NHTSA recall 08V156000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 08V156000 |
| Manufacturer's number | 26E5/R5 |
| Manufacturer | VOLKSWAGEN OF AMERICA, INC |
| Reported | 2008-04-07 |
| Owners notified | 2008-06-13 |
| Component | FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY |
| Units potentially affected | 412000 |
What is wrong
VOLKSWAGEN IS RECALLING 412,000 MY 1999-2005 PASSAT (5TH GENERATION) VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS AND PRODUCED AFTER JUNE 14, 1999. THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE AN UNDERBODY HEAT SHIELD THAT CAN BECOME DAMAGED. IN ADDITION, AFFECTED VEHICLES WITH AUTOMATIC OR MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS MAY HAVE A FUEL LINE (1.8T ENGINES ONLY) OR FUEL TANK VENTILATION VALVE (4MOTION/ALL WHEEL DRIVE ONLY) THAT CAN LEAK DUE TO FRACTURE.
What can happen
A HEAT SHIELD THAT MAY CONTACT THE EXHAUST SYSTEM CAN RESULT IN A VEHICLE FIRE. IN ADDITION, A FUEL LEAK FROM A FUEL LINE OR FUEL TANK VENTILATION VALVE, IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, CAN LEAD TO A VEHICLE FIRE.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL INSTALL ADDITIONAL UNDERBODY HEAT SHIELDS ON VEHICLES WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS TO COVER THE POSSIBLY DAMAGED AREAS AND FLASH ALL 1.8T ENGINES WITH A PRECAUTIONARY SOFTWARE UPDATE. DEALERS WILL ALSO INSPECT AND ADJUST THE FUEL LINE ROUTING ON 1.8T VEHICLES AND THE FUEL TANK VENTILATION VALVE ON 4MOTION/ALL WHEEL DRIVE VEHICLES, AND REPLACE COMPONENTS IF NECESSARY FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JUNE 13, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLKSWAGEN AT 1-800-822-8987.
Notes
VWOA RECALL NO. 26E5/R5.CUSTOMERS MAY CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153); OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.
| 1999 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
|---|---|
| 2000 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
| 2001 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
| 2002 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
| 2003 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
| 2004 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
| 2005 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT | Built 1999-06-01 to 2005-05-31. |
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Investigated as EA07014 and PE08008
This recall followed 2 NHTSA investigations. An investigation is NHTSA looking into a possible defect. It is not a finding that a defect exists, and it does not say that any one vehicle is affected.
| EA07014 | Engineering analysis, opened 2007-09-28, closed 2008-07-07. PASSENGER ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES. ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION; ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM. |
|---|---|
| PE08008 | Preliminary evaluation, opened 2008-01-31, closed 2008-05-30. FUEL TANK LEAK. FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY; FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY:PRESSURE RELIEF DEVICES. |
From NHTSA's investigation file, as of 2026-10-19. The JSON has NHTSA's summary of each.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| Edition26 | 2023-09-18. Service bulletin. VW Elsa Newsletter |
|---|---|
| TB001403 | 2023-08-28. Service bulletin. Fuel Additive to Help Prevent Sporadic Misfire Faults |
| TT201301a | 2023-07-10. Service bulletin. To clear static ECM fault P1250 ?Fuel Level Too Low?, add fuel to vehicle and complete a road test of at least 10 miles. Simply adding fuel without completing a road test may not allow fault to clear. |
| TT201301 | 2023-07-10. Service bulletin. To clear static ECM fault P1250 ?Fuel Level Too Low?, add fuel to vehicle and complete a road test of at least 10 miles. Simply adding fuel without completing a road test may not allow fault to clear. |
| TT200906 | 2023-07-10. Service bulletin. Use the diagram below to test the N75 Solenoid Valve in the event of a turbocharger fault code such as P0299 or P0234. This applies to Mechanical Injection Style Diesel Engines, Pumpe Duse Style Diesel Engines and the new Common Rail Style Diesel Engines. |
| TT240801 | 2023-07-05. Service bulletin. Fault code P1297 may be set and fuel mixtures may go lean if the vehicle is driven under load or revved up and then returned to idle. |
| TT230628 | 2023-07-05. Service bulletin. For long crank/ difficulty starting with the engine hot: Before replacing any components for this complaint, drain the fuel from the vehicle and replace with known good diesel fuel from a reputable source. If the complaint still exists, check fuel pressure and injector timing. |
| TT 90-12-06 | 2019-04-08. Service bulletin. Tech Tips (Fuel Gauge Inoperative after Instrument Cluster Replacement with Fault 00771 ?Fuel level sensor -G-?): An inoperative fuel gauge after instrument cluster replacement with fault 00771 ?Fuel level sensor -G-? may be caused by gateway (address word 19) coding. This document informs of the procedure to resolve this concern |
| TT 90-12-06 | 2019-04-01. Service bulletin. Tech Tips (Fuel Gauge Inoperative after Instrument Cluster Replacement with Fault 00771 ?Fuel level sensor -G-?): An inoperative fuel gauge after instrument cluster replacement with fault 00771 ?Fuel level sensor -G-? may be caused by gateway (address word 19) coding. This document informs of the procedure to resolve this concern |
| TT 20-09-06 | 2017-12-05. Service bulletin. Tech Tips (TDI Engine - N75 Solenoid Valve Diagnosis): This document informs with graphical aid the testing of the N75 Solenoid Valve in the event of a turbocharger fault code such as P0299 or P0234. This applies to Mechanical Injection Style Diesel Engines, Pumpe Duse Style Diesel Engines and the new Common Rail Style Diesel Engines. |
A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.