2008 Volkswagen R32: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 128 complaints
128
Total Complaints
12,000mi
Median Mileage
Automatic Transmission
Top Issue
0
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

5,000 25th Percentile
12,000 Median Mileage
26,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Automatic Transmission
60
Fuel System, Gasoline
19
Power Train
17
Exterior Lighting
6
Manual Transmission
6
Electrical System
6
Fuel/Propulsion System
4
Engine And Engine Cooling
2
Tires
1
Fuel System, Other
1

Severity Assessment

0
Crashes
0
Fires
0
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"MY BRAND-NEW 08 VW MAKES SEVERE HICCUPS ON MODERATE ACCELERATION WHEN THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE IS ABOVE ABOUT 95 F. (SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND COME BACK UP IN SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.)HAVE STARTING PROBLEM AFTER THE SYMPTOM, SOMETIMES SMELL OF GAS FROM OUTSIDE REAR. THE PROBLEM DOES NOT LEAVE ANY ERRO..."
"MY BRAND-NEW 08 VW MAKES SEVERE HICCUPS ON MODERATE ACCELERATION WHEN THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE IS ABOVE ABOUT 95 F. (SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND COME BACK UP IN SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.)HAVE STARTING PROBLEM AFTER THE SYMPTOM, SOMETIMES SMELL OF GAS FROM OUTSIDE REAR. THE PROBLEM DOES NOT LEAVE ANY ERRO..."
"MY BRAND-NEW 08 VW MAKES SEVERE HICCUPS ON MODERATE ACCELERATION WHEN THE OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE IS ABOVE ABOUT 95 F. (SUDDEN LOSS OF POWER AND COME BACK UP IN SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.)HAVE STARTING PROBLEM AFTER THE SYMPTOM, SOMETIMES SMELL OF GAS FROM OUTSIDE REAR. THE PROBLEM DOES NOT LEAVE ANY ERRO..."

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.

Automatic Transmission 60 complaints
25th: 8,100 mi Median: 12,000 mi 75th: 20,000 mi
Fuel System, Gasoline 19 complaints
25th: 2,400 mi Median: 5,585 mi 75th: 10,299 mi
Power Train 17 complaints
25th: 12,875 mi Median: 37,500 mi 75th: 57,782 mi
Exterior Lighting 6 complaints
25th: 19,500 mi Median: 63,370 mi 75th: 79,685 mi
Manual Transmission 6 complaints
25th: 8,900 mi Median: 11,650 mi 75th: 20,209 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 23 FL: 13 TX: 11 WA: 8 MD: 7 PA: 7 IL: 6 VA: 5 OH: 5 NY: 5

Volkswagen R32 — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

YearComplaintsCrashes
2004231

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