- Safety
- 5
- of 5 stars
- Recalls
- 14
- on record
- MPG
- 20
- combined
Do not drive until repaired
1 active "park it" recall — NHTSA advises against driving this vehicle until the remedy is complete.
Vehicle Summary
2021 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport
Before You Buy
Safety record at a glance
- Recall campaigns
- 14
- Owner complaints
- 159
- Complaints citing a crash
- 9
These are raw counts from NHTSA records. They are not normalized by how many of these vehicles are on the road, so a model that sold in large numbers will tend to show more of everything. We do not publish a composite safety or reliability score.
14 Recalls on Record
1 of these is high-severity. Some may require you to stop driving the vehicle until repaired.
Safety recalls
14 NHTSA campaigns affecting this model year.
- 21V132000high
Tire/wheel issue
WHEELS:RIM
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The lug bolt holes on the wheels may have been machined incorrectly, preventing the wheel bolt from sufficiently attaching to the wheel bearing hub.
- 21V812000high
Tire/wheel issue
WHEELS:LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS/STUDS
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas, Atlas Cross Sport, and Passat vehicles. The front wheel bearing bolts may have been incorrectly tightened.
- 21V892000high
Visibility issue
VISIBILITY:DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER/HVAC SYSTEM
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.
- 20V702000high
Tire/wheel issue
TIRES:SIDEWALL
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.
- 20V712000critical Do not drive
Steering issue
STEERING
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.
- 20V716000high
Rear-visibility system issue
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas Cross Sport, Tiguan LWB, Jetta NF, Jetta GLI, Golf GTI, Atlas FL and Arteon vehicles. The rear view camera could malfunction during an ignition cycle, leading to a black screen or infotainment system freeze. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
- 21V026000high
Steering issue
STEERING
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.
- 21V616000high
Electrical issue
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:RELAYS/SOLENOIDS
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. Damaged relays may have been installed in the engine compartment fuse box, which could inadvertently activate the horn or engine starter.
- 22V086000high
Incorrect or missing label
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
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."
- 22V152000high
Airbag system issue
AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW
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.
- 22V245000high
Fuel system issue
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:FUEL INJECTION SYSTEM:INJECTORS
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Atlas FL and Atlas Cross Sport vehicles. The long fuel injectors may have been assembled without filters.
- 22V514000high
Rear-visibility system issue
BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2021 Golf GTI, Jetta GLI, Jetta NF, Arteon FL, Tiguan LWB, 2022 Taos, Jetta PA, Tiguan PA, 2021-2022 Atlas Cross Sport, and Atlas FL vehicles. The manufacturing process of the eMMC memory module in the infotainment system may cause the rearview camera image not to display. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 111, "Rear Visibility."
- 22V815000high
Tire/wheel issue
TIRES:PRESSURE MONITORING AND REGULATING SYSTEMS
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."
- 24V464000high
Airbag system issue
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION:FRONT PASSENGER
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.
Consumer complaints
159 owner reports filed with NHTSA.
- 159
- Total
- 9
- Crashes
- 1
- Fires
- 7
- Injuries
Most reported components
- AIR BAGS36
- ENGINE34
- BRAKES33
- ELECTRICAL24
- LIGHTING12
Notable Issues
159 consumer complaints filed with NHTSA. 7 reports involve injuries. 9 reports involve a crash.
Most reported problems
Specifications & ratings
Specifications
- Body class
- Small Sport Utility Vehicle 2WD
- Drive type
- Front-Wheel Drive
- Engine
- 3.6L 6-cyl
- Fuel type
- Unknown
- Transmission
- Automatic (S8)
- Seats
- 0
Fuel economy
18
City
23
Hwy
20
Comb
- Annual cost
- $3,000
- Fuel
- Regular Gasoline
NHTSA crash ratings
- Overall
- Frontal
- Side
- Rollover
Explore related
Adjacent model years
All Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport yearsSafety timeline
Full timeline- Recall
A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.
- Recall
An undetected sudden loss of pressure in all four tires increases the risk of a crash.
- Recall
A rearview camera that does not display an image reduces the driver's rear view, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Recall
Long fuel injectors with missing filters may leak fuel, increasing the risk of a fire.
- Recall
A delayed air bag deployment can increase the risk of injury.