Problems · by component
2002 Volkswagen Passat visibility problems
27 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2002 Volkswagen Passat cite visibility, 4% of all 650 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
27
4% of all complaints
Crashes
0
Reported by owners
Fires
0
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the visibility
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“2002 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARD TO BEING TOLD THE RECALL TO REPAIR THE FAULTY EQUIPMENT ON HER VEHICLE WAS TO OUTDATED TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE AND SHE WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE REPAIRS AT HER EXPENSE. *TGW THE CONSUMER REFERENCED PLENUM DRAIN SUNROOF DRAIN. THE CONSUMER STATED WATER DAMAGED THE HEADLINER AND OTHER COMPONENTS IN THE VEHICLE. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE COLLECTS 1-2 INCHES OF WATER, EVERY TIME IT RAINED OR WHEN SHE WASHED THE VEHICLE. *JB”
“THE VEHICLE HAS A SAFETY ISSUE AS I CANNOT SEE WHEN I PUT THE HEATER ON. THE WINDSHIELD BECOMES COMPLETELY COVERED WITH STEAM. I HAVE ALMOST CRASHED 5 TIMES ALREADY. HELP! *TR”
“2002 VW PASSAT PLASTIC LENS COVER OVER THE HEAD LIGHTS ARE SO FILMY, CLOUDY CAN HARDLY SEE AT NIGHT..THE LENS COVERS HAVE BEEN CLOUDY FOR YEARS, I NOTICE LOTS OF CARS WITH CLOUDY LENS COVER NOT JUST VW...SHOULD BE SAFETY RECALL..... DO WE WAIT LIKE WE DID ON NO DOC LOANS UNTIL WE ADMIT WE HAVE A PROBLEM.........NO EXACT INCIDENT BUT I'M SURE THEY HAVE HAPPENED. *TR”
“THE HEADLIGHT LENS ON MY PASSAT HAVE BECOME "CLOUDED" OVER TIME RESULTING IN REDUCED BRIGHTNESS FROM THE HEADLAMPS AND CREATING AN UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITION AT NIGHT. IN DISCUSSING THE ISSUE WITH OTHER PASSAT OWNERS, IT'S CLEAR THAT THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM. THE REDUCED BRIGHTNESS HAS BECOME A TRUE SAFETY HAZARD OVER TIME AS VISIBILITY AT NIGHT IS SEVERELY AFFECTED. THE LENS IS ACTUALLY OPAQUE AT THIS POINT. VOLKSWAGEN DENIES RESPONSIBILITY AS THE CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY. *TR”
“WATER LEAKAGE FROM SUNROOF TO FLOOR BOARDS. THE SUNROOF HAS DRAINAGE TUBES, THAT CAN AND WILL BECOME CLOGGED. WATER ON FLOORBOARD CAN LEAD TO TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS. TUBES HAD TO BE UNCLOGGED, LOCATED ON FRONT DOOR FRAMES. *TR”
“TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT. WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT 70 MPH THE SUN ROOF EXPLODED. FRAGMENTS OF GLASS FELL ALL OVER OF THE VEHICLE. A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THEY ARE NOT AWARE OF THIS TYPE OF FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 95,000.”
Showing 6 of 27 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Nov 10, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.