it should be locking or unlocking. This happens even while driving the car. The driver's side door has unlatched and flown open into traffic while at a stop sign. The driver instrument panel also reports several errors related to the driver assistance systems while operating the vehicle including one which 'dings' at every complete stop. I suspect the electronics are designed to throw these errors when it thinks the door is open while driving. The dealer was able to reproduce the problem and reported that the door handle needs to be replaced but is unable to get the part from vw and has no estimate as to when it will be available. The car is undrivable due to being unsafe and has been parked for over a month. |
| Category | Electrical System, Service Brakes, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Feb 21, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | We've been leasing a volkswagen ev car id4. And after a recent software update, we got problems as in the following. Intermittently when coming to stop, the vehicle is difficult to stop and pedal pressure seems low. When we experience concern, the accelerator does not seem to react in the same way. As a result, the car failed to stop at short of stop line. Volkswagen sent us a recall notice of high voltage sudden reset error what promote acceleration failure. But our car has not only acceleration but brake issues more than dozen times in 3weeks. We believe we are in very delicate and dangerous situation. But vw doesn't provide a substitute vehicle, as volkswagen view problems as vehicle to be still drivable. I strongly disagree with their view, since we will be in serious danger without secure brake and acceleration. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Feb 20, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Sudden and complete tire blowout at 65 mph on rear driver side. Tires were verified to have correct pressure. Less than 11k miles on the vehicle which is perfectly maintained and garaged. Technician at the tire store indicated likely manufacturer's defect. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control, Service Brakes |
| Date | Feb 18, 2023 |
| State | MA |
| Description | When driving using adaptive cruise control and my car decelerating using the regenerative braking, applying the brakes turns off the regenerative braking leaving only the friction brakes to slow/stop the car. I have demonstrated this situation to a vw dealer technician, who has confirmed that another 2021 vw id4 that was in the shop duplicated this behavior. I have experienced this behavior multiple times over the last year. Because one of the systems for decelerating the vehicle is not available during a potentially emergency situation, I believe this is a safety risk. No warning lights or messages are displayed when this occurs. This has not been reported to my insurance company or the police. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Feb 14, 2023 |
| State | CO |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the 12v battery fault message was displayed. Additionally, the passenger's side rear door was inoperable. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no failure was found. The vehicle was then taken to emich volkswagen of boulder (2470 49th st, boulder, co 80301) where the 12v battery was replaced. The dealer determined that the passenger's side rear door needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000. |
| Category | Power Train |
| Date | Feb 13, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | My vehicle did exactly what the recall is about, the electrical system went into a dumb mode and the care could not be used for a while. It eventually reset and is working. Took to dealer and they said that is was good to go, but want to make sure my vin is on the recall fix when ready |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Feb 08, 2023 |
| State | NY |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 23v040000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available. |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Feb 03, 2023 |
| State | GA |
| Description | Electronic stability control (esc) activated over a dozen time un-necessarily on a recent road trip. The activation caused the brake pedal to collapse and caused braking action to be un-even and nearly un-controlled on a windy mountain road. There was no slippage to cause stability control to intervene. |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine |
| Date | Jan 30, 2023 |
| State | GA |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was smoke coming into the cabin of the vehicle through the air vents. No medical attention was received for smoke inhalation. The dealer was made aware of the failure; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000. |
| Category | Structure:body |
| Date | Jan 24, 2023 |
| State | NJ |
| Description | The driver door unlocks and occasionally opens on its own. Took the car to the dealer at a faulty door handle was diagnosed. A replacement handle was installed and the problem was corrected. This problem happened for about a week before taking it to the dealer (at their next available time). On almost all occasions, the door unlocked and became ajar, but did not fully open. Only once when I was turning to get into my driveway, at low speed, the door fully opened and I had to hold it before it swung open. I discussed this on an owner forum, and other owners seem to have had similar experiences. A suggestion was made there to submit to nhtsa, so that prompted me to write this report. Https://www. Vwidtalk. Com/threads/error-auto-hold-anyone-else. 7485/ |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jan 17, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | I took my car in for recall service repair which I was told would only be about two days. The dealership has now had my car for just about three weeks and they cannot give me an eta as to when the car will be finished. I am concerned about the length of time and quality of the repair since they have admitted to me that they are uncertain with how to proceed with the repairs. I took my car in to make sure it's safe because it is our family car and I have been stuck with the loaner gas guzzler and still uncertain when I will get my car back and if it will even be safe. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jan 17, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Driver door cannot be opened from the outside or inside. It appears the latch, the central locking system, or the electronic switch to the latch, etc. Failed. The is a major safety concern in an emergency to access the driver or to escape the vehicle. The current ingress and egress routes for the driver are through the front passenger door. The driver door has always operates in a "strange" fashion and reported to the dealer when it was new. Prior to the failure and oftentimes the driver door handle has to be pulled twice (from the inside even the door is unlocked) to open the driver door. The failure to open the door from the inside or outside has been documented in various internet discussion forums and can easily be searched. The vehicle is currently in the shop for diagnosis. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Jan 13, 2023 |
| State | FL |
| Description | Tires are different sizes, severe wear after 10,000 miles. Tires are peeling apart |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Jan 11, 2023 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The tires ripped up and fell apart at 17,000 miles, no indicator alerted the driver to a problem prior to the tire falling apart, even driving it completely flat. I didn't alert anyone but a tow truck driver and my local tire repair center. I have replaced all four tires to prevent further damage to my car and safety to myself and my family. |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Power Train |
| Date | Jan 07, 2023 |
| State | CO |
| Description | Car displayed error while driving and immediately began to lose speed. Stopped in the middle of a 6 lane road with a posted speed limit of 35mph. Car would not go into drive. Turned car off and attempted to restart and put it back into drive, but did not work. Turned car off and waited 1 minute and tried again, turned car off a second time and waited 3 minutes. Car restarted with errors but was able to be put into drive and driven. The car was blocking a driving lane in the road for approximately five minutes with hazard lights on. If this has happened on a highway it would have been extremely dangerous. |
| Category | Electrical System, Power Train |
| Date | Dec 19, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | On monday, december 19, 2022, at approximately 1:30 p. M., driving at 70 miles per hour, my volkswagen w id. 4 car suddenly lost electric power and I was unable to accelerate. I was driving on highway 680 south, near the livorna exit, on the livorna zone express lanes when this occurred in contra costa county, california. the car's user interface panel flashed the message, "electrical system not working correctly. Please service vehicle." from the second lane on a four-lane highway, with the remaining speed, as the car dramatically slowed, I coasted to the right shoulder and came to a complete stop. During this entire time, there was no power. This was extremely dangerous and stressful as I was concerned of highway speed traffic approaching from behind and being unable to reach the shoulder safely without any power. There, at the right shoulder, I turned on the hazard lights and called my husband. He told me to exit and reenter the car, as safely as possible, to try to restart the system. I exited the car from the passenger side. When I reentered the car, the system restarted and the electric power returned. The vehicle had power again and I was able to safely re-enter the freeway lanes. This same error "electrical system not working correctly. Please service vehicle" occurred previously two times when the vehicle was not moving (I. E. When trying to start driving from a stop) in the last year and a half. For these 2 previous incidents, my husband had opened service requests for repairs under warranty to the vw dealer in walnut creek, ca and they confirmed the faults and serviced the vehicle by bleeding the coolant system each time. Both times they assured me this would resolve the problem. This is the first time the same problem recurred while the vehicle was in motion resulting in total loss of power and put me in a dangerous situation. |
| Category | Steering |
| Date | Dec 19, 2022 |
| State | MI |
| Description | While driving with cruise control on (60 to 70 mph) after almost an hour the steering suddenly becomes very loose. There is essentially no response in the center of the steering wheel location but can still steer when turning the wheel a few degrees left or right. After turning off the cruise control the steering response becomes normal again. This has happened in august this year and haven't noticed it again until this last weekend (12/17/2022). The previous incident happened several time in a row when I would turn the cruise control off and then back on. I was on the highway going 70 mph. One incident in the summer and one in colder weather. After the first incident the dealership could not determine a cause when test driving it but it's not something that can be duplicated. It appears randomly and is quite scary. |
| Category | Wheels |
| Date | Dec 16, 2022 |
| State | FL |
| Description | The new 2021 id4 purchased in august 2021 only had 17783 miles on the four original oem tires when the problem occurred. While driving at a low rate of speed around 15 mph from a stop light the left rear tire exploded. The driver safely got the vehicle to the side of the road. The car was towed to the vw dealership in delray beach, florida. The dealer says that all four tires needed replacement at only 17783 miles. None of the tires were safe to drive on despite the low mileage. There were no warnings regarding the tires and no reason to believe there was an issue with the tires with only 17783 miles on the car having all season tires. |
| Category | Electrical System:body Control Module/bcm |
| Date | Dec 06, 2022 |
| State | NY |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated while starting the vehicle and exiting his driveway, the "all wheel drive function disabled", "electrical system failure", "rear assist failure" and other unknown messages were displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated to respond while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact also stated that the vehicle was slow to get up to speed while driving on a flat road surface. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at night, the exterior lights failed to illuminate as needed. The contact veered to the side of the road, turned off, and restarted the vehicle several times; however, the exterior lights failed to operate. The contact activated the hazard light and was able to drive to his destination. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed but no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was then taken to a second dealer, volkswagen of smithtown (530 jericho turnpike, st james, ny 11780) where it was diagnosed that the body control module (bcm) had failed and needed to be reprogrammed along with the vehicle key fob. The dealer completed the repair; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated while attempting to drive from a complete stop uphill, the vehicle failed to respond and started rolling backwards. The same warning messages were displayed. The contact parked and turned off the vehicle. The contact restarted the vehicle after an hour and 25 minutes and was able to continue driving. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 12,500. |
| Category | Air Bags |
| Date | Nov 22, 2022 |
| State | MD |
| Description | The airbags warning light is on and volkswagen dealer can't fix the issue. It's a safety issue and I need a remedy please. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking |
| Date | Nov 22, 2022 |
| State | RI |
| Description | When backing up, if you turn to look over shoulder, the change in weight on the seat triggers the car to abruptly stop. Though the rear camera is good for cross traffic, still need to turn to look for pedestrians when pulling out of driveway across sidewalk. Safety issue for pedestrians |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control |
| Date | Nov 18, 2022 |
| State | OH |
| Description | Car 12v battery drained. Car "dead". Aaa jump-started and I drove home. Kept all unnecessary items off (heat, radio, etc). Put car on trickle charge overnight; charged to 90+%. After driving car for awhile, "12v battery low" message came on. 3 local dealers can't service until december. Known defect that battery is under-powered. Vw has offered replacement sometime in early 2023. Meanwhile car sits in garage inoperable. |
| Category | Electrical System, Service Brakes |
| Date | Nov 09, 2022 |
| State | SC |
| Description | Dealer replaced infotainment unit but it continues to blank out, freeze and or restart. Very unsafe as you have to take eyes off road to force a restart, also if front windshield is foggy if infotainment system froze or restarting you are now driving with a fogged up windshield which you can't see out off. Infotainment buttons do not work properly as they do not react to touch again take eyes off road to see whats happening. Infotainment screen and the other screen in front of driving wheel get very very hot. Only after showing dealer videos and recordings of all these occurrences with screen do they decide to do something about it such as change unit but problems persist. Vehicle rolls back on inclines when on a slight incline. Front end squeaks, vw dealer says is coming from the brakes and it's normal operation. Stopping distances is increased in cold weather, in cold weather braking distances are longer. Side mirror buttons do not always control/adjust mirrors. Dynamic cornering headlight error/malfunction warning on screen constantly, safety risk. Vehicle cannot charge error (s) pop on screen and charging stops. After multiple tries and after changing to another charging stall, charging is able to resume. Factory celular connectivity drops for days and you have to pull fuse #17 or #19 to reset lte connection. Vehicle has a lot of shortcomings which render it very very very unsafe. |
| Category | Suspension |
| Date | Nov 01, 2022 |
| State | AZ |
| Description | Uneven tire wear on front tires at 11,000 miles: the front right tire is bald along the very outer portion first 20% of tire surface, left front tire shows elevated wear but not bald. Wear pattern is consistent with alignment / camber issue. Brought to vw service and they claim this uneven wear is normal for the id4. I advised them when you see this kind of wear it is not normal as the tires load is not distributed evenly and cause blow out, poor stopping and acceleration. The car has staggered tires 235 front / 255 rear so rotation is not possible. Tire is bridgestone sport. I reminded them of the ford explorer catastrophe. |
| Category | Electrical System, Service Brakes, Hydraulic, Steering |
| Date | Oct 31, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id4. The contact stated while coming to a complete stop with the brake pedal being depressed, the vehicle lunged 3-5 feet forward. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated while driving 40-45 mph, the steering wheel swerved unintendedly, causing the vehicle to veer towards the opposite lane of traffic. The contact was able to regain control of the steering wheel and continued driving. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the gear shifter remained stuck in park(p) and failed to move after several attempts. A message indicating a major electrical failure was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 11,657. |
| Category | Electrical System, Fuel/propulsion System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Oct 27, 2022 |
| State | NC |
| Description | While driving the vehicle, error messages were displayed in the digital cluster indicating, among others, "electrical system not working, safely stop vehicle", "i2v battery error", "issue with all-wheel drive system", "front/travel assist not working". In less than 10 seconds, the vehicle came to an unintended complete stop right as I was completing a left turn (to get the vehicle to the curb of the street) to park the car. A car was behind me and had to maneuver around me to proceed on its way. My daughter (in a child car seat in the back) and I were the only occupants and were at risk of a car collision because the car stopped moving in the middle of the road. I have now taken the car to a dealership for inspection. At the dealership, one of the representatives commented that this is not the first time they have seen this issue with this vehicle. I was less than a mile from my home when this happened. After 30 seconds of not responding, the car started operating normally as if nothing happened but still showed "electrical system not working, please service". I drove the car home. After about 30 or so minutes, I restarted the car and it operated fine and did not show any error messages. I have not been able to reproduce this issue but I have not driven it far (other than dropping it off at the dealership) due to fear of my safety. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Oct 10, 2022 |
| State | FL |
| Description | The software system rebooted itself unexpectedly while driving. I could not see my dashboard information and the radio display was blank. Glitches have been progressively getting worse and I'm afraid it might affect other components of the vehicle in time. Vw dealership confirmed there have been issues but didn't offer any solution. No warnings were presented prior to every glitch. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Sep 27, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 22v162000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available. |
| Category | Electrical System, Forward Collision Avoidance: Warnings, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Sep 14, 2022 |
| State | MD |
| Description | The driver assistance feature of the car shuts down due to a software error. It will eventually reset if the car is parked and turned off for a duration of 30 to 60 minutes. Some users have reported that the error does not clear without disconnecting the 12v battery. Problem first appeared in the id. 4 2021 models in the summer of 2021. Vw has issued a software correction for the vehicle in europe, but that update has not been made available for the us customers. This causes the collision avoidance system to go offline and the driver is warned to drive with extreme care! In some cases the vehicle speed also stops displaying. |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Sep 10, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | At a red light, upon releasing the break to accelerate, the vehicle turned off. Meaning, the vehicle went from drive mode "d" to park "p" when I accelerated as the light turned green. This occured without prior warning that it would shift into "p". When I put my foot on the break to shift back into "d", then accelerated again, the vehicle went back into "p". It felt as if the "transmission" had given out. There was a light push (not quite a jolt) then it went into "p". After the third attempt, the vehicle finally drove as I accelerated. I was going through this process as quickly as possible since I had vehicles behind me in the busy streets of down town la. |
| Category | Electrical System:propulsion System:traction Battery |
| Date | Sep 10, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Battery popping sounds as I charge my vehicle, or drive the vehicle, the battery makes one sporadic loud "pop" sound that is felt and heard from anywhere you are sitting in the vehicle. I was told this was "normal" and to be "expected" because the battery is "expanding". However, when talking to other id4 owners, they do not experience this same sound. Since I have had this vehicle, the dealership has noted they cant reproduce this sound because in the 15 min they wait to charge the vehicle, they don't hear it. Unfortunately, this is sporadic during the charging time and also during the driving time. There are no warning signs, messages, or warnings from the dealership that this could occur. Fortunately, I was charging next to a man who works in the oxnard vw testing facility and he reported that this battery issue was known to occur in some vehicles and that there was a "fix" for it. I have had my vehicle in and out of the dealership for over a month and a half in total, and they yet to fix it. Now they are waiting to replace two bolts that apparently have loosened and were too "short". |
| Category | Latches/locks/linkages:doors:lock |
| Date | Sep 10, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Child safety lock the rear passenger door child safety lock is defective. Without manually setting the child safety lock on, it locks and holds passengers inside without the ability to unlock it (pressing the child safety lock on and off) from the driver's seat. In case of an emergency, the passenger is unable to exit the vehicle from the right passenger side. The dealership first proclaimed it was a "part that needs replacement". After the replacement, the child safety lock malfunctioned again. Prior to this, there was no warning of malfunction on the drivers infotainment system. Only sporadically after the part replacement, a notification will appear in the driver's info display that there is an "electrical issue" with the child safety lock. They have had my car for over a month and a half in total for this and several other "electrical/ bolts/ battery" issues. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Sep 08, 2022 |
| State | NJ |
| Description | On my vw id4 awd, when I depress the brake to engage to start car the following message appears..."electrical system not working properly, please service car immediately". I have brought car in several times and tech cannot replicate issue despite multiple images on multiple occasions of same apparent problem. Dealership has claimed it might be a software issue and yet no software update promised for this summer has been forthcoming. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Sep 05, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | 12 volt system; 12 volt battery has aged very quickly (1 year) causing the voltage to drop overnight whereby the internal systems shutdown and report an error. If the car sits idle for 2-3 days, the voltage drops to the point where the car must reboot entirely, which includes an audio sweep calibration from the pedestrian warning speakers. |
| Category | Electrical System: Instrument Cluster/panel |
| Date | Aug 30, 2022 |
| State | MD |
| Description | All of the safety systems (adaptive cruise control, lane departure, forward collision) and the speedometer all failed while driving at highway speeds. Yes the system is available for inspection, I also have pictures that I took while stopped at a traffic light. I had no safety systems available or any indication of vehicle speed while driving when the failure occurred. I have reported a similar issue with the vehicle to volkswagen in the past and took it in for repairs in november 2021. The technician could not find any faults despite the multiple pictures of the incident occurring being sent to volkswagen via email. The volkswagen case id for the previous failure of the safety systems was #04978574. The emails are attached to this report. The vehicle was inspected by fitzgerald volkswagen in annapolis, maryland on 11/29/2021 during a previous report of systems on the vehicle failing randomly. There were warning lights and messages on the heads up display. I have pictures showing this occurring. |
| Category | Tires |
| Date | Aug 15, 2022 |
| State | RI |
| Description | Brand new, volkswagen, id4, 2021, we were lucky twice that this catastrophic tire failure did not result in an accident. First blow out was on a quiet side road in ri. Second was air leak on the highway that caused me to see a close by dealer about the issue. All 4 tires prematurely wore to the steel belts on the inside of the tire, the left rear sidewall blew out first at 33,675, balise vw warwick, ri did not recognize that it was a tread issue and 4 weeks later, the other 3 were deemed a road hazard by the mastria vw raynham, ma where we were stranded. The right rear leaked air due to the tread wearing thin to the steel belt on the inside of the tire. The right rear and two front were replaced at 37,526 mile for the same thin tread issue. Volkswagen and bridgestone take no responsibility for this unusual tire wear. There needs to be a warning that these tires are dangerous after 30,000 miles on an id4. I think as these suvs get older, more reports will materialize. The tire does not support this type of vehicle due to the weight of the battery. This is a safety issue. |
| Category | Electrical System, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Aug 01, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | 1)the computer screen has delays or freezes or rear view camera not always activates. Generally problem with software which can cause safety hazard when I'm driving an causes distraction if it's not working. 2)traction control turns on automatically almost on all curved exits or entrances to the highway. Major safety concern as it's affecting my driving - slows down vehicle, causing difficulty controlling the vehicle. 3)inaccurate battery reading, as it's keep showing different percentage, and keeps changing inappropriately while driving. I wanted to say it is safety concern because for ex: I went for road trip had 150 miles (approx 70%) but then I drove for 30 miles and have 40 miles left (approx 20%) left so now I'm getting distracted from driving and need to find charging station. I know I can pull over and do that but the time when you notice and your reaction while driving can cause distraction. I will take pictures and also ask my wife to take it as well when possible and safe to do so. Please contact me for the future follow up regarding pictures at [xxx]. Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6). |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jul 18, 2022 |
| State | AZ |
| Description | Stop car now error message in red while driving on the freeway. The car lost power for a moment then continued. Multiple errors with assisted driving. Multiple issues with main display being upside down or blank. Electrical malfunction while backing out of drive way. At this point the car was towed to vw and the vw engineering group had them replace the front vx-9 motor assembly and the dc/dc converter (2374 miles) ( 4/20/22 vw invoice# vwcs344651). The car then ran with out issue for about 3500 miles then another electrical malfunction occurred. The error / alarm cleared on its own after a few minutes. Later it was plugged in for charging and tripped the 220 vac / 50 amp circuit. Car is at vw for repair again 7/18/22 |
| Category | Equipment:mechanical:integrated Jack/leveler/stabilizer |
| Date | Jul 18, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | When I needed to use jack I found jack and related tools were not provided even though they were pictured and described in vehicle handbook |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jul 17, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The rear window on our vw 2021 id4, shattered while I was parked in a grocery store parking lot on sunday, july 10, at approximately 7:30 am. The rear defrost had been turned on as I drove to the store. I shopped for about 15 minutes and came out of the store and sat down on the front driver seat, which starts up things like the radio and I believe the defrost again. This is when I heard an exploseion, got out of the car to see what had caused the vibration and sound, and looked to find that the glass was shattered inward and there was a hole as if a brick had been thrown through it. It was early in the morning and very few shoppers were in the parking lot, so I had a clear view of anyone running from the scene or hiding behind what few cars there were. There was no item on the inside or outside of the car that would have produced any kind of hole. The glass blew inward and a rear facing toddler car seat was impacted with small shards of tempered glass. There was no child passenger in that seat at the time of the shattering. The local dealership reviewed the window when I took it in, and I suggested to them that it might be defective defrost grid element, but they said they were not able to discern the origin of the problem, as I had cleaned up the shards prior to bringing in the car. The repair shop manager suggested it was a stray bb from a bb gun. I didn't see anyone close to the car in the parking lot, and the size and sound of the impact suggested more of brick at close range. Please see attached photo. I took a picture and showed it to the local dealership manager, and also sent a report to vw corporate with a similar picture, (only cropped to fit their document size requirement). My insurance covered the repair service completed at our home on thursday, july 14, and when they looked at the picture they definitely did not think that it was due to a bb from a bb gun. To your bullet points, I did not notice any warning message prior to the explosion. |
| Category | Fuel/propulsion System |
| Date | Jul 15, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Recall has been active for life 6 months and vw has zero idea when or what the fix is. This is a serious fault where the car can just stop operating. It is unacceptable for vw to ask me to roll the dice every day that I commute on the I-10 for 160 miles. This is a fatality accident waiting to happen! |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Power Train |
| Date | Jul 08, 2022 |
| State | VA |
| Description | Driving on the highway and with no warning got an “error†message and a message that the electrical system was shutting down. Also popped up some reference about the 12 volt battery. Car went into a neutral type mode and started to slow due to complete loss of power. Luckily we were able to get to the emergency lane from the middle highway lane and coast to a stop. Extremely dangerous for a complete loss of power to occur with no warning. Car turned itself off while we were calling vw roadside assistance. It then was able to be turned back on and driven as normal. Based on vw id4 blogs, this is happening too often and dealerships are not able to determine it through diagnostics. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jul 05, 2022 |
| State | MN |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 22v162000 (electrical system) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Vin tool confirms parts not available. |
| Category | Visibility/wiper |
| Date | Jun 27, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | On 6/25/2022 while driving on the freeway an object struck the windshield of our vehicle, a 2021 volkswagen id4 causing it to fracture. We took our vehicle to our local dealership in order to have a factory replacement installed. I was told that the windshield for my vehicle was not available and would likely take several months to receive. It is my understanding that an auto manufacture must provide parts in a reasonable timeline (within 30 days) especially if it is related to safety and drivability. I would like to make dot aware of my experience, and to inform you that I wish to file a complaint. Regards, [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u. S. C. 552(b)(6). |
| Category | Service Brakes, Steering, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Jun 22, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | 6/21/22 when I was pulling into a parking lot space, the car suddenly accelerated and the steering wheel turned uncontrollably, I could not stop the car, the brakes didn't respond at all. The car was driving by itself, I couldn't do anything to stop it, until I ran into two parked cars where it finally stopped; thank god no injuries. The car was undriveable, and was towed away, I'll have it inspected by the body shop and see if it can be repaired. This was a terrifying experience not being able to control the car, the car pretty much went into run away mode. I hope this gets reported to vw and an investigate gets conducted to find the root cause it as this could happen again to anybody. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Steering, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jun 05, 2022 |
| State | AZ |
| Description | 1. I picked up new id. 4 from the dealer on 10/01/2021. On 10/02/22, electrical system malfunction messages appeared on the infotainment, telling me to take it in for immediate repairs. The problem was taken care of. I was not told what was wrong. 2. On 11/10/2021, while pulling into a parking space in a lot at a cemetery, the car bolted forward and became unresponsive. I could not stop it, I could not steer it. It felt like it was driving itself. I destroyed a bench, some bushes, and some of the turf. The car had to be towed to a vw dealer affiliated collision center. The car was there for over two months and was returned to the dealership for "further diagnosis". In the end, I was told that it had been "driver error", and I was assured the car was 100% safe to drive. I was never told what was done. The insurance payment for the damage was over 00. 3. On 06/02/2022, I had the same acceleration issue. This time I was pulling over to a curb in a residential neighborhood (25 mph speed limit). I was using mode "b", regenerative braking. My foot was not on the accelerator. The car bolted forward and hit a parked ford f150 in the backend. The force was so great, that the f150's rear end was lifted off the ground. You would think that crash would have stopped the id. 4. Instead, the vehicle swerved to the left, shot across the street and ended on a stranger's front yard, destroying his tree and landscaping. The car suddenly stopped, stuck in the landscape rocks. The vehicle then just shut itself off and became totally unresponsive. My wife was slightly injured, even though she had her seatbelt on. She could not open the door to get out and climbed out the driver's door. The car was towed to the dealer, insurance claim was filed. Preliminary estimates of damage- id. 4, f150, landscaping is over ,000. My wife is petrified about riding in the car. I want vw to repurchase or terminate my lease. The car has only 6000 miles! |
| Category | Service Brakes, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Jun 04, 2022 |
| State | OR |
| Description | My vehicle's stability control system will activate in error to slow the vehicle when traversing moderate corners at speeds of approximately 25 to 35 mph. When this happens the vehicle experiences no actual loss of traction but the esc warning light will flash on the dash and the vehicle will cut power and slow the vehicle with pulsing applications of the brakes by 5 to 10 mph. This is an unsafe scenario because I am unable to accelerate during these episodes even if needed and the vehicle slows to a speed well below the normal traffic traveling speed. In long sections of winding road I have had to disable the system to be able to drive normally, without interference in my ability to accelerate, and even then the stability/abs system will activate if I touch the brake pedal at all, still with no true traction loss. I am confident that it is a system failure because it occurs very predictably on certain sections of twisty road. I have experimented and the system will inappropriately activate when I drive 30 mph on the curves but provide no interference when I drive the same section at 40 mph. This issue has been reported by numerous owners on the idtalk. Com forum, seeming to be specific to the awd models, with one owner reporting he was told it is a software related issue with no imeadiate fix after having his car inspected for an extended period of time. I have reported the issue to my local dealer. |
| Category | Electrical System, Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Jun 02, 2022 |
| State | GA |
| Description | While driving, both the driver's and center console displays stopped displaying information and went blank. The panels were still on but nothing displayed. The id. 4 console panel is known to not turn on or be blank, the solution is to press the console power button for 10-15 seconds to reboot the system. I held the power button and the system did restart and both the drivers and center console panel turned on. However, upon turning back on, I received a progressive series of messages that each driver assist module/sensor was no longer available. Finally received a yellow message stating electrical system not working correctly and to have the vehicle serviced. Pulled over and turned the vehicle off and on which cleared the electrical system not working message. The problem has not repeated itself. Vw dealer has not yet seen the vehicle. This vehicle has not have an electrical systems failure warning before. Vehicle was at approximately 50% charge at the time and I was going 25 mph. Safety is at risk by losing all vehicle data and speed. Then rebooting system to get the screen back caused a start to electrical systems failure. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | May 23, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | An error message displayed while the vehicle was idle at a parking lot. "electrical system not operating correctly" everything worked fine but this message did not go away. |
| Category | Electrical System, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | May 15, 2022 |
| State | WA |
| Description | I was on the freeway going 70 mph. Red warning lights came on saying to stop car immediately. The car lost all power. I was able to get on the shoulder and called state patrol because I was barely off a busy freeway. They advised me to get a tow truck. The infotainment system was completely blank. All that worked were my emergency flashers. After ten minutes of trying to turn car back on, everything re booted and I was able to drive home. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | May 03, 2022 |
| State | MN |
| Description | Driving at about 10mph in parking lot and car jolted to stop. Dash flashing electrical failure in 12v battery, service immediately. Car would not move then it released into n position and began to roll back award. Warning electrical system failure flashed in dash and had no power for 10-15 minute. Flashing continued and said service needed. Sitting in isle of parking lot until car allowed to move into spot after that but continued to flash red and yellow lights in dash for service and battery. Tried to reset car by getting out and locking it but did not work. Towed to dealer. |
| Category | Electrical System, Exterior Lighting, Seat Belts |
| Date | Apr 18, 2022 |
| State | MD |
| Description | I bought my id4 new at the end of may 2021. When it started to get cold my car started losing mileage very rapidly and I kept getting an error for 12volt power supply. Carnet would not work and car could not be opened without pushing unlock "key". Car was serviced jan 24 and still had a problem. Next time the individual who works on evs talked to vw and ordered a new battery, feb 9. Battery replaced feb 23. When leaving dealership and pulling out onto the main road the car appeared to completely stall out . Started right back on it's own but I could have been hit by the car coming up behind me easily. When I mentioned it to the service guy he stated it was proably the computer resetting the system. Fault notice appeared that stated fault electronic child safety lock. Cook vw was notified when I took my car in for service. Since then warning and information not available light came on and they did not work. Interior id lighting not working correctly. March 9 more alerts have come on. Individual that worked on the car has been great and listened to my concerns then gone back, rechecked, called vw and now has ordered more parts. The id indicator light in front dash still not working. Passenger side door will not open until 3-4 attempts. Has been an ongoing problem rear drivers side door will not open from the inside. March 30 2022. Fault electronic child safety lock keeps coming on when car is started (picture.) unable to open drivers rear side door in back from the inside. Light does not show it is locked. |
| Category | Air Bags |
| Date | Mar 31, 2022 |
| State | WA |
| Description | When placing a laptop, a heavy bag, or any heavy item on the front passenger seat, the seat belt warning light with a ding. So, I have to connect the seat belt to make it stop. Though I do appreciate it working with a person sitting in that seat, it's just sort of annoying especially if you're moving items around. My small 10 pound dog does not activate the sensors. Most of the vehicles that I have had in the past automatically turn the airbags and seatbelt warning light off if it detects a nonhuman or or an inanimate object or there's a switch to turn off the passenger side. |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine And Engine Cooling:cooling System |
| Date | Mar 28, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. The warning message "high voltage - electrical hazard - don't drive - park vehicle" were illuminated. The contact turned the vehicle off and, on several times, until the warning message disappeared. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. No issues were found with the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the failure was associated to an air pocket in the cooling system. The dealer bled the cooling system; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact referenced nhtsa campaign number: 22v162000 (electrical system). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 4,000. |
| Category | Exterior Lighting |
| Date | Mar 23, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | The reverse illumination at night is non-existant and this puts our safety and the safety of others at risk. When we called the dealership they told us we would be wasting our time to bring the car in, they knew of the problem and said it was a defect in the design and they could not fix it. We were put in contact with the vw customer service and spoke with region case manager kenneth swantek and he denied the existence of a problem. To document the problem we brought our vehicle to the tracy vw dealership and had it examined by a qtm. His response was that the vehicle is "operating as designed" without offering any solution to this problem. This problem has existed since the purchase of our vehicle. |
| Category | Lane Departure: Assist |
| Date | Mar 18, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Lane keeping assistance is enabled by default and can not be changed while driving. However on the lanes with partially erased lane markings , markings created due to previous road repairs - car thinks vehicle is going out of the lane and pulls the car in . Significant places where I drive car keeps pulling to the side . If you are driving on a highway this is very pronounced . Driving on highway with high wind conditions this has created hazardous situation where I almost lost control (highway 5 near coalinga californai). This has been a problem in high traffic conditions , curvy roads (highway 17 in california) . Current implementation of the feature is safety issue . Either they shall disable this feature or ability to disable this feature permanently or need to fix. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Mar 17, 2022 |
| State | OR |
| Description | Electronic stability control esc activates briefly under certain conditions that are completely normal. Smooth dry pavement. It happens for me very predictably on a specific curve on a 2-lane road. Vehicle speed is about 30, the curve in the road is very gentle, nothing extreme. Drive through this curve and esc activates (flashes). It also happens very predictably at a t intersection where I stop and then turn right. During the turn the vehicle is cresting a hill. I have video of this happening. Also many other owners have complained about the same issue in situations like freeway off-ramps. Esc activating for no reason at all could distract the driver and cause an incident. There's a rapidly flashing amber warning in the driver display and the car's handling changes suddenly. How do we know that esc won't activate more aggressively in some certain situation that doesn't warrant esc. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure: Assist, Lane Departure: Warning |
| Date | Mar 15, 2022 |
| State | OH |
| Description | The automatic emergency braking system does not work at all. The lane keeping assistance feature has tried to ram me into concrete walls on the freeway. It has tried to ram me into metal exit fencing. It has tried to ram me into semi trucks. It has tried to run me off the road entirely. This system reacts inappropriately and when it reacts it over corrects by a large margin. It also cannot detect most types of lane markings. This happens all the time it isn't a single incident. Did I mention that there is no way to permanently disable the system? |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Mar 15, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The stability control actives inappropriately in low speed corners, slowing the car down because it's activating the brakes. This is a known issue on awd (dual motor) id. 4 and vw dealers have said vw is aware of it and confirmed it on road testing for multiple owners (see below). I would not call it a major/dire safety issue, but it limits forward momentum, which could be an issue in emergency maneuver, and could cause unintended slowing that may increase risk of rear end collision. It is unknown what effect inappropriate brake application could have in slippery conditions. I am one of the first awd owners in the usa and started a discussion on the problem: https://www. Vwidtalk. Com/threads/esc-activating-in-off-ramp. 3808/page-4 subsequently, many awd owners have noted the same glitch. It is believed to be a software glitch (one of many in this car). |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Mar 15, 2022 |
| State | OR |
| Description | Electronic stability control (esc) is activating frequently and unexpectedly. Happens on dry roads, under normal and safe driving conditions. Esc is felt as braking one or more wheels, and indicator is flashing on instrument cluster. This is not expected behavior under the driving conditions. Actuation is 100% repeatable on the same routes and speeds (typically curving roads or highway on/off-ramps), at varying temperatures (above and below freezing), dry and wet conditions, with stock tires properly inflated, in "b" or "d" mode (and drivetrain set to comfort or eco mode). Happens when accelerating, coasting, or brake being applied by driver. |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Steering |
| Date | Mar 11, 2022 |
| State | MA |
| Description | While backing out of the drive way, electronic console of the car went black, we lost control over steering and accelerator functions and potentially brakes (unsure) while car was still moving. This happened at low speed (5-10 mph). The instrument panel showed message to call service immediately. To regain control, we pressed the start engine button, which allowed us to again control the car. The call service message disappeared. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Mar 07, 2022 |
| State | NC |
| Description | The information touchscreen is faulty and constantly needs to be touched multiple times. This is distracting and makes driver look away from road to double check if pushing correctly. This applies to all functions controlling everything from temperature, ride control, entertainment, navigation etc. There are times where I need to touch an area from 1-5+ times for response. The system is registering a touch because there is an audible sound when you he'd, but no response from system. This can be verified by thousands of users complaining about it on https://www. Vwidtalk. Com/forums/volkswagen-id-4. 30/ vw has promised an update for over a year. It is very dangerous and I have wandered from lane trying to rectify it |
| Category | Electrical System, Engine, Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking |
| Date | Feb 22, 2022 |
| State | TX |
| Description | On multiple occasions, my brand new id. 4 has shut down while driving giving various error messages relating to the electrical system and safety features--including with the electrical system generally, with the "12 volt electrical system", with the auto assist braking, with lane assist, etc. |
| Category | Service Brakes, Air:disc |
| Date | Feb 16, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Th contact owned a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 50 mph on a freeway, traffic seemed to be slowing down. The contact stated that when he depressed the brake pedal, his vehicle did not respond to the brakes causing his vehicle to crash in the rear of another vehicle. The contact stated that the air bags did not deploy at the time, however, he did not sustain any injuries nor did the person in the other vehicle. The contact stated that there was no police report filed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where he was advised that his vehicle had been classified as a total loss. The contact stated that he felt as though there was not that much damage to his vehicle, however, he was advised that the damages were too expensive to repair. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 8,000 |
| Category | Power Train |
| Date | Feb 14, 2022 |
| State | NY |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that after he parked and secured his vehicle to proceed into his residence, he later found out that the vehicle had unintendedly rolled backward out of the driveway. The contact stated that the vehicle did not crash into any objects. The contact stated that the vehicle stopped without driver assistance. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and an appointment was scheduled with a dealer. The approximate failure mileage was 4,000. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Departure: Assist, Lane Departure: Warning |
| Date | Feb 10, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | The car gives zero audible warnings when the tacc + lane keep turns off. On the freeway driving in a curb, it would turn off without warnings. I almost hit my car. |
| Category | Back Over Prevention: Warnings, Exterior Lighting, Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Jan 09, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | When driving in reverse my vehicle does not have a clear view based on the rear lights installed. The lighting design does not light the area behind the vehicle sufficiently and poses great risk of hitting child or object behind vehicle. Rear camera is essentially rendered useless during nighttime driving and or parking. |
| Category | Electrical System, Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Service Brakes |
| Date | Jan 06, 2022 |
| State | CA |
| Description | In october, 11 weeks ago, while parallel parking, which I do everyday for work, I reversed back into an empty spot, toggled into drive to straighten out my car and my car accelerated and hit the car parked in front of me. I kept stomping on the break pedal but it was stiff, I couldn't press it down at all. The break pedal was as if the car was turned off. Even though it has been 11 weeks ago, I will not drive the car because vw has not fixed the problem and I do not feel safe. The body repair has been done. The car remains at the dealership where I bought it and is available for inspection. I could of hit many children because I was parking at an elementary school when this unintended acceleration coupled with no brakes happened. It is vw's first ever all electric car and the id4's have never had a software update. Vw says, no technicians or trained mechanics, software would have to be done at dealer and could take all day, no software to download using wi-fi, may need bigger battery and no parts available. Vw corporate fly out to inspect the car and run reports but they refuse to give me a copy and so does the dealership. Vw is taking no responsibility and said the brake peddle was never applied, only the accelerator. I never put my foot on or near the accelerator because I was only inching forward to straighten my wheels out. When the car was put into drive it does not need any gas to move only a few inches forward. My insurance representative tried to run a report but he said there was no information at all on the recorder. He said I shouldn't have towed my car back to the dealer because information may have been erased. There were no warnings or assist to stop the car. This has not just happened to me but to many others as well. I can send documentation for that if you need |
| Category | Electrical System, Fuel/propulsion System, Power Train |
| Date | Jan 04, 2022 |
| State | FL |
| Description | The car displays warnings such as "travel assist unavailable," "electrical system not working properly," "drive system error" and "please service vehicle. The warnings appear upon startup after entering the car, or when attempting to shift from park to drive, park to reverse, or reverse to drive. The warnings leave the car in "park" and it cannot be moved. When they appear, the driver must exit the car and leave it stationary in the parking lot or busy street where the errors occurred for up to 30 minutes before the car's electrical and drive systems will reset. After reset, the car may or may not have recovered and become drivable, requiring at times multiple attempts before car can be moved. Having to leave the car in a parking lot is a nuisance. Having to leave the car in the middle of a street is hazardous. |
| Category | Latches/locks/linkages:tailgate:latch |
| Date | Dec 30, 2021 |
| State | TX |
| Description | The contact owns a 2021 volkswagen id. 4. The contact stated that the tailgate of the vehicle would not fully open or fully close when engaged by pressing the button on the tailgate or by pressing the release button inside the vehicle. The tailgate warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the motors that opened and closed the tailgate had failed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000. |
| Category | Exterior Lighting, Unknown Or Other, Visibility/wiper |
| Date | Dec 22, 2021 |
| State | KY |
| Description | The back up camera lighting is so poor it poses a danger at night. Backing up at night even in well lit areas poses a threat to those around the car. If you apply the brakes this emits some light but if not braking the screen is almost black so it is difficult to see if you are on the road/driveway and if an object was below the camera would pose a threat to life or damage to the vehicle. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Dec 14, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | I bought a new id4 from vw, it is 2 weeks old. Multiple times it has shown multiple error messages such as "electrical system not working" then stops in the middle of the road. I am unable to change the drive from neutral or move the car, sometimes pushing the start button several times finally turns it off. There have been three incidents so far with less than 20 miles on the car. There are dozens of repots of others with the same issue, with only 10-20k id4s sold, this is a high number of faulty vehicles. See https://www. Reddit. Com/r/vwid4owners/comments/pd0jdf/electrical_system_not_working_correctly/ https://www. Vwidtalk. Com/threads/my-turn-for-electrical-system-failure-now-fixed. 3693/ etc |
| Category | Electrical System, Steering, Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Nov 10, 2021 |
| State | AZ |
| Description | Pulling into a parking space, using reiterative braking (b mode). When applying brakes, car bolted and could not be controlled. It jumped a curb and drove straight toward a building. Brakes would not respond. Steering would not respond. I managed to steer the car avoiding the building but taking down a bench and ripping up the turf in front of the building. Car made a complete u-turn before coming to a stop. At that point, all electrical systems shut down, including the outside mirrors--they retracted. There was damage to exterior of the car-- a torn side molding and scratches and minor dents from bushes and the bench that was destroyed. The infotainment completely shut down. When I finally was able to restart the car, the systems came back on slowly, one at time. The car was towed by vw roadside assistance to a collision center for body repairs. It will be towed to the dealership after body repairs to diagnose the problem. I did not want to drive the car, not knowing if it is safe to drive. I had to file an insurance claim for the damage to the car and to the property that was damaged in the process. No other cars were damaged. |
| Category | Electrical System, Exterior Lighting |
| Date | Oct 21, 2021 |
| State | MD |
| Description | On 9/28, I purchased my vehicle from fairfax volkswagen. On that date, I noticed the error message on the display, but the salesman said it was nothing to worry about. That following week, I noticed several vehicles flashing their lights at me. Later that evening, I discovered the left headlight day running lamp was not functional, and the high beam would not turn off. In addition, I notice the right headlight was not functioning properly as well. The following day, I took the vehicle to be inspected at ourisman volkswagen of waldorf maryland. I was informed the left and right headlight would need to be replaced on the vehicle due to some form of electrical malfunction. |
| Category | Fuel/propulsion System, Service Brakes |
| Date | Oct 07, 2021 |
| State | NC |
| Description | We vehicle is stopped in any type of grade (hill, incline, or decline) when releasing the break pedal the vehicle will roll in the direction of the grade, power must be immediately applied to prevent roll. This could potentially cause a crash if a vehicle is behind/in front of another. The system should employ an auto hold type of grade breaking system. Vehicle has not been inspected, and is available upon request. This can be reproduced. |
| Category | Vehicle Speed Control |
| Date | Oct 07, 2021 |
| State | NC |
| Description | After receiving a service on the vehicle, I pulled out of the dealership and went left to go up a slight hill, I got half way out and the accelerator pedal would not work. I pushed down to the ground and the car would not go. There was a car coming towards me and swerved to avoid me after a second it kicked back in. This hasn't happened since, and I have heard of this happening after a service appointment from another owner. Note this has not happened since. No warning lamps or other messages. I scanned the car with obd device and no warnings found. Car is available for inspection upon request. This impacts safety as after service the car should not have any acceleration issues, in this scenario if the car will not go, there is a potential of a crash. |
| Category | Forward Collision Avoidance: Automatic Emergency Braking, Steering |
| Date | Sep 27, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Warning indicator came on several times, brake and steering problems. |
| Category | Electrical System, Power Train |
| Date | Sep 19, 2021 |
| State | FL |
| Description | The id. 4 (brand new - 5 days old) shutdown in the middle of a busy street in altamonte springs, fl (suburb of orlando). There was a “electrical system not working correctly. Please service vehicle" warning so I began to pull off to the left turning lane. Then 12v battery errors started flashing and 5 seconds later the entire car shut down in the middle of the road. I was unable to restart it for 10-15minutes. I was able to drive 300 feet to a parking lot after. Will be taking the id. 4 to the dealership tomorrow morning (9/20/2021) assuming it doesn't shut down during the drive. |
| Category | Fuel/propulsion System |
| Date | Sep 15, 2021 |
| State | TX |
| Description | While operating the vehicle at stop lights on a grade or any situation the vehicle stops on a grade when releasing the brake the vehicle rolls back potentially causing a collision. Power must immediately be applied in these situations. |
| Category | Engine, Service Brakes |
| Date | Sep 06, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | It will not stop, can not stop! |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Sep 06, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | I will not stop! |
| Category | Service Brakes |
| Date | Sep 06, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | It will not stop! Break don't work! |
| Category | Back Over Prevention: Warnings, Electrical System, Fuel/propulsion System |
| Date | Aug 30, 2021 |
| State | OH |
| Description | The vehicle went into complete shutdown, it was unable to be placed into drive or reverse and vehicle was completely immobile. Various warnings appeared on the instrument cluster. After letting the vehicle sit it was returned to the dealer, where they experienced the same issues, but eventually replaced various electrical components and re-booted/re-programmed the systems. Approximately 11 days after receiving the vehicle back from repair the same thing occurred, additionally the automatic hold feature, to prevent rolling in neutral, failed and the car rolled backwards in my driveway about 4 feet before I was able to apply the footbrake. Several warning signals said the vehicle should not be driven, the vehicle is now back at the dealer again. |
| Category | Unknown Or Other |
| Date | Aug 12, 2021 |
| State | FL |
| Description | I was driving the car when a loud high pitched sound started coming from the vehicle. I am not a doctor, but the noise was probably loud enough to cause damage to human ears. Today, I picked up the car and was told "contacted vw techline. They been made aware of several other similar cases and engineering in germany is looking into it. No resolution available at this time. Told to call vw customer care. I have been on hold for over 45 minutes. Called executive office and was transferred to voice mail. |
| Category | Equipment:electrical:infotainment |
| Date | Aug 05, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | Multiple times while driving the car props an error where the speed become unavailable while driving. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | Jul 30, 2021 |
| State | CA |
| Description | What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? Rear window defrost grid how was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? Potential electrical fire has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? Confirmed by galpin vw and santa monica vw dealers and the manufacturer. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? Yes the vehicle has been inspected by galpin vw were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? The defrost grid shows signs of "visual variance" according to manufacturer. |
| Category | Electrical System, Power Train |
| Date | Jul 30, 2021 |
| State | AZ |
| Description | While pulling out of a parking garage at low speed, the car shut down/stopped/lost all power. Also, a second event occurred while backing into a charging station, the car shut down/stopped/lost all power. |
| Category | Electrical System |
| Date | May 20, 2021 |
| State | MD |
| Description | The infotainment panel sporadically shuts off. This has happened four times in the two months I've owned the car. Safety features like the backup camera, proximity sensors, and safety feature controls are not accessible. |
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About the Author:
Brian Jones spent more than 20 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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Door opening on its own.
I bought a 2021 ID 4 AWD yesterday. I was told by the salesperson that there was a “recall” and a software update was forthcoming (not sure when). I complained that the range on the car after being fully charged by the sales person was only 190 miles, when the advertising specs were a range of 255 miles. She told me that it was fine and would probably increase over the next few days. I thought that was strange but was excited about getting new vehicle. When I returned the next day to the dealer for some answers, the service department informed me that there was a safety recall on the vehicle. They handed me a piece of paper entitled “Volkswagen Dealer Communication.” It stated “Advance Notice – Safety Recall 97ZZ/ High-Voltage Battery Management Control Module Software.” The issue is: “The high voltage (HV) battery management control module may reset or, in rare events, the pulse inverter may be deactivated while driving. If the HV battery management control module resets while driving, the vehicle’s electric motor will not be supplied with power for the duration of the reset. This may lead to a loss of propulsion without pre-warning and may increase the risk of a crash.” Under precautions it says: “When this situation occurs, the deriver will receive an immediate waring in the instrument cluster. Customers experiencing this situation are advised to contact their authorized Volkswagen dealer with delay to schedule an appointment and have the vehicle diagnosed/repaired.” At the bottom of the page it states: “Pre-owned Vehicles in Dealer Inventory: Dealers should not deliver any pre-owned vehicles in their inventory which are involved in a safety or compliance recall until the defect has been remedied.”
I was told that there was a recall, but not that it was a safety recall, that the recall was not yet available. Why would they sell a car that had a safety recall? It only has 3,000 miles on it. The salesperson could not be specific but told my wife and I that it was nothing important. I think this is important!!!
One of the higher ups (Brandon) assured me that the recall would be repaired by the end of April. I would not have bought the car had I known that this was a SAFETY recall.
What are my options?