2006 Volkswagen Phaeton

Owner complaints

What owners report most

1. Engine and engine cooling1
2. Power train1

Latest complaints

• Nov 14, 2011OH
  Engine and engine cooling
  Vehicle IS at 80,000 miles. There IS a coolant hose within the vehicle that connects the oil filter reservoir to the engine block. the hose IS made of plastic and cracks if any of the many factors are met (rapid change in temperature, high coolant temperature, over 75,000 miles). as a…

  Vehicle IS at 80,000 miles. There IS a coolant hose within the vehicle that connects the oil filter reservoir to the engine block. the hose IS made of plastic and cracks if any of the many factors are met (rapid change in temperature, high coolant temperature, over 75,000 miles). as a consequence, the plastic cracks and coolant rapidly seeps out over time. after reading over many forums, this engine, the volkswagen/ audi 4.2L V8 has had this problem for decades. And many complaints have been spoken of the part failing around 75,000 miles (not long after the warranty expires). in addition, the repair to fix the $6 plastic hose requires a full engine drop from the vehicle resulting in a very costly (i was quoted $2600) repair. I was speaking with an audi parts department, and they state this regularly occurs. thus I firmly believe this IS a design problem and IS actually extremely dangerous to the engine, the environment, and to wildlife. with a loss in coolant, air also seeps into the coolant system. thus the engine may overheat (mine like many others have) due to a lack of coolant circulation. however in the process, the coolant reservoir may still appear full as the air pocket IS trapped within the system (thus not setting off low coolant warnings and not letting the owner to insert more coolant) with an overheating engine, this leads to a high concern for safety. in addition, the fact that coolant IS creating half-gallon puddles around my vehicle after each day of work IS also a large environmental concern (not only that, ethylene glycol which IS the main ingredient of most coolant mixtures attracts wildlife as it IS sweet in taste and causes death as the mixture IS incredibly poisonous). *tr

• Apr 21, 2006FL30 mi
  Power train › Automatic transmission
  From day 1 we noticed that this "luxury" vehicle did not shift properly. day 2 we returned the car to be serviced. the dealership kept the car for about 2 months because they could not fix the problem. we contacted the customer service department for volkswagen and filed our complaint. they…

  From day 1 we noticed that this "luxury" vehicle did not shift properly. day 2 we returned the car to be serviced. the dealership kept the car for about 2 months because they could not fix the problem. we contacted the customer service department for volkswagen and filed our complaint. they responded by telling us that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle and that this IS how the vehicle runs and that there IS nothing they could do for us. they did nothing to remedy the situation and while they had the vehicle for 2 months checking into the repair we still had to make the car and insurance payments. very bad product and service experience for us! *Jb

Service bulletins

Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.

• 10253215Exterior Lights, Moisture Accumulation
• 10253214Exterior Lights, Moisture Accumulation
• 10253213Exterior Lights, Moisture Accumulation
• 10252942Damage to Data Link Connector (DLC) from Aftermarket Devices (Cannot Communicate with Vehicle OBD System)
• 10252220All Vehicles with Bluetooth Phone Kit Installed ? Streaming Audio from Phone to Radio
• 10243065VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10243034VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10243008VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10243001VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242996VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242682ODIS Service Update
• 10242400VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242399VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242390VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242381VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242378VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242375VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242372VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10242358VW Elsa Newsletter
• 10241345Electric Coolant Fans Continue to Run after Ignition is Switched OFF
• 10241344Electric Coolant Fans Continue to Run after Ignition is OFF
• 10241342Electric Coolant Fans Continue to Run after Ignition is OFF
• 10241340Engine Oils Which Meet Volkswagen Oil Quality Standard VW 502 00/505 00/505 01 and VW 504 00/507 00
• 10241339Oil Consumption Measurement
• 10241335Oil Consumption Measurement
• 10241333Oil Consumption Measurement
• 10241320Update Programming to Eliminate DTC P0601 Stored in DTC Memory
• 10241311Gasoline Quality
• 10241310Software Version Management
• 10241274Fuel Additive to Help Prevent Sporadic Misfire Faults
• 10241266Squeaks, Rattles, Noise, Repair Materials
• 10241265Fuel Additive to Help Prevent Sporadic Misfire Faults
• 10241264Fuel Additive to Help Prevent Sporadic Misfire Faults
• 10241263Fuel Additive to Help Prevent Sporadic Misfire Faults
• 10241177Update to Volkswagen engine oil standards
• 10240684Fluid capacity chart
• 10240683Fluid capacity chart
• 10240605P0102, P1128, P1296 - WA front oxygen sensor faults
• 10239831Battery, Testing and Charging Using Midtronics VAS6161, MCR340V, InCharge 940, or GRX3000 Charger
• 10239789To detect which line(s) is inoperative, utilize a volt meter to check for 0 V, which will be present after the open in the grid line. The check must be performed with the engine running and heated rear window switched on. Switch OFF the ignition and visually locate the damage. Proceed with checking any other lines as necessary. Once the damaged line is identified, repair utilizing the Repair kit by Permatex ITEM 09117.

Every Volkswagen Phaeton model year

Bars are owner complaints, dots mark years with recalls. Select a year to open its report.