The 1988 Volkswagen Cabriolet has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 58,500 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 8 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.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“In dec. 1999 the frame of my wife lanette parks cabriolet was cracking and splitting without any accident or abnormal driving event to cause it. The frame shop informed me that they see this quite often on vw rabbits, golfs and cabriolets due to a design flaw in the frame. Apparently they added a…”
“Muffler and tailpipe failed.”
“Recall work not completed on gas tank due to inability to find defect at time of inspection, however gas tank failed after inspection resulting in leaking.”
“Front strut failed.”
“Owner states that he smells gas coming from vehicle, he also notes that there was a recall for the fuel tank for this vehicle but his was not included in the recall, owner is concerned for his safety.”
“Consumer received recall notice 94v065000 in refeence to the fuel tank assembly. Daler stated parts were not available. *ak”
“I am 3rd owner of vehicle. The previous owners didnt take far infor recall on gas tank. Fuel smell unbearable unless top is down. They havent been helpful at all in replacing gas tank. Recall was due to bad weld in top of gas tanks that is why the smell is unbearable.”
“Consumer has concerns over the vehicles fuel tank leaking at the tank seam. This particular vehicle was subject to two (2) recalls (91v201 and 94v065). Consumer has not been able to contact any one for making the repairs on the fuel tank.”
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 1988 Volkswagen Cabriolet as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.