Total Complaints
15 filings
VOLKSWAGEN SCIROCCO · model year
15 NHTSA complaints for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1987VOLKSWAGENSCIROCCO carries 15 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 1987 SCIROCCO is fuel system, gasoline:storage:tank assembly with 8 filings, followed by power train:manual transmission (3) and power train:automatic transmission (3). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 37 investigation files overlapping the 1987 SCIROCCO, and 2 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
Total Complaints
15 filings
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY | 8 |
| POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION | 3 |
| POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | 3 |
| POWER TRAIN | 1 |
MY CAR BEGAN LEAKING GAS RECENTLY. WHEN I LOOKED UNDER THE CAR I COULD SEE (AND I HAVE WITNESSES) THAT GAS IS RUNNING DOWN THE SIDE OF THE GAS TANK WHEN I FILL THE TANK UP. I FOUND OUT FROM SPEAKING TO SCIROCCO OWNERS ONLINE THAT MANY EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM, AND SHOWED ME THE RECALL ON THE DEFECTIVE GAS TANK LISTED ON NHTSA.DOT.GOV. I THEN TOOK THE CAR TO A VOLKSWAGEN (VW) DEALER TO INSPECT IT. RICH AT THE VW DEALER IN BURLINGTON, NJ LOOKED AT THE BOTTOM OF THE CAR SAID "THE LEAK COULD BE FROM ANYWHERE SINCE I SEE RUST ON THE BOTTOM OF THE CAR, I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THE LEAK IS COMING FROM, BUT I REPLACE EVERYTHING UNDER THE CAR FOR $2100. I THEN NOTIFIED VW USA ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND RECALL AND ASKED THEM TO REMOVE AND TEST THE GAS TANK FOR LEAKAGE. VW USA REFUSES TO ACKNOWLEDGE A RECALL CAMPAIGN ON MY VEHICLE, AND THEY REFUSE TO REMOVE AND TEST THE GAS TANK FOR LEAKAGE, AND REPLACEMENT!! PLEASE NOTE: I HAVE THE MEMO THAT VA SENT TO DEALERSHIPS IN 1991, AND IT C
Mileage: 144,023
CONTACTED VW DEALERSHIP AFTER BEING NOTIFIED REPEATEDLY BY VWOA TO GET THE TANK REPLACED AND THEY REFUSED TO CHANGE IT AFTER HAVING THE CAR FOR A DAY AND PUTTING 30 MILES ON IT...AM I GOING TO BLOW UP NOW? ALSO..CIRCLIPS IN TRANSMISSION CASING MADE THE TRANSMISSION GRENADE AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. *NLM' **DIMSII IVOQ ENTRY POSTED AFTER 12/12/02 CUT-OVER TO ARTEMIS*734286
CONTACTED VW DEALERSHIP AFTER BEING NOTIFIED REPEATEDLY BY VWOA TO GET THE TANK REPLACED AND THEY REFUSED TO CHANGE IT AFTER HAVING THE CAR FOR A DAY AND PUTTING 30 MILES ON IT...AM I GOING TO BLOW UP NOW? ALSO..CIRCLIPS IN TRANSMISSION CASING MADE THE TRANSMISSION GRENADE AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. *NLM' **DIMSII IVOQ ENTRY POSTED AFTER 12/12/02 CUT-OVER TO ARTEMIS*734286
CONTACTED VW DEALERSHIP AFTER BEING NOTIFIED REPEATEDLY BY VWOA TO GET THE TANK REPLACED AND THEY REFUSED TO CHANGE IT AFTER HAVING THE CAR FOR A DAY AND PUTTING 30 MILES ON IT...AM I GOING TO BLOW UP NOW?> ALSO... CIRCLIPS IN TRANSMISSION CASING MAKE THE TRANSMISSION GRENADE AND HAVE TO BE REPLACED.
NO SUMMARY. *AK
THE VW TRANSMISSION, KNOWN AS THE 020, ON THE 16V MODELS ARE GARBAGE. RING GEAR RIVITS SHEAR AND ARE PUNCHED THROUGH THE HOUSING DESTROYING THE UNIT COMPLETELY. I HAVE GONE THROUGH FIVE AND HAVE SEEN SEVERAL OTHER OWNERS FALL VICTOM TO THIS POORLY MANUFACTURED PART. VW CLAIMS NO RESPONSIBILITY AND OWNERS ARE LEFT TO FIX THEIR CARS OUT OF POCKET.*AK
I OWN 2 1987 VW SCIROCCOS, BOTH HAVE HAD SUDDEN AND CATOSTROPHIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHICH COMPLETLY DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSIONS, BOTH LOCKED UP ON THE ROAD AND NEARLY CAUSED HORRIFIC ACCIDENTS. THIS PROBLEM EXISTS IN SEVERAL MODELS WITH THIS TYPE OF TRANSMISSION AND HAS BEEN IGNORED BY VW AND VWOA. THIS CAR ALSO HAS A LEAKING FUEL TANK WHICH I HAVE TRIED TO HAVE REPAIRED BUT THE DEALERS REFUSE TO EVEN CONFIRM THE PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH LARGE GROUPS OF VW OWNERS WITH THESE PROBLEMS, AND THE RESULTS FROM DEALER INSPECTIONS OR JUST COMPLETE LACK OF THEM DUE TO THE DEALERS NOT WANTING TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. IT IS TIME TO GO AFTER THESE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME SWIFT ACTION THAT WAS TAKEN WITH FIRESTONE AND FORD BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED. I AM GOING BACK TO THE VW OWNERS GROUP AND HAVE THEM SEND YOU INFORMATION AS WELL. IF THERE IS AN ADDRESS WHERE WE CAN COMPLAIN, PLEASE ADVISE.
I OWN 2 1987 VW SCIROCCOS, BOTH HAVE HAD SUDDEN AND CATOSTROPHIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHICH COMPLETLY DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSIONS, BOTH LOCKED UP ON THE ROAD AND NEARLY CAUSED HORRIFIC ACCIDENTS. THIS PROBLEM EXISTS IN SEVERAL MODELS WITH THIS TYPE OF TRANSMISSION AND HAS BEEN IGNORED BY VW AND VWOA. THIS CAR ALSO HAS A LEAKING FUEL TANK WHICH I HAVE TRIED TO HAVE REPAIRED BUT THE DEALERS REFUSE TO EVEN CONFIRM THE PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH LARGE GROUPS OF VW OWNERS WITH THESE PROBLEMS, AND THE RESULTS FROM DEALER INSPECTIONS OR JUST COMPLETE LACK OF THEM DUE TO THE DEALERS NOT WANTING TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. IT IS TIME TO GO AFTER THESE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME SWIFT ACTION THAT WAS TAKEN WITH FIRESTONE AND FORD BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED. I AM GOING BACK TO THE VW OWNERS GROUP AND HAVE THEM SEND YOU INFORMATION AS WELL. IF THERE IS AN ADDRESS WHERE WE CAN COMPLAIN, PLEASE ADVISE.
I OWN 2 1987 VW SCIROCCOS, BOTH HAVE HAD SUDDEN AND CATOSTROPHIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHICH COMPLETLY DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSIONS, BOTH LOCKED UP ON THE ROAD AND NEARLY CAUSED HORRIFIC ACCIDENTS. THIS PROBLEM EXISTS IN SEVERAL MODELS WITH THIS TYPE OF TRANSMISSION AND HAS BEEN IGNORED BY VW AND VWOA. THIS CAR ALSO HAS A LEAKING FUEL TANK WHICH I HAVE TRIED TO HAVE REPAIRED BUT THE DEALERS REFUSE TO EVEN CONFIRM THE PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH LARGE GROUPS OF VW OWNERS WITH THESE PROBLEMS, AND THE RESULTS FROM DEALER INSPECTIONS OR JUST COMPLETE LACK OF THEM DUE TO THE DEALERS NOT WANTING TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. IT IS TIME TO GO AFTER THESE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME SWIFT ACTION THAT WAS TAKEN WITH FIRESTONE AND FORD BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED. I AM GOING BACK TO THE VW OWNERS GROUP AND HAVE THEM SEND YOU INFORMATION AS WELL. IF THERE IS AN ADDRESS WHERE WE CAN COMPLAIN, PLEASE ADVISE.*AK
I OWN 2 1987 VW SCIROCCOS, BOTH HAVE HAD SUDDEN AND CATOSTROPHIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE WHICH COMPLETLY DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSIONS, BOTH LOCKED UP ON THE ROAD AND NEARLY CAUSED HORRIFIC ACCIDENTS. THIS PROBLEM EXISTS IN SEVERAL MODELS WITH THIS TYPE OF TRANSMISSION AND HAS BEEN IGNORED BY VW AND VWOA. THIS CAR ALSO HAS A LEAKING FUEL TANK WHICH I HAVE TRIED TO HAVE REPAIRED BUT THE DEALERS REFUSE TO EVEN CONFIRM THE PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN IN CONTACT WITH LARGE GROUPS OF VW OWNERS WITH THESE PROBLEMS, AND THE RESULTS FROM DEALER INSPECTIONS OR JUST COMPLETE LACK OF THEM DUE TO THE DEALERS NOT WANTING TO MAKE THE REPAIRS. IT IS TIME TO GO AFTER THESE PEOPLE WITH THE SAME SWIFT ACTION THAT WAS TAKEN WITH FIRESTONE AND FORD BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED. I AM GOING BACK TO THE VW OWNERS GROUP AND HAVE THEM SEND YOU INFORMATION AS WELL. IF THERE IS AN ADDRESS WHERE WE CAN COMPLAIN, PLEASE ADVISE.*AK
NO SUMMARY
ALL THREE OF THESE TRANSMISSION FAILURES COST ME A TOTAL OF $2700 DUE TO THE FACT THAT 2 CLIPS WERE TAKEN OUT OF THE DESIGN. THESE TWO CLIPS WOULD HAVE COST THE MFGR ABOUT $0.50 OR SO AND COST ME ALOT MORE THAN THAT
CONTACTED VW DEALERSHIP AFTER BEING NOTIFIED REPEATEDLY BY VWOA TO GET THE TANK REPLACED AND THEY REFUSED TO CHANGE IT AFTER HAVING THE CAR FOR A DAY AND PUTTING 30 MILES ON IT...AM I GOING TO BLOW UP NOW?> ALSO... CIRCLIPS IN TRANSMISSION CASING MAKE THE TRANSMISSION GRENADE AND HAVE TO BE REPLACED.
DEALER DENIED THAT THE GAS TANK WAS DEFECTIVE AND STATED THEY WERE TOO BUSY AND TO COME BACK IN A WEEK OR MORE. GAS TANK WAS INDEED LEAKING FUEL. NLM
VEHICLE EXPERIENCED FAILURE OF THE RECALL COMPONENT PRIOR TO NOTICE (91V-201), DEALER REFUSED REPAIR AND CONSUMER HAD TO GO TO OTHER REPAIR SHOP TO REMEDY LEAKAGE. *MJS
Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking
Inadvertent Door Opening
Fuel Leak due to Suction Jet Pump Failure within Fuel Tank (Remedy Effectiveness of Recall 16V647)
Inadvertent Automatic Emergency Braking
LGES High Voltage Battery Failures
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.