NHTSA Complaint #10609417 — 2007 VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT

AS MY HUSBAND WAS DRIVING OUR VOLKSWAGEN HOME FROM WORK, HE WAS MERGING ONTO AN INTERSTATE AT RUSH HOUR, AND JUST AS HE GOT UP TO SPEED, THE PARKING BRAKE ENGAGED (IT'S ELECTRIC--IT JUST TURNED ITSELF ON!). HE MANAGED TO STOP SAFELY AND HAD IT TOWED TO THE VW DEALER, WHERE THEY LOOKED AT IT AND CALLED US WITH AN LONG LIST OF THINGS THAT WOULD NEED TO BE FIXED--THE VALVES BLEW, THE CV JOINTS CRACKED, THE TRANSMISSION BASICALLY EXPLODED, ETC ETC ETC. IT'S ABOUT $6K WORTH OF REPAIRS! WE HAD IT INSPECTED ONLY 2 WEEKS BEFORE AND EVERYTHING WAS FINE, SO WE'RE PRETTY SURE THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE PARKING BRAKE SUDDENLY ENGAGES AT THAT 70 MPH. I DON'T KNOW HOW MY HUSBAND MANAGED TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. I AM CERTAIN I WOULD HAVE BEEN IN A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. FURTHER RESEARCH ONLINE SHOWS THAT THE ELECTRONIC PARKING BRAKE ON THE 2005-2010 PASSATS FREQUENTLY HAD PROBLEMS, DISENGAGING OR ENGAGING UNPREDICTABLY. THE VW DEALER SERVICE DESK TOLD US THAT THEY HAD SEEN A SIMILAR PROBLEM ON A CC SPORT JUST TWO WEEKS PRIOR (THEY ACTUALLY NOTED THIS IN THE DIAGNOSTIC REPORT THEY GAVE US). I WAS TELLING THIS STORY AT CHURCH, AND A LADY OVERHEARD AND TOLD ME THAT THE SAME THING HAD HAPPENED IN HER VW--THOUGH LUCKILY THEY WEREN'T GOING SO FAST AND THERE WERE NO OTHER CARS AROUND. *TR