Model year record

2018 Audi A4

1 recall campaign on file for this model year. 133 owner complaints on file.

Recalls

Recall campaignNHTSA 21V874000

Air bags: sensor: occupant classification: front passenger

Component: Air bags: sensor: occupant classification: front passenger
Manufacturer: Volkswagen Group of America, Inc.
Vehicles affected: 208,332
Reported to NHTSA: 2021-11-10
Owners notified: 2022-01-07

Defect description

Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Audi) is recalling certain 2017-2020 A4 Allroad, A4 Sedan, 2018-2019 RS5 Coupe, 2019 RS5 Sportback, 2018-2020 A5 Cabriolet, A5 Coupe, A5 Sportback, S4 Sedan, S5 Cabriolet, S5 Coupe, and Audi S5 Sportback vehicles. The cable connecting the seat heater to the Passenger Occupant Detection System (PODS) may have a contact fault, causing the software to misdiagnose a malfunction and disable the passenger air bag.

Safety risk

A disabled passenger air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.

Manufacturer remedy

Dealers will replace the connecting cable and either the heating mat or entire seat cover, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 7, 2022. Owners may contact Audi customer service at 1-800-253-2834. Audi's number for this recall is 74E3. This recall is an expansion of Recall 19V-547 (74D9). Vehicles previously repaired under 19V-547 will need to return for the new remedy.

Owner complaints

A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.

Component	Complaints	Median mileage
Unknown or other	33	—
Electrical system	30	—
Structure: body	11	10,000 mi
Fuel/propulsion system	10	14,000 mi
Engine	7	14,000 mi
Power train	6	14,000 mi
Air bags	5	—
Service brakes	5	—
Forward collision avoidance: automatic emergency braking	4	—
Forward collision avoidance: warnings	4	—
Suspension	3	—
Back over prevention: rearview system braking	2	—
Back over prevention: warnings	2	—
Engine and engine cooling	2	92,000 mi
Seats	2	—
Visibility/wiper	2	—
Wheels	2	—
Electrical system: starter assembly	1	—
Electronic stability control (ESC)	1	6,000 mi
Steering	1	—

The 2017 model has about 1.5 times as many complaints as this one. The 2019 model has 6 times as many 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.