"How reliable is the 2000 Volkswagen Passat?"

"Based on 625 NHTSA complaints, the 2000 Volkswagen Passat has a median complaint mileage of 69950 miles. The most common issue is SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP."

2000 Volkswagen Passat: Reliability Data

Q: "What are common problems with the 2000 Volkswagen Passat?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2000 Volkswagen Passat is SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP, accounting for a significant portion of the 625 total complaints filed."

Source: NHTSA — 625 complaints

625

Total Complaints

69,950mi

Median Mileage

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

Distribution of NHTSA complaints by vehicle mileage at time of report.

50,200 25th Percentile

69,950 Median Mileage

93,500 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE

SERVICE BRAKES, AIR:ANTILOCK:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE

STEERING:LINKAGES:TIE ROD ASSEMBLY

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM:EMISSION CONTROL

SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"VEHICLE STALLED AND DIED WHILE DRIVING. VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY AT THE DEALERSHIP AWAITING PARTS. *AK"

"CAR WOULDN'T START. WHEN BROUGHT TO THE DEALERSHIP, WE WERE TOLD THAT THERE WAS A DESIGN DEFECT IN THE V6 MODEL PASSAT ENGINES. THEY ARE NOT PROPERLY BURNING ANY OF THE U>S> AVAILABLE GASOLINES, WHICH IS CAUSING A CARBON BUILD-UP ON THE VALVES. THIS WILL BE AN ONGOING PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE. THEIR..."

"INTERMITTENTLY VEHICLE WILL NOT START UP. DEALER HAS REPAIRED AND REPLACED VARIOUS PARTS, AND THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTS. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

When Does Each Component Fail?

Median mileage at complaint for top components.

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP 59 complaints

25th: 61,575 mi Median: 72,250 mi 75th: 82,858 mi

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE 56 complaints

25th: 60,000 mi Median: 70,428 mi 75th: 88,950 mi

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 30 complaints

25th: 45,232 mi Median: 80,000 mi 75th: 130,000 mi

SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC 27 complaints

25th: 77,000 mi Median: 95,000 mi 75th: 130,750 mi

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE 25 complaints

25th: 50,735 mi Median: 72,500 mi 75th: 88,500 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 110 FL: 39 MA: 36 NY: 34 PA: 34 TX: 32 VA: 29 IL: 27 MD: 25 CO: 24

Who Files Complaints?

44.2%

Original Owners

55.8%

Second+ Owners

Volkswagen Passat — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1990	50	179,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	0
1991	30	-	VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM:WINDSHIELD:ELECTRICAL HEATING ELEMENT	0
1992	60	-	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	4
1993	90	107,387	VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM:HEATER CORE	8
1994	36	-	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP	0
1995	142	153,015	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:GASOLINE	4
1996	48	84,200	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:SWITCH	0
1997	57	98,500	VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM:HEATER CORE	1
1998	476	80,000	SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM	7
1999	854	75,959	SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP:CONTROL UNIT/MODULE	15
2001	557	58,100	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE	20
2002	772	50,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION	15
2003	815	57,665	FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP	18
2004	348	68,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING	12
2005	172	71,000	ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING	9
2006	779	63,000	AIR BAGS	24
2007	340	75,000	AIR BAGS	7
2008	240	92,000	FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM	3
2009	209	75,000	ENGINE	9
2010	226	71,500	AIR BAGS	7
2011	27	75,000	ENGINE	5
2012	658	57,500	AIR BAGS	15
2013	1023	50,000	AIR BAGS	43
2014	776	45,100	AIR BAGS	34
2015	388	47,000	AIR BAGS	19
2016	175	37,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	9
2017	173	24,200	AIR BAGS	13
2018	62	40,235	SERVICE BRAKES	8
2020	24	2,000	ENGINE	2
2021	26	5,000	SERVICE BRAKES	3

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28