Reliable Auto DB

2019 Volkswagen Atlas reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 480 complaints with NHTSA about the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas over 8 years — 38 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Atlas years here — under the median of the other years, which is 45. NHTSA has 12 recalls on file, including Steering, Curtain, and Front passenger seat weight sensor.

2018 Volkswagen Atlas
Photo by Kevauto, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Complaints

480

Per year

38

Recalls

12

Years on the road

8

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Air bags (141 of 480), then Service brakes (76) and Electrical system (75). Those filings include 7 that report a crash and 9 that report an injury.

Next to 2018 and 2020

The 2018 Atlas has 461 complaints, 66 per year, and the 2020 has 27 complaints, 4 per year. The 2019 has fewer complaints per year than the 2018. The 2019 has more complaints per year than the 2020.

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 2019 Volkswagen Atlas. How we count. Data as of .

Recalls (12)

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 air bags, side and window, curtain 2023-10-04 · NHTSA campaign 23V671000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Atlas vehicles. The driver's side impact air bag may be missing a weld at the side air bag housing.
Remedy Dealers will replace the driver's side impact air bag, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 19, 2023. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69FK.
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 tires, tire pressure monitoring 2022-10-31 · NHTSA campaign 22V815000
Summary Volkswagen 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 FL vehicles. The tire pressure monitoring system may not detect an air pressure loss in adequate time when deflating occurs among all four tires simultaneously. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 138, "Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems."
Remedy Dealers will update the TPMS software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 18, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi’s customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are (Audi) 45J7, and (VW) 45J6 and 45J8.
Recall air bags, side and window 2022-03-28 · NHTSA campaign 22V152000
Summary 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.
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.
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 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 gasoline fuel system, storage, tank 2019-08-21 · NHTSA campaign 19V614000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Atlas vehicles. The suction jet in the fuel tank may have been welded in the incorrect position allowing fuel to leak. Additionally, the vehicle may stall due to uneven fuel distribution.
Remedy Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel tank, free of charge. The recall began August 30, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 20BU.
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 air bags, side and window 2019-03-20 · NHTSA campaign 19V218000
Summary Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Atlas and 2020 Passat vehicles. An incorrect driver and/or front passenger side impact air bag may have been installed.
Remedy Volkswagen has inspected and replaced the side air bags, free of charge. The recall was completed in April 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69Y8.
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.

Complaints by component (480 total)

Air bags
141
Service brakes
76
Electrical system
75
Forward collision avoidance
72
Engine
60
Steering
38
Powertrain
34
Fuel and propulsion system
32
Suspension
17
Speed control
13
Wheels
11
Seat belts
9
Back-over prevention
8
Seats
8
Structure
7
Visibility and wipers
7
Lane departure
6
Electronic stability control (ESC)
4
Tires
4
Fuel system, gasoline
3
Parking brake
3
Visibility
3
Exterior lighting
2
Chest clip, buckle, and harness
1
Latches, locks, and linkages
1
Show 17 more Show less
Crash-flagged

7

Fire-flagged

0

Injury reports

9

Death reports

0

Complaints filed per year

120183720195220202520218220221242023632024522025442026
Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings
  • "Vehicle would stall out of no where every time I would accelerate or put into reverse. Sometimes when I turned into intersections it would stall out. There was no check engine light until over a week later stating evap…"
    Unknown or other, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-09-24
  • "The steering wheel does a lot of shaking when turning or on any bumps/holes on the road/highway. The car tremors as the steering wheel shakes. Noisy tremors. And the wheels feel as if they wobble. This has recently been…"
    Steering · filed 2026-09-23
  • "Vehicle’s error stop sensor is no longer working: vehicle manages to just completely shut off mid traffic. Also, fuel tank failure. We put gas in it, but it doesn’t show the correct gas level in it. And we’re putting…"
    Electrical system, Fuel and propulsion system · filed 2026-09-19
  • "The plastic seat-release and folding handles on both sides of the second-row seats completely fractured, crumbled, and fell apart under ordinary hand pressure while attempting to fold the seats to install and access…"
    Electrical system, Wheels, Seats · filed 2026-09-19
  • "The car began to make a clacking or popping sound in the steering rack area. Mostly at slow speeds, when turning. The car began exhibiting a steering wobble at very slow speeds, but felt loose at higher speeds.…"
    Steering · filed 2026-09-18

Fuel economy

Trim Engine Transmission Drive City Hwy Combined Annual fuel cost
Atlas 2L, 4-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Front-wheel drive 20 26 22 MPG $2950
Atlas 3.6L, 6-cyl Automatic (8-speed) Front-wheel drive 17 24 19 MPG $3400
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

Previous year 2018 Volkswagen Atlas Next year 2020 Volkswagen Atlas See every Volkswagen Atlas model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas reliable?

Owners have filed 480 complaints with NHTSA about the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas over 8 years — 38 per year. That is fewer complaints per year than most Atlas years here — under the median of the other years, which is 45. NHTSA has 12 recalls on file, including Steering, Curtain, and Front passenger seat weight sensor.

What are common problems with a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas?

The complaints owners file most often name Air bags (141 of 480), then Service brakes (76) and Electrical system (75). Those filings include 7 that report a crash and 9 that report an injury.

Is the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2018 Atlas has 461 complaints, 66 per year, and the 2020 has 27 complaints, 4 per year. The 2019 has fewer complaints per year than the 2018. The 2019 has more complaints per year than the 2020.

Has the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas been recalled?

The 2019 Volkswagen Atlas has 12 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 2019 Volkswagen Atlas?

Owners have filed 480 complaints about the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2019 Volkswagen Atlas get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2019 Volkswagen Atlas is 20 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).