Six problems related to engine and engine cooling have been reported for the 1999 Volkswagen Passat. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Passat began to accelerate under no pressure to pedal. Passat started to accelerate fairly slowly but steadily at first, then it increased. It wasn't possible to decelerate/no pressure on the brake pedal stopped the acceleration. It began to reach an unsafe speed then I began to downshift and to apply the brake in sequence to slow the Passat, then I tried to slow the vehicle to coast it onto the shoulder, but the speed remained too high to halt the car. Having no other way to slow the vehicle, I started to downshift and to apply extreme pressure to the breaks, and was able to slow the vehicle enough after several miles of downshifting and riding the breaks to reach a point at which I could shift the car into neutral, then began coasting it up a long driveway while the engine continued to race and rev. I then dropped the car into neutral and engaged the emergency break, then forced the trans into park and shut the Passat off. The front breaks were both glowing, with the driver's side having burst into flames as a result of the friction and heat from having ridden them for several miles. Shop that examined the Passat assessed that the throttle body control module had failed and wasn't communicating with the main on-board computer, and that this type of problem had been seen before on other Volkswagen models of the same era. Technician indicated that this was the third time that he'd seen this failure. It apparently usually results in the car coming to a stop although there are other cases customers reported that resulted in the uncontrolled acceleration that I experiences. The breaks and other internal components were significantly damaged as a result of the accident/throttle body failure, and the vehicle had to be scrapped. Someone should research this further as this is a potentially fatal issue. Please contact me if any further information is required to investigate.
Abs, brake light and oil light indicators on - apparently a common problem with Passats. Faulty abs module according to dealership, $900 part. Vehicle has 67,000 miles and dealership serviced. This should not be happening and a recall should be made.
Oil sludge problem with my 1. 8t engine in a 1999 vw Passat after getting oil changes with synthetic oil now I'm with out a vehicle and my job requires me to drive.
: the contact stated the abs, brake and oil lamps intermittently illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who determined the abs module needs replaced although the repair was not made.
While driving at any speed and when the vehicle was parked there was excessive smoke coming out of the right front wheel well. Vehicle had been to the dealer four times for this particular problem. Dealer claimed that the problem originated from oils from the engine.
1) coolant temp. Sensor failed at @47422 miles 2) chaplins checked car because I reported noise in front wheel area. They said both front wheel bearings needed replacing and refused to cover the costs. I took it to an independant vw specialist and was told only the right front wheel bearing was bad. Cost was $466. 79. Vw still refused to assist. 2 independant vw specialists reported vw has a "bad wheel bearing design". 3) replaced original tires with exact brand and style of tire that was originsal to car. Tires felt odd, I had them checked by 2 tire retailers and did own pressure checks twice monthly. After 15,804 miles on tires left rear tread separated from sidewall while driving on freeway at 70mph.