The Schafer Law Office

Failing Ignition Coils on Volkswagen May Cause Fatal Accidents

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration heightened its investigation on Volkswagen Passats with 4-cylinder turbo engines.  The case was started way back 2002-03 model years after receiving 16 reports that faulty ignition coils caused either fires or a loss of power on 4- and 6-cylinder engines.  And until now, investigation goes deeper into possible problems on nearly 500,000 Volkswagen Passats wherein its primary concern was fires caused by failing ignition coils.  And up to this year, there was a report that they had received 14 complaints of fire and 21 complaints of ignition coil failures that caused vehicles to suddenly lose power.  Volkswagen reported another 199 complaints although it was not clear how many of those involved fires.

In 2003, Volkswagen had a serious problem with ignition coils.  These ignition coils produce the high-voltage current that fires the sparkplugs. Some automakers use a single coil, but VW has one for each sparkplug -- four coils, for instance, on a four-cylinder engine. If a coil fails, the sparkplug will not fire and the engine will lose power.  One owner narrated his experience with the vehicle wherein he was traveling at 60 M.P.H. on the road and then his car started to shake and lost power.  With this incident, it nearly caused an auto accident as others were trying to avoid colliding with his car.  

As a Kentucky personal injury attorney I urge everyone who owns a Volkswagen Passat to have their car checked out by a qualified mechanic. The loss of power could cause a serious car accident. Take this simple precaution to help avoid serious injuries in a Kentucky automobile accident.