2023 Volkswagen Taos Electrical Problems

Mileage when the problem started

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2023 Volkswagen Taos owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The contact owns a 2023 Volkswagen Taos. The contact stated while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The ETC (Electronic Throttle Control) warning light illuminated. In addition, the engine revved independently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the cam shaft timing had failed. The timing belt and cam magnet were replaced. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving 45 MPH, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal and the engine revved independently. The ETC warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and was diagnosed that the cam shaft sensor had failed. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that recently the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. …

Purchased a 2023 VW Taos SE on December 21st, 2022, with 11 miles on it. The first check engine light came on the end of January 2023 and it started having the acceleration lagging issue right before that. Dealer said it was a fuel issue and fixed it. Second check engine light was in March, dealer said to not top off the gas when pumping and fixed it. Third check engine light came on in April and VW Corporate's Service team got involved, claimed it was an emissions issue and fixed it. This entire time, the acceleration lagging issue continued sporadically. To the point you would have to floor the accelerator to get it to move, especially when changing lanes in traffic. Which a 2-3 second delay is dangerous! I had a car behind me honk, because the Taos was not accelerating. No matter what the dealer did to fix it, it did not work. …

SUMMARY OF SAFETY HAZARD: I am reporting a catastrophic and unpredictable loss of motive power in a 2023 Volkswagen Taos (4Motion with DQ381 DSG Transmission). The vehicle presents a critical electronic sensor failure within the transmission mechatronics unit that causes the vehicle to enter an immediate "Limp Mode" without warning. This has resulted in several near-miss incidents where the vehicle became immobilized in active traffic and on high-speed roadways. TECHNICAL DATA OF FAILURE: Factory-level ODIS diagnostic logs (recorded Feb 3 and March 17, 2026) reveal that the transmission's "Actual position clutch 1" reports a constant value of -0.69 bar. In an automotive hydraulic system engineered for positive pressure, a reading of -0.69 bar is a physical impossibility (a vacuum state). …

The vehicle begins to feel like it is skipping while driving. The EPC light comes on, the dashboard beeps and indicates lane assist is unavailable, check engine sign illuminates. The vehicle will drive for a short time but then jerks and just stops. This has happened at least 3 times. Dealer has already replaced the fuel pump, electrical wiring and some switch that wasn't readying properly. After the fuel pump was replaced, the tank was filled, continue to track down miles and gallons. When the vehicle got to 135 travel miles left and one notch above the gas tank, it jerked and stopped immediately at an unsafe spot on the road. The sensor was not properly reading the gas and the tank was empty! This last incident was the same evening after an inspection and 60K service. This vehicle is unsafe and VW should be making this right. …

While driving Dec 10, 2024 my VW Taos failed to accelerate after slowing at an intersection. If this happens when I'm turning, on coming traffic has to slow down unexpectedly. The EPC light and check engine light came on. Car would not go above 15-20 mph. Called dealer and cautiously drove car to dealer. The mechanic said a popped fuse was reason the lights came on and car wouldn't accelerate. They replaced 10A fuse and said codes/lights corrected. Now on 12/23/24 same exact issue has occurred. This is a huge safety concern. Taos 2022 models had a safety recall for a fuel delivery module that was causing that exact same issues and EPC and check engine light to come on. I am waiting for the dealer to call me back now to discuss how serious this really is and to get them to acknowledge they didn't truly diagnose the vehicle the first time (given the 2022 Taos safety recall). …

I purchased the 2023 Taos SE at the beginning of may. When accelerating on the highway, the ACC light and engine light came on and the car started rapidly decelerating. Lane assist, cruise control and ACC were not able to be used. I managed to pull to the side of the road, and was towed to a VW dealership in Rochester. The computer came back saying it was bad fuel. They drained the fuel, and charged us due to user error/using the wrong fuel. I have confirmation from the gas station this is incorrect. The next day, the same incident happened when accelerating on the highway. My hometown dealer also ran a report and it came back as bad fuel. They drained the fuel, but kept the car to test drive. I refused to take it back until a different solution was found. They finally were able to recreate the situation, and said there was an issue with a fuel injector module. …

Within the first 24 hours of picking up this new car warnings for 3000rpm max appeared, engine overheating and potential damage to engine components appears and engine functioning was decreased, exhaust control malfaction message, and electronic engine control message with associated symbol for lane assist warning message. When the electronic engine control message with checklight appeared, acceleration was impaired and it was difficult to speed up on the road. There was the potential for fire and gasoline explosion and risk to drivers and passengers due to possible collision accidents. I have brought the car to the dealership and was turned away the first time due to being told it was low voltage. …

I was driving home from work in rush hour so traffic was pretty heavy and all of the sudden my gas pedal would not accelerate my car at all. I was cruising at 8-10 MPH as it was stop and go traffic. About 10 seconds later my break pedal stiffens and I am unable to break. Neither the gas or break pedal were functioning. It is a miracle that no accident was caused. I turned on my hazards lights but I was in the middle lane so I was unable to pull over (as I could not accelerate or break). I put my car in neutral but that did not help anything. I ended up having to put my car in park and turn the car completely off and back on before the pedals would function again. I got my car towed after the situation as I was terrified to drive in case it happened again. The dealership told me since no lights or codes came up they can't find anything wrong. …

The infotainment touch screen on my 2023 Volkswagen Taos has completely blacked out and failed, leaving my backup camera entirely inoperable. This has created a severe blind-spot hazard where I cannot safely reverse. On top of this failure, the vehicle has a chronic history of being in and out of the dealership service department for unresolved fuel system problems, specifically regarding the fuel injectors and fuel lines under warranty. The dealership has repeatedly failed to permanently fix this fuel defect. Now, the car actively loses engine acceleration and drops into a dangerous slow crawl ('limp mode') at busy intersections when the air conditioning is running, forcing me to turn off the climate control just to move safely. Combined, these recurring powertrain and electrical defects create an immediate, severe safety hazard for myself and my young children while driving.

While I was driving down the road going 40 mph I heard and felt the engine stop. My dashboard display and stereo cut off, and the check engine light, check oil light, check battery light, and tire pressure alert light came on. I could not accelerate my car or move it forward at all, I could not see the speedometer due to the dashboard display going out. I pulled over and put the vehicle in park before turning it off. I waited a minute or two and turned it back on with no issue, it proceeded to drive with no further problems. I took it in to the dealership where I purchased the car and they told me they performed all the checks possible and found no issue with the vehicle. They were unable to reproduce the issue when they drove the car. As of now this has happened once in this vehicle.

Electrical complaints in other Taos years