Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain 2012-2016 Eos, 2012 Passat, 2012-2016 CC, 2015-2016 e-Golf, 2011-2015 Touareg, 2012-2015 and 2017 Tiguan, and 2011-2016 Golf and 2011-2013 GTI vehicles. Modifications made while the vehicles were in an internal evaluation period may cause the affected vehicles to not comply with all of the applicable regulatory requirements.
Safety risk
If the vehicles do not meet all regulatory requirements, there could be an increased risk of a crash, fire, or injury.
Manufacturer remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles to make them fully compliant or Volkswagen will repurchase them if necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 29, 2018. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-893-5298.
Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. (Volkswagen) is recalling certain model year 2010-2014 Volkswagen CC, and Passat, 2010-2013 Eos, 2011-2014 Golf, GTI, Jetta, and Tiguan, and 2012-2014 Jetta Sportwagen vehicles. In the affected vehicles, debris may contaminate the air bag clock spring, a spiral wound, flat cable that keeps the air bag powered while the steering wheel is being turned. This contamination may tear the cable and result in a loss of electrical connection to the driver's frontal air bag.
Safety risk
A loss of electrical connection to the driver's frontal air bag will prevent the air bag from deploying in the event of a vehicle crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Manufacturer remedy
Volkswagen will notify owners, and dealers will install a protective cover over the steering wheel clock spring if the air bag light is off. If the airbag light is on and the steering wheel clock spring requires replacement, dealers will install a new steering wheel clock spring. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on January 15, 2016. Owners may contact Volkswagen customer service at 1-800-822-8987.
Owner complaints
A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.
Component
Complaints
Median mileage
Engine
13
50,000 mi
Power train
7
10,498 mi
Service brakes
5
40,000 mi
Air bags
4
60,000 mi
Electrical system
4
50,000 mi
Fuel/propulsion system
4
84,500 mi
Vehicle speed control
4
26,000 mi
Unknown or other
3
35,267 mi
Air bags: frontal: driver clockspring/spiral cassette
1
—
Engine and engine cooling
1
50,000 mi
Exterior lighting
1
90,000 mi
Steering
1
—
Structure: body
1
110,000 mi
Tires
1
11,641 mi
Visibility/wiper
1
15 mi
Visibility: sun/moon roof assembly
1
20,754 mi
The 2011 model has about half as many complaints as this one. The 2013 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.
Open investigations
An investigation is not a recall. It indicates that NHTSA is currently evaluating an alleged defect but has not reached a final determination.
EA18003Air Bag Clockspring Failure
Air bags: frontal: driver clockspring/spiral cassette
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.