2012 Volkswagen Routan: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 115 complaints
115
Total Complaints
78,000mi
Median Mileage
Electrical System
Top Issue
2
Crash Reports

When Do Complaints Happen?

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

50,000 25th Percentile
78,000 Median Mileage
107,760 75th Percentile

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

Electrical System
39
Engine
21
Steering
8
Fuel/Propulsion System
8
Power Train
7
Service Brakes
7
Unknown Or Other
7
Air Bags
6
Vehicle Speed Control
3
Seats
2

Severity Assessment

2
Crashes
0
Fires
3
Injuries
0
Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"MY HUSBAND WAS AT A LIGHT AND PRESSED THE GAS TO GO, WHEN HE NOTICED THAT HE ENTIRE VEHICLE HAD TURNED OFF. STEERING, BRAKES, AND ALL ELECTRICAL. IT TOOK HIM A WHILE TO REALIZE WHAT WAS HAPPENING, BUT THEN HE TRIED TURNING THE VAN OFF AND BACK ON, AND IT STARTED RIGHT BACK UP. HE THOUGHT IT A FREAK ..."
"MY HUSBAND WAS AT A LIGHT AND PRESSED THE GAS TO GO, WHEN HE NOTICED THAT HE ENTIRE VEHICLE HAD TURNED OFF. STEERING, BRAKES, AND ALL ELECTRICAL. IT TOOK HIM A WHILE TO REALIZE WHAT WAS HAPPENING, BUT THEN HE TRIED TURNING THE VAN OFF AND BACK ON, AND IT STARTED RIGHT BACK UP. HE THOUGHT IT A FREAK ..."
"MY HUSBAND WAS AT A LIGHT AND PRESSED THE GAS TO GO, WHEN HE NOTICED THAT HE ENTIRE VEHICLE HAD TURNED OFF. STEERING, BRAKES, AND ALL ELECTRICAL. IT TOOK HIM A WHILE TO REALIZE WHAT WAS HAPPENING, BUT THEN HE TRIED TURNING THE VAN OFF AND BACK ON, AND IT STARTED RIGHT BACK UP. HE THOUGHT IT A FREAK ..."

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 39 complaints
25th: 50,000 mi Median: 77,000 mi 75th: 109,000 mi
Engine 21 complaints
25th: 57,500 mi Median: 89,015 mi 75th: 113,070 mi
Steering 8 complaints
25th: 44,367 mi Median: 79,500 mi 75th: 94,250 mi
Fuel/Propulsion System 8 complaints
25th: 94,700 mi Median: 111,031 mi 75th: 130,797 mi
Power Train 7 complaints
Median: 17,000 mi

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 19 NC: 14 FL: 9 OH: 9 MD: 8 PA: 6 NV: 5 NJ: 5 LA: 4 TX: 4

Volkswagen Routan — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

YearComplaintsCrashes
20094607
20103595
20113029

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