The 1987 Volkswagen Cabriolet has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 337,020 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 12 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the fuel system, gasoline. Last updated July 5, 2026.
A CRACK CAN DEVELOP IN THE FUEL TANK ADJACENT TO A SEAM WELD IN THE REAR OF THE TANK.
FUEL CAN LEAK FROM THE CRACKED FUEL TANK WHICH COULD CATCH FIRE IN THE PRESENCE OF A SOURCE OF IGNITION.
DEALERS WILL CHECK THE VEHICLE WITH A SPECIALLY DESIGNED TOOL FOR THE PRESENCE OF A TANK CRACK, AND REPLACE THE FUEL TANK IF THE DEFECT IS PRESENT.
A CRACK CAN DEVELOP IN THE FUEL TANK ADJACENT TO A SEAM WELD IN THE REAR OF THE TANK.
FUEL CAN LEAK FROM THE CRACKED FUEL TANK WHICH COULDCATCH FIRE IN THE PRESENCE OF A SOURCE OF IGNITION.
CHECK VEHICLE WITH A SPECIALLY DESIGNED TOOL FOR THE PRESENCE OF A FUEL TANK CRACK, AND REPLACE FUEL TANK IF DEFECT IS FOUND.
FUEL PUMP, LOCATED INSIDE FUEL TANK, COULD SEIZE DURING HIGH AMBIENT TEMPERATURES BECAUSE OF AN EXTREME FINE MESH FUEL FILTER RESTRICTING THE FUEL FLOW.
FUEL SUPPLY TO ENGINE WOULD BE PARTIALLY INTERRUPTED,RESULTING IN STALLING.
INSTALL A MODIFIED FUEL PUMP AND FILTER.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“1 normal driving 2 lower bearing of the steering column falls from bearing race, creates hazardous steering 3 a plastic bearing retainer is the factory replacement and this brakes causing the failure. Replacement does not fix the problem. *tr”
“While driving and with no warning fuel tank cracked, causing fluid to leak. Dealer notified.*ak *jb”
“The heater core exploded onto the consumers legs, the consumer sustained burns to both left and right calves, due to the pain of the hot steam the consumer was forced out of the vehicle while it was still moving as a result the vehicle hit a concrete embankment (attorney for client). Nlm”
“Unable to drive automobile because gas ran out of the vehicle, and spilled all over the manifold. *ak”
“I brought this car to the dealer for work on a leaking fuel tank and after much talking with the dealer and vw of america was able to convince the dealer that the work should be done under a recall (your campaign number either 91v201000 or 94v065000) the dealer also found that the internal fuel…”
“Consumer had found a crack on fuel tank after smelling fuel, and fuel was leaking from tank. Tank had to be repaired. Currently, consumer had found out about recall 94v065000 which dealt with this particular problem. *ak”
“Recall repairs for fuel tank leakage refused since vehicle wa spreviously inspected and no defects were found 41/2 years ago (94v-065). *ak”
“The fuel tank has been repaired twice because of leakage. Once in april of 97 and once in august of 97. The fuel tank is being replaced again because of same problem. *ak”
There is no summary currently available
There is no summary currently available
There is no summary currently available
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1987 Volkswagen Cabriolet as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.