2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas Problems

Complaints Reported

Complaints by Component

POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

2 complaints

EHICLE SAFETY DEFECT — INSTRUMENT CLUSTER FAILURE & TRANSMISSION/SHIFTER FAILURE My 2025 Volkswagen Atlas has two serious, ongoing safety defects that Volkswagen and the dealership have failed to repair. The digital speedometer/instrument cluster blacks out while driving, leaving no speed visibility. This has occurred multiple times with my four young children in the car. The vehicle often will NOT go into Drive unless I shift 3 or more times. This is an intermittent shifter/transmission malfunction. The dealership’s repair order states “NO REPAIRS PERFORMED FOR THIS CONCERN.” For the blackout issue, they only disabled HD Radio as a temporary workaround. A VW technician told me on video that no permanent fix exists. The same admission was made over the phone by another VW technician. For the transmission issue, the dealer wrote “unable to duplicate,” did no diagnostics, performed no repair, and documented no second inspection despite verbally claiming one occurred. I have now been without a safe vehicle for 32+ days. Volkswagen denied me a loaner multiple times. VW corporate has not responded to my requests for buyback, and the defects remain uncorrected. These are unresolved safety defects affecting visibility of speed, drivability, and transmission engagement.

Dec 01, 2025

While on road, waiting to turn left across oncoming traffic, numerous dashboard lights went off, warning messages for TCM and ESC systems and car would not move forward with pressing on accelerator. As if the car was in neutral.

May 09, 2025

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

2 complaints

2025 atlas- brand new with 6000 miles on it. Yesterday afternoon the screen shut off and turned back on several times and then shut off for good. My radio doesn’t work, I can’t control my AC, the sensors don’t work, etc. Literally nothing works other than the gas and brake pedals. I called the dealership this morning and they claim that everyone who has an atlas is having this same issue and they don’t have a clue what the problem is.

Oct 16, 2025

What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? The panoramic sunroof shattered with no outside influence. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? The interior fabric cover was retracted at the time and the glass shattered on my [XXX] daughter. My husband also received a few small cuts to this arms from pieces of glass on the center console while trying to check to make sure our child was safe. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? The dealer is aware of the problem, but insists it was not a defect. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? The vehicle was inspected by the service department at the dealership it was purchased from nine days prior to the incident. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? No. On Monday [XXX], my husband and daughter were traveling on an empty two-lane highway in rural Texas. There were no overpasses, no trees hanging over the roadway, and no other cars on the road. My husband said he heard a sound like a gunshot and then the glass was raining down on them. He pulled over immediately. We were able to get the care to the dealership we had purchased it from, 8 days earlier. Volkswagen denied our warranty claim (though the dealership did acknowledge similar issues in the past) and insists that there must have been an outside influence that struck the glass. My husband is adamant that is not the case, and simple physics make it clear that it would be impossible for our own tires to throw up a projectile with enough force to shatter the sunroof. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Mar 17, 2025

STEERING

2 complaints

STEERING WHEEL RACK

Sep 30, 2025

This is a 7 day old vehicle. Twice in the past two days the steering wheel locked up when steering into a turn, forcing me to slam on the brakes to avoid crashing. It also happened once when in reverse, backing out of a parking lot. Error/failure codes pop up for a few seconds when this happens and then they go away. It was fast but I think they said, brake maneuver failure, steering failure, hill assist failure, front assist failure. The 3rd time the check engine light also came on but went away after re-starting. Given it is a brand new car I thought it was a fluke but after the third steering failure almost causing me to crash into a tree I stopped the vehicle and it is being towed to the dealership. This is very dangerous and I was very lucky a car didn't crash into me when I slammed on my brakes to miss the tree. It scared my children and has left me very anxious about driving this car. I know that of this happens it a busy intersection it WILL cause an accident. Please help me return this car for a new car WITHOUT such a serious safety flaw. What a disappointment.

Dec 08, 2024

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE

1 complaint

The infotainment system, which controls most of the functions of driving safely, is down again for the 2nd time since I purchased my Atlas on 6/9/25. The first time it happened, the local VW dealer had me bring it in on 8/30 & they "fixed" it relatively quickly. They stated it was a local issue & had many Atlas screens that went down but they didn't know why. Now on 10/16 this occurred again, I called the local VW dealer & was told they can't get me in for over 2 weeks. I have a long trip planned before that & also I am heading back south for the winter prior to the date they can get me in. I was told I can drop off the vehicle for an unknown time frame - which leaves me no vehicle at all unless I rent a car for this unknown time frame. A second service advisor called me back to advised it is now a nationwide issue & as of now, there is no solution to fixing it. So why would I drop off my vehicle if there is no solution for this issue?

Oct 17, 2025

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,BACK OVER PREVENTION

1 complaint

The contact owns a 2025 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while operating the vehicle, the infotainment display unit was inoperable. During the failure, the back over prevention camera display was inoperable along with the front and rear window defrosters, and blind spot monitoring system being inoperable. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure and the contact was informed that a satellite system issue had caused the failure on several different model vehicles. No further information was available. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was 5,500.

Oct 17, 2025

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE

1 complaint

The car is in cruise control on the freeway, going 70-80mph and suddenly decelerates/brakes slam on, to slow down. The front collision will come on and the car will come to almost a complete stop when there is absolutely NOTHING in front of me. The vehicle will alert there is no driver, when I have both hands on the wheel, and start braking. These sudden stops and slow downs are going to get me or someone else killed. This is an ongoing issue.

Oct 16, 2025

POWER TRAIN

1 complaint

This problem was noticed shortly after vehicle was purchased and it could potentially be dangerous; although there has been no accidents yet. After waiting at a light or waiting to make a turn when clear, there is an unusually long or slow response to acceleration. Acceleration pedal would be pressed and car does not move. This is particularly dangerous when making a left turn with oncoming cars. Typical response is to step on pedal more to get vehicle to move, but once the car does respond, it would shoot forward. Only happens when car is starting to go from a stop but does not happen everytime. Vehicle is currently about 1000 miles but this has been after shortly after purchase. Vehicle was purchased new with 5 miles on odometer.

Oct 16, 2025

SERVICE BRAKES

1 complaint

The contact owns a 2025 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated that while driving at 35 MPH, the brakes independently engaged. The contact was unable to disengage the brakes. The vehicle was stopped in the middle of the road with several warning unknown lights illuminated, and undisclosed messages were displayed. The contact turned off the vehicle, and after several restarting attempts, the contact was unable to disengage the brakes. The contact was unable to move the shift lever. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that an undisclosed update was needed. An unknown update was performed on the vehicle. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

Sep 22, 2025

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE

1 complaint

The autonomous braking activates out of no where while driving. Violently hard and nothing around. A message appears on the dash board saying it can not sense hands on steering wheel. Also while backing up it will activate and no one is near the car or it even activates in an empty parking lot. The car jolted so hard when this happens and everyone went flying forward. No ..the dealer has had the car for 8 days and says they can not replicate the problem. He asked me for permission to drive it to Land O Lakes and I said no the car is very dangerous and that is a huge liability . I gave them permission to drive it around local only. No the vehicle has only been inspected by the dealer. He said since they can not replicate it he can not have a mechanic from Volkswagen assigned to it. No nothing appeared only after. Also, the brakes squeak and sound like it’s grinding on metal like a very old car. Also the front assist beeps loud when nothing is in front of the car. Also, when I go to start the car at times, it will not detect the key. I will bring the second key and it will not detect the second key also. Also the radio screen constantly disconnects everything and it will turn black and then display 0000 with a date of April 6 2025. Also while driving the app will say the door is open. The trunk is open the windows open when everything is closed. That also happens at 2 AM or 3 AM. It will say the trunk is open. The door is open and everything is closed.

Sep 02, 2025

LANE DEPARTURE

1 complaint

When driving on a road with lane markings after the vehicle has been sitting in direct sunlight for about an hour the Lane Keep Assist system will fail due to over temperature warning in the windshield camera module. The dashboard will display the message “Lane Assist is currently not available. Please see owner's manual.” and any driver assist system that utilizes the lane assist system will become unavailable for about 15 minutes. After about 15 minutes of driving the errors will go away as the system reboots itself with no notification that the system functionality has returned. The “over temperature” error was confirmed by my local VW dealership on June 10, 2025 but has occurred 3 separate times.

Jun 22, 2025

POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL

1 complaint

Was operating vehicle when all of a sudden it stop in the middle of the highway. Engine turned iff. Was able to crank back up but vehicle would not shift into drive, reverse or any motion gear. Vehicle stopped in the morgue of an active roadway which created an absolute critical safety issue due to oncoming traffic. Was able to push vehicle from the roadway in neutral but transmission will not otherwise engage. Very high probability that this issue could have resulted in serious car accident if vehicle had became disabled at a high speed.

May 01, 2025

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING,UNKNOWN OR OTHER

1 complaint

Ever since the 2nd day I owned the car which I purchased on [XXX], the interior lighting, sunroof button and roadside assistance button operate themselves when it's colder then 40 degrees outside, the lights blink, the sunroof button doesn't work and the roadside assistance gets called repeatedly. All this is very distracting while driving, especially in the evening time. I have video recorded it and also opened a ticket with volkswagon and also have shown the issue in person to the service manager Ian and antwerpan volkswagon in pasadena, md. They said they contacted volkswagon but have not heard back. So in the meantime I'm having to deal with this. The representative at the shop advised me to "cover the light with something" so it doesn't bother me at night. Unbelievable!! I am beginning to become very distressed!! This is a brand new car that I've owned for 2 months with no remedy and rude help from volkswagon dealer. I have videos of a few issues and a call to service at volkswagon but this page will not let me include my videos. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Jan 20, 2025

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4.7/5.0

82 reviews

Frequently Asked Questions

How many problems does the 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas have?

The 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas currently has 15 owner-reported complaints according to NHTSA database. These complaints are organized by component to help identify common issues.

What are the most common problems with 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas?

The most common problems reported for the 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas are organized by component above. Each component section shows owner-reported issues, crash reports, and fire incidents to help identify patterns and problem areas.

Where does this 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas problem data come from?

All problem and complaint data for the 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Atlas comes directly from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) database. These are real complaints submitted by actual vehicle owners.