[Tbone]

Yesterday when backing out of the garage, I got a warning stating "Warning, Transmission in emergency Mode You can continue to Drive". I put the car in park, then in reverse again and the warning went away. It happened again after being parked in the driveway. This time I put the car in drive, the warning came on. I put it in park and back in drive again and the warning went away. I've searched around and have found that others have had the sane problem with other VW models, including the atlas, but I have not been able to find anyone who has been able to state that there is a recommended fix for this. The car is a Launch Edition Atlas. I apologize if this has been discussed on here in the past. I looked around but couldn't find the topic.

 

[MrAtlas]

Did you check the level of the transmission fluid ?

 

[wrench69]

We are having the same problem with our 20219 Atlas. We've had the car for almost a year now. The problem first occurred last October/November. It only happens when the engine is first warming up. It seems to happen about 5 minutes into the first drive of the day, at around 30-40 mph. Sometimes it is a "one and done", and sometimes it will keep chiming with the message about every 60 seconds. After shutting down the car and restarting, the message doesn't come back (and I think this is because the engine is now warmed up).

We took it into the VW dealer last week to have them look at the issue. They kept it for two days. They ultimately decided the battery was the issue. Apparently, the fault occurs because of a low voltage condition at the transmission, and they think this is due to the battery being faulty. When I picked up the car, the service tech told me they had been having problems with the batteries on the 2018-19 Atlas models, and they've actually gone to a new battery for the 2020 model year to help solve this problem.

Fast forward a whopping 5 days, and the problem is back. I called to get the car back into the shop, and that will happen in about 10 days. I'll give an update when we get the car back.

 

[OSUMFT]

We are having the same problem with our 20219 Atlas. We've had the car for almost a year now. The problem first occurred last October/November. It only happens when the engine is first warming up. It seems to happen about 5 minutes into the first drive of the day, at around 30-40 mph. Sometimes it is a "one and done", and sometimes it will keep chiming with the message about every 60 seconds. After shutting down the car and restarting, the message doesn't come back (and I think this is because the engine is now warmed up).

We took it into the VW dealer last week to have them look at the issue. They kept it for two days. They ultimately decided the battery was the issue. Apparently, the fault occurs because of a low voltage condition at the transmission, and they think this is due to the battery being faulty. When I picked up the car, the service tech told me they had been having problems with the batteries on the 2018-19 Atlas models, and they've actually gone to a new battery for the 2020 model year to help solve this problem.

Fast forward a whopping 5 days, and the problem is back. I called to get the car back into the shop, and that will happen in about 10 days. I'll give an update when we get the car back.

Dear all -- approximately two weeks ago this same situation happened to me in my 2018 Atlas as I had just left the house in the morning, headed down our fairly steeply-pitched driveway. It happened the next day about 2-3 minutes into my drive to work. And, it happened to my husband as we were riding to church together one weekend ago. I took it into my VW service site because it was almost time for an oil change. They couldn't find anything wrong. I was there about two-2.5 hours. After I left I was only about 10 miles down the road when it happened again! I brought the vehicle back and am driving a loaner Jetta while they look at it this morning. The maintenance rep said they had one other customer who had the same complaint and the mechanic had finally found a loose connection somewhere under the hood and it seemed to have fixed the problem. That doesn't really fit with the "warming up" or "battery" hypotheses here, but hopefully this post will also lead to more information. Clearly, if there are two at my garage then this is a bug that needs to get identified. Thanks.

 

[sboz4]

Hello all. I've read through the posts here and experienced the same this morning. I've had my 2018 Atlas almost a year with no real issues. What has been posted all makes sense. I park mine in the garage so it isn't exposed to temperatures at night unless we are traveling. The weather here today dropped drastically overnight with wind chill in negatives. This morning when I backed out of garage and drove, there were no warnings or issues. However, I went to work, parked, went in for few hours, went to leave and when I started it, that's when I got the same warning message as you all. I drove it for a bit, all with the warning still on, no explanation on the monitor or in the manual, parked it, went in to a store. When I came out a bit later and started it, warning was gone. And still no other issues. I have left a message with VW dealer I bought it from and haven't heard back. I am wondering if this warning does in fact have to do with temperature outside and letting engine/transmission warm up. I have recently had the oil changed but don't think anything happened while it was there. I will update post if I hear back from dealership.

 

[OSUMFT]

Hi there -- My dealership actually has my Atlas right now. They diagnosed this problem: something about the transmission gear box or harness...something....is sending faulty signals to the computer. It's not a problem with the car, it's a problem with that element of the car sending faulty signals. Luckily this issue is still covered by warranty. Unfortunately, the fix is going to take about 4-5 days because of the diagnosing, parts, and repairs. Hope this helps.

 

[sboz4]

Good to know. My dealership told me to keep an eye on mine and if it happens again to schedule an appointment. I will keep what you were told in mind when I talk to them. Thanks!

 

[wrench69]

Update on my transmission issue: The dealer had the car for 3 weeks. During that time, they changed the MAF sensor, which did not fix the problem. They then told me the engineers at VW advised them to change the engine wiring harness. They had to order the part. Of course, they ordered the wrong part, and had to reorder it. This time, it has to come from Germany. They say it will be 5-6 weeks, or even longer because of the travel restrictions currently in place from the Corona Virus. Awesome. So I told them to put it back together and let me drive it until the new part comes in. More updates to follow when that happens. If I am still alive by then...

 

[OSUMFT]

Hi there: When I took my Atlas back (see comment #6), they ended up keeping my vehicle for about 3.25 weeks. They also had to order a part, but I'm not certain where they got it. They said the repair was extremely labor intensive because they had to take so many things apart. Luckily, my dealer provided a loaner car for us. Since the repair, we've had no problems. But I will say the transmission feels different. When I move it into drive or park, the gearshift seems to have more tension than before. Otherwise, it's running just like it always did. If there is someone on here who needs the language from my repair receipts, I can copy it and share. But if this is going to be a problem with all Atlas's, I hope customers find it before the warranty runs out.