2000 Volkswagen Passat Steering Problems

“I have had my 2000 vw Passat since 2006 and have had only regular wear and tear unitl about 3 weeks ago. I was driving on 95 in fort lauderdale, fl moving at about 65-70 MPH when the engine shut off, power steering was gone and pushing brakes took all I had to try and safely steer and come to a complete stop crossing over 5 lanes of traffic to the break-down lane. Once I was completely stopped I was able to turn the key to the off position and restart the vehicle. …”

“2000 vw Passat wagon- less than 50 thousand miles- mechanic informed us that the tie rod ends were shot. Contacted vw with a complaint about the rate of failures of many parts of this car. These failures are what would be considered premature. Vw asked me to bring in vehicle for a thorough inspection and confirmed tie rod failure- replacement to be at my expense.”

“Steering tie rods and front suspension are worn out on vw Passat making steering very inaccurate and in a state of constant steering input to maintain straight direction of vehicle. Afraid this will lead to an accident. Car has only 82,000 miles on it and this is the first time I have ever heard of such complete impending failure of a front suspension. I understand that this is common in passats. It seems to me this is a design flaw that should be corrected.”

“Tie rod ends failed on 2000 Passat effecting the steering control. Prior to 44000. Dealer stated this is considered normal for Passat . Tie rod ends were returned to me and the seals were not protecting the swivel bearing. Independent auto repair shop advised there had been a previous recall in 99 for the same problem but this car was not included. We believe Volkswagen may have the same or similar issue with tie rod ends on additional autos.”

“My 2000 vw Passat, with 38,000 miles, has worn tie rods to the point where I have been advised it could be dangerous to drive. This problem was discovered when the car was having an oil change and I mentioned I had been hearing creaking sounds from the front while doing 3 point turns over the past month. My mechanic (not a dealer) thought there had been a recall for the problem. Upon checking, the recall was for 1999 passats only. Since the 2000 model is the exactly the same as the 1999 model, why was this recall not extended to the 2000 cars? …”