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Exterior lightingPart report

2018 Volkswagen Tiguan Exterior lighting Problems

Complaints
17about this part
Share
6%of 288 total for the year
Median mileage
1,200miles
Trend
FallingComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are at least 25% lower than in the 3 years before.

NHTSA recorded 17 complaints about the exterior lighting of the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan, 6% of the 288 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 1,200 miles. 1 recall campaign on record is filed under a similar system.

Example complaints

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

“Panoramic sunroof LED ambient panel lights recall resulting in darker lighting inside vehicle which makes me more afraid at night and was a false advertisement feature as the original lighting was what attracted me to the vehicle upon lease agreement.no effort has been made to repair the lighting defect caused by recall.”

NHTSA complaint #11143323, filed 2018-10, 8,000 miles

“Very dim-invisible head light-lightening during heavy rains or dark street rides. Felt scary while driving. Almost thought that there were no head lights on the car. From that point I was really noticing and this is the rating I give for the lighting the road at night during motion -> 2/10 stationary ->6/10 city street ->6/10 please look into this and for sure you'll find this defect in the brightness of headlights.”

NHTSA complaint #11047458, filed 2017-11, 2,102 miles

“There is a recall for sunroof lighting: from vw website: high humidity in the panoramic sunroof ambient lighting bar LED module (caused by environment or by leaving the sunroof open) could lead to a local short circuit. If this happens, there is a risk of a fire. So, I bought higher model because I wanted this feature, but now I cannot use it because vw is going to disconnect it? At the end, pay for feature, but you cannot use it because vw can't figure out which fire to put out.”

NHTSA complaint #11114782, filed 2018-07, 1,350 miles

“This vehicle has a drive ability problem. The car has a major hesitation and is very dangerous when pulling onto the highway. The car almost cuts out but doesn't stall and find it very dangerous. The dealer told me that nothing is wrong with it. Also, there was a recall on my ambient lighting on my sunroof. There could be a leak or humidity could affect the wiring and could cause a fire. There fix is to disconnect it. I have no sunroof lighting. I should get a refund for something they took away.”

NHTSA complaint #11114461, filed 2018-07, 15,000 miles

“Takata recall. I got a recall on september of the ambient light bar and I have been waiting to put it back on over a half year. When can I finish this?”

NHTSA complaint #11195980, filed 2019-04, 500 miles

Related recalls

Related service bulletins

Exterior lighting: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
202512%
202423%
202231%
202153%
202086%
2019116%
2018176%
201711%
201622%
201321%
201211%
20113924%
20101917%
2009159%

Other parts of the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan

Engine
82 complaints
Other or unknown
53 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
49 complaints
Electrical system
46 complaints
Fuel system
41 complaints
Body and structure
39 complaints
Brakes
21 complaints
Vehicle speed control
21 complaints
Seat belts
16 complaints
Air bags
15 complaints
Steering
15 complaints
Forward collision avoidance
12 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan

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