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Transmission and drivetrainPart report

2021 Volkswagen Atlas Transmission and drivetrain Problems

Complaints
15about this part
Share
3%of 482 total for the year
Median mileage
—not reported
Trend
RisingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% higher than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 15 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas, 3% of the 482 complaints for this model year.

Example complaints

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

“Hi- I have an atlas 2021 Volkswagen Atlas- that was recently serviced for a transmission leak. According to my mechanic, the leak was the result of the plastic cowling rubbing against the cooling tube and after 100k miles the tube wore through. This seems to be a design flaw or defect in the vehicle and not normal wear out. I have pictures of the part of that helps. Thank you”

NHTSA complaint #11725002, filed 2026-03

“There is an error with the start-stop feature and it causes my car to stall while driving it. This is very dangerous considering it tells me to put it in park and start the car manually. It's almost caused me multiple accidents.”

NHTSA complaint #11653990, filed 2025-04

“In May I brought the vehicle to the dealership because the vehicle was turning off at low speeds (exiting a parking lot) or switching from Drive to Reverse. This was in conjunction with the check engine light coming on. The dealership diagnosed it as a fuel sensor failure, which they told me was safe to drive, and they'd order the part. I went back the next week when the sensor had been received and the repair was made. Last week, the low fuel alert flashed when I knew the vehicle was not low on fuel. …”

NHTSA complaint #11611715, filed 2024-08

“I have had issue after issue with this car ever since I got it. Within the first year of my lease, my car was at the dealership for 4 to 5 months. Most of it in one long stint. The vehicle was consistently having problems. All the while, I’m paying for a car I wasn’t even able to drive for a huge chunk of year 1. One time, the car completely shut down and stopped in the middle of the freeway with my three young children in the car with me. The brakes on this car have been an issue since I bought it as well. …”

NHTSA complaint #11621632, filed 2024-10

“The car began revving at lights when I was in drive and stopped at red lights. The normal at rest rev is 0.75 however I have seen it as high as 1.5 and had to put the car into park to reset the acceleration. This had been consistently happening over the past month. The first visit to the dealer, I needed a new battery... that didn't fix the issue. The tech said that after the battery was replaced that the scan showed no error codes. The only codes before the battery replacement were low voltage indicators throughout the car. The next day the same issue happened again. …”

NHTSA complaint #11688381, filed 2025-09

Related service bulletins

Transmission and drivetrain: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
202617%
20251325%
20242213%
202386%
202242%
2021153%
202027%
2019347%
2018163%

Other parts of the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas

Electrical system
149 complaints
Brakes
98 complaints
Engine
86 complaints
Other or unknown
79 complaints
Exterior lighting
70 complaints
Forward collision avoidance
69 complaints
Air bags
66 complaints
Fuel system
42 complaints
Body and structure
22 complaints
Vehicle speed control
14 complaints
Steering
11 complaints
Seats
9 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2021 Volkswagen Atlas

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