The contact owns 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact stated that three of the tire pressure monitoring air valves fractured. The contact stated that two of the failures occurred while placing air in the tires and another failed on its own. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician replaced the valve stems but failed to indicate what caused the failure. The failure mileage was 60,000.

- Cambridge , MA, USA

I have a Volkswagen 2009 VW routon van...aka rebadged Chrysler mini van. The oem TPMS has a non-anodized aluminum valve retaining nut which cracked and caused a deflation at highway speed on the front driver side tire. To have a safety device that causes an unsafe condition and a catastrophic failure that could lead to injury or death is unacceptable. I have inspected the other three retaining nuts on the valve stems and found one that is cracked and the others have severe corrosion that will need repaired and replaced. A rubber and brass valve stem that was true and tried and "safe" for so many years was the accepted norm to be replaced when you put new tires on a vehicle. I now find myself asking, have engineers ignored and forgotten the principles of corrosion and the environment has on aluminum metals to make such a tire pressure monitoring system, that is set up to fail?

- Lakewood, NJ, USA

The valve stem broke off when I went to put air in it and the tire (front driver side) immediately deflated. The valve stem is metal and apparently corroded. About a month later the rear driver side began to leak and had to be replaced. Then today (3/4/14) the valve stem broke off the passenger front tire when I went to unscrew the cap (I could hear air hissing out before I even touched it). If this had happened while driving, I could have had a serious accident.

- Grand Rapids, MI, USA

Beginning on 2/09/2012 through 8/19/2013 there have been (3) incidents on this VIN of at least (1) wheel causing a severe vibration while driving. Upon inspection, the first (2) incidents revealed that the right front wheel had its lug nuts loosening while the other (3) wheels nut nuts were all tight and torqued to specs. On the last incident on 8/19/2013 (3) of the (5) right front wheel studs broke off causing severe vibration in the vehicle. Vehicle became inoperable and required a tow to the dealer.

- Maplewood, MN, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact stated that while driving 60 mph, the front driver's side tire went flat. The contact installed the spare tire and took the tire to an independent mechanic for diagnosis. The contact was informed that the valve stem had become extremely corroded. The manufacturer was notified but offered no assistance. The failure and current mileage was 52,000.

- Wayne, NJ, USA

Recently I noticed a low tire pressure on the left front wheel of my Volkswagen Routan. When I attempted to add air to the tire, the stem pushed into the wheel and the tire deflated. The metal tire pressure stem is attached to tire pressure sensing units on each wheel. When I examined the stem I noticed that the nut that locks the stem in position had disintegrated from corrosion. The only thing holding the stem in position was the pressure within the tire. When the stem was touched and moved, the tire immediately deflated. I found the same defect on the other wheels. Any contact with the tire pressure servicing stem, caused the retaining nut to break off into pieces. Each stem and retaining nut showed signs of severe corrosion. Due to the extreme high cost of replacement sensors, I was forced to replace the sensors with standard rubber tire stems. The vehicle is a 2009 with only 36,000 miles. The vehicle is exposed to road salt and im sure that accelerated the corrosion of the attaching nut, but this is a serious design flaw that might result in a tire deflation without warning. I feel these sensors are defective and need to be recalled. This is a single vehicle with low mileage, having four severely corroded and failed tire pressure sensors. I suspect there are many others. These faulty sensors could very well be the cause of a serious accident or injury. It seems to be a known issue with the car dealer but I dont believe there is any specific inspection or service requirements for these valves/sensors. The parts are marked with the following identification numbers: Daimler Chrysler 56053031ad #0193ht-2 siemens vdo I have saved the failed parts and I will provide them if required.

- Groton, MA, USA

While putting air in my tires, the valve stem broke off of the tire while trying to remove the cap off of the stem and the tire deflated almost instantly. After looking at the broken valve stem, it appears like the cap and stem became corroded and was completely welded together. I still have this cap that broke off if it is needed for an investigation.

- Eldorado, OH, USA

In January of 2012 we started to notice a noise coming from the wheels of our vehicle. We at first thought it might be a chunk of snow caught in the wheel well but when we arrived home there was nothing there. Over the next couple of days the noise got significantly louder to be point you could not even hear the radio when it was turned on. I took it to a local shop where I was told both my front wheel bearings were bad and would need to be replace the rear wheel bearings would need to be replace soon also as they were going back as well. The technician was going to check with VW on an extended warranty of the assembly as they are the same ones that were given an extended warranty by the Chrysler group because of poor makeup. VW stated that they are aware of the issue but is not honoring the same extended warranty. The letter on fill from Chrysler is csc-10037659-4297. This is a youtube video that I found with the same issue as my vehicle; www.youtube.com/watch?V=hqrsfmlkmre

- Eagle, WI, USA

While driving on the I-94 in sheboygan, wi, my tire pressure light went on. I stopped at a valvoline tire and lube to have the tires looked at as my rear tire was almost flat. The person was unable to fill the tire with air because the valve stem was pushed completely into the tire and there was no way to fill the tire. At closer inspection all four tire valve stems and sensor assemblies were corroded to the point that they would all need to be replaced immediately. VW stated that this is not a warranty or recall issue and that it would cost over $200 each with labor. I was told by the technician that if the stem would have completely broke while driving down the road it would have lost pressure right away and could have cause an accident.

- Eagle, WI, USA

The contact owns a 2009 Volkswagen Routan. The contact stated the tire pressure monitor failed due to corrosion. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who stated the failure was caused by the tps system valve stem nut which was corroded. The contact also stated that the drivers rear tire blew out due to the nut corrosion. The vehicle was repaired. The tire pressure valves were replaced. The failure mileage was 65,000 and the current mileage was 74,000.

- Concoard Township , OH, USA

Two tires have blown out on my Routan due to corroded valve stems. The first time, on 3/16/11, I had just pulled into a parking lot when I heard a loud noise and felt my tire go flat. Belle tire told me that the valve stem had corroded and popped off, essentially blowing out my tire. Stupidly, I didn't think anything of it. The second time happened on 12/31/11. My 19-year-old daughter was driving the Routan on an expressway where the speed limit is 70 mph.. she said she heard a loud noise, and then the car started veering. She managed to keep control of the Routan and get it over to the side of the road, where the tire was flat and shredded. Again, belle tire told us that the valve stem had corroded and fell off, blowing out the tire. A third valve stem and nut on the Routan is cracked and corroded. They also told us that General Motors and Ford have switched to rubber valve stems because of this problem. Contacted VW. They looked at the car. The will not fix the problem. This car is an accident waiting to happen.

- Shelby Township, MI, USA

While trying to check the tire pressure, the valve stems broke off on two of the tires (one in the front, one in the rear) causing the tires to deflate completely within 10 seconds. Had this occurred while driving the vehicle, this incident would likely have rendered the vehicle uncontrollable with potentially serious consequences to the health and safety of passengers and others. The dealer will replace the valves but has advised me that this issue is not covered by warranty. Since my vehicle is probably not the only one affected I will try to carry this to a higher level through my dealership.

- Reston, VA, USA