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Selling a junk Volkswagen

Junkyards and junk car buyers take any Volkswagen in any condition. What they pay depends on the car's weight, the scrap steel price, the parts still on it and the tow. Pick your model below for what owners report most, or get an offer now.

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What NHTSA data shows for Volkswagen

Across the 11 Volkswagen models with enough data to count (model years 1995–2022), NHTSA has 40,581 owner complaints on file and 333 recall campaigns. The most-reported components across the make are electrical system (5,808), air bags (3,654), engine (2,999). The Volkswagen Jetta has the most complaints of any Volkswagen, with 13,332. Data as of 2026-10-12.

Complaint counts rise with how many of a model were sold and how long they've been on the road, so a big number mostly means a common car. The useful part is what fails: when the top complaint is electrical system, read our guide to selling a car that doesn't run before you take an offer.

Volkswagen models

ModelModel yearsComplaintsMost reportedRecalls
Volkswagen Jetta1995–202213,332Electrical system64
Volkswagen Passat1995–202210,083Air bags51
Volkswagen Beetle1998–20193,615Transmission and drivetrain32
Volkswagen Tiguan2009–20223,232Engine35
Volkswagen Atlas2018–20222,515Electrical system38
Volkswagen GTI1995–20221,892Transmission and drivetrain27
Volkswagen Golf1995–20221,808Fuel system47
Volkswagen CC2008–20171,359Air bags12
Volkswagen Routan2008–20141,250Electrical system8
Volkswagen Touareg2004–2017945Fuel system12
Volkswagen EOS2007–2016550Air bags7

Guides for selling this car

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