2020 Volkswagen Atlas problems and recalls

Owners have filed 27 complaints on the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas, and NHTSA has issued 4 recalls. The most cited component is the Electrical System (11 complaints).

27
Complaints
4
Recalls
0
Crash reports
0
Fire reports
0
Injuries
48.0
Severity index

Severity index 48.0 Medium. The index weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints. How it is calculated.

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 48.0p25 46p75 80cleanestworst
Severity index against the quartile range for all tracked vehicles.

Components cited in complaints

Electrical SystemElectrical System: 11 complaints (40.7%)11 41%Air BagsAir Bags: 8 complaints (29.6%)8 30%Forward Collision Avoid…Forward Collision Avoidance: 7 complaints (25.9%)7 26%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 5 complaints (18.5%)5 19%SteeringSteering: 5 complaints (18.5%)5 19%Service BrakesService Brakes: 4 complaints (14.8%)4 15%EngineEngine: 3 complaints (11.1%)3 11%Fuel/Propulsion SystemFuel/Propulsion System: 2 complaints (7.4%)2 7%
A single complaint can cite more than one component, so shares total over 100%.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM1140.7%
AIR BAGS829.6%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE725.9%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER518.5%
STEERING518.5%
SERVICE BRAKES414.8%
ENGINE311.1%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM27.4%

Complaints filed per year

0492021: 22022: 92023: 32024: 52025: 52026: 3 (partial year)2122923242526
Complaints by the calendar year they were filed. The hatched bar is the current year to date.
YearComplaints
20212
20229
20233
20245
20255
2026 (year to date)3
Filings in 2023 to 2025 were close to 2021 to 2022 (13 against 11).

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
22V08600016/02/2022EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELSVolkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles equipped with accessory side steps. The reduced Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) label, reflecting the additional weight of the side steps, was not inst
22V15200028/03/2022AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOWVolkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Atlas, 2020-2023 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021-2023 Atlas FL vehicles. The door wiring harness electrical contacts may corrode, disrupting the electrical connection and delaying the deployment of the dri
22V81500031/10/2022TIRES:PRESSURE MONITORING AND REGULATING SYSTEMSVolkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Volkswagen Tiguan LWB, Golf Sportswagen A7, Golf Alltrack, Golf R GP, Audi Q3, Audi A3 Cabriolet, 2019-2020 Jetta NF, Jetta GLI, Golf GTI, Atlas, Golf A7, Audi A3, 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021 Atlas
23V21500029/03/2023AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGERVolkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2021 Atlas and 2020 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may experience a fault in the wiring and deactivate the front passenger air bag when the seat is occupied.

Other Volkswagen Atlas model years

Severity index for every other model year on file. Compare all 8 years side by side.

Source. NHTSA public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-08-04. Complaints are unverified consumer reports. Totals vary with units sold and years on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.