Problems · NHTSA complaints

2025 Volkswagen ID.4 problems

Owners filed 31 complaints about the 2025 Volkswagen ID.4 with NHTSA between Jul 2025 and Oct 2026. The most-cited component is electrical system (17).

Complaints
31
Filed with NHTSA
Crashes
10
Reported by owners
Fires
3
Reported by owners
Injuries
5
People reported injured
Deaths
0
Reported to NHTSA
01 —By component

Complaints by component

One complaint can cite several components
  1. Electrical system17
  2. Vehicle speed control7
  3. Back over prevention7
  4. Forward collision avoidance5
  5. Visibility/wiper4
  6. Service brakes3
  7. Power train2
  8. Air bags2
  9. Fuel/propulsion system1
  10. Engine1
  11. Structure1
  12. Seats1
  13. Lane departure1
  14. Other / unknown7

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.

Data from NHTSA Complaints API · synced Oct 28, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
02 —Trend

When complaints were filed

Does it get worse with age? Complaints per calendar year filed
View as table
Model yearComplaints filed per calendar year
202515
202616

Mileage at failure isn’t a structured field in NHTSA complaint data, so we don’t chart it. Some owners mention it in their reports below.

03 —Owner reports

Top problems in owners’ words

Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first

Electrical system

17 reports3 crashes2 fires2 related recalls
“The Volkswagen ID.4 has an active recall regarding the high voltage battery. There is no remedy, instead they recommend not to charge above 80%. Essentially limiting how far I can go between charging. My particular car limited my charging to 70%, so now instead of charging on weekends, I have to charge daily or every other day, making the money I wanted to save by having an electrical vehicle non existent. I reached out to Volkswagen & they said they couldn’t buy back the vehicle even after informing them, I have small children that I drive in my car & I live on a military base. I do not feel safe having a car that could potentially catch fire with no known reason or remedy.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Oct 26, 2026Electrical systemODI 11773880

Vehicle speed control

7 reports4 crashes
“Incident Summary & Vehicle Behavior: I am filing this safety defect report regarding a critical sudden unintended acceleration (SUA) incident in my 2025 Volkswagen ID.4 that resulted in a crash. On September 20, 2026, after parking and preparing to get out of the vehicle, the vehicle by itself accelerated without accelerator pedal input. It ran over the concrete barrier below front axle, continued forward and hit Handicap Parking sign post. On previous occasions also the vehicle randomly experienced erratic power surges after parking. Also, previously occasionally on shifting from Park to Reverse, the vehicle independently surged backwards without accelerator pedal input. Potential Defect Mechanism: This behavior matches widespread reports from other VW ID.4 drivers involving two known potential defect causes: 1.Capacitive Touch/Haptic Controls: Overly sensitive touch controls on the steering wheel (specifically for Adaptive Cruise Control / RES function) where a light touch or hand brush during steering wheel rotation can re-engage the system's saved set speed during parking or reversing. 2.Drive-by-Wire / Software Glitch: Electronic control unit (ECU) /…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Sep 29, 2026Power train, Electrical system, Vehicle speed controlCrash reportedODI 11767626

Back over prevention

7 reports5 crashes
“Following the recent winter update, I noticed several faults during the weekend prior to the major incident described below: ​Child Lock Malfunction: The car entered "child mode" and the rear door could not be opened from the inside or outside until I exited and re-entered the vehicle. ​Driver-Side Control Failure: The driver-side door controls stopped functioning. They only reset after I exited and re-entered the car. ​Alarm Malfunction: The alarm triggered unexpectedly while we were exiting the vehicle. ​Incident Report: 12/22/2025 While taking my daughter to Taekwondo (TKD) practice, I positioned the vehicle to back into a parking spot. I shifted into reverse, and the backup camera activated. As I always do, I checked my mirrors and the camera to ensure the path was clear. The vehicle did not provide any proximity beeps as it usually does when near an object. ​When I released the brakes, the vehicle did not move. I pressed the accelerator, and the car suddenly jumped forward, striking two parked vehicles. Thankfully, it was only a "fender bender" and no one was injured. ​Following the collision, the ID.4 screen became unresponsive for a moment, and the…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 8, 2026Electrical system, Back over prevention, Forward collision avoidanceCrash reportedODI 11730071

Forward collision avoidance

5 reports5 crashes
“On 6/20/25, while pulling into a parking space at very slow speed, the car suddenly, without my control, violently accellerated. This could have resulted in pesonal injury or death. The car was stopped by crashing into two, nearby parked cars. The dealer's collision shop repaired the car at a cost of approximately $17,000. They did not provide an explanation of the possible cause. There were no warning signs of an issue prior to the event.”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Feb 3, 2026Vehicle speed control, Forward collision avoidance, Back over preventionCrash reportedODI 11715309

Visibility/wiper

4 reports2 fires
“On April 1st I had my windshield replaced due to a crack in the upper central portion of the windshield. When the glass place took the windshield off my car they found a burnt section in the headliner. The glass place reported it immediately to the Volkswagon dealership and asked the device person at the dealership to come look at the burnt headliner before they placed the glass back. The service person at the dealer did go and look at the car so the glass people finished installing the windshield but took pictures prior to installing the new glass. The dealership then reach out to me and asked to bring the car in ASAP. The car was dropped off a few days later for the service department at the dealership to look into the burnt headliner. After the dealer has had the car for 10 days VW Corp is refusing to conduct a full investigation to determine the issue of this burnt area. Concerned this car is a fire risk and unsafe due to wire issues or overheating elements around the windshield. The risk and issue is completely hidden in the car and not easily known about or identified during an event. Could put my house in jeopardy if fire starts while in my garage.…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Apr 17, 2026Electrical system, Visibility/wiperODI 11731993

Service brakes

3 reports2 crashes
“On 6/29/2026, While engaging the brakes on my leased ID.4, I was slowing down approaching another car, and suddenly the vehicle surged forward with full acceleration. It then suddenly re-engaged the brakes just before the vehicle in front of me. On 7/1/2026, I was stopped in traffic near Englewood City Center on I-285. Then with brakes engaged the ID.4 surged forward twice (2x's) striking the late model Chevy pickup in front of me both times. This resulted in a four (4) car chain reaction accident. To date, no one has claimed injuries, but the Chevy pickup was damaged. I received a summons to appear in court. Case yet to be adjudicated. On 7/2/2026, while taking the ID.4 to the dealership where I lease it to look into the problem of the previous two (2) days; the ID.4 again accelerated while slowing down at a stop light. This time no one was in front of me. At the dealership the service people have been unable to locate the issue nor have they been able to replicate it. I have left the vehicle with the dealer because of the dire safety issue this failure poses. Now, they say it is a Volkswagen (company) issue, and they have opened a case. They instructed me to…”
Owner complaint to NHTSAFiled Jul 27, 2026Vehicle speed control, Service brakesCrash reportedODI 11753066
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 28, 2026

Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.