There are 2 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2020 Volkswagen Atlasin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The contact owns a 2020 Volkswagen Atlas. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted with the Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS) and Electronic Power Control (EPC) warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was restarted; however, the failure recurred. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 116,000.
Since I purchased this vehicle for my wife, she has repeatedly called me in tears regarding the vehicle turning itself off in school parking lots, stop lights, stopping at stop signs, and in drive through lanes. The car will show error messages such as "START ENGINE MANUALLY" or "AUTO START/STOP FAILURE." This has nearly caused a number of accidents when the car is turned off in the middle of the street. The only option to get the car restarted is to put it into park, then turn the car off and back on again - which at a busy intersection can put you into a panic. I have taken the car to the dealer a few times and told each time that they find nothing wrong since there are no error codes at the time. I spoke with the dealer on 10/10/23 since it was in the shop in early October - I was told that they are experiencing this issue with numerous VW Atlas, it is a known issue, however there is no fix. I was told to reach out to VW North America. I spoke with Nick from VW NA today who told me that my best option is to try a different VW dealer. This has been an ongoing issue with the vehicle since we purchased, but it is happening more frequently - upwards of numerous times per week. There are no signs that the car is going to turn itself off with issue - it has done it even when the AUTO START/STOP system is disabled (this needs to be manually disabled each time the car starts). My wife is at the point that she does not want to drive the vehicle anymore as she is afraid of the safety of the kids.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026