The 1980 Volkswagen Rabbit has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 1,173,000 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 2 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the vehicle speed control. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE FUEL PUMP MAY STOP FUNCTIONING WITHOUT WARNING. THIS CAN OCCUR BECAUSE AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR IN THE FUSE PANEL MAY OVERHEAT AND INTERRUPT THE ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT.
DEALER WILL INSPECT THE FUSE BOX AND ITS CONNECTORS FOR CORROSION, AND CORRECT WHERE NECESSARY. A BYPASS ADAPTER TO THE FUEL PUMP ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT WILL BE INSTALLED.
ON SOME VEHICLES, THE PRESSURE COULD INCREASE INSIDE THE FUEL TANK FROM HIGH SURROUNDING TEMPERATURES WHEN THE FUEL TANK IS MORE THAN HALF FULL.
DEALER WILL INSTALL A RESTRICTOR VALVE INTO THE FUEL FILLER PIPE, WITHOUT CHARGE TO OWNER.
THE ACCELERATOR CABLE WHICH LEADS FROM THE TRANSMISSION LEVER TO THE THROTTLE HOUSING MAY MALFUNCTION. ACCELERATOR CABLE MAY HAVE BEEN BENT DURING INSTALLATION OR DURING SERVICING OF ENGINE COMPONENTS. THIS COULD CAUSE THE STEEL BAND CABLE TO BIND AND CAN RESULT IN DELAYED RESPONSE DURING DECELERATION, HIGH ENGINE…
THE ACCELERATOR CABLE WILL BE REPLACED WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED ONE. IN ADDITION, OTHER COMPONENTS OF THE ACCELERATION SYSTEM WILL BE CHECKED, LUBRICATED, AND IF NECESSARY, REPLACED. THIS WILL BE DONE WITHOUT CHARGE.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“The vehicle suddenly accelerated when no force was applied to the gas pedal. *ak”
“The vehicle suddenly accelearted when onedid not apply force to the gas pedal. *ak”
FUEL PUMP
REAR VIEW MIRROR
FUEL PUMP CIRCUIT
THROTTLE STICKING CASE - C81-02
UNCONTROLLED ACCELERATION
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1980 Volkswagen Rabbit as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.