"How reliable is the 2011 Volkswagen Routan?"

"Based on 302 NHTSA complaints, the 2011 Volkswagen Routan has a median complaint mileage of 69000 miles. The most common issue is Electrical System."

"What are common problems with the 2011 Volkswagen Routan?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 2011 Volkswagen Routan is Electrical System, accounting for a significant portion of the 302 total complaints filed."

2011 Volkswagen Routan: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 302 complaints

302

Total Complaints

69,000mi

Median Mileage

Electrical System

Top Issue

Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

52,000 25th Percentile

69,000 Median Mileage

89,000 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Electrical System

111

Engine

Fuel/Propulsion System

Unknown Or Other

Power Train

Service Brakes

Electronic Stability Control (Esc)

Steering

Vehicle Speed Control

Air Bags

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 VOLKSWAGEN ROUTAN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 5 MPH AND PARKING THE VEHICLE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING WITH THE BRAKES DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE THEN CRASHED INTO METAL POLES AND ANOTHER VEHICLE. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED AND THERE WERE NO I..."

"TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2011 VOLKSWAGEN ROUTAN. WHILE THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO INCREASE ACCELERATION WITHOUT WARNING AND THE THROTTLE BECAME STUCK. AFTER SEVERAL ATTEMPTS THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL RELEASED AND THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO FUNCTION NORMALLY. THE IDENTICAL..."

"HAD THE VAN LESS THAN 3 MONTHS AND TOOK IT IN FOR SERVICE - BRAKES SQUEAKING AND STEERING PULLING TO RIGHT W/ONLY 4K MILES. FOUND OUT STEERING BOOT WAS "DISINTEGRATED" AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED, ALONG WITH STEERING PUMP AND RELATED PARTS. DEALERSHIP HAD NO EXPLANATION AS TO WHY THE DAMAGE OCCURRED..."

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.

Electrical System 111 complaints

25th: 58,650 mi Median: 71,000 mi 75th: 92,000 mi

Engine 48 complaints

25th: 55,083 mi Median: 70,750 mi 75th: 102,250 mi

Fuel/Propulsion System 39 complaints

25th: 61,000 mi Median: 74,000 mi 75th: 98,000 mi

Unknown Or Other 17 complaints

25th: 62,600 mi Median: 71,241 mi 75th: 78,650 mi

Power Train 17 complaints

25th: 45,000 mi Median: 66,250 mi 75th: 85,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

FL: 38 CA: 31 TX: 26 NC: 21 VA: 21 IL: 18 MD: 16 GA: 16 NY: 15 OH: 13

Who Files Complaints?

0.7%

Original Owners

99.3%

Second+ Owners

Volkswagen Routan — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
2009	460	66,000	Electrical System	7
2010	359	71,500	Electrical System	5
2012	115	78,000	Electrical System	2

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