Selling an old or broken Volkswagen Routan

If your Routan has quit starting, has sliding doors that fight you, or simply isn't worth another repair, you don't have to fix it. We buy whole non-running and junk cars, with free pickup anywhere in the US.

Complaints and recalls by model year

We took the Routan's complaint numbers from NHTSA owner records dated October 10, 2026. Three complaints are filed under 2008, a year EPA's data does not list for the Routan.

After the electrical system, owners name the engine (95 complaints), service brakes (62) and the power train (29). The low counts for 2013 and 2014 have a reason: Wikipedia says production was halted in 2012 because of high inventory, and those two model years went mainly to rental companies and other fleets.

The two Routans

Wikipedia lists a 62TE six-speed automatic for every Routan and two engine eras.

2009-2010: the 3.8 and 4.0 V6 vans

These are the years with the most complaints and most of the recalls. The ignition is the thread running through them:

• 11V151 (2010, 12,612 vans): the key could move from Run to Accessory while driving. Dealers replace the WIN module.
• 14V396 (2009, 18,526 vehicles in the whole campaign, which may cover other models): an ignition fault that can affect the air bags. Until the repair, owners were told to take everything off the key ring except the ignition key.
• 15V194 (2009-2010, 20,676 vans): dealers replace the ignition switch and the key fobs. Wikipedia quotes the reason: if the switch is jarred, the key can be jostled out of Run.

Other 2009 campaigns: a sliding door wire harness that could be routed badly (10V252, 15,902 vans), air bag control units that may corrode and stop working (16V083, 1,037 vans built in 2008), and an owner's manual printed without the required air bag information (09V244).

One more 2009 campaign shows why recall counts need care. Recall 14V055 came from Freedom Motors of Savaria Vehicle Group, and its 130 vehicles include 2008-2010 Dodge Grand Caravans and Chrysler Town & Countrys. It covers a single 2009 Routan.

2011-2014: the Pentastar vans

From 2011 the Routan used Chrysler's 3.6 Pentastar V6. The 2011 still drew 175 complaints, and they list 21 people injured, the most of any year. The only later recall, 12V147, covers 15 vans from 2012 with a right rear hub and bearing that may not have been fully seated.

Fix the van or sell it?

A minivan this age is often worth less than one big repair. Line up the quote against what a running Routan of the same year sells for.

1. Check the VIN first at NHTSA's recall lookup. Ignition recall work is listed at no charge, and an unfinished one does not block a sale; see open recall.
2. Electrical gremlins that keep coming back are the most common complaint. The electrical problems guide covers when to stop paying for diagnosis.
3. Engine or transmission gone? See blown engine or bad transmission.

Selling a Routan whole

Sell the whole van as it sits, seats and all. Don't pull the seats, the wheels or the catalytic converter; tell us about anything already removed.

Request an offer online or by calling (877) 421-6008. Mention if the engine turns over, if the van rolls in neutral, and what it's parked on: gravel, a driveway, a storage lot. The truck comes to the van, and pickup is free anywhere in the US. Keep the title, your ID and every key and fob together for pickup day. Lost them? See no keys.

Other Volkswagen people movers: the Eurovan, the Atlas and the ID. Buzz, or see all Volkswagen models.