2018 Volkswagen Atlas reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2018 Volkswagen Atlas has 461 complaints with NHTSA after 9 years, or 66 per year. That is more complaints per year than most Atlas years here — over the median of the other years, which is 36. NHTSA has 17 recalls on file, including Steering, Front passenger seat weight sensor, and Labels.

Complaints

461

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (110 of 461), then Air bags (100) and Engine (97). Those filings include 8 that report a crash and 13 that report an injury.

Next to 2019

The 2019 Atlas has 480 complaints, 38 per year. The 2018 has more complaints per year than the 2019.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2018 Volkswagen Atlas. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (17)

Recall Steering 2026-09-11 · NHTSA campaign 26V590000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Tiguan, 2018-2019 Atlas, and 2019-2021 Audi Q3 vehicles. One of the bolts that attaches the steering rack to the subframe may corrode and break. If this happens, the steering rack housing can break.

Remedy Dealers will replace the right-side steering rack mounting bolt, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed November 10, 2026. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 48LG and 48VT. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on September 16, 2026.

Recall Front passenger seat weight sensor 2023-03-29 · NHTSA campaign 23V215000

Summary Volkswagen 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.

Remedy Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and wiring harness, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 22, 2024. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69FB.

Recall Labels 2022-02-16 · NHTSA campaign 22V086000

Summary Volkswagen 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 installed. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."

Remedy Dealers will install the reduced GVWR label, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 31, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 09D9.

Recall Unknown or other 2021-05-05 · NHTSA campaign 21V321000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2017 Touareg GP, Tiguan, Golf A6, E-Golf GP, CCF, 2016-2017 Passat GP, 2018-2019 Golf R GP, and 2018 Atlas vehicles. These internal-use vehicles were sold without confirmation that they were built to all applicable regulatory requirements and may have been modified prior to sale. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of various Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.

Remedy Volkswagen will repurchase the vehicles. Owner notification letters were mailed May 20, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 01F1.

Recall tires, sidewall 2021-03-05 · NHTSA campaign 21V142000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Atlas vehicles equipped with Continental tires. On the affected vehicles, it is possible that one or more tires were cured for too long during tire production.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tires, and replace them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on March 24, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 44R1.

Recall Unknown or other 2020-09-16 · NHTSA campaign 20V561000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Golf R and Atlas, 2017 Golf Alltrack and E-Golf and 2016-2018 Passat vehicles. These internal use vehicles were sold without confirmation that they were built to all applicable regulatory requirements and may have been modified prior to sale. As such, these vehicles may fail to comply with the requirements of various Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners and will repurchase the vehicles. The recall began October 6, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 01E9.

Recall Air bags 2020-01-31 · NHTSA campaign 20V057000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Atlas vehicles. The vehicles may be equipped with an incorrectly manufactured air bag sensor, which can delay or disable air bag deployment when necessary.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the air bag crash sensor, free of charge. The recall began February 21, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69AL.

Recall exterior lighting, headlights 2019-05-22 · NHTSA campaign 19V389000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2020 Volkswagen Passat and 2018-2019 Atlas vehicles. The blocking cap disabling the adjustment of the headlight's horizontal aim may not have been installed. As such, these vehicles fail to conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, block the headlight horizontal adjustment, free of charge. The recall began July 16, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 94L9.

Recall suspension, rear, springs, coil springs 2018-12-19 · NHTSA campaign 18V904000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Volkswagen Atlas, 2015 Volkswagen Golf SportWagen, and 2019 Volkswagen Jetta vehicles. The rear coil springs may prematurely fracture.

Remedy Volkswagen has notified owners, and dealers will replace the rear axle coil springs, free of charge. The recall began January 31, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 42J2/42J3.

Recall electrical system, instrument cluster 2018-11-26 · NHTSA campaign 18V824000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Volkswagen Atlas and Tiguan and 2019 Volkswagen Jetta vehicles that do not have keyless entry. The instrument cluster may not provide an audible warning to let the driver know that the key is still in the ignition when the door is open. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection."

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the instrument cluster, free of charge. The recall began December 13, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 90L3 and 90L4.

Recall air bags, air bag control module 2018-08-20 · NHTSA campaign 18V537000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Atlas vehicles. During production, the air conditioning system drain tube may have been twisted, causing water to drain into the air bag control module.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the air conditioning drain tube, and if it is twisted, the drain tube and air bag control module will be replaced, free of charge. Some of the affected vehicles have had their drain tube previously replaced but did not receive a new air bag control module; the airbag control module will be replaced in these vehicles. The recall began September 14, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 87F9.

Recall hydraulic brakes, foundation components, disc, caliper 2018-08-15 · NHTSA campaign 18V536000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Atlas and 2017-2018 Volkswagen Passat vehicles. The brake caliper bracket mounting bolts on these vehicles may not have been tightened sufficiently.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the brake caliper bracket bolt tightness, replacing and re-torque the bolts as necessary, free of charge. Additionally brake caliper fasteners, bleeder valve, and brake hose bolts will be checked and torqued to the correct specification, if necessary, free of charge. For Passat vehicles, dealers will also inspect the parking brake cable for proper connection, free of charge. The recall began September 14, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 46H6.

Recall seat belts, rear or other, buckle 2018-06-07 · NHTSA campaign 18V380000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswaen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Atlas vehicles. The owner's manuals provided with the affected vehicles do not inform the customers about the child restraint size limitation/restrictions for the second row center seating position. As a result, the center and adjacent outboard seat belt buckles on the second row can become damaged it a child seat base is installed that is wider than 12.6 inches.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the center and left outboard seat belt buckles, and replace them if necessary, free of charge. Volkswagen will also provide an owner's manual supplement addressing child safety and child restraints. The recall began June 29, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69X1.

Recall air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator 2018-06-06 · NHTSA campaign 18V375000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Atlas and Tiguan vehicles. In the event of a crash, the passenger frontal air bag may tear or not properly unfold during deployment.

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag, free of charge. The recall began July 19, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 69W8, and 69W9.

Recall hydraulic brakes, foundation components, disc, caliper 2018-06-01 · NHTSA campaign 18V369000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Volkswagen Atlas, Passat, Beetle, Beetle Convertible, Golf, Golf SportWagen and GTI and Audi Q5 and SQ5 vehicles. The brake caliper pistons on these vehicles may have insufficient coating, potentially reducing the brake performance.

Remedy Volkswagen and Audi will notify their owners. Audi dealers will bleed the rear brakes. Volkswagen dealers will bleed the front and rear brake calipers. Note: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the brake system has been checked. The recall began June 29, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298 and Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 47N8, 47N9, and 47N6.

Recall gasoline fuel system, storage, tank 2018-05-02 · NHTSA campaign 18V284000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain Volkswagen Atlas vehicles. The fuel tank on these vehicles may leak fuel due to a manufacturing error. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 301, "Fuel System Integrity."

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began June 22, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20AW. Note: This recall is an expansion of recall 17V-766.

Recall gasoline fuel system, storage 2017-11-29 · NHTSA campaign 17V766000

Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018 Atlas vehicles. The fuel tank may have been manufactured with insufficient wall thickness, potentially resulting in the tank leaking fuel. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 301, "Fuel System Integrity."

Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began December 10, 2017. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20AQ.

Complaints by component (461 total)

Electrical system

110

Air bags

100

Engine

Service brakes

Fuel and propulsion system

Forward collision avoidance

Steering

Seats

Powertrain

Exterior lighting

Seat belts

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Speed control

Suspension

Structure

Lane departure

Back-over prevention

Engine and engine cooling

Fuel system, gasoline

Visibility and wipers

Equipment

Tires

Wheels

Hydraulic brakes

Latches, locks, and linkages

Other or not sure

Visibility

Show 19 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"Fuel line leak due to the angle the manufacturer line is coming out of the fuel tank. Rubbing on the line caused a wear on the line, gas leak and has to be repaired and rerouted by mechanic to keep this from happening…"
Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-08-24
"Fuel gauge suddenly changes its reading, sometimes dropping to a zero level indication while driving! The readings frequently change up and down, so if the previous reading before a drop to completely empty is…"
Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-08-19
"EPC light Tire light My cold air doesn't work, cruise control, heating on driver side mirror. Not sure what else. I made my first car payment in June 2026. Looks like I got a lemon vehicle."
Electrical system, Forward collision avoidance · filed 2026-08-05
"P255 / 50 R 20 Tire light stays on. Right front tire is low. I have to fill up all 4 tires. I just purchased this vehicle. Was I sold a lemon? My cold air doesn't work now either. I just made my 3rd payment on this…"
Tires · filed 2026-08-05
"When attempting to drive out of a steep driveway to turn onto a main arterial, the car interpreted the hill as a potential collision and turned on the emergency braking. This left me half-way in the lane, at a complete…"
Forward collision avoidance · filed 2026-07-31

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
Atlas	3.6L, 6-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	Front-wheel drive	18	25	20 MPG	$3250
Atlas	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	Front-wheel drive	22	26	24 MPG	$2700
Atlas 4motion	3.6L, 6-cyl	Automatic (8-speed)	All-wheel drive	17	23	19 MPG	$3400

Specs and fitment

1st generation, 2018–2023

Body styles SUV

Oil VW 502.00/504.00 5W-30 (VR6 or 2.0T per manual) , 6 qt capacity

Tire size 255/50R20

Towing capacity 5,000 lbs

Known issues for this generation

NHTSA safety recall 22V152000 covers affected vehicles after the agency found that volkswagen 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 driver or passenger front side air bag during a side impact crash. A delayed air bag deployment can increase the risk of injury. Remedy: Dealers will secure and, as necessary, replace any the front door wiring harnesses showing a fault code, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 20, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 97GF.

Compare

Next year 2019 Volkswagen Atlas See every Volkswagen Atlas model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas reliable?

What are common problems with a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas?

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (110 of 461), then Air bags (100) and Engine (97). Those filings include 8 that report a crash and 13 that report an injury.

Is the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2019 Atlas has 480 complaints, 38 per year. The 2018 has more complaints per year than the 2019.

Has the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas been recalled?

The 2018 Volkswagen Atlas has 17 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas?

Owners have filed 461 complaints about the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2018 Volkswagen Atlas get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2018 Volkswagen Atlas is 21 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What engine oil does a Volkswagen Atlas use?

US Atlas manuals specify VW-approved oil for the VR6 or 2.0T engine in the maintenance section.

What does NHTSA recall 22V-152 cover on the Volkswagen Atlas?

NHTSA safety recall 22V152000 covers affected vehicles after the agency found that volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

What generation is the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas?

1st generation (2018-2023).