2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport recalls and problems

The 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport has 11 safety recalls and 108 owner complaints filed with NHTSA. Recall repairs are free at any Volkswagen dealer.

Urgent: recall 20V-712 carries a "do not drive" warning. Contact a dealer before driving.
Recalls
11
Complaints
108
Crashes / fires
3 / 1
Injuries / deaths
1 / 0

Recalls may cover only some 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. Check your VIN at NHTSA ↗ to see open recalls for your exact car.

2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport recalls

Recall 24V-464: Air Bags

Reported Jun 20, 2024 · 271,330 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021-2024 Atlas and 2020-2024 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may experience a fault in the wiring and deactivate the front passenger air bag when the seat is occupied.

Risk: A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.

Fix: Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and wiring harness, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 30, 2024. Owner notification letters will be mailed in phases, on October 18, 2024, December 10, 2024, December 20, 2024, and January 17, 2025. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69PZ.

Recall 23V-215: Air Bags

Reported Mar 29, 2023 · 143,053 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2021 Atlas and 2020 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may experience a fault in the wiring and deactivate the front passenger air bag when the seat is occupied.

Risk: A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.

Fix: Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and wiring harness, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on March 22, 2024. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69FB.

Recall 22V-815: Tires

Reported Oct 31, 2022 · 296,044 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019 Volkswagen Tiguan LWB, Golf Sportswagen A7, Golf Alltrack, Golf R GP, Audi Q3, Audi A3 Cabriolet, 2019-2020 Jetta NF, Jetta GLI, Golf GTI, Atlas, Golf A7, Audi A3, 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021 Atlas FL vehicles. The tire pressure monitoring system may not detect an air pressure loss in adequate time when deflating occurs among all four tires simultaneously. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 138, "Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems."

Risk: An undetected sudden loss of pressure in all four tires increases the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will update the TPMS software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed November 18, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298 or Audi’s customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are (Audi) 45J7, and (VW) 45J6 and 45J8.

Recall 22V-152: Air Bags

Reported Mar 28, 2022 · 222,892 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Atlas, 2020-2023 Atlas Cross Sport, and 2021-2023 Atlas FL vehicles. The door wiring harness electrical contacts may corrode, disrupting the electrical connection and delaying the deployment of the driver or passenger front side air bag during a side impact crash.

Risk: A delayed air bag deployment can increase the risk of injury.

Fix: Dealers will secure and, as necessary, replace any the front door wiring harnesses showing a fault code, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 20, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 97GF.

Recall 22V-086: Equipment

Reported Feb 16, 2022 · 3,648 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2018-2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles equipped with accessory side steps. The reduced Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) label, reflecting the additional weight of the side steps, was not installed. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."

Risk: Without the reduced GVWR label, the vehicle could be overloaded, leading to a loss of control and increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Dealers will install the reduced GVWR label, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 31, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 09D9.

Recall 21V-892: Air Bags, Visibility

Reported Nov 17, 2021 · 54,429 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The air conditioning system drain tube could be blocked, causing water to leak inside the vehicle near the air bag control module.

Risk: A water leak may damage the air bag control module, causing an inadvertent air bag deployment and increasing the risk of injury or a crash.

Fix: Dealers will repair the drain tube and replace the air bag control module, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 87H4.

Recall 21V-026: Steering

Reported Jan 27, 2021 · 10,303 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The front steering knuckle may fracture in the area of the strut mounting.

Risk: A fractured steering knuckle can cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace one or both steering knuckles, free of charge. The recall began February 16, 2021. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 40Q7.

Recall 20V-712: Steering

Do not driveReported Nov 17, 2020 · 776 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas and 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. One or both steering knuckles may have been damaged during production.

Risk: A damaged steering knuckle can fail, causing a loss of steering, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Volkswagen has notified owners, and dealers will inspect and, as necessary, replace the steering knuckle, free of charge. The recall began November 19, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 40Q6. Note: Owners are advised to DO NOT DRIVE the vehicle until the vehicle has been inspected and repaired if necessary.

Recall 20V-702: Tires

Reported Nov 13, 2020 · 760 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Atlas Cross Sport and 2021 Atlas vehicles equipped with Continental Cross Contact LX Sport tires, size 255/50 R 20 105 T. The tires may have been over cured.

Risk: Over cured tires can result in a sidewall break causing a sudden loss of air pressure or the tread separating from the tire. Both conditions increase the risk of a crash.

Fix: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect DOT date code and mold number on the vehicle's tires to see if they are affected, replacing them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 30, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 44Q5.

Recall 20V-504: Exterior Lighting

Reported Aug 26, 2020 · 11 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2020 Atlas Cross Sports and 2021 Atlas vehicles. The driver's side headlight may have been aimed too low during production. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."

Risk: A headlight aimed incorrectly aimed reduces the driver's visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will adjust the driver's side headlight, free of charge. The recall began September 9, 2020. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 94N7.

Recall 20V-505: Seats

Reported Aug 26, 2020 · 5,376 vehicles affected · Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.

Problem: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen ) is recalling certain 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, Jetta, Jetta GLI and Tiguan and Audi Q5 and SQ5 and 2021 Volkswagen Atlas vehicles. Parts of the front seat frame and backrest adjuster may not have been welded properly.

Risk: In the event of a rear-end crash, the backrest adjustment could break, possibly reducing the amount of occupant restraint, thus increasing risk of injury.

Fix: Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front seats, and, as necessary, replace the seatback frames, free of charge. The recall began September 11, 2020. Volkswagen owners may contact their customer service at 1-888-241-2289. Audi owners may contact their customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Volkswagen's numbers for this recall are 72L1, 72K8, and 72K9.

2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport problems reported by owners

Problem areaReports
Electrical System33
Unknown or Other24
Air Bags23
Service Brakes18
Forward Collision Avoidance16
Engine9
Steering8
Vehicle Speed Control6
Exterior Lighting5
Suspension4
Power Train4
Fuel/Propulsion System4

Most reported parts

  • Forward Collision Avoidance › Automatic Emergency Braking — 13
  • Structure › Body — 4
  • Forward Collision Avoidance › Adaptive Cruise Control — 2
  • Latches/Locks/Linkages › Fueling/Charging Door/Hatch/Port — 1
  • Tires › Tread/Belt — 1
  • Air Bags › Sensor › Occupant Classification › Front Passenger — 1
  • Lane Departure › Blind Spot Detection — 1
  • Forward Collision Avoidance › Warnings — 1

Typical mileage at the time of the problem: 9,000 miles (median of owner reports).

Problems that are not covered by a recall are paid repairs; labor rates follow local mechanic pay — see what auto mechanics earn in each state.

Recent 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport complaints

Owner reports filed with NHTSA, as written (personal details removed). Complaints are not verified by NHTSA.

Power Train · at 38,000 miles · reported Oct 22, 2026
The contact owns a 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The contact stated that while driving, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to respond as intended. The contact became aware of an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle, and the transmission shuddered abnormally. The contact stated that there was an abnormal odor inside the vehicle. The failure mileage was approximately 38,000.
Structure · reported Oct 17, 2026
I am reporting a potential safety defect involving the hood-release mechanism on my 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. The interior hood-release lever/latch has failed, preventing me from opening the hood through the normal release mechanism. This creates a safety concern because I cannot access the engine compartment to check essential fluids, inspect mechanical problems, perform necessary maintenance, or address potentially dangerous conditions such as overheating, leaks, or smoke. After researching this issue, I discovered multiple reports and videos from other Volkswagen Atlas and Atlas…
Air Bags · reported Sep 11, 2026
Air Bag error-seat occupant classification module-passenger side occupant detection sensor is defective. Air bag may not deploy upon impact. Confirmed that airbag sensor is defective at dealership. Airbag error first appeared one week ago at 75k miles. VW will not cover cost to repair defective air bag sensor.
Steering · reported Sep 8, 2026
steering went out completly and the SUV shut off in the middle of the street. had to restart car to get it home. SUV shut off in the middle of a turn. Had the SUV checked at dealership and they found a bad steering unit. I had the SUV in 3 times with the complaint and they found nothing until the warranty ran out. Neillo VW checked it in 2020,2021,2023 and say they found nothing,
Air Bags · reported Aug 27, 2026
Air bag error light lit up with barely over 60k miles. Dealer diagnosis identifies the issue as a faulty Driver Head Curtain Airbag Igniter. Correction is to replace the driver side head curtain airbag assembly at a cost of ~$1,200. The vehicle has never been in an accident nor had the airbags deployed. This seems to be a common issue based on previous comments therefore Volkswagon should step up and include this model/make/year in a safety recall to correct the issue.

Other Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport years

Compare all Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport years · All Volkswagen models

Frequently asked questions

Does the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport have any recalls?

Yes — NHTSA lists 11 recalls for the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport: 24V-464 (air bags), 23V-215 (air bags), 22V-815 (tires), 22V-152 (air bags), 22V-086 (equipment) and more. Not every vehicle is affected, so check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

What is the most common problem with the 2020 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport?

Owners report electrical system problems most often (33 reports), followed by unknown or other (24). The typical mileage when problems were reported is about 9,000 miles.

Are Volkswagen recall repairs free?

Yes. Safety recall repairs are free at authorized Volkswagen dealers, whether you are the first owner or bought the car used.