general problems of the 2000 Volkswagen Passat

I have had my 2000 vw Passat since 2006 and have had only regular wear and tear unitl about 3 weeks ago. I was driving on 95 in fort lauderdale, FL moving at about 65-70 mph when the engine shut off, power steering was gone and pushing brakes took all I had to try and safely steer and come to a complete stop crossing over 5 lanes of traffic to the break-down lane. Once I was completely stopped I was able to turn the key to the off position and restart the vehicle. Aside from the engine, steering and brakes all other functions were or at least seemed to still be working (dash lights, radio, windows) the vehicle did this 4 more times while I attempted to drive to the nearest exit and call for assistance. I tested all the fuses and they all were in working order and the next set of symptoms occurred a week later. I was trying to unlock the car with the remote and there was not connection being made between the key and the car, I manually unlocked the doors and put the key in the ignition. The engine didnt start or even attempt to turn over. All dash lights were on as well as the radio, however, I had lost the power windows, locks, trunk, gas lid and all interior light functions. I currently have the vehicle being looked at and hope to give an update when I find out the issue.

Intermittent warning lights appear:abs,brake,stop,brake fault on dash warning area. Stopped at local repair center,could not duplicate problem on road test. Unable to diagnose problem with abs control module. ,must be done only at vw dealership. Drove without warning coming on but happened 3 or so hours later. Have seen numerous complaints regarding this problem. . Nhtsa id number 10016037 service bulletin noted a warranty repair process for anti-lock brake system(abs) control module for this year of my Passat and many other years before and after as well as other vw models. Volkswagen said my VIN # was not among the repair campaigns. Is this a concern especially for your abs control that all vehicles be checked and repaired as a safety issue?.

While stopped at a red light, the engine accelerated by itself (computer failure?). My husband, who was driving, had to use both feet, pressing down as hard as he could, to stop the car. Fortunately, no one was in front of us and we were far enough back that we did not accelerate into the intersection. The engine sound returned to normal after 15-30 seconds and we drove it home without further incident but we have stopped driving the car for safety reasons. In addition, the abs computer module has also failed, though we have not had any incidents related to that failure as the brakes are otherwise fine.

I have been having dashboard warning lights coming on and off for the abs braking system. When the lights are on the abs system does not work.

The abs braking module has prematurely failed on our 2000 vw Passat. Mine occurred 6 months ago. As a 9 year old car to have the primary braking safety mechanism to fail, is dangerous, scary and absolutely ridiculous. The car itself properly indicates how vital a failure this is by showing a gigantic stop brake fault filling the dashboard followed by 3 ear piercing beeps. It appears as this is one of the most common vw and Audi failures when we talked with the dealer and local vw repair shop as well as looking on the forums. If you google "stop brake fault vw" or any similar term (Audi, Passat), you will find hundreds of issues reported. There are multiple repair shops specifically setup to address this type of issue unfortunately. This should not be the case. Hopefully your research will also show this. We did have ours repaired for $1000 after 5 months of letting this go as it was difficult to pay for this. There are probably thousands of other owners who can't scrape up the money to pay for a repair like this. Vw and bosch should issue a recall and people who have already had this fixed should be reimbursed. Thanks for your time. . Read more...

2000 vw Passat developed failure of abs control modulator. Car has had a single owner and all recommended factory maintenance at authorized dealers. To correct the failure the whole part needed to be replaced at a cost of $1000.

Abs brake fault.

I have a faulty abs control unit on my 2000 Volkswagen Passat. This should be covered by Volkswagen.

Defective abs module in 2000 Volkswagen Passat. Abs and brake/stop lights flash but brakes work.

Faulty abs control module installed from factory.

My 2000 vw Passat 1. 8t began exhibiting a flashing/beeping red light to indicate a failure in the abs system. The light activates every time I drive the car, but does not turn on until the brakes are warm. The abs system is not functional in this state, which means the car is drivable, but significantly less safe under panic stop or reduced traction conditions. Upon further research with other owners of this vehicle, it is obvious that this failure is common on 1998-2001 Passats (and Audi a4s) with the bosch 5. 3 abs module. However, no action has ever been taken by the manufacturer. I may opt to have the abs module rebuilt by a third party, and do the removal and installation work myself; the result would be at least $200 out of pocket. Outrageously, many people who have sought vwoa dealership service work for this same problem have spent well over $1,000. The apparent failure rate of this module, and the fact that it degrades the operation of the most fundamental safety feature of a car (the brakes), make it my opinion that it should be subject to recall. Recall action should include compensation for owners who have undertaken repairs, and replacement of the faulty module. Thank you.

The abs control module has failed on my vehicle three times since it was purchased new in 2000. Each time it fails, my brakes experience a mass of malfunctions which include random lock-ups, brake shudder, etc.

I have a '00 vw Passat, and belong to Passatworld. Com I bought this car brand new in 2000, and now the car just has 90k on the odometer. My abs control module just went bad, as many many vw and Audi owners have experienced. I think this is way too soon for this to happen, have kept the car in excellent shape, have followed all recommended maintenance schedules, etc. For such a potentially life-saving piece of equipment (abs and traction control, which the module controls,) you'd think vw would use a longer lasting part that is not prone to early failure.

2000 vw Passat was diagnosed to need abs (antilock braking system) control module replaced at $900 by vw dealer. Hundreds of pages on forums across the world exist on this same problem. . Read more...

2000 vw Passat 1. 8t, manual 5-speed abs module showing constant failure indication, along with stop, service manual warnings. I'm filing this to add to the numbers, voicing safety issues that should be addressed by vw free-of-charge like so many others believe vw should do. Not many have an extra $1500 laying around to replace a part that should not fail to begin with, or should have a lifetime warranty regardless of ownership.

Defective abs controller.

My 2000 vw Passat 1. 8t began exhibiting a flashing/beeping red light to indicate a failure in the abs system. The light activates 99% of the time I drive the car. The abs system is not functional in this state, which means the car is drivable, but significantly less safe under panic stop or reduced traction conditions. Upon further research with other owners of this vehicle, it is obvious that this failure is common on 1998-2001 Passats (and Audi a4s) with the bosch 5. 3 abs module. The dealership acted as if they had never seen this type of problem, although an independent shop said they had replaced several at their shop. However, no action has ever been taken by the manufacturer. I did opt to have the abs module rebuilt by a third party. The result was a $400. 00 instead of $1000. 00 at the dealer. Outrageously, many people who have sought vwoa dealership service work for this same problem have spent well over $1,000. The apparent failure rate of this module, and the fact that it degrades the operation of the most fundamental safety feature of a car (the brakes), make it my opinion that it should be subject to recall. Recall action should include compensation for owners who have undertaken repairs, and replacement of the faulty module. Thank you. Dk.

Abs module bosch 5. 3 for 2000 vw Passat - due to a defective disconnected small wire in the module causes non-communication to vw vagcom computer to abs system, thus rendering the abs brakes ineffective and deemed dangerous causing brake locking.