High voltage component, onboard charger, failure caused an electrical fire contained inside the case. It is available for inspection. Unclear on safety concerns. Taken to dealer and a second repair shop and they were unable to identify the issue. I opened the onboard charger and found the evidence of the fire. Has not been inspected by anyone. No warning lights were present before or after the incident.
2019 Volkswagen E-Golf
Owners filed 6 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. No safety recall has been issued.
| Component | Reports | Crashes | Fires | Injuries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Unknown or Other | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Seat Belts | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Power Train | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
What owners reported
Newest filingsI am the owner of a 2019 Volkswagen e-Golf with only 52,000 miles. Recently, an abnormal noise appeared coming from the gearbox during energy regenerative braking. I looked up online and found it's a common problem in Volkswagen e-Golf model. https://www.myvwegolf.com/threads/egolf-scraping-sound-when-driving-in-neutral-coasting-or-regen-braking.16708/ The issue was diagnosed as an internal failure in the motor/gearbox assembly, requiring a complete replacement of the unit. I can't imagine if the part die during driving on highway.
We bought this car certified pre-owned from a dealership last spring. The drivers seatbelt seems to latch but when you pull on it you discover it is not. So it gives the illusion of being latched when it is now, which obviously is very dangerous
The charging pin actuator fails, preventing the vehicle from charging. This was confirmed by the dealer. I had brought the vehicle in multiple times before for the same symptoms.
Car would not start and gave a "Error: Electrical system. Stop!" Warning in the dash. Volkswagen tells me it needs a battery replacement.
THE CAR WAS LAST DRIVEN 9/16/2020 AROUND 5:30PM. IT HAD APPROXIMATELY 90 MILES LEFT AS AN ESTIMATED BATTERY CHARGE. IT WAS PARKED IN MY DRIVEWAY. ON 9/17 3:20PM OR SO I WALKED OUT OF MY HOUSE AND SMELLED SOMETHING BURNING. I OPENED THE CAR DOOR AND HEARD AN ALERT AND THE DISPLAY SAID ELECTRICAL SYSTEM ERROR. I TRIED TURNING THE CAR ON AND OFF A FEW TIMES, NOTICED A LIGHT SMELL INSIDE THE CAR. I CONTINUED TO GET THE ELECTRICAL ERROR MESSAGE. I CALLED FOR VW ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE, TOOK THE CAR SEATS OUT, AND WHILE WAITING TO BE CONNECTED TO ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE I HEARD A SMALL POP SOUND AND A LITTLE SMOKE COME FROM THE HOOD AREA. MY HUSBAND CALLED 9-1-1. WITHIN ABOUT 5 MINUTES, WE HEARD MORE POPPING, SAW MORE SMOKE, AND THEN SAW FLAMES COMING FROM BENEATH THE CAR. A FIRE ENGINE ARRIVED AND WORKED ON PUTTING OUT THE FIRE. THE BATTERY HEATED/SMOKED/FLARED UP FOR ABOUT 3 HOURS UNTIL IT WAS DEEMED SAFELY OUT, AND FIREFIGHTERS LEFT. AS OF NOW, 3:30PM ON 9/18/2020, THERE ARE STILL FLARE UPS ON THE BATTERY AND IT IS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENT. PLEASE HELP WITH THIS INVESTIGATION AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE. THIS CAR IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
6 of 6 complaints, reproduced as filed.
Reading this record
No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.
Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.