Engine Belts And Pulleys problems of the 2003 Volkswagen Passat

I purchased a used 2003 vw Passat from a private dealer drove the car five months and the timing belt came off while I was driving. I almost got into an accident but avoided it. This particular vehicle and ones like it was recalled in 3/7/2014 for engine and engine cooling engine problems that causes the timing belt to come off while driving. Recall: 14e007000 because of the timing belt failure. I contacted a vw dealership and they said the recall didn't apply to my car. I find that insulting consider ing what I just experienced.

The contact owns a 2003 Volkswagen Passat. While driving at approximately 60 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the timing belt needed to be replaced. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 14e007000 (engine and engine cooling). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 100,000.

While driving the on the capitol beltway (495 inner loop) I started to smell a burning smell. Moments later within about 30 seconds the engine burst into flames. I was able to stop the vehicle safely and exited the car. Needless to say the vehicle is totaled. I would describe the incident as a spontaneous engine fire. There was no warning. Thank you.

The contact owns a 2003 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated the timing belt could not be adjusted. The check engine light illuminated because of the timing chain failure which also caused damage to the ignition coil. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who stated the timing chain was designed to be a lifetime timing system and could not be adjusted. The contact was unable to register the vehicle because the check engine light was on. The contact spoke to the manufacturer who stated the only thing that can be done is to replace all four cam gear adjusters, control solenoid housing, adjuster bolts and timing chains, the valve cover gasket and seals, torque converter bolts, exhaust gaskets, intake manifold gaskets, injector seals, chain cover, chain tensioners, rear main seal and the throttle body gaskets. The failure mileage was 98,000 and the current mileage was 105,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Volkswagen Passat. The contact stated that a new pair of rare brakes failed on her vehicle after 14,952 miles. She usually gets over 36,000 miles on a pair of brakes. She stated that the brake pads failed and damaged the rotors. The contact feels that the pads are defective and should have lasted longer than 14,000 miles. She also feels that the dealer should cover the cost of the new pads. The current and failure mileages were 95,100. Updated 04/21/09. The serpentine belt was cracked, the power steering fluid was low, the vc boot and hood strut was replaced. . Updated 04/21/09.

Timing belt broke at only 66,000 miles and 3 years of vehicle use. Manufacturer recommends replacement at approx. 100,000 miles. Failure to advise purchasers of premature catastrophic timing belt failure is inexcusable. It poses a grave risk of harm to drivers. Our timing belt blew on a busy street in miami. We were very fortunate that we were not injured. There have been class action lawsuits involving the exact same engine-- used in Audi cars-- that were settled by providing a warranty extension for these failures. A similar warranty extension should be offered to vw owners whose vehicles have the same engine (1. 8l turbo, 4-cylinder). A class action against vw should not be necessary (though it may be forthcoming)-- they should accept their responsibility for this design defect and thereby potentially save lives. What if your son or daughter were hurt in a timing belt-related crash? shame on vw.

My Volkswagen Passat stopped dead in the middle of a major highway and had to be pushed off to the side of the road. I almost got hit by oncoming traffic trying to get the car off the highway. Three rivers Volkswagen dealership is saying the timing belt went well before the scheduled replacement,thus destroying the engine+. The car has 83k miles and not recommend to be changed until 105k. There are many instances reported on the web of the happening. My car was in for a service check at 78k and other problem items were brought to my attention; however, a timing belt problem was not. Volkswagen is blaming the dealers service department and the service deparment is blaming Volkswagen. So far no resolution. There are many instances of vw and Audi having timing belt issues on the interenet.

Purchased vehicle on 8/4/03 8/8/05 - engine oil light came on, vehicle diagnosed w/ "engine oil sludge" by dealership, warranty item. 8/11/05- spoke w/ dealership to confirm sludge issue and presented oil change receipts,(vehicle purchased w/ 19637 miles) , dealer declined to honor the warranty and recommended a engine flush & oil change 8/12/05 - retrieved vehicle and had engine flushed & oil changed 8/13/05 - vehicle cut off & remains inoperable 8/21/05 - vehicle was towed to receive diagnoses 8/26/05 - vehicle diagnosed w/ no oil pressure or compression. Cause - (bad oil pump) timing belt jumped r&r valve cover and locked up cam #1 cylinder. No sludge was found in engine, valve cover, oil pan or engine block. Engine was free of sludge and would not have caused the engine to fail (documented by auto repairman) 8/26/05 - towed vehicle to another (engine repair specialist) repair shop. 9/22/05 - diagnoses result "no" engine oil sludge found. (engine was totally disassembled and examined in every detail) sludge would be expected if poor maintenance was the issue. A simple oil flush would not have removed engine oil sludge (documented by service center) 9/23/05 - contacted vw customer care to report my findings. No resolution obtained to date. I was told to obtain another engine analysis. 9/26/05 - contacted vw again to inform them that another analysis is impossible because the engine is disassembled. 10/7/05 - towed the vehicle back to my home. Vehicle presently garaged and inoperable. * since then, I've read many accounts of this "same" issue happening to vw Passat owners. Vw has admitted to engine problems with their 4 cylinder turbo engines but has not issued a recall. This is a serious product stewardship issue and vw should be made to repair and reimburse consumers for these costly repairs. I've spent thousands of dollars in my attempt to uncover the "real" problem which is a faulty engine and/or oil pump.

2003 Volkswagen GLS Passat with several problems. Consumer states that they have had problems with the fuel pump, cam shaft sensor and more. The vehicle stalled on 2 occasions due to a faulty fuel pump. The consumer soon discovered there was a recall on the fuel pump, however the consumers vehicle identification number was not included in the recall. The front cv boot and timing belt were replaced. The vehicle also had a transmission leak. The drivers heated seat malfunctioned.