Air bags: frontal: passenger side: inflator module
Manufacturer
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Vehicles affected
1,216
Reported to NHTSA
2022-07-27
Owners notified
2022-12-16
Defect description
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2016 Audi TT Roadster, TT Coupe, S3 Sedan, R8 Coupe, A3 Sedan, A3 Etron, A3 Cabriolet, 2016 Golf Sportwagen, Golf R, Golf GTI, Golf A7, and E Golf vehicles. During air bag deployment, the front passenger air bag may explode or deploy improperly.
Safety risk
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking occupants, resulting in serious injury or death. An improper air bag deployment may not properly restrain the occupant, increasing their risk of injury in a crash.
Manufacturer remedy
Dealers will replace the front-passenger air bag module, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 16, 2022. Owners may contact Volkswagen's customer service at 1-800-893-5298. Audi's customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Volkswagen's number for this recall is 69DY and 61C1.
Air bags: sensor: occupant classification: front passenger
Manufacturer
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Vehicles affected
153,152
Reported to NHTSA
2021-03-22
Owners notified
2021-12-23
Defect description
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Audi S3 Sedan, A3 Sedan, 2016-2018 A3 Etron, 2017-2020 RS3 Sedan, and 2015-2019 A3 Cabriolet vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may malfunction and switch off the passenger air bag even when the seat is occupied.
Safety risk
A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.
Manufacturer remedy
Dealers will replace the PODS sensor mat and update the PODS control module, free of charge. Owners letters were mailed December 23, 2021. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number for this recall is 69BY.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Audi S3 Sedan, 2015-2019 A3 Sedan and A3 Cabriolet, 2016-2018 A3 e-tron, and 2017-2019 RS3 vehicles. An improper electrical contact may cause the Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS) to falsely detect a malfunction and deactivate the passenger air bag.
Safety risk
A deactivated passenger air bag increases the risk of injury during a crash.
Manufacturer remedy
Audi will notify owners, and dealers will replace the connector and reroute the cable, free of charge. The recall began September 12, 2019. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number for this recall is 69Z4.
Owner complaints
A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.
Component
Complaints
Median mileage
Tires
1
2,500 mi
Visibility/wiper
1
10,000 mi
The 2017 model has roughly the same number of complaints as this one. These figures reflect raw complaint counts, not failure rates. Higher-selling model years naturally receive more complaints.
Safety recall repairs are provided free of charge by franchised dealers, regardless of vehicle age or mileage. This page displays aggregated data for the model year. To check recall status for a specific vehicle, search its VIN at nhtsa.gov.