Front Suspension Control Arm problems of the 2001 Volkswagen Passat

The contact owns a 2001 Volkswagen Passat. While driving approximately 70 mph, the contact heard a creaking noise coming from the suspension. The contact stated the rear suspension control arms were wearing out prematurely. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000. Updated 02/11/11 updated 05/02/11.

Front ball joint failure at approx. 35,000 miles. Then a lower control arm failure at 95,000 miles. Old control arm is available.

I have a '01 vw Passat. I had to go to the vw dealer today since I was hearing a pinging noise when I drive. They checked and advised that the lower control arm and tie ends would need to be replaced since they were worn out. The car has 77k miles and on researching have found that other vw Passat owners from the same time frame are having the same issue. It has been attributed to design flaws. I am worried that this is going to deteriorate and lead to an accident. Additionally they identified a valve cover camshaft seal leakage. This is another issue that has been identified by other owners.

Failure of multiple front control arms in 2001 vw Passat. Was given quote of nearly $2100 to repair control arms. Was told this is a "wide spread" problem with vw Passats and nothing has been recalled as of yet.

Engine sludge in engine leading to failure of the oil pump and the turbo. In addition, also had to have the front control arms ,and tie-rods replaced , and even now there were still problems with the front suspension. I have researched and found these were similar problems with many Passat owners. I still recall the major issue / recall over the ignition coil failures and how vw of America denied there ever was a problem. The entire car should be declared a lemon !!!! the oil pump failure leading to failures of the turbo, and seizure of the engine should be proof enough that this car has too many major problems and should be recalled .

The front control arms on my 2001 vw Passat need to be replaced. The car only has 54k miles on it.

Car was making noise at slow speed and would shake at faster speeds. I was told I needed 2 tie rods which were replaced. The problem continued and I was then told it was the control arms and I needed all 4 replaced. My car is not even 4 years old and has only 45,000. I understand from other sites that this is a problem on vw's and Audi's.

Front suspension control arm bushings on 2001 (b5) Passat model are defective and fail prematurely at 30,000-50,000 miles. Failure is systemic and widespread. Failure of front control arm bushings can lead to the loss of vehicle control causing an accident, injury, and possibly death. Investigation on the internet has shown this problem to be widespread both in europe and the us, yet vw has not taken any ownership of this serious product defect. Corrective action being taken is to install aftermarket components that have been strengthened to eliminate the defect and are manufactured by meyle of germany. As this model ages, the defect problem will increase.

Control arms required replacement at substatial cost.