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Air bagsPart report

2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport Air bags Problems

Complaints
37about this part
Share
22%of 165 total for the year
Median mileage
17,000miles
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 37 complaints about the air bags of the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, 22% of the 165 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 17,000 miles. 7 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers. 3 recall campaigns on record are filed under a similar system.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Windows open on their own. Emergency Brake engages at low speed, left me in the middle of oncoming traffic as I was about to slowly turn. At times continuously has the alarm bell own. Has Keyless entry, however often times Car Alarm goes off. Eliminating AC lights very dim hard to see. Radio screen sometimes is just blacked out.”

NHTSA complaint #11482036, filed 2022-08

“We have been told by our dealership and manufacturer that there is no timeline on when this part is going to be available to be fixed. We have to operate our business in compliance with the NHTSA, and not having a timeline or any compensation for this recall is a big hindrance to our business.”

NHTSA complaint #11612408, filed 2024-09

“Passenger airbag system error light has been on for at least 14 months and avoided repair in June of 2023 at Orem, UT dealership. Air bag may not deploy in the event of accident. My pregnant wife is primary passenger. It’s a known issue that has a recall but no fix. The recall numbers are 24V464 (nhtsa) and 69PZ (Volkswagen). This recall was issued June 2024. Dealership instructed me to wait for fix and not allow anyone to sit in passenger seat. This instruction is impractical.”

NHTSA complaint #11612596, filed 2024-09

“My air bag warning light is on, I took this to a dealer service facility and they said it is a wiring harness failure. Upon doing more research on this I find this harness failure has caused, the parking brake to be applied while driving, the windows will go down on their own. VW customer tells me this is safe to drive, they have no fix and their newest vehicles have this possible fault. This vehicle can not be safe to be driving on the highway.”

NHTSA complaint #11458349, filed 2022-03

“On 11/15/2021 I was on an access road for a major city highway going approximately 10-15 mph. I was forced to the left lane from right lane by a pickup truck exiting from a restaurant going very fast, there was no contact (Collision) with the pickup. I had started braking but made contact with the curd of left lane while almost coming to a stop and the side air bags deployed. I definitely feel the airbags should not have deployed and if so they would have deployed if I had ran across a chuckhole/pothole. …”

NHTSA complaint #11450820, filed 2022-02

Related recalls

Related service bulletins

Air bags: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
202455%
2023525%
20221114%
20213722%
20202321%

Other parts of the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Electrical system
54 complaintsBrakes
36 complaintsEngine
33 complaintsForward collision avoidance
28 complaintsOther or unknown
25 complaintsExterior lighting
18 complaintsFuel system
17 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
5 complaintsLane departure
4 complaintsSteering
4 complaintsSuspension
4 complaintsBack-over prevention (rear camera)
3 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology